Plaza Mayor

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  Introduction

  Prototype of a XVIII century Baroque square, it was built between 1729 and 1755.

  
  
  

  
  

  Chronology

  Baroque style square built in the first half of the 18th century, from 1729 to 1755. Almost a perfect square in shape, it is closed and has an arcade with large arches over the passageways to the various streets that converge at the square. 
  
  
  
  

  Historical fact

  The square was built on the site of the old square of Saint Martin, which was the centre of the city for commerce, social life and games. But at the beginning of the 18th century this square was filthy and in a state of deplorable abandonment. This situation bore sharp contrast to the refomist ideas of the moment which imagined the city as an oderly and healthy place that it should welcome the growing population of the moment.

  The main promotor of the project was mayor Rodrigo Caballero y Llanes who, in 1728, expressed to the city council the idea of building a new square to substitute the square of Saint Martin. Three reasons were offered to justify the project: to substitute the old square for a more majestic and more appropriate one considering the monumental nature of the city, to organise the vendors’ stands under arcades to favour the circulation of people and animals through the centre of the square and to create a great public enclosure to hold all type of shows.

  Alberto de Churriguera took charge of the project from 1729 to 1735. In this first phase both the Royal pavilion and Saint Martin's pavilion were built. Between 1735 and 1750 the project was interrupted due mainly to court cases involving old residents of Saint Martin's square. In 1750 the second phase of the project began under the direction of Andrés García de Quiñones and the rest of the square and the pavilion of the City council were built. The square was definitively finished in 1755.

  Up to 1869 the Square was very similar in appearance to the square today. But in that year a tiny octogonal fountain was placed in the centre of the square. A few years later the square was landscaped. It had gardens until 1954, when mayor Carlos Gutiérrez de Ceballos gave it the appearance that it has today. 

  
  
  
  

  Architectural element

  It is an almost perfect square structure, with an arcade of half point arches, above which there are three floors which have a balustrade and pinnacles decorated with lillies. The enclosure conforms perfectly to the traditional Castilian square around which the social and municipal life of the city hinges. The main axes of the old city converge under the large arches. The layout of these streets was respected in building the square, which is why the main entrance arches don't have the symmetry of other Baroque squares.

  In spite of everything, the square stands out because of its great unifomity and homogeneity, in which the City council is the only building that breaks this unifomity due to its height. It was the Municipality who took the initiative of the project and who financed most of it, which is why the Town Hall is the most significant building. It consists of a lower part with an arcade of five arches, two intermediate floos with balconies and a bell tower and cornice on top. In comparison to the rest of the plaza, its decoration is denser and more varied, in which one can see a certain influence of the French Roccocco with its characteristic waves. In the rest of the square, the Baroque elements are concentrated on the facades and surrounding parts of the windows. The Royal Pavilion should be considered part of the structure, since, except for the relief of Saint Ferinand and the bell tower with the shield of Philipp V, it shares the same iconography. At that moment the town felt great devotion toward the Monarchy and, therefore, the Municipality decided to highlight the power of the king. 
  
  
  
  

  Other artistic elements

  As a whole, the medallions should be considered a review of the histoy of Spain through its kings, heroes, intellectuals and saints. On the east side of the Royal Pavilion the kings from Alfonse XI to Ferinand VI are represented. The great warrios, discoverers and conquerers of the histoy of Spain are on the side of Saint Martin’s Pavilion in front of the City Council. The medallions, for reasons that are not known, are incomplete on the two remaining sides. It is thought that the pavilion of the City council should hold the medallions of mayor Spanish saints and the west side should hold the most outstanding intellectual of the various arts. Through out the 19th and 20th century new medallions have been placed, among which that of Teresa of Jesus and that of Miguel de Cervantes stand out.

  Above the large bell tower of the City council building, placed in 1852, four figures can be seen that some historians have identified with the four cardinal virtues: prudence, justice, strength and temperance. Other figures were placed at both sides of the bell tower, four in all, which are the symbols of agriculture, trade, industry and astronomy.

  The Royal pavilion was built above a large arch which holds the medallions of Phillip V and his wife Isabel de Farnesio. Under the effigy of Saint Ferinand, the patron saint of the monarchy, is a plaque which commemorate the beginning of the construction of the Plaza. Finally, on the bell tower, we find the coat of arms of Phillip V. 
  
  
  
  

  Curiosity legend

  Just like today, some of the most important religious, civilian and leisure activities of the city took place here: bullfights, processions and even executions. Some flat owners of the square rented their balconies to spectatos at quite a high price.

  In 1954 the gardens that were placed in the middle of the 19th century disappeared. A curious tradition had developed in which the men of the city would walk around the gardens clockwise, and the women in the opposite direction. The square was a point of civil encounter and, therefore, also of romantic encounter.

  Every August 15, a mast is placed on the City council building, crowned by the figure of a bull with the flag of Spain. This figure, known as the "Mariseca", is placed to announce the upcoming fair of Salamanca. It is not removed until the fair is over.
  
  
  Van Salamanca.es