National Pantheon of the Heroes
Domed oratory on Plaza de los Héroes holding the tombs of Paraguay's national figures.
The building was begun in 1863 as the Oratory of Our Lady of the Assumption, a votive chapel ordered by Marshal Francisco Solano López and designed by the Italian engineer Alejandro Ravizza on the model of Les Invalides in Paris. Construction stopped when the War of the Triple Alliance broke out in 1864 and the shell stood unfinished for six decades. It was completed and consecrated in 1936 under the government of Rafael Franco, which dedicated it as the national pantheon of the republic.
Beneath the dome a circular crypt holds the remains of Carlos Antonio López and Francisco Solano López, of Marshal José Félix Estigarribia and his wife, and of two unknown soldiers, one of them a child representing those who fought at Acosta Ñu. The retable of the Virgin of the Assumption stands behind the altar, and the interior keeps its function as an oratory as well as a mausoleum. A military guard of honour is mounted permanently, and the surrounding Plaza de los Héroes is a focus of national ceremonies.
Highlights
- Crypt with the tombs of Carlos Antonio and Francisco Solano López
- Dome and portico modelled on Les Invalides in Paris
- Retable of the Virgin of the Assumption above the altar
- Permanent guard of honour and Saturday changing of the guard
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