Plaza de Mayo

Coordinates: 34°36′30″S 58°22′19″W / 34.60833°S 58.37194°W / -34.60833; -58.37194
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Plaza de Mayo
City square
Palacio de Hacienda.
Opening date1580 (Plaza Mayor)
1884 (unification)
LocationMonserrat
Buenos Aires, Argentina
Plaza de Mayo is located in Buenos Aires
Plaza de Mayo
Plaza de Mayo
Location of Plaza de Mayo in Buenos Aires
Coordinates: 34°36′30″S 58°22′19″W / 34.60833°S 58.37194°W / -34.60833; -58.37194

The Plaza de Mayo (Spanish pronunciation:

Argentine history, as well as the largest popular demonstrations in the country. On the occasion of the first anniversary of the May Revolution in 1811, the Pirámide de Mayo
(English: May Pyramid) was inaugurated in the square's hub, becoming Buenos Aires' first national monument.

It is located in the

Cabildo, the Casa Rosada (seat of the President of Argentina), the Metropolitan Cathedral, the Buenos Aires City Hall, and the Bank of the Argentine Nation's headquarters. Underneath its lands are the Underground stations of Plaza de Mayo (Line A), Catedral (Line D), and Bolívar (Line E
).

History

The modern plaza took form in 1884 when the colonnade separating the Plaza de la Victoria and the Plaza del Fuerte was demolished. Its origins, however, can be traced back to

Jesuit clergymen in 1608 secured a title to much of the 2 hectares (4.9 acres) lot, on which Garay's earlier plans for a central plaza had been abandoned. In 1661, the local governor purchased the eastern half for inclusion into the grounds of the city's new fort; this section soon became the Plaza de Armas.[1]

Following over a century of overuse and neglect, the local colonial government attempted to give a semblance of order to the plaza by having a colonnade built across it from north to south. Completed in 1804, the

May Pyramid, a monument put up to commemorate the newly independent "Provinces of the Rio de la Plata". That year, however, Mayor Torcuato de Alvear ordered the space modernized, resulting in the colonnade's demolition and the creation of the modern Plaza de Mayo.[1]

  • Oath of the Constitution of Buenos Aires, 1854.
    Oath of the Constitution of Buenos Aires, 1854.
  • The old colonnade, 1864.
    The old colonnade, 1864.
  • 1867 view of the Plaza.
    1867 view of the Plaza.
  • The Cathedral and May Pyramid, c. 1880.
    The Cathedral and May Pyramid, c. 1880.
  • Fiestas Mayas, 1899.
    Fiestas Mayas, 1899.
  • Celebration of the May Revolution, 1910.
    Celebration of the May Revolution, 1910.
  • Rare snowfall on Buenos Aires, at the Plaza de Mayo, 1918.
    Rare snowfall on Buenos Aires, at the Plaza de Mayo, 1918.

Surroundings

Location of buildings surrounding the Plaza de Mayo
Eastern side
Northern side Southern side
Secretariat of Intelligence
Casa Rosada
Hacienda Palace
Bank of the Argentine Nation
May Pyramid
Federal Administration of Public Revenue
Metropolitan Cathedral of Buenos Aires
Bank zone
Diagonal Norte
Buenos Aires City Hall
Avenida de Mayo
Buenos Aires Cabildo
Diagonal Sur
Western side

Political significance

The Plaza de Mayo has always been the focal point of political life in Buenos Aires. Its current name commemorates the May Revolution of 1810, which started the process towards the country's independence from Spain in 1816.

1940s – 1960s

On October 17, 1945, mass

Juan Domingo Perón, who would later become President of Argentina; during his tenure, the Peronist movement gathered every October 17 in the Plaza de Mayo to show their support for their leader (and October 17 is still "Loyalty Day" for the traditional Peronists). Many other presidents, both democratic and military, have also saluted people in the Plaza from the Casa Rosada's balcony.[2]

In an attempt to overthrow President Perón, the plaza was bombed during one of the populist leader's many rallies there on 16 June 1955, killing 364.[3]

1970s – present

Years later, in 1974, Perón, then president for the third time, expelled from the Plaza members of the Montoneros, an armed organization on the far left that had contributed to the aging leader's return from exile the previous year and had since demanded influence within the national government. Perón's final appearance at the plaza, on 12 June, was marked by an acrimonious break with the far left, leading to two years of violence and repression and, ultimately, a coup d'état.

Crowds gathered once again on April 2, 1982, and several occasions thereafter to hail de facto President Leopoldo Galtieri for Argentina's invasion of the Falkland Islands, which launched the Falklands War (Spanish: Guerra de las Malvinas/Guerra del Atlántico Sur).

The plaza, since 1977, is where the

Argentine military in the Dirty War, during the National Reorganization Process. People perceived to be supportive of subversive activities (that would include expressing left-wing ideas, or having any link with these people, however tenuous) would be illegally detained, subject to abuse and torture, and finally murdered in secret. The Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo took advantage of the symbolic importance of the Plaza to open the public's eyes to what the military regime was doing.[4]

Protests have continued taking place, with the major last one being during the

December 2001 riots when five protesters were killed and several others injured by police as they rioted around the Plaza de Mayo.[5]

Today

daytime skyline of a square
A panorama of Plaza de Mayo. On the center you can see the May Pyramid

Today, Plaza de Mayo continues to be an indispensable tourist attraction for those who visit Buenos Aires.

Several of the city's major landmarks are located around the Plaza: the

microcentro), affectionately known as la City (sic) also lies besides the Plaza.[4]

Gallery

See also

  • Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo

References

  1. ^ a b Correia, Bruno Ivan (22 March 2021). "Antigua Recova. Cuando la Plaza de Mayo eran dos". La Nación (in Spanish). Retrieved 15 February 2022.
  2. ^ Castillo, Leonardo (17 October 2021). "A 76 años del día que el pueblo colmó la Plaza de Mayo y cambió la historia argentina". Télam (in Spanish). Retrieved 15 February 2022.
  3. ^ 1955 bombardeo en plaza de mayo – Nocturnar.com Archived 2016-08-06 at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ a b "Plaza de Mayo". buenosaires.gob.ar. 6 September 2017. Retrieved 15 February 2022.
  5. ^ Ramírez, Damián (18 December 2011). "Los muertos que dejó el estallido social". La Nación (in Spanish). Retrieved 15 February 2022.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Plaza de Mayo.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Plaza_de_Mayo&oldid=1161757763"