Monclova

Santiago de la Monclova, more commonly known as Monclova, is a city and seat of the surrounding municipality of the same name in the northern Mexican state of Coahuila. According to the 2015 INEGI census there were 231,107 inhabitants in the city and 231,107 in the municipality. Its metropolitan area (Monclova, Frontera, Castaños, San Buenaventura) has 363,753 inhabitants and has a population density of 29.88 inhabitants per square kilometers. Monclova is the third largest city in Coahuila (after Saltillo and Torreón).HistoryEstablished on July 25, 1577, Monclova became the first city in the region known as Coahuila, and later known as the State of Coahuila.During the colonial period and the first years of the 19th century, Monclova served as the capital of Nueva Extremadura. It remained the capital during the early years of Mexico's independence.During the initial battle for Mexican Independence from Spain, fleeing rebel leaders who had been captured at the Wells of Bajan were first taken to Monclova before the long trip to the city of Chihuahua. The captured leaders were Juan Aldama, Ignacio Allende, Miguel Hidalgo, and Jose Mariano Jimenez.With the adoption of the 1824 Constitution, which created the state of Coahuila y Tejas, the capital was transferred to Saltillo. In 1828 this decision was overturned when Monclova was declared the capital of the new state, however the state legislature continued to convene in Saltillo. On March 9, 1833, the state legislature settled the dispute in Monclova's favour, and this decision was ratified by President Antonio López de Santa Anna on December 2, 1834.