Ciudad Vieja (, ''Old City'') is a historic

neighbourhood A neighbourhood (British English, Irish English, Australian English and Canadian English) or neighborhood (American English; see spelling differences) is a geographically localised community within a larger city, town, suburb or rural are ...

Montevideo Montevideo () is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Uruguay, largest city of Uruguay. According to the 2011 census, the city proper has a population of 1,319,108 (about one-third of the country's total population) in an area of . M ...

, the capital of

Uruguay Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...

. Located in a

peninsula A peninsula (; ) is a landform that extends from a mainland and is surrounded by water on most, but not all of its borders. A peninsula is also sometimes defined as a piece of land bordered by water on three of its sides. Peninsulas exist on all ...

at the entrance of the

natural port A harbor (American English), harbour (British English; see spelling differences), or haven is a sheltered body of water where ships, boats, and barges can be docked. The term ''harbor'' is often used interchangeably with ''port'', which is a ...

of Montevideo it was founded in

1724 Events January–March * January 15 – King Philip V of Spain abdicates the throne in favour of his 16-year-old son Louis I. * January 18 – The Dutch East India Company cargo ship ''Fortuyn'', on its maiden voyage, dep ...

as a

walled city A defensive wall is a fortification usually used to protect a city, town or other settlement from potential aggressors. The walls can range from simple palisades or earthworks to extensive military fortifications with towers, bastions and gates ...

by the

Spanish Empire The Spanish Empire ( es, link=no, Imperio español), also known as the Hispanic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Hispánica) or the Catholic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Católica) was a colonial empire governed by Spain and its prede ...

, after the independence of Uruguay the city rapidly grew outwards and the Ciudad Vieja remained as one of the central neighbourhoods, nowadays it serves as one of the main office districts of Montevideo, housing multiple banks and institutions, but also as one of main tourist attractions in Uruguay due to its historical significance and

classical architecture Classical architecture usually denotes architecture which is more or less consciously derived from the principles of Greek and Roman architecture of classical antiquity, or sometimes even more specifically, from the works of the Roman architect V ...

History

Until 1829 it was surrounded by a wall that protected it from possible invasions. After the wall was torn down, the only part of it that was preserved was the main gateway to the Citadel, which remains to this day as an

emblem An emblem is an abstract or representational pictorial image that represents a concept, like a moral truth, or an allegory, or a person, like a king or saint. Emblems vs. symbols Although the words ''emblem'' and '' symbol'' are often use ...

of Montevideo. Some street names recall the presence of the wall, like Ciudadela (''

citadel A citadel is the core fortified area of a town or city. It may be a castle, fortress, or fortified center. The term is a diminutive of "city", meaning "little city", because it is a smaller part of the city of which it is the defensive core. In ...

'') or Brecha (''breach''), which owns its name to the breach in the wall that the British managed to open to enter the city during the 1807 British invasion and brief occupation of the city before they were defeated.

Present

The main street, Sarandí, was turned into a pedestrian walkway in 1992, which increased its commercial and tourist attractiveness. In 2005 it was extended to beyond the Constitution Square. Ciudad Vieja has elegant buildings from the colonial era and the first decades of independence. The Cabildo (built between 1804 and 1812), the

Solís Theatre Solís Theatre (''Spanish'': Teatro Solís) is Uruguay's most important and renowned theatre. It opened in 1856 and the building was designed by the Italian architect Carlo Zucchi. It is located in Montevideo's Old Town, right next to the Plaza ...

, the Metropolitan Cathedral and several museums, like the

Museo Torres García The Museo Torres García is located in the historic Ciudad Vieja (Old Town) of Montevideo where unusual portraits of historical icons and cubist paintings akin to Picasso's paintings, painted by Joaquín Torres García are exhibited. The museum w ...

are among the most impressive ones. Also several design shops and recycled loft floors flourish in the streets near the port.

Important buildings

Bolsa de Valores de Montevideo The Montevideo Stock Exchange or Bolsa de Valores de Montevideo (BVM), also known as the Bolsa de Montevideo, is the principal stock exchange of Uruguay. It is based in Montevideo and was founded in 1867. The institution's primary function is t ...

Cabildo de Montevideo The Montevideo Cabildo (Spanish language: Cabildo de Montevideo) is the public building in Montevideo that was used as the government house during the colonial times of the Viceroyalty of the River Plate. Today the building is used as a museum ...

Mercado del Puerto Mercado is the Portuguese and Spanish word for ''market''. It may refer to: Public markets * Mercado de las Carnes, a former meat market in Ponce, Puerto Rico * Mercado Central, Valencia, a public market in Valencia, Spain * Mercado Central de Sa ...

Palacio Taranco Palacio Taranco, located in front of the Plaza Zabala, in the heart of the Old City of Montevideo, Uruguay, is a palace erected in the early 20th century during a period in which the architectural style was influenced by French architecture. It w ...

Central Bank of Uruguay The Central Bank of Uruguay ( es, Banco Central del Uruguay, BCU) is the central bank of the Uruguay. History The Central Bank of Uruguay was established on July 6, 1967 as an autonomous state entity ( es, Ente Autónomo), with the passing of t ...

* Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, St. Philip and St. James (head of the Roman Catholic Church in Uruguay) *

Parish Church of St. Francis of Assisi The Saint Francis of Assisi Parish Church, commonly known as the Meycauayan Church or Simbahan sa Bayan, is a Roman Catholic church located in Meycauayan, Philippines. It is one of the oldest parishes in Bulacan which even predates the Malolos Ca ...

(Roman Catholic) * Church of Our Lady of Lourdes and St. Vincent Pallotti (Roman Catholic,

Pallottines The Pallottines officially named the Society of the Catholic Apostolate ( la, Societas Apostolatus Catholici), abbreviated SAC is a Society of Apostolic Life of Pontifical Right for men in the Roman Catholic Church, founded in 1835 by the Roman C ...

) * Cathedral of The Most Holy Trinity, popularly known as the English Temple (

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

) * Sephardic Jewish Community (Synagogue)Jewish Tourism in Uruguay - Temples
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Gallery

File:Ciudadela3.jpg, The Gateway of Ciudadela, was the entrance to the fortress of Montevideo File:Calle en Ciudad Vieja 2006.jpg, Street in the Ciudad Vieja

References

Bibliography

External links

Intendencia de Montevideo / Historia de la Ciudad Vieja

Fotos of Ciudad Vieja

{{Authority control Barrios of Montevideo Entertainment districts