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At the foot of Parque Eduardo VII you’ll find Praça Marques de Pombal, or Rotunda (literally “roundabout”). It’s the main intersection for Lisbon's metro system and one of the busiest areas in terms of pedestrians and traffic. At its centre is a 9 metre statue of the Marquês de Pombal holding a lion, on top of a 34 metre plinth, commemorating the rebuilding of Lisbon after the 1755 earthquake. The stone pedestal depicts scenes of the reconstruction and even the earthquake itself and the tsunami that followed it. After the disaster the Marquis famously answered the question as to what was to be done, with the words “We bury the dead and feed the living.” Despite the calamity, Lisbon suffered no major epidemics and within a year the city was already being rebuilt in the classic Pombaline style that characterises downtown Lisbon today. You’ll find many of the city’s top hotels within a stone’s throw of the roundabout.
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