This square is a delightful corner of the city which used to be the site for games, festivals, bull fights, processions and civic parades. In the Arab period it was a rectangular square constituting the main souk, a large market surrounded by stalls.
With the arrival of the Catholic Monarchs in 1489, the square was to take the name of “Juego de las Cañas” (The Game of Reeds), in reference to one of the main public festivities that used to be celebrated there. The square used to be surrounded by one or two-storey houses, devoted to bazaars, inns and baths. In the middle of the 19th century it was adapted to the tastes of the middle classes, introducing the model of a porticoed main square. The square is presided over by the main façade of the building of the Town Hall, dating from the end of the 19th century, designed by the architect Trinidad Cuartara Cassinello.
The northern part of the square´s façade corresponds to the convent of St. Clare, in which the 18th century dome is outstanding. The quarters of the convent were rebuilt after a fire during the Spanish Civil War.
In the centre of the square, we can find the monument to the “Coloraos” (the Reds) dedicated to the 24 liberals who disembarked in Almeria in 1824 to proclaim freedom and the return of the 1812 Constitution, popularly known as the Pepa. The “Coloraos” were against the absolutism of Fernando VII, for which they were arrested and shot without trial.
