Often overshadowed by the Plaza Mayor and the Puerta del Sol, the Plaza de Espana is located at the western end of the Gran Via and is recognisable in its own right. Defined by some of Madrid’s tallest buildings and most beautiful sculptures, the square is worth the slight trek away from the Spanish capital’s busier centres.
The Plaza de Espana’s greatest landmark is its monument to Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra. A novelist, poet, and playwright, Cervantes is best known for his Golden Age epic “Don Quixote”. In fact, bronze sculptures of the novel’s eponymous hero, his squire Sancho Panza, and his love, depicted as both peasant woman Aldonza Lorenzo and the imagined Dulcinea del Toboso all surround the towering stone sculpture of Cervantes himself.
Nearby Metro stations serve the Plaza de Espana. The Royal Palace of Madrid lies within walking distance, about ten minutes to the south. For those who wish to stretch their legs, the Calle Gran Via stretches eastward and is a 20 to 25-minute walk to the Plaza de Cibeles.
The square’s biggest historical claim to fame is the setting for the Dos de Mayo Uprising, an 1808 rebellion against Napoleon’s occupation of Spain. The revolt was suppressed, but it effectively set the Peninsular War in motion.