Plaza de Armas (Cusco)

Plaza Mayor del Cusco
Huacaypata
National Cultural Heritage and World Heritage Site
Location map
Type	Public square
Location	Cusco,  Peru
Coordinates	13°31′00″S 71°58′44″W / 13.516711°S 71.978822°W / -13.516711; -71.978822
Area	28728 square meters
Created	11th century
Founder	Legendary establishment of the city by Manco Capac
Status	Open
Other information	Adjacent roads, from the Cathedral in a clockwise direction: Calle Triunfo Calle Santa Catalina Angosta Calle Loreto Calle Mantas Calle del Medio Calle Espaderos Calle Plateros Calle Procuradores Calle Suecia Calle Cuesta del Almirante

Plaza Mayor del Cusco

Plaza Mayor del Cusco at present time
Location	Peru
Type	Main Square
World Heritage Site (part of "City of Cusco", no. ref. 273) (1983) Link to World Heritage file. World Heritage Site (part of "Qhapac Ñan - Andean Road System", no. ref. 1459) (2014). Link to World Heritage file. Historic Artistic Monument R.S.Nro.2900-72-ED (December 28, 1972)

The Plaza de Armas of Cusco is located in the city of Cusco, Peru. Located in the historic center of the city is the main public space of the town since before its Spanish foundation in 1534.

Geological studies carried out in the area show that it originally had a swamp,^[1] crossed by the Saphy River (currently channeled and covered). During the Inca Empire, this swamp was dried up and transformed into the administrative, religious and cultural center of the imperial capital.^[2] It was the place where all kinds of ceremonies were held and the victories of the Inca army were celebrated. After the Spanish conquest, it was transformed into a plaza (square) by the new rulers, who built Catholic temples and mansions on the ruins of the ancient Inca palaces. In this square, Túpac Amaru II was executed in 1781 as well as the cacique Bernardo Tambohuacso, Mateo Pumacahua and several other heroes of the independence of Peru.

Today it is the central core of modern Cusco, surrounded by tourist restaurants, jewelry stores, travel agencies and the same Catholic churches built during the colonial period and which constitute two of the most important monuments of the city: the Cathedral of Cusco and the Iglesia de la Compañía de Jesús (Church of the Society of Jesus).

Since 1972, the building has been part of the Monumental Zone of Cusco, declared a Historic Monument of Peru.^[3] Likewise, in 1983, as part of the historic center of the city of Cusco, it became part of the central zone declared by UNESCO as a World Cultural Heritage Site.^[4]