La Alameda, Seville

The Alameda de Hércules (Hercules mall), or simply La Alameda, is a garden square or mall in Seville, southern Spain. Built in 1574, it was originally a promenaded public garden, named after the eight rows of white poplar trees (álamos in Spanish) that fill its central part. Located in the northern half of the city's historic center, between the Guadalquivir River and the Macarena neighbourhood, it was the oldest public garden in Spain and Europe.

Before its urban transformation, the Alameda square was a fragment of the easternmost branch of the Guadalquivir River. It crossed the city center via Alameda towards Plaza Nueva, eventually ending in the El Arenal neighbourhood. After it was cut off by a dam in 1383, the river basin turned into a swampy pond fed by the aquifer and frequent rises of the river.

In 1574, the Count of Barajas further drained the water, building irrigation channels and fountains, and planting lines of waterside white poplar trees. Four columns were placed to mark off a promenade through the trees. In the beginning it was planned to take four columns from the remains of the Roman temple of Mármoles street, believed to be dedicated to Hercules. However, when moving the third column it fell apart, leaving the work temporarily unfinished. Consequently, the two columns at the southern end of the square are from the original Roman temple, whereas the northern columns are modern reproductions. As the culmination of this project, two sculptures were placed atop the two southern columns: Hercules (mythological founder of Seville) and Julius Caesar (referred to as the restorer of the city during Roman rule). In the second half of the eighteenth century, two additional statues of lions with shields, representing Seville and Spain, were placed on the northern columns.

In the late 19th century, the Alameda was a meeting place of the upper-classes, with many elegant theaters and kiosks. However, after the Civil War, the Alameda began to suffer a progressive deterioration, and became one of the poorest neighbourhoods of Seville, troubled by prostitution and drugs. According to data from 1989, the area housed up to 35 brothels.

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Wikipedia