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Triana is one of the historic city quarters of the Spanish city of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, capital of Gran Canaria and part of Distrito Centro (central district). Since 1990 the quarter is considered site of historical and cultural interest.

Location
Triana can be acessed via the Guiniguada ravine, towards Puerto de la Luz. Named for its original similarity with a quarter of the same name in Seville, its structure follows the direction of a main thoroughfare, Calle Mayor de Triana, a street with an architecture of notable beauty, traditionally known to be a commercial street. Nearby buildings include the Pérez Galdós Theatre, the Gabinete Literario and the San Francisco Church.

History
The Triana district has been a historical constant in the growth of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, almost from the time the first settlements originated, at the end of the 15th century. Its choice of name probably refers to the neighborhood of Seville with the exact same name, given that an important part of the first colonizers who settled the Canaries after the conquest hailed from Andalucia, with its capital in Seville. .



In recent years, the inner districts have received recognition as valuable cultural heritage. As such, Vegueta was the first to be declared a site of national historical and artistic interest in 1973, with the historic part of Triana following several years later, in 1993.

Until the construction of the new portuary district Puerto de La Luz y de Las Palmas at La Isleta a century ago, Triana had been a maritime district. The only part of this maritime heritage that remains today is San Telmo chapel, which was originally constructed at the close of the 16th century. A more recent chapel dates back to the 18th century. In its interior the altar piece is notable, in addition to the coffered ceiling in Mudéjar style. The chapel shows a rendition of "The Immaculate", which originally belonged to a bernardine convent and is attributed to Alonso Cano. Furthermore, a rendition of the popular figure "Señor de la Burrita" (Jesus on a mule), which is honoured during the anual Palm Sunday procession, can be found.



Traditionally, Triana's extension was delimited by the Guiniguada ravine to the South, the sea to the East and a stretch of mountains to the West. A defensive wall running parallel to the sea was constructed during the 16th century next to Vegueta in order to protect the district from possible attacks or invasions. Even though the wall was demolished in order to facilitate urban expansion, one can imagine its original position by following the outline of the, now called, Bravo Murillo Street.

However, throughout the 17th century Triana expanded significantly, a process which also defined the area on which the quarter was to expand in the centuries to come. Urban design was organized in compliance with the orders of the town council, following an outline of roughly rectangular shape which remains intact to the present day and can be seen, for example, in the perpendicular roads on the main street (Calle Mayor). Furthermore, new chapels were buit, such as Saint Telmo, Saint Sebastian and Saint Justus and the Chapel of Conception, the starting point being this last one that was buit towards the end of the century, the convent of nuns of Saint Bernard. Also during the third part of the 16th century, military architecture was built such as the northern wall and Saint Ana´s Tower in order to defend the population, both places situated next to the Pond of the Abbots and Saint Sebastian´s creek, the latter being the main entry and departure point both for passangers and merchandise for almost four centuries.



After the invasion of the Dutch admiral Van der Does in 1599, a whole urban reconstruction process began that would develop throughout the 17th century, as this event affected the most relevant religious, military and private buildings. Besides, institutions such as San Lorenzo Hospital moved from the outskirts, inside the city. This charity center was located in a greenhouse inside the gardens of Triana, in the space that would later occupy the city's nursing home and, presently, the Insular Center of Culture. In the same way, the convent of nuns from Santa Clara was inaugurated followed by the one from San Francisco, enphasizing, in this way, the religious nature that this city have enjoyed since the 15th century.

The District and its Architecture
Pérez Galdós Theatre, built by the architect Miguel Martín Fernández de la Torre, occupies the same place where the previous theatre, Tirso de Molina Theatre, once stood, until it was destroyed by a fire. The interior is adorned by murals that were painted by the architect's brother, Néstor Martín Fernández de la Torre, which also deserve special attention.

In the 19th century, the city was composed by the Vegueta and Triana districts. After church properties have been confiscated, the convent of Saint Clara became the nowadays Alameda de Colón Square, and Cairasco Theatre is situated where today stands the Gabinete Literario. In the 19th century, different types of architecture start to appear in Triana, such as theaters, avenues and promenades, designed to attend to the social demands of the bourgeoisie residing alongc the river bank, enriched thanks to commerce and agriculture. The confiscations of the church properties during the 19th century encouraged the privatization and sale of the three convents in Triana, along with their respective gardens and dependencies, and as a result, new streets, squares, houses and public buildings.

In the third part of the 19th century two buildings were erected at both ends of Triana which were fundamental for the district's physiognomy. These buildings were the Tirso de Molina Theatre (later dedicated to Pérez Galdós), on the mouth of the Guiniguada ravine; and the Military Government building at the confluence of the Triana street with the so called walk of the Castles (Bravo Murillo). They also worked on the layout of the main streets in the district (most notably Calle Mayor).

At the beginning of the 20th century, the modernist style influenced the most characteristic type of building of the district. The buildings numbered 76, 78, 80, and 82 in Triana Street, along with Rodriguez Queglese´s Mansion and Pérez Galdós Street, are currently the best examples of this architectural movement, being also designated Sites of Cultural Interest (Bien de Interés Cultural). Many of the wealthy families that lived in Triana started the project to renovate and decorate their houses as a sign of social distinction. Many of these decorated façades can be found on Calle Mayor Street and the ones perpendicular to it.

The Rationalist architecture of the 20s and 30s encouraged the construction of another one of Triana´s emblematic buildings, like Cabildo Insular City hall, built by Miguel Martín Fernández de la Torre in the corner between Bravo Murillo St y Pérez Galdós St, on a site where cock fights had previously been held. On the other side, the technical and industrial progress influenced this district too, especially where streets and squares are concerned. Electrical illumination took over the ancient lightning system with lanterns lit with oil and petrol. Similarly, until the World War II years and the post-war-era, a tram commonly known as ´´La Pepa´´ ran along Calle Mayor Street. This coal locomotive was inaugurated on the day of Saint Joseph (from whom it got its name) in 1890, and it went from the historical town centre to Puerto de La Luz port. Its rails remained on the street for decades, until they were covered in asphalt and then in the next paving of this route, which is currently a pedestrian area.



Prominent Figures
Within the cultural and artistic life of the city, there are some prominent figures, residents in Triana, with names worth mentioning such as Benito Pérez Galdós, man of letters, the poet Tomás Morales and Juan Negrín, politician and also the last president of the II Spanish Republic. Also, we must not fail to refer to the image that some Canarian painters, such as José Comas Quesada, Nicolás Massieu and Juan Betancor bequested to us from different parts of the neighborhood.

Triana's Commercial Area
In 2013, Triana (Triana's Entrepreneurs Association) received the National Award for the opening of its Shopping Centers, an award grated by the Executive Management of Internal Commerce of the Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness of Spain, aimed at awarding commercial associationism oriented to promote Shopping Centers (CECs).

Places of Interest

 * Calle Mayor de Triana

Buildings and Monuments

 * Ermita de San Telmo
 * Teatro Pérez Galdós
 * Gabinete Literario
 * Parroquia de San Francisco de Asís
 * Teatro Cuyás
 * Cabildo de Gran Canaria