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Palacio de La Moneda (, ''Coin Palace''), or simply La Moneda, is the seat of the President of the Republic of Chile. It also houses the offices of three cabinet ministers: Interior, General Secretariat of the Presidency and General Secretariat of the Government. It occupies an entire block in downtown Santiago, in the area known as Civic District between Moneda (North Side), Morandé (East), Alameda del Libertador Bernardo O'Higgins (South) and Teatinos street (West).〔(www.letsgochile.com: La Moneda Palace )〕 ==History== La Moneda, originally a colonial mint (''Moneda'' means coin), was designed by Italian architect Joaquín Toesca.〔 Construction began in 1784 and was opened in 1805,〔 while still under construction. The production of coins in Chile took place at La Moneda from 1814 to 1929. In June, 1845 during president Manuel Bulnes's administration, the palace became the seat of government and presidential residence. In 1930, a public square —named ''Plaza de la Constitución'' ("Constitution Square")— was built in front of the palace. After the presidency of Gabriel González Videla it ceased to serve as a presidential residence. During the military coup d'état on September 11, 1973, the Chilean Air Force bombarded the palace at the request of the army. Reconstruction and restoration projects were completed on March 11, 1981, although some bullet marks have been preserved and can still be seen nowadays. During the 1973-1980 restorations, an underground office complex (the so-called "bunker") was built under the front square to provide a safe escape for then-President General Augusto Pinochet in case of an attack. During President Ricardo Lagos's administration, the palace's inner courtyards were opened to the public during certain hours of the day. Lagos also re-opened Morandé 80 — a gate used by Chilean presidents to enter the palace since the early 20th century. It was eliminated during the restoration of the palace as not being in the original plans, but was restored because of the heavy symbolism attached to it as being the gate through which Chilean Presidents entered La Moneda skipping the main's gate guard protocol or, in other words, as ordinary citizens of the Republic. It was also the gate through which the body of President Allende was taken out after the 1973 coup. A traditional changing of the guard ceremony takes place every two days 〔http://www.gob.cl/changing-of-the-guard/〕 on odd-numbered day in odd-numbered months, even-numbered days in even-numbered months, including Sundays, at 10 a.m. weekdays and 11 a.m. on weekends (as of June 2015).〔according to tour guide at the palace, June 2015〕 A formal ceremony dating back to the 1850s, it lasts about 30 minutes and includes a band playing, troops with horses parading into the square, and much pomp and circumstance. Free guided tours of the palace are available at the La Moneda website and are given in several languages. They must be requested at least seven days in advance.〔http://visitasguiadas.presidencia.cl〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「La Moneda Palace」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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