The Callao Square (Spanish: plaza del Callao)[1] is located at the centre of the Spanish capital of Madrid.
 View of the square in 2015 | |
 | |
| Native name | Plaza del Callao (Spanish) |
|---|---|
| Namesake | Battle of Callao |
| Type | square |
| Maintained by | Ayuntamiento of Madrid |
| Location | Centro, Madrid, Spain |
| Postal code | 28013 |
| Coordinates | 40°25′12″N 3°42′21″W / 40.419862°N 3.705828°W |
| Major junctions | Calle de Preciados, Gran Vía |
History and description
editShaped in 1861,[2] the square was formally opened in June 1866;[3] its name remembers the May 1866 battle of Callao between the Spanish naval forces under the command of Casto Méndez Núñez and the Peruvian army.[3]
The square was substantially and aggressively reformed in the 21st century.[4] The reform removed nearly all elements present by that time, except the metro station access and a big tree, turning the square into a pedestrian and homogeneous space, while adding a limited number of pieces of urban furniture.[5] Conversely, big screens were added to the surrounding buildings.[5] Located in a very commercial area of the city, the pedestrian space is often for rent to companies wanting to carry out advertising events.[6]
Buildings
edit
Buildings on the Square include:
- Cine Callao
- El Corte Inglés department store at #2, 9 stories,[7] part of a multi-building store complex
- Fnac
- La Adriática building at Plaza de Callao #3 (Gran Vía #39)
- Hotel Florida (demolished)
See also
editReferences
edit- Citations
- ^ Alfaro Zaforteza 2014, p. 260.
- ^ Alonso Pereira 1980, p. 23.
- ^ a b Gea Ortigas 2012, p. 58.
- ^ Nieto Codina 2010, p. 72; Brandis García & Río Lafuente 2016, p. 261
- ^ a b Nieto Codina 2010, p. 73.
- ^ Brandis García & Río Lafuente 2016, pp. 257–258.
- ^ "Departamentos en El Corte Inglés Preciados–Callao". El Corte Inglés. Retrieved 7 January 2024.
- Bibliography
- Alfaro Zaforteza, Carlos (2014). "From Trafalgar to Santiago: The Spanish Navy and National Identity in Nineteenth-Century Spain". In Duncan Redford (ed.). Maritime History and Identity: The Sea and Culture in the Modern World. London & New York: I.B. Tauris. pp. 253–270. ISBN 978-1-78076-329-3.
- Alonso Pereira, José Ramón (1980). "En torno a la Gran Vía" (PDF). Villa de Madrid (69). Madrid: Ayuntamiento de Madrid: 19–28. ISSN 0042-6164.
- Brandis García, Dolores; Río Lafuente, Isabel del (2016). "Paisaje y espacio público urbano. El deterioro de las plazas del centro histórico madrileño (1945-2015)". Cuadernos Geográficos. 55 (2). Granada: Editorial Universidad de Granada: 238–264. ISSN 0210-5462.
- Gea Ortigas, María Isabel (2012). Los nombres de las calles de Madrid. Madrid: Ediciones La Librería. ISBN 978-84-9873-182-8.
- Nieto Codina, Aurelio (2010). "Espacios públicos recientemente remodelados en el casco antiguo de Madrid (2006-2011) : la Plaza de Las Cortes y la Plaza del Callao" (PDF). Espacio, Tiempo y Forma, Serie VI, Geografía (3). Madrid: Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia. doi:10.5944/etfvi.3.2010.2614. ISSN 1130-2968.