Praça Quinze de Novembro

Praça XV from the Estação das Barcas Ferry Terminal

The Praça Quinze de Novembro (November 15th) or Praça XV for short is a public square in the Centro e Centro Histórico , the central area of Rio de Janeiro in Brazil . Today it is part of the Orla Conde , a public promenade on Guanabara Bay .

Surname

Largo do Paço around 1834 with the Chafariz do Largo do Paço in the foreground

Before 1870 the place was called Largo do Paço . On March 18, 1870, the city council named the square Praça de Dom Pedro II . It was later named after November 15, 1889, when the federal presidential republic was created in Brazil and the parliamentary constitutional monarchy was replaced. On that day Emperor Pedro II was overthrown by a military coup and Marshal da Fonseca proclaimed the Republic of the United States of Brazil .

history

The square has existed since the 16th century, when the port of Rio de Janeiro was founded here. In 1889, with the proclamation of the Republic of Brazil, the square was the place from which the imperial family went into exile. In 1834 the construction of the fish market (Mercado do Peixe) began. Designed by French architect Grandjean de Montigny , the building opened in 1841 and was demolished again in the early twentieth century. On November 12, 1894, the Pantheon was inaugurated by General Osorio.

Until the late 19th century, this was the place where most of the passenger ships destined for Rio de Janeiro arrived. According to the historian Milton Teixeira, the region around the square was the city's calling card.

Praça XV in 2011, still with the Elevado da Perimetral bridge over the square

In 2014, the section of the Elevado da Perimetral that ran across the square was demolished. The street now runs below the square in Túnel Prefeito Marcello Alencar . The square was closed during the renovation and was reopened on May 29, 2016. This renovation was carried out as part of the Porto Maravilha project, an urban measure intended to make the port area of Rio de Janeiro attractive again.

Buildings

There are several monuments in the square: the statue of João Cândid (D. Joao VI), a tribute to João Cândido the leader of the Revolta da Chibata , an equestrian statue with General Manuel Luís Osório , the Estátua Equestre de Dom João VI, also an equestrian statue and the Chafariz do Mestre Valentim fountain . In the Portuguese city of Porto there is an identical equestrian statue of Dom João VI on the Praça de Gonçalves Zarco .

Line 2 stop on Praça XV

Line 2 of the Rio de Janeiro tram stops on the north side of the square . On the northeast side is the Estação das Barcas ferry terminal operated by CCR Barcas . From here the ferries go to Niterói and the island of Paquetá (Ilha de Paquetá), an island in the Guanabara Bay. To the south is the Paço Imperial , the imperial palace formerly known as the Royal Palace of Rio de Janeiro and Palace of the Viceroys. Directly behind it is the Palácio Tiradentes , the former seat of the Brazilian National Congress and currently the seat of the legislative assembly of the state of Rio de Janeiro. To the north of the square is the Arco do Teles , the former residence of the Telles de Menezes family, an architectural landmark in the history of the city of Rio de Janeiro.

Events

Every Saturday the traditional antiques fair takes place in front of the Imperial Palace around the equestrian statue of General Osório. With around 360 stalls, it is one of the largest antique fairs in Latin America.