Bolivia
Plaza Murillo - Murillo Square
Surrounded by the most important buildings of the city, in the historical center, this square is the busiest
in the city. Its name is in honor of Murillo General, one of the heroes of the independence movement in
Bolivia.
This plaza was surrounded by eucalyptus trees and
a statue of Neptune during colonial times, and it
used to be the main source of water for the city.
There is also the Palace of the Counts of Arana an
eighteenth century building that is now the
National Art Museum of La Paz.
Nowadays it is the most centric place where we
can find the neoclassical Cathedral, the
Government Palace, which is known as the palace
burned, because it has been burned eight times.
Previously it was the city council. The Congress
Palace used to be a convent, then became into a
prison and later was converted into a university.
As it has happened in many of the most
emblematic squares of the capitals of the world, it
has also been the scene of dramatic political
battles, one of the most recent was in 1946 when
President Gualberto Villarroel was attacked by a
group of angry rebels who stabbed him and hung
him on a lamp post in the square.