Palacio Paz, located in the heart of the city opposite Plaza San Martin (Av. Sante Fe 750) is an imposing building which fronts, sculptures and ornaments are copies or inspired on several French palaces, and one of the best examples of the French Architecture in Buenos Aires.

The palace's architect, Louis Marie Henry Sortais was French, studied at the Ecole des Beaux Arts in Paris and won the Grand Prix de Rome in 1890. The owner of the residence, José C. Paz, was ambassador to France in the late nineteenth century. Palacio Paz is also the work of the Argentinian architect and engineer Carlos Agote, since Sortais never traveled to Argentina, and in fact died in 1911, leaving Agote in charge of construction management when works were still not complete.

The construction was carried out between 1902 and 1914. Two years before the inauguration of the palace Dr. José C Paz died in Monaco, for which he never had the chance to live in it, but his wife and children did.

Palacio Paz was, at the time of its construction, the largest private residence in the city, with its 140 rooms, 40 bathrooms and 12,000 square meters of covered area.

José Camilo Paz, the ideologist of this masion, brought from Europe all the pieces for the construction and decoration of the palace: marbles, iron works, chandeliers, ornaments, furniture, flooring and lights, among many other things, including the huge four-door iron gate that serves as entrance to the palace.

It is believed that Paz had presidential aspirations. He thought that the palace could become the official presidential residence.

The building consists of three wings and a large internal garden. The main facade resembles the typical French castles. The model used for the overall composition of the palace was the Chantilly Castle, rebuilt by Honoré Daumet, Sortais' teacher. The set of rooms on the main floor appears as an eclectic showcase of French historical styles. The Grand Gallery of Honor and the main dining room are inspired on the French Renaissance. The Ballroom on the other hand is Regency style. In other smaller rooms we find Louis XVI and Empire styles. 

The great honor gallery leas to the Great Hall of Honor, the most impressive room in the Palace, a Circular hall of imposing dimensions and crowned with a towering dome.

Palacio Paz is currently the headquarters of the Military Circle in the City of Buenos Aires, and is one of the few magnificent French buildings that are opened to the public and still preserve the grandeur of the time.

There's also a nice café in the interior courtyard (Croque Madame) and a restaurant  in one of the interior rooms, open to the general public.

The interior Palace can be accessed by Guided Visits only (with a cost), on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, with previous reservation via email to reservaspalaciopaz@gmail.com

The park, formerly known as the "Field of Glory," was renamed in honor of Argentina´s hero José de San Martín in 1878, upon the hundredth anniversary of his birth.
Following remodeling works by British architect Edward Taylor and Argentine archiect José Canale, the fort, bullring and other buildings that existed in the lands were demolished in 1883.
In 1889 French urbanist and landscaper Charles Thays was commissioned to give the plaza its approximate current form. Numerous Ombú, Linden, rubber plants, magnolias, ceibos, jacarandas, Floss Silk trees, and –oddly– sequoias, were planted.


Plaza San Martín and its surroundings acquired their current physiognomy in 1936, when Charles Thays' son, Carlos León Thays designed the esplanade surrounding the monument. The trees planted by Thays made this park one of the most beautiful in Buenos Aires.


Some of Argentina's wealthiest and most aristocratic families built their residences and mansions around the square, which rivaled in elegance with the ones in the nearby neighborhood of Recoleta.

San Martin Palace: originally the house of the Anchorena family, today the palace belongs to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Worship.

Military Circle (Paz Palace): José Camilo Paz –founder of La Prensa newspaper– ordered the construction of his family mansion based on the plans made by the French Louis Sortaris. Since 1938, it has been the venue of the Military Circle, an army club, and the National Museum of Weapons.



Plaza Hotel: Industrialist Ernesto Torquinst decided to build a hotel at the level of those in Europe and New York. Architect Alfredo Zucker was in charge of this work, inaugurated in 1908. It was remodeled in 1913 and 1978. The hotel is one of the most traditional and luxurious in Buenos Aires.

Kavanagh building: In 1934, Corina Kavanagh ordered the construction of a skyscraper to the architects Sánchez, Lagos and de La Torre. They designed a step building made of reinforced concrete in a rationalist style. When the building was opened in 1936, it was the highest in Latin America.


Santísimo Sacramento Basilica: Aristocrat Mercedes Castellanos de Anchorena, owner of the Anchorena Palace, ordered the construction of this basilica, thinking that if she lived in a palace, her God should also deserve one. It was finished in 1916, designed by French architects Coulomb and Chauvet in a neo-gothic/romantic style. Tha white marbel facade represents Blessed Pedro Eymard with 2 kneeling angels. Its altar is one of the biggest in South America, with ornaments made of marble, blue granite, bronze and Venetian mosaic.


Retiro Train Station: Inaugurated in 1915 based on the project developed by a team of English engineers and architects, in a French academicism style. The metallic structure of the platforms was manufactured in Great Britain.

Monumental Tower (formerly The English Tower): donated by the British community in Argentina in 1916 for the centenary of Argentina´s independece. The clock has a diameter of 4.5 meters and a pendulum of 100 kilograms of weight. It was built with materials brought from England.

Monument to Malvinas War Soldiers: located on Leandro N. Alem Avenue, this memorial pays homage to the soldiers of the Malvinas War. It is made of 25 plaques with the names of all the soldiers who fell in combat in that war in 1982:

See also: Monument to General San Martín and A visit to the magnificent Palacio Paz

To see more pictures of Plaza San Martin and Retiro Neighborhood, visit my Retiro Photo Album.

The monument dedicated to General José de San Martín, located in Plaza San Martín in Retiro neighborhood, was inaugurated in 1862, being the first equestrian monument in Buenos Aires at the time. It was the work of French sculptor Louis Joseph Daumas, who designed it in the Napoleonic style (the figure of San Martín pointing at the road to freedom with his right arm), and it became a model for other similar monuments in squares all over the country.





This is the city´s most important monument, and, according to the protocol, all foreign dignataries visiting Buenos Aires must pay a visit and deposit a wreath at its feet.

General José de San Martín is the father of the Argentine Nation, who set Argentina, Chile and Peru free from the Spanish rule. The spot that nowadays the monument occupies was where the headquarters of his regiment Granaderos a Caballo (cavalry men) were found. In 1910, for the celebration of the centennial of the Argentine independence, the monument was moved from its original position, and a marble basement with allegoric groups by German sculptor Gustav Eberlein was added to the original bronze statue.

A similar monument was commissioned to the same sculptor for Santiago de Chile, that´s why both monuments are very similar. And there´s a smaller size replica of this monument in the Central Park, in New York.