View source for Statues of the Liberators

{{short description|Statue series in Washington, DC}}
A series of '''Statues of the Liberators''' of western-hemisphere countries from colonial rule is found along [[Virginia Avenue]], N.W., in [[Washington, D.C.]], which has been referred to as a Washington, D.C.'s version of New York City's [[Sixth Avenue (Manhattan)|Avenue of the Americas]].

Several statues have been erected on Virginia Avenue, N.W., between 18th and 25th Streets, by various Latin American countries honoring their liberators and other national figures.  The statues are maintained by the [[National Park Service]].  The location on Virginia Avenue was chosen because of its proximity to the headquarters of the [[Organization of American States]] (OAS), which is located at Virginia Avenue and 18th Street, and to the [[Pan American Health Organization]] (PAHO), which is located at Virginia Avenue and 23rd Street.

Ordered going from East to West:

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!  Statue
!  Liberator
!  Location of statue
!  Country
!  Year erected
!  Artist
|-
| ''[[General José Gervasio Artigas]]''
| [[José Gervasio Artigas]]
| Virginia Ave. and Constitution Ave., NW
| {{nowrap|{{flag|Uruguay}}}}
| 1950
| [[Juan Manuel Blanes]] (1830–1901)
|-
| ''[[Equestrian of Simón Bolívar]]''
| [[Simón Bolívar]]
| Virginia Ave. and 18th Street (at C St.), NW
| {{nowrap|{{flag|Venezuela}}}}
| 1958
| [[Felix de Weldon]] (1907–2003)
|-
| ''[[General Jose de San Martin Memorial]]''
| [[José de San Martín]]
| Virginia Ave. and 20th Street, NW
| {{nowrap|{{flag|Argentina}}}}
| 1972
| [[Augustin-Alexandre Dumont]] (1801–1884) 
|-
| ''[[Bernardo de Gálvez (statue)|Bernardo de Gálvez]]''
| [[Bernardo de Gálvez]]
| Virginia Ave. and 22nd Street, NW
| {{nowrap|{{flag|Spain}}}}
| 1976
| [[Juan de Ávalos]] (1911–2006)
|-
| ''[[Statue of Benito Juárez (Washington, D.C.)|Benito Juarez]]''
| [[Benito Juárez]]
| Virginia Ave. and 25th Street (at New Hampshire Ave.), NW
| {{nowrap|{{flag|Mexico}}}}
| 1969
| [[Enrique Alciati]]
|}

The statue of Gálvez was given by [[Juan Carlos I of Spain]] to the United States in celebration of the [[United States Bicentennial|Bicentennial of American Independence]] in 1976. Galvez was selected as the subject of the statue because [[Spain and the American Revolutionary War|Spain was an ally of the American colonies]] in the Revolutionary War against the British. Galvez led an army that waged a successful [[Gulf Coast campaign|campaign against the British along the Gulf Coast]] during the war.

The statue of Benito Juarez relates to the reforms made by him to control power from the Church in México.
The Libertator of México is actually [[Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla]]. 
México was the first country to fight against the Spanish Kingdom. Hidalgo was the first one to start the Liberty movement in Latin America.

In the year 1972, the statue of San Martín was removed to its present location from Judiciary Square (roughly E Street between 4th and 5th Streets, NW), where it had been erected in 1925 at a ceremony including President [[Calvin Coolidge]].  This move was necessitated by the construction of the [[Washington Metro]] station at [[Judiciary Square]].  The statue is a copy of the statue of San Martín that stands in [[Buenos Aires]]' [[Plaza San Martín (Buenos Aires)|Plaza San Martín]] (sculpted in 1862 by French artist [[Louis-Joseph Daumas]]).

Another related statue is of [[Don Quixote|Don Quixote de La Mancha]], which is located on the grounds of the [[John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts]]. It was sculpted by Aurelio Teno, the ''[[Don Quixote (Teno)|Don Quixote]]'' statue was also presented by [[Juan Carlos I of Spain]], along with the Gálvez statue, on his 1976 visit to the United States.

==See also==
[[Image:Artigas statue map.jpg|thumb|300px|right|National Park Service map marked with the location of the statues, near the [[National Mall]], the [[Organization of American States| OAS Headquarters]], and the [[White House]] ]]
*[[Libertadores]]
*[[Spanish American wars of independence]]
*[[Diego de Gardoqui]]
*[[National Mall]]
*[[Art Museum of the Americas]]

==External links==
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20110513104048/http://www.nps.gov/nama/photosmultimedia/cell-phone-tours.htm National Park Service's Cell Phone Tour]
*[https://archive.today/20130403042153/http://www.nps.gov/nama/planyourvisit/event-details.htm?eventID=181568-136211 Walking Tour Schedule for 2012 on National Park Service's Washington, D.C. Website]
*[http://www.cr.nps.gov/latino/2012HISP.pdf National Park Service's Report on American Latino Heritage Initiative (see p. 31)]{{dead link|date=June 2025|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20121007134134/http://www.nps.gov/history/nr/travel/American_Latino_Heritage/National_Mall_and_Memorial_Parks.html Self-guided walking tour of statues published by the National Park Service]
*[https://archive.today/20130121102024/http://www.dcmemorials.com/index_outus.htm "D.C. Memorials.com" Web Page with many photographs]
*[http://www3.washingtontimes.com/weekend/20070523-102441-7610r_page2.htm ''Washington Times'' article of May 24, 2007.]
*[http://www.museum.oas.org/ Art Museum of the Americas (part of OAS)]
*[http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/print.php?pid=478 Speech given by President Coolidge at Presentation of ''San Martín'' statue in 1925]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20121021054638/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,728635,00.html?iid=chix-sphere ''Time Magazine'' article from November 1925 about ''San Martín'' statue dedication]
*[http://siris-artinventories.si.edu/ipac20/ipac.jsp?uri=full=3100001~!324775!0#focus Smithsonian Institution inventory entry for the ''Don Quixote'' statue at the Kennedy Center.]
*[http://siris-artinventories.si.edu/ipac20/ipac.jsp?&profile=all&source=~!siartinventories&uri=full=3100001~!323790~!0#focus Smithsonian Institution inventory entry for the ''Jose de San Martin'' statue.]

{{Washington DC landmarks}}
{{Public art in Washington, D.C.}}

[[Category:Outdoor sculptures in Washington, D.C.]]
[[Category:Sculpture gardens, trails and parks in Washington, D.C.]]
[[Category:Statues of people of the Spanish American wars of independence]]
[[Category:Northwest (Washington, D.C.)]]