A Franciscan mission was
established in the city in 1583, nine years
before the city's founding in 1592. San Luis
grew rapidly thanks to the region's rich gold
and silver mines, a source of the Mexican
treasures that filled the Manila galleons.

The city is named after
Louis IX of France (also known in Mexico as
San Luis Rey de Francia, Saint Louis, King of
France), its patron saint. The Potosí was
added in reference to the fabulously rich
mines of Potosí, Bolivia, discovered some
forty years before the city was founded.

The city is known for its
European influenced architecture.
Architecturally, downtown San Luis is very
similar to cities in Spain.

The "Plaza de Armas" is home
to a cathedral and governor's palace, and
chatting couples and families enjoying
popsicles can be seen around the city at
times. The nearby "Templo de Nuestra Señora
del Carmen," with its colorful tiled domes and
famous altars, is considered among Mexico's
finest churches.

San Luis Potosí, also called
SLP or simply San Luis, is the capital of and
most populous city in the state of San Luis
Potosí. At an elevation of 1850 meters (6,070
feet), the city is 300 m higher than the U.S.
city of Denver, Colorado.

In the last census the
metropolitan area of San Luis Potosí, had an
approximately population of 957,753.

The historic center and
adjacent sites are currently candidates to
become World Heritage Site by Unesco, some of
its historic sites are:

The Universidad Autónoma de
San Luis Potosí (UASLP) is in the city, based
on a Jesuit College founded in 1624 and is
recognized as one of Latin America's best
universities.

For a time in 1863 during
the French invasion of gross, San Luis Potosí
served as the capital of the republican
government under President Benito Juárez.

The Plan of San Luis Potosí,
issued November 20, 1910, was the opening shot
of Mexico's revolution against the dictator
Porfirio Díaz. The Mexican presidential
election of 1910 was stolen when Díaz had his
opponent Francisco I. Madero arrested and
imprisoned. Madero fled and issued the Plan of
San Luis Potosí, declaring the election void
and calling upon Mexicans to take up arms
against the government.

Some of the major sites
outside the historic center are: Sierra de
Álvarez y Valle de los Fantasmas, Parque
Tangamanga I, being the second largest urban
park in México only after Mexico City
Chapultepec Park, Parque Tangamanga II, Camino
a la Presa de San José, Manantiales y
Balneario de Gogorrón, Pueblo de Santa María
del Río, famous for its silk rebozos y Cañada
del Lobo.

San Luis Potosí is
considered the tenth largest metropolitan area
in Mexico, with a population of approximately
one million inhabitants. The city is a major
commercial and industrial center worldwide. It
lies in an economically advantageous area at
the heart of the "triangle" formed by the
three largest cities in Mexico: Mexico City,
Guadalajara and Monterrey.

In recent years, the city
has attracted the attention of European and
American investors due to political, social
and economic stability. This has led to the
opening of large multinational companies that
have aided in the city's economic development.
Recently San Luis Potosi and its metropolitan
area was named the third best city in which to
live in Mexico.

Begins and ends in Mexico City.

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