Praca do Comercio (Terreiro do Paco)

Praca do Comercio (Terreiro do Paco) is located in Lisbon's Baixa Pombalina and is an open square facing the Tagus River. Because the former royal Ribeira Palace was once located here, it is still often referred to as Praca do Comercio (Terreiro do Paco). Historically, King Manuel I moved the royal residence from São Jorge Castle on the hill to the riverside, and this area subsequently developed into an important port and shipbuilding hub. The tsunami and fire triggered by the 1755 earthquake destroyed the Ribeira Palace along with the royal library, which housed tens of thousands of books. When the Marquis of Pombal oversaw the reconstruction, he did not restore the palace but instead planned the area as a large U-shaped square enclosed by yellow arcaded buildings on three sides and facing the river on the fourth. He renamed it "Commerce" to signify the shift from royal power to trade, and these arcaded buildings were long used as offices for various government departments.

Today, a bronze equestrian statue of King José I stands in the center of the square. The dark horse rears its front hooves, trampling a snake that symbolizes chaos, and the front of the pedestal is embedded with a relief bust of the Marquis of Pombal. The statue faces the Tagus River and is aligned with the Rua Augusta Arch to the north. The columned pier on the riverside consists of marble steps and a pair of stone columns, where foreign dignitaries arriving in Lisbon by boat would disembark in the past. This square has also witnessed historical moments such as the assassination of King Carlos I and the Crown Prince in 1908 and the Carnation Revolution in 1974, and the old cafes within the arcades were once places where intellectuals gathered to talk.