Plaza de España is one of the popular tourist attractions of Madrid and a popular meeting place of the city as well.
The Plaza de España is a popular square located in the heart of the city, at the end of Gran Via, which is one of the widely used streets in Madrid. It is one of the largest squares in the city which has a big fountain and a statue of Cervantes. Plaza de España lies in close proximity to the Royal Palace of Madrid and two of the most well-known skyscrapers of the city.
History of Plaza de España
The present location of the Plaza de España was originally occupied by a military barrack during the 18th and 19th centuries. After the demolition of this barrack, a general public square was constructed at its place during the turn of the 19th-10h century. Gradually, this square became a common meeting spot for all and became the now famous Plaza de España.
Statue of Miguel de Cervantes
The most remarkable feature of the Plaza de España of
|
Madrid is the statue of Miguel de Cervantes, the world-renowned writer of famous stories on Don Quixote and his minister, Sancho Panza. The statue of Cervantes is located in the centre of the Plaza de España and was built in the year 1928. Apart from the statue of Cervantes, two bronze status of Don Quixote on his horse and Sancho Panza on his mule are also erected in front of Cervantes’ statue.
Skyscrapers near Plaza de España
Around the 1950’s two of the city’s tallest buildings were erected close to the Plaza de España. One of the monuments was the Edificio de España which was constructed in between 1947 to 1953. The monument comprises of 25 storeys and has two wings. The second skyscraper near the Plaza de España is the Torre de Madrid which was built in the year 1957. It has a height of 142 meters and was regarded as the tallest concrete structure in the world and also in Madrid, until the Torre Picasso was constructed in the year 1989.
The Plaza de España is one of the must-visit tourist attractions of Madrid which provides a glimpse of the daily lives of the locals and has an old-world charm of its own.
|