WORLD HERITAGE
Colonia del Sacramento
Uruguay’s city on the banks of the Río de la Plata has had a wild history; it’s a story written in the cobbles and buildings of its UNESCO-listed centre, writes Chris Moss
Shining a light on the past (top) The construction of Colonia’s 19th-century lighthouse, built amid the ruins of the Convento de San Francisco, replaced the old chapel tower, which had been used by ships to navigate the Río de la Plata for years until the convent burned down in 1705
176 April/May 2022
W
hen thinking about the 19th-century British The colony was hot property and changed hands several times invasions of the Río de la Plata (River Plate; until 1828, when Uruguay gained its independence. 1806–07), Argentines often wonder what it Today, the historic quarter of Colonia – as it’s known would have been like to have been part of the locally – is listed by UNESCO for its well-preserved “fusion British Empire. But they rarely consider the of Portuguese, Spanish and post-colonial” architectural styles. more likely counterfactual: that Brazil Lots of weekenders from Uruguay and might have extended its power southArgentina, and significant numbers “Colonia packs in ward and absorbed its large neighbour from Brazil, come to stroll the narrow into its already considerable vastness. a surprising number cobbled streets of the quaint, tree-lined Uruguay’s Colonia del Sacramento, old centre, which is laid out irregularly of museums for on the left (north-east) bank of the Río (unlike the grids of most Spanish colosuch a little town” nial settlements) on a small peninsula de la Plata, across from Argentina, is an evocative reminder of a time when the that sticks out into the river. Colonia also latter was very possible indeed. Portuguese Brazil, vying for packs in a surprising number of museums for such a little town. territorial and maritime dominion with the Spanish, founded Get your bearings at the Museo Municipal, off the Plaza the original town here, Nova Colônia do Sacramento, in 1660 Mayor, where there’s a scale model of the settlement as it as a military outpost. It was a strategic site, allowing control looked in 1762, as well as a re-creation of a colonial drawing of the river mouth within sight of Buenos Aires as well as room. On either side of the museum are the Casa Nacarello offering additional protection for Brazil’s southern frontier. and Casa del Virrey, the former a colonial-era house with
