Plaza de España
Madrid
The Plaza de España is a large green square at the end of the Gran Vía. Between two historic skyscrapers stands the monument to Miguel de Cervantes.
A square of the 1900s
Until the early 1900s this space looked different. After major demolitions it was redesigned and took the name Plaza de España.
Today the square links the Gran Vía with the Calle de la Princesa. In the 1950s came the skyscrapers that made it famous: the Edificio España, from 1953, and the Torre de Madrid.
The monument to Cervantes
In 1915 it was decided to build a great monument to Miguel de Cervantes here. The competition was won by the architect Rafael Martínez Zapatero and the sculptor Lorenzo Coullaut Valera.
The work often stopped for lack of money. After the sculptor died, his son Federico continued it using his father's models. The monument combines bronze, marble and several kinds of stone.
A green square
After a major restoration, the square became a green space of over 70,000 square metres. Cars pass through an underground tunnel, leaving the surface to pedestrians and bikes.
There are more than 1,100 trees, playgrounds and cycle paths. Next to the monument there are two fountains: a new one, inspired by Madrid's sky, and an older one. The older fountain was moved here from its original spot.
