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EXPOSITION OF 1929

Latin American World´s Fair of 1929 and The Santa Cruz Quartes

Latin American World's Fair Exhibition of 1929 The Latin American World's Fair Exhibition of 1929 and the works built for this event, profoundly transformed Seville during the first quarter of the 20th C.

The Fair's preliminary design contest held in 1911 was awarded to Sevillian architect, Anibal González, architect of the Plaza de America and the three surrounding pavillions built between 1911 and 1919 – Mudejar (Moorish influence) – Rennaissance and Royal – today the seat of the Museo de Artes y Costumbres Populares (Museum of Arts and Popular Customs), the Museo Arqueológico (Archaeological Museum) and Municipalty buildings respectively. However the Plaza de España was this architect's masterpiece, a structure built between 1914 and 1928. Just along side stands the Pabellón de la Telefónica (Pavillion built by Juan Talavera) and in the Prado de San Sebastián, the Pabellón de Portugal (Portugal Pavillion by Revello de Andrade))

In the Jardines de San Telmo (San Telmo Gardens) lies what was the Pabellón de Sevilla (Seville Pavillion), a series of structures representing the Teatro Lope de Vega (Theatre), the Casino de la Exposición (by Traver y Tomás), el Pabellón de Chile (Martínez Gutierrez), the Pabellón de Uruguay (Cravotto), the Pabellón de Perú (Piqueras Cotolí) and that of the Estados Unidos (United States).

In the Paseo de las Delicias (promenade) are located the Pabellones de Guatemala (Granados), Argentina (Martín Noel), Colombia (Granados), Brasil (Bernardes Vastos) and Méjico (Amábilis Dominguez); along the Avenida de Moliní (avenue), the Pabellón de Marruecos (Morocco by Gutierrez Lescura y Mariano Bertuchi) and the Comandancia de Marina (Traver y Tomás) and along the Avenida de la Raza stands the Pabellón Vasco (Basterra).

Santa Cruz is the name of the area which today hosts part of the ancient Jewish quarters. References to this Almohade period resonate this zone which goes from the Puerta de Jerez to the Puerta de la Carne as well as the Barrio del Alcazar de la Bendición neighborhood.

Although there is no proof that the Jews actually lived there during the Muslim period, the tradition still holds that when the city was conquered by Castile in 1248, both the Almohades and the Jews handed over their keys of the city to King Fernando III.

What is indeed true is that when the city was conquered, all mosques were handed over to the Church with the exception of three which were given to the Jews.

The relationship between Jews and Christians was not always pacific. The practice of usury brought hate and distrust amongst the rest of the population. The great heist which took place in 1391 did in the character of the Jews of that neighborhood. One may believe that a mass killing could have taken place, although descendents of the event highlight the large number of converts.

The confiscated homes of the Jews were handed over to the Christians and the synagogues converted into Christian churches with new names given such as San Bartolomé, Santa María and Santa Cruz. From that date onwards the area in which this last parish existed marked the name of this neighborhood.

The confiscated homes of the Jews were handed over to the Christians and the synagogues converted into Christian churches with new names given such as San Bartolomé, Santa María and Santa Cruz. From that date onwards the area in which this last parish existed marked the name of this neighborhood.

An important note worth mentioning is that the Parroquia de Santa Cruz was torn down in the 19th C, during the brief occupation of France, destroying any last trace of the original synagogue. Instead the Plaza de Santa Cruz was built. Many years later it was decorated with a cross brought from Cerrajería street. Which brings us to the years of preparation for the Latin American World's Fair of 1929.

This neighborhood was threatened with a modernist push towards urban development. The original project contemplated two huge routes starting out from the present Virgen de los Reyes street, and opening on to la Ronda, which would have erased emblematic places such as the streets of Mesón del Moro and Santa Teresa, the Plazas of Santa Cruz and Doña Elvira.

The controversy was indeed out in the open. Fortunately interventions made by the Marqués de la Vega Inclán (Marqis), Regal Tourism Commissioner and even from Alfonso XIII himself, who although donated the grounds of the Huerta del Retiro (park) in order to expand the Barrio, he expressed his interest to preserve the area, thus avoiding a catastrophe

The result is what remains today, rounded pebbles and tiles from Tarifa, the adaptation of the Plazas of Santa Cruz and Doña Elvia, from Talavera street, the landscaping along the Callejón del Agua street, the transformation of the donated royal gardens of the Huerta del Retiro, etc. In sum, betterments that saved this space, converting it into a class tourist attraction.

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