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Plaza Sotomayor

Buildings and structures in ValparaísoSquares in Chile
Monumento Héroes Iquique
Monumento Héroes Iquique

The Plaza Sotomayor is a plaza in Valparaíso, Chile. It is named after Rafael Sotomayor. The square is lined by buildings occupying full block-fronts of the streets that flank it. The focus of the square is the monument that honors the Chilean sailors who fell during the Battle of Iquique and the Battle of Punta Gruesa. The plaza and surrounding buildings was designated a Zona Típica (historic district) on January 23, 1979. At the northeastern side of the square are two similar towers, which create a sort of gate entrance to the port from the city. On the opposite side is the building that housed the Intendencia de Valparaíso, which currently is home to the headquarters of the Chilean Navy. The building used by the CSAV and the building that houses the National Council of Culture and the Arts also face the plaza. Close to the station is the western terminus station of the Valparaíso Metro, that replaced the old railway station.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Plaza Sotomayor (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Plaza Sotomayor
Plaza Sotomayor, Valparaíso Playa Ancha

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Geographical coordinates (GPS)

Latitude Longitude
N -33.038466666667 ° E -71.628766666667 °
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Address

Plaza Sotomayor
2390418 Valparaíso, Playa Ancha
Valparaiso Region, Chile
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Monumento Héroes Iquique
Monumento Héroes Iquique
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Nearby Places

Dissidents Cemetery
Dissidents Cemetery

The Cemetery of Dissidents is a cemetery located on the Panteón hill, in front of the Cemetery nº 1 and at one side of the old city jail (now a cultural center) in Valparaíso, Chile. It was created in 1825 to hold the remains of the British and other Europeans residents, whose Protestant faith differed from the official state religion at the time; Roman Catholicism.In the early 19th century, immigrants to Valparaíso who were not Catholic were forbidden from being buried in Catholic cemeteries; as such, they were buried on Playa Ancha hill, or simply thrown into the sea. In 1823 British consul George Seymour, with the aid of mayor Robert Simpson, bought some land at one side of the city jail, to build a special cemetery for "dissidents" (i.e. those who did not adhere to the Catholic faith.)The cemetery is divided into eight sections and has nearly 800 graves. Most of the burials belong to immigrants of British, German and American origin. Inside Cemetery No. 1, there is a monument dedicated to the American sailors who died during the 1814 Battle of Valparaiso, when the USS Essex was captured by the English ships Cherub and Phoebe.There is also a monument dedicated to Reverend David Trumbull, founder of the Presbyterian Church of the city.In 1883, religious discrimination in municipal cemeteries was abolished. Until that year, the Cemetery of Dissidents also housed non-Catholics who had died in other cities such as Santiago and La Serena.The cemetery suffered damages in the 1906 and 2010 earthquakes. Renovations in 2011 subsequently included a new memorial "Plaza of the immigrant".