You can take a walk through the various museums, churches and convents that the Peruvian capital has available to its visitors. The buildings in this area are part of a trip to the past, since many of them still retain their colonial style. However, there is a public space in this striking city that has a story to tell: it is the Plaza de Armas in Lima.
Also known as Plaza Mayor, it is built with a French neo-baroque influence. It has a pool in the middle, which attracts the eyes of all those present. Currently, it is between the intersections of the Junín, de la Unión, Huallaga and Carabaya jirones, and it is the starting point when you start an adventure in the center of Lima. Now, we will tell you some facts about the main public space of the Peruvian capital.
Witness of The Most Important Event
Don José de San Martín proclaimed the speech of the Independence of Peru. Saturday, July 28, 1821 would not be another day in the calendar of Peruvian history, since a public and solemn ceremony by Generalissimo San Martín was the trigger for the most important news to begin to spread. It is here, in the Plaza de Armas, that the independence speech was delivered, in front of thousands of Peruvians who saw how the republic was born.
The Plaza de Armas a Place to Fight
Why did it stop being called Plaza Mayor and is it now better known as Plaza de Armas? As explained by the deceased intellectual and polygraph Marco Aurelio Denegri, it was renamed after its role in the Independence of Peru. It is in the old Plaza Mayor that independence troops met, paraded with their weapons and made proclamations in favor of the cause they were fighting for, which is why it became known as Plaza de Armas.
Almost Half Millennium
Although Peru has a little more than 200 years of existence, the Plaza de Armas in Lima is twice the age of the foundation of the country that shelters it: it was on January 18, 1535 that its construction began with the implementation of the pillory, a tall piece of wood located in the center of what we know today as the Plaza de Armas, and which served as a column to punish thieves and heretics, among others.
Well Preserved
The buildings that surround the Plaza de Armas are among the most important in Lima and Peru. To the north is the Government Palace, home of the current president. To the east, the Cathedral of Lima adorns the gaze of passers-by. To the west, we find the Municipal Palace, the main headquarters of the Metropolitan Municipality of Lima. And to the south, we come across the old Olaya Passage, where the Peruvian hero José Olaya was shot.
A Beautiful Plaza
The Plaza de Armas, being an architectural material asset, received the seal of Cultural Heritage of Peru in 1972. With this, its defense, protection and promotion is in charge of the competent authorities. In addition, in 1991, Unesco granted it the status of a World Heritage Site.