Lisbon - Avenida da Liberdade

One of the most important arterial roads in Lisbon is the Avenida da Liberdade. The 90m/295ft wide road gradually climbs over a distance of about 1.5km/1mi from the Praça dos Restauradores to the Praça Marques de Pombal at the southern end of the Parque Eduardo VII.

The boulevard, built in 1879, forms a connecting axis between the old 18th C. quarters of the Baixa and the northern parts of the city which developed in the 19th and the 20th centuries. The construction of the Avenida da Liberdade took interest away from the Tagus which, until then, had been the focus of attention as Lisbon's "main artery of life", and led to the opening up and general orientation of the city to the north. The course of the Avenida da Liberdade corresponds approximate to that of one of the Tagus' earlier branches, which flowed here in pre-Christian times and combined with another branch at Rossio.

As the two main metro lines run along the Avenida da Liberdade and the Avenida Almirante Reis they follow in principle the former courses of the river beds. A forerunner of this boulevard was the Passeio Público, initiated in 1764 by Pombal after the earthquake, an extensive park laid out in this fertile former river valley. The park was used as a "promenade" where people strolled about in public in order to be seen. With the idea of building a prestigious and elegant street Lisbon turned its gaze, as was often the case, to Paris: a counterpart to the Champs Elysées was planned for Portugal's capital city. Despite numerous protests directed, amongst other things, at the felling of old trees, construction began in 1879 under the initiative of the then mayor Rosa Aráuja. The boulevard was officially opened in 1882. The Avenida da Liberdade was then used, particularly on Subways, as a promenade for Lisbon's society and became a scene of parades, march pasts and demonstrations.

During the century the character of the Avenida da Liberdade became increasingly shaped by the growing amount of traffic. The small areas of parkland and the ten rows of trees have lost their effect in competition with a total of seven lanes of thunderous traffic. Some imposing town houses dating from the time when the avenue was first developed can still be found, but on the whole the frontage has been interspersed completely thoughtlessly with plain, ill-suited new buildings, more of which are planned. During the last few decades mainly administrative and business offices, hotels, banks and shopping centers have become established here. A number of street cafes have been opened on the grassed areas, complete with pools and fountains, tempting passers-by - although not during rush-hours!

Strolling along the Avenida da Liberdade several buildings and places of interest on and around the boulevard are worthy of attention. The numbering of the houses begins at the Praça dos Restauradores, even numbers on the western side, odd on the east.