The city's name is an amalgam of the names of Juan de San Miguel and Ignacio Allende, the former was a friar, while the later was a hero of Mexico's independence movement. True to its title, the city's culture and its environs celebrate both, culture and history. San Miguel de Allende was founded in the mid-16th century, over the years it was an established Spanish colony, which later saw a historic struggle for independence. However, after an influenza outbreak, the city suffered from mass abandonment in the 20th century. It was revived with the arrival of aficionados of art, history, architecture, and culture, and thus a settlement with a creative heart was born. The city's historic core along with the La Parroquia de San Miguel Arcángel and Angela Peralta Theater, are places where visitors can soak in the city's real charm that allured artists to the likes of David Alfaro Siqueiros.
