Callao Square

The Callao Square (Spanish: plaza del Callao)^[1] is located at the centre of the Spanish capital of Madrid.

Callao Square

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	40.419862°N 3.705828°W / 40.419862; -3.705828
Major junctions	Calle de Preciados, Gran Vía

History and description

Shaped 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

Fnac in Plaza de Callao, formerly a Galerías Preciados department store until 1993)

La Adriática building at Plaza de Callao #3 / Gran Vía #39

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

• Piccadilly Circus
• Times Square
• Yonge-Dundas Square
• Shibuya

References

Citations

1. Alfaro Zaforteza 2014, p. 260.
2. Alonso Pereira 1980, p. 23.
3. Gea Ortigas 2012, p. 58.
4. Nieto Codina 2010, p. 72; Brandis García & Río Lafuente 2016, p. 261
5. Nieto Codina 2010, p. 73.
6. Brandis García & Río Lafuente 2016, pp. 257–258.
7. "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.