[13] It is home to numerous landmarks, including the Guadalajara Cathedral, the Degollado Theatre, the Templo Expiatorio, the UNESCO World Heritage site Hospicio Cabañas, and the San Juan de Dios Market—the largest indoor market in Latin America.

On November 8, 1539, the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V had granted a coat of arms and the title of city to the new town and established it as the capital of the Kingdom of Nueva Galicia, part of the Viceroyalty of New Spain.

After 1572, the Royal Audiencia of Guadalajara, previously subordinate to Mexico City, became the only authority in New Spain with autonomy over Nueva Galicia, owing to rapidly growing wealth in the kingdom following the discovery of silver.

[20] While capital of the Kingdom of Nueva Galicia, the city's inhabitants achieved a high standard of living, due to flourishing industry, agriculture, commerce, mining, and trade.

The city's heyday attracted numerous architects, philosophers, lawyers, scientists, poets, writers, and speakers; Francisco Javier Clavijero and Matías Ángel de la Mota Padilla [es] were among the most prominent.

Despite a soured welcome, due to the rebel army's violence toward city residents, especially royalists, Hidalgo kept his promise and, on December 6, 1810, slavery was abolished in Guadalajara, a proclamation which has been honored since the end of the war.

[25] Insurgents Ignacio Allende and Mariano Abasolo wanted to concentrate their forces in the city and plan an escape route should they be defeated, but Hidalgo rejected this idea.

Rail lines connecting the city to the Pacific coast and north to the United States intensified trade and allowed the shipment of products from rural areas of Jalisco.

The presence of companies such as Kodak, Hewlett-Packard, Motorola and IBM has been based on production facilities built outside the city proper, bringing in foreign labor and capital.

[41] The 1992 explosions caused massive infrastructure damage to hundreds of houses, avenues, streets, and businesses in the Analco neighborhood (barrio), "without a clear delineator of information and responsibilities to date",[42] in one of the most tragic events in the history of Guadalajara.

La Cascada Cola de Caballo (The Horse Tail Waterfall) is located on the Guadalajara to Zacatecas road (Highway 54, km 15) a few kilometers from the Northern Peripheral, just after passing the village of San Esteban.

Over time, villages surrounding Guadalajara were incorporated into the city - first Analco to the southeast, then Mexicaltzingo to the south, Mezquitan to the north, and San Juan de Dios to the east, all of which introduced more variety to the plan.

When the railway was introduced to Guadalajara in 1888, the southern part of the city began development, and its streets aligned with the grid to the east of the old Rio San Juan de Dios.

The helmet represents a degree of nobility, victory in the combat, the cross of Jerusalem means that the conquerors were descendants of the gentlemen of the crusades, and the lance signifies strength that is tempered by prudence.

The municipality of Guadalajara is located in the center of the State, a little to the east, at coordinates 20-&36' 40" to 20- 45' 00" north latitude and 103- 16' 00" to 103- 24' 00" west-latitude and 103-&16' 00" to 103- 24' 00" west-west longitude, at a height of 1700 meters above sea level.

[20] This activity has mainly focused on the purchase and sale of the following products: food and beverages, textiles, electronic appliances, tobacco, cosmetics, sports articles, construction materials, and others.

This $530 million mixed-use complex opened in 2008, designed by renowned Mexican Sordo Madaleno architecture firm features luxury residences and a high-level mall anchored by two large department stores, Liverpool and El Palacio de Hierro.

[20] In addition to being a cultural and recreational attraction and thanks to its privileged geographical location, the city serves as an axis to nearby popular beach destinations such as Puerto Vallarta, Manzanillo and Mazatlán.

[citation needed] This city has been the cradle and dwelling of distinguished poets, writers, painters, actors, film directors and representatives of the arts, etc., such as José Clemente Orozco, Dr. Atl, Roberto Montenegro, Alejandro Zohn, Luis Barragán, Carlos Orozco Romero, Federico Fabregat, Raul Anguiano, Juan Soriano, Javier Campos Cabello, Martha Pacheco, Alejandro Colunga, José Fors, Juan Kraeppellin, Davis Birks, Carlos Vargas Pons, Jis, Trino, Erandini, Enrique Oroz, Rubén Méndez, Mauricio Toussaint, Scott Neri, Paula Santiago, Edgar Cobian, L. Felipe Manzano, and (the artist formerly known as Mevna); the freeplay guitarist and music composer for the movies El Mariachi and The Legend of Zorro, Paco Rentería; important exponents of literature such as Juan Rulfo, Francisco Rojas, Agustín Yáñez, Elías Nandino, Idella Purnell, Jorge Souza, among others; classic repertoire composers such as Gonzalo Curiel, José Pablo Moncayo, Antonio Navarro, Ricardo Zohn, Carlos Sánchez-Gutiérrez and Gabriel Pareyon; film directors such as Felipe Cazals, Jaime Humberto Hermosillo, Erik Stahl, Guillermo del Toro; and actors such as Katy Jurado, Enrique Alvarez Felix, and Gael García Bernal.

The museums in Guadalajara belong to the cultural framework of the city, among which are in all its genres exhibiting history, paleontology, archeology, ethnography, paintings, crafts, plastic, photography, sculpture, works of circuits international art, etc.

Mariachi bands from all over the world participate, coming from countries such as Venezuela, Cuba, Belgium, Chile, France, Australia, Slovak Republic, Canada and the United States.

The current name was adopted in 1988/ International soloists such as Paul Badura-Skoda, Claudio Arrau, Jörg Demus, Henryck Szeryng, Nicanor Zabaleta, Plácido Domingo, Kurt Rydl and Alfred Brendel have performed with the organization.

Typical Mexican dishes, such as pozole, tamales, sopes, enchiladas, tacos, menudo (soup), carne en su jugo and frijoles charros are popular.

It consists of a salted bun or roll (typically birote) smeared with refried beans, with fried pork cut into pieces — also known as "carnitas" — all in tomato sauce seasoned with spices.

They are known in the country as 'The academy', hence they have provided Mexico's finest football players, among them: Rafael Márquez, Oswaldo Sánchez, Pável Pardo, Andrés Guardado, and the Mexican national team's former top scorer Jared Borgetti.

Starting in October 2014, Guadalajara rejoined the Liga Mexicana del Pacífico baseball tournament with the Charros de Jalisco franchise in play at the Athletic Stadium.

COPAG (the Organizing Committee for the Pan American Games Guadalajara 2011) had a total budget of US$250 million with the aim of updating the city's sports and general infrastructure.

[120] Lorena Ochoa, a now-retired former #1 female golfer, Sergio Pérez, a former Formula One driver, and Javier "Chicharito" Hernández, a forward who currently plays for LA Galaxy and the Mexico national team were also born in the city.

[20][123] Urbanization centered on the city spreads out over seven other municipalities; of Zapopan, Tlaquepaque, Tonalá, Tlajomulco, El Salto, Ixtlahuacán de los Membrillos, and Juanacatlán.

[124][31] Guadalajara is an important hub for higher education in both Mexico and Latin America, as the home to numerous nationally and internationally ranked universities and research centers.