Casa Rosada: a pink palace full of history

The emblematic palatial building placed in front of the historic Plaza de Mayo is currently the seat of the national government and is located on the site where the Fort of Buenos Aires was erected in 1580.

It was the residence of Spanish viceroys, and later housed, with some reforms, the authorities of successive national governments. The current building is the product of the merger of two previous constructions: the presidential headquarters and the Palacio de Correos (on the corner of Hipólito Yrigoyen and Balcarce).

The Post Office Palace, adjoining the building, significantly overshadowed the seat of government, so in 1882 President Julio Argentino Roca requested an expansion and repair project that would merge both buildings. To unite them, the Italian architect Francisco Tamburini (responsible for the original project of the Teatro Colón) designed a large central arch at the entrance to Balcarce 50, the construction of which was completed around 1890. This marked the end of what remained of the old Fort: only the some walls and one of the loopholes, which can be seen in the current Casa Rosada Museum.

Curious facts:
Roque Sáenz Peña was the only president who lived inside the Casa Rosada between 1910 and 1914. Banquets were held in the Salón Blanco in which up to twelve different dishes were served and the menu was always written in French. The crockery was English and French porcelain, as were the silver and glassware. There are still the heirs of the African palm trees that were planted at the end of the last century, when the construction was Frenchified and given a touch of exoticism.