Estévez Palace, Presidential palace in Plaza Independencia, Montevideo, Uruguay

Estévez Palace is a classical building at Plaza Independencia featuring white stone walls, symmetrical windows, and Doric columns across its main facade. The interior has been arranged as a museum with rooms that preserve the original layout and furnishings from its time as a working government building.

Francisco Estévez commissioned the building in 1873 as a residence with commercial space; it was completed in 1874 and housed his family on the second floor and the Italian Consulate below. After Estévez went bankrupt, the Banco de Londres y Río de la Plata sold it to the Uruguayan State in 1878 for 130,000 pesos. President Lorenzo Latorre made it the seat of government, and it was inaugurated on 25 May 1880 under Francisco Antonino Vidal, serving until 1985.

The palace displays personal objects and furniture from different periods of Uruguay's leadership, showing how daily work and politics changed over time. Visitors can see the belongings and spaces that shaped the decisions of those in power.

The palace faces Plaza Independencia, next to the Executive Tower, in Montevideo's Municipality B. Its main balcony overlooking the square is where the president greets the public on 1 March after the handover ceremony. The building now serves as the government's ceremonial headquarters, so access depends on official events rather than fixed visiting hours.

The palace never housed the president: it was a workplace, not a residence. Its main balcony facing Plaza Independencia is where the new president greets the public on 1 March after the handover ceremony. The building kept the name of its promoter, Francisco Estévez, even after the state bought it in 1878.