Jirón Huancavelica is a major

street A street is a public thoroughfare in a city, town or village, typically lined with Building, buildings on one or both sides. Streets often include pavements (sidewalks), pedestrian crossings, and sometimes amenities like Street light, streetligh ...

in the

Damero de Pizarro The Cercado de Lima ('Walled Lima'), Damero de Pizarro ('Pizarro's Checkerboard'), or Lima Cuadrada ('Squared Lima') is an area of the Historic Centre of Lima, historic center of Lima (capital of Peru) located within the Walls of Lima, old wall ...

, located in the

historic centre of Lima The Historic Centre of Lima () is the historic city centre of the city of Lima, the capital of Peru. Located in the city's districts of Lima and Rímac, both in the Rímac Valley, it consists of two areas: the first is the Monumental Zone est ...

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

. The street starts at its intersection with the

Jirón de la Unión The Jirón de la Unión, or Union Street, is a pedestrian street located in the Historic Centre of Lima, part of the capital of Peru. For many decades it was the most important boulevards of the city, often described as the most aristocratic, wh ...

and continues until it reaches Jirón Ramón Cárcano.

History

The road that today constitutes the street was laid by

Francisco Pizarro Francisco Pizarro, Marquess of the Atabillos (; ; – 26 June 1541) was a Spanish ''conquistador'', best known for his expeditions that led to the Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire. Born in Trujillo, Cáceres, Trujillo, Spain, to a poor fam ...

when he founded the city of Lima on 18 January 1535. Since the end of the 16th century, a ''

Corral de comedias ''Corral de comedias'' () is a type of open-air theatre specific to Spain. In Spanish all secular plays were called ''comedias'', which embraced three genres: tragedy, drama, and comedy itself. During the Spanish Golden Age, ''corrals'' became p ...

'' existed on the street. In 1615, the first venue was built, which was destroyed by an earthquake in 1746. Since then, the venue has undergone several renovations and is now known as the Segura Theatre. According to oral tradition, in 1651 an

Angola Angola, officially the Republic of Angola, is a country on the west-Central Africa, central coast of Southern Africa. It is the second-largest Portuguese-speaking world, Portuguese-speaking (Lusophone) country in both total area and List of c ...

slave Slavery is the ownership of a person as property, especially in regards to their labour. Slavery typically involves compulsory work, with the slave's location of work and residence dictated by the party that holds them in bondage. Enslavemen ...

painted an image of the crucified Jesus Christ in a brotherhood of his caste in the Pachacamilla neighbourhood, where this street extends. An earthquake that occurred shortly after ruined the house, leaving only the wall that had the figure on it unscathed. In 1660, resident Andrés de León decided to build a small chapel for the worship of said image. However, as the ecclesiastical chapter of Lima did not consider the site decent, it ordered the destruction of the chapel and image. Given this, the site was acquired by the

Biscay Biscay ( ; ; ), is a province of the Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Autonomous Community, heir of the ancient Lordship of Biscay, lying on the south shore of the Bay of Biscay, eponymous bay. The capital and largest city is Bilb ...

an captain Sebastián de Antuñano y Rivas who erected a temple for the veneration of the Holy Christ of Miracles as he began to be called. In 1730 the first church of the Sanctuary and Monastery of Las Nazarenas was built and in 1746 it was rebuilt because it was destroyed during an earthquake. The church is now the location of the cult of the

Lord of Miracles The Lord of Miracles (), also known as Christ of Miracles, is a Catholic title of Jesus Christ that is associated with a painting of Christ crucified venerated in Lima, Peru. The image was painted during the 17th century by Benito or Pedro D ...

. In 1821,

José de San Martín José Francisco de San Martín y Matorras (; 25 February 177817 August 1850), nicknamed "the Liberator of Argentina, Chile and Peru", was an Argentine general and the primary leader of the southern and central parts of South America's succe ...

proclaimed the

independence of Peru The Peruvian War of Independence () was a series of military conflicts in Peru from 1809 to 1826 that resulted in the country's independence from the Spanish Empire. Part of the broader Spanish American wars of independence, it led to the dis ...

in the Plazoleta de la Merced, located in the first block of this road. In 1862, when the new urban nomenclature was adopted, the road was renamed Jirón Huancavelica after the

Department of Huancavelica Huancavelica () is a department and region in Peru with an area of and a population of 347,639 ( 2017 census). The capital is the city Huancavelica. The region is bordered by the departments of Lima and Ica in the west, Junín in the north, ...

. Prior to this renaming, each block (''cuadra'') had a unique name: *Block 1: Lezcano, after Pedro de Lezcano Centeno y Valdez, who lived there. *Block 2: Siete de Septiembre, changed from its original name of Coliseo to commemorate the arrival of San Martín to

Paracas Bay Paracas Bay is a bay in the Department of Ica, Peru. With its southern end lying within the Paracas National Reservation, the bay is well known for its abundant wildlife. The unique ecosystem, insulated from thrashing ocean waves and current by ...

, later known as the

Plazuela del Teatro Theatre Square () is a public square located next to the Teatro Segura in the second block of Jirón Huancavelica, part of the historic centre of Lima, Peru. History The second block of the current jirón Huancavelica was the location of one of t ...

after the Segura Theatre. *Block 3: Ortiz, after an unidentified neighbour of the same name. *Block 4: Nazarenas, after the sanctuary of the same name. *Block 5: Plazuela de Nazarenas, for the same reason. *Block 6: Caballos, after a horse rental service there. *Block 7: Torrecilla, after a structure of the same name in the property of

Conquistador Conquistadors (, ) or conquistadores (; ; ) were Spanish Empire, Spanish and Portuguese Empire, Portuguese colonizers who explored, traded with and colonized parts of the Americas, Africa, Oceania and Asia during the Age of Discovery. Sailing ...

Jerónimo de Aliaga. At the end of the 19th century, the road housed the

home A home, or domicile, is a space used as a permanent or semi-permanent residence for one or more human occupants, and sometimes various companion animals. Homes provide sheltered spaces, for instance rooms, where domestic activity can be p ...

Miguel Grau Miguel María Grau Seminario (27 July 1834 – 8 October 1879) was a Peruvian Navy officer and politician best known for his actions during the War of the Pacific. He was nicknamed "Gentleman of the Seas" for his kind and chivalrous treatment ...

, who died during the

War of the Pacific The War of the Pacific (), also known by War of the Pacific#Etymology, multiple other names, was a war between Chile and a Treaty of Defensive Alliance (Bolivia–Peru), Bolivian–Peruvian alliance from 1879 to 1884. Fought over Atacama Desert ...

. The ''Edificio Santo Toribio'' was built in the street's intersection with the

Jirón Rufino Torrico Jirón Rufino Torrico, formerly known as Jirón Arica, is a major street in the Damero de Pizarro, located in the historic centre of Lima, Peru. The street starts before its intersection with the Jirón Conde de Superunda, parallel to the '' Prol ...

in 1923 by ''Fred T. Ley & Cía'', an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

company. The three-storey, 925.30 m² work is part of the set of real estate projects undertaken by the

Archbishop of Lima The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Lima () is part of the Catholic Church in Peru which enjoys full communion with the Holy See. The Archdiocese was founded as the ''Diocese of Lima'' on 14 May 1541. The diocese was raised to the level of a metr ...

Emilio Lissón Emilio Juan Francisco Lissón y Chávez, Congregation of the Mission, C.M. (24 May 1872 – 25 December 1961), was an Archbishop of Lima, Peru. Early years Lissón was born in the city of Arequipa to a strongly Catholic family. He entered the Co ...

, in the 1920s in order to strengthen the economic activities of the archdiocese.

References

Bibliography

* {{Lima streets

Huancavelica Huancavelica () or Wankawillka in Quechua is a city in Peru. It is the capital of the department of Huancavelica and according to the 2017 census had a population of 49,570 people. The city was established on August 5, 1572 by the Viceroy ...

Lima District Historic Centre of Lima

History

See also

References

Bibliography