Last modified: 2022-08-13 by juan manuel gabino villascán
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by Juan Manuel Gabino Villascán
from coat of arms by
Gobierno Muncipal de León,
June 27, 2011
by Juan Manuel Gabino Villascán
from coat of arms by
Gobierno Muncipal de León,
June 27, 2011
The municipality of León (1,436,733 inhabitants in 2010; 1,220 sq. km) is located in the center of the Guanajuato State.
León and its surroundings were first visited on 2 February 1530, when the conquistador Nuño de Guzmán and his Tarascan troops crossed river Lerma and named the place "Valle de Nuestra Señora". Colonization started in 1546, when Vázquez de Coronado, Governor of New Galicia, granted land to Rodrigo de Vázquez and Juan de Jasso. The colonists soon asked the Viceroy to found a permanent settlement to protect the colonized area, threatened by the Chichimecas (indeed the early inhabitants of the invaded region).
On 12 December 1575, Viceroy Martín Enríquez de Almanza ordered to found the settlement of León, named for his birth place in Spain; the actual foundation was made on 20 January 1576 by Juan Bautista de Orozco. In 1580, León was granted the title of "Alcaldía Mayor" (Main Municipality) and jurisdiction over a big territory spreading from the Comanja mountain range to river Lerma. The western limit of the municipality was the border between the Kingdoms of New Spain and New Galicia. In 1787, León became a Subdelegation dependent of the Guanajuato Intendency. In 1830, the town was renamed León de los Aldama and granted the title of "ciudad".
Quoted by Ivan Sache, June 28, 2011
from Gobierno Muncipal de León.
The municipal symbols of León are prescribed by a Decree adopted on 18 September 2008 by the Municipal Council, as follows:
"Decree approving the official symbols of León:
a) The coat of arms, for official use by the government of the municipality and of its dependencies, as well as by the Leonese natives and citizens;
b) The flag, for exclusive use in official ceremonies and events;
c) The gonfalon, for exclusive use in official ceremonies and events;
d) The motto "EL TRABAJO TODO LO VENCE" [Work triumphs over everything], for official use by the municipal servants in office and communications;
e) [The anthem]The coat of arms, flag and gonfalon shall have the following characteristics and design (...)
The Decree shows black and white images of the coat of arms, flag and gonfalon.
Quoted by Ivan Sache, June 26, 2011
from:
Official Decree on the 'Signos Leoneses'
Dark green color, so-called 'flag green'. In the middle of the flag is placed the emblem of the municipality of León; under the emblem and also centered the writing in golden yellow letters, on a single line 'MUNICIPIO DE LEÓN, GTO'. The flag bordered with a golden fringe. The green and golden yellow colors of the flag recall maize and wheat, the municipality of León being well-known as 'El Granero del Bajío" [The Grainbarn of the Bajío, the Bajío - lowlands - being a region of central Mexico].
Quoted by Ivan Sache, June 26, 2011
from:
Official Decree on the 'Signos Leoneses'
Made of white silk, rectangular, ending in a slightly rounded-off point; a golden fringe in base and on the upper edge. In the middle of the gonfalon is placed the emblem of the municipality of León, above it, the writing in golden yellow letters 'MUNICIPIO DE LEÓN, GTO'."
Quoted by Ivan Sache, June 26, 2011
from:
Official Decree on the 'Signos Leoneses'
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by Juan Manuel Gabino Villascán
from coat of arms by
Gobierno Muncipal de León,
June 27, 2011
This is a representation divided in four quarters. On the first quarter, a red field with an image alluding to the martyr of St. Sebastian, the patron saint of León, a town founded on a 20 January, this saint's day. On the second quarter, a field argent with the red lion rampant of Castile. On the third quarter, the coat of arms of the lineage of Martín Enríquez de Almanza, Viceroy of New Spain, who decided the foundation of León, described as: on its first and second division, a red field and a castle or, on the third division, a field argent with a red lion passant. On the fourth quarter [of the shield], a field azure with a bee hive and three bees argent, one in base and two in chief.
The shield surmounted by a mural crown with five towers, which is the heraldic representation of a 'city'. The symbol [shield] surrounded by golden acanthus leaves emerging from the lower centre and growing upwards. Under the shield is placed the motto in Spanish 'El trabajo todo lo vence' [Work triumphs over everything].
According to the municipal website, the today's coat of arms superseded the first coat of arms of the town, adopted in 1822, which showed the "Ojo de Agua" (Water's Eye), located today in the Hidalgo Park, the castle built by the Viceroy, the Loneliness hill and the Coecillo bridge.
Quoted by Ivan Sache, June 26, 2011
from:
Official Decree on the 'Signos Leoneses'
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