Urban hiking in Palermo: between the nature of the lakes and the myth of Falucho

 
Urban trekking or low-intensity steady-state (LISS) urban walking allows you to rediscover the City of Buenos Aires from a different perspective: an active yet contemplative journey where physical activity intersects with the green landscape and the history of Buenos Aires' neighborhoods.
In this tour, we explore the streets of Palermo, starting at the intersection of Thames and Charcas, moving toward the Regatas Lake in the Palermo Woods, and concluding at Plaza Italia, passing beforehand through Plazoleta Falucho and its iconic monument.

Urban route fact sheet
Modality:    Urban hiking (City-trekking / LISS)
Starting point:    Thames and Charcas
End point:    Plaza Italia
Featured section:    Tour of Regatas Lake
Points of interest:    Plazoleta Falucho, Monument to Soldier Falucho, Palermo Woods

The itinerary: step by step

1.    Departure: Thames and Charcas
The march begins in the leafy heart of Palermo. From the corner of Thames and Charcas, the circuit invites you to maintain a steady and leisurely pace as residential streets give way to the park's characteristic greenery.
2.    Contemplative section: Regatas Lake
Moving toward the north of the neighborhood, the route enters the Regatas Lake area. The full loop around the body of water offers an ideal space for gentle aerobic training, surrounded by vegetation and urban wildlife, before heading back toward the neighborhood's nerve center.
3.    Historical stop: Plazoleta and Monument to Falucho
On the way to the final point, the route connects with Plazoleta Falucho, a triangular green space located at the convergence of Avenida Santa Fe, Avenida Luis María Campos, and Arturo Antonio Dresco Street.

In this small square stands the Monument to Falucho, inaugurated in 1897. The original sketch was made by the sculptor Francisco Cafferata, and the work was completed by Lucio Correa Morales. The sculpture pays tribute to a soldier from the Afro-Argentine community, traditionally recognized as a hero of Independence.

The figure of Falucho: between the patriotic myth and historiographical debate

The stop at the square opens a window to one of the most fascinating debates in late 19th-century Argentine historiography: the tension between the construction of foundational myths and documentary positivism.

Mitre's account and the anonymous hero

In 1857, Bartolomé Mitre published in the newspaper Los Debates (and later in his Historia de San Martín y de la emancipación sudamericana) the account that would give final shape to the myth. Mitre highlighted the need to honor heroes without biographies:

"Thousands of heroes without biographies have nobly surrendered their lives [...] These are the anonymous heroes of history. [...] How many obscure sacrifices, how many modest martyrs [...] our military history counts! [...] Half a century ago, an obscure soldier from Buenos Aires deliberately sacrificed his life [...] those names deserve to be inscribed in letters of bronze on the great monument that posterity will consecrate to national glories."

According to this narrative, the Black soldier Antonio Ruiz, nicknamed "Falucho," belonged to Battalion 8 of the Army of the Andes. At the time of the uprising at the Real Felipe Fortress in Callao, he preferred to be executed rather than render honors to the Spanish flag, immortalizing the phrase attributed by oral tradition:

"It may be bad to be a revolutionary, but it is worse to be a traitor."

The 1889 historiographical controversy

In 1889, while the Afro-Buenos Aires community and local promoters were pushing for the creation of the monument, research emerged that questioned the account. Historians such as Adolfo P. Carranza (founder of the National Historical Museum) and Manuel F. Mantilla published criticisms in the Revista Nacional pointing out:

•    Lack of records: Absence of official documents certifying the execution in the terms described.
•    Survival of the name: Documentation indicating that the real Antonio Ruiz had survived the military campaigns.
•    Intersection of identities: Confusion or overlapping between different people and episodes that occurred in Callao.

Later on, revisionist historians such as José María Rosa labeled the episode an "invention of Mitre," while modern historiography and military historians such as Juan M. Espora propose that the heroic act existed in the collective memory of the veterans, albeit with errors or inaccuracies in the identification of the name.

End of the tour: Plaza Italia

After stopping in front of the monument and reflecting on Buenos Aires' history, the walk concludes at Plaza Italia, one of Palermo's most important connectivity nodes, completing a journey that combines outdoor exercise with the cultural heritage of Buenos Aires.

Wikiloc track: https://es.wikiloc.com/rutas-senderismo/walk-through-palermo-caba-falucho-small-plaza-and-monument-286211043