at the University Square In the 15th century, here was the northern limit of the city. Around 1700, the limit was already around what is today
Piața Romană (Roman Square). Thought to define the axes north–south and east–west of the city after 1880, "the great crossroad" (, ) follows the
Haussmannian scenario of urban modernization – in the spirit of the Parisian influence of those times. This intersection has never evolved as a monumental square, but emerged as most important road junction of the capital at the geometric center of the city. The Bucharest boulevards of those times hosted tram lines, and in the center of the intersection was placed the monument dedicated to
Ion Brătianu, the square then bearing his name. This square was part of an east–west axis full of important monuments, starting in the east with the statue of
C.A. Rossetti in
Piața Rosetti (Rosetti Square) and culminating with the statue of
Mihail Kogălniceanu in the eponymous square. University Square was established in 1857 as part of the creation of the
University of Bucharest (architect
Alexandru Orăscu), its character being defined by four statues, made over six decades:
Michael the Brave (1876, sculptor
Albert-Ernest Carrier-Belleuse) and scholars
Ion Heliade-Rădulescu (1882,
Ettore Ferrari),
Gheorghe Lazăr (1886, Ion Georgescu) and
Spiru Haret (1935,
Ion Jalea). In 1679 the
Princely Academy was built here, which in the 1857 century was to become the
University of Bucharest. The university was built in several stages, following
neoclassical aesthetic principles. The facade existing today was constructed between 1921 and 1943 (architect
Nicolae Ghika-Budești). Pedestrians can cross the streets only by University Passage, constructed during the development of M2 metro thoroughfare and leading, as well, to a metro station. The space that now extends from the
InterContinental hotel and
National Theatre once was home to an outdoor circus, around which existed shops with
mititei (small Romanian sausages) and beer, and a stum shop named
Zori de zi (Daylight). All this disappeared after urban planning in the 1960s proposed the idea of developing the area through tourism, cultural or administrative functions. Between 1968 and 1970 the Hotel InterContinental (architects Dinu Hariton, Gheorghe Nădrag, Ion Moscu and Romeo Belea) was built, and the new National Theatre was constructed between 1964 and 1973 in the style of that period, the halls being equipped with top stage installations. Damaged during the
1977 earthquake, the theater was rebuilt 1982–1984, under the aegis of
Cezar Lăzărescu, in a heavy form and lacking spectacular elements. The square was the site of the 1990
Golaniad, a peaceful student protest against the ex-communists in the Romanian government. The demonstrations ended violently when miners from the
Jiu Valley were called in by president
Ion Iliescu to restore order in Bucharest (
see: Mineriad). ==Events==