Pedro del Castillo Square, center of the founding stage

In the manner of the Hispanic grid, the civic buildings and the most important temples of the founding stage stood around it. The settlement was founded to populate the region and establish poles on a route linking Valparaiso and Santa María de los Buenos Aires.

The oldest square
In 1561 Pedro del Castillo, by order of the Captaincy General of Chile, arrived in the Huentota Valley (present-day Mendoza) and founded the city of Mendoza del Nuevo Valle de Rioja, in homage to the governor of Chile, García Hurtado de Mendoza, who arranged the expedition , and the homeland of Del Castillo, La Rioja (Castilla). The foundation was on the east side of the canal known today as Cacique Guaymallén.

That was the birth of the city. A year later, another encomendero de la Corona de Castilla moved the foundation a few hundred meters to the west of the canal and wanted to change its name although it did not last in time. This location is the one that occupies the current square.tiny

It was the political and religious core of the old city. In Mendoza the Army of the Andes was prepared and on the eve of their departure, the square witnessed the ceremony of blessing the flag and proclamation of the Virgin of Carmen de Cuyo as patron and general of the Army. The San Francisco church, one of the temples that surrounded the square before the earthquake of 1861, was also part of the momentous scene of history. The basilica was then rebuilt in the new part of the city of Mendoza and holds the command staff of General San Martín and the image of the Virgin.

The aftermath of the earthquake of 1861 was devastating for the capital of Mendoza. Many colonial-era buildings were reduced to rubble, including the Cabildo and the church of San Francisco. The square also morphed into a desolate ruin of the immediate temples that invaded its entire space. It was long abandoned.

Today the Museum of the Foundation Area, adjacent to Pedro del Castillo Square, guards the archaeological testimonies of the Plaza Mayor, the ruins of the church of San Francisco, vestiges of the Cabildo, the old slaughterhouse, the municipal fair, the courtyard and the chamber underground water supply of the village. It is a museum of interpretation in situ.
In 1912 the square was named after Pedro del Castillo, its founder. Today it is a very beautiful green space, with fountains and gazebos to enjoy a walk very close to the microcenter of Mendoza.