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Joseph Bonaparte, who had declared Madrid the seat of government for the French regime, introduced his reforms by demolishing numerous churches and planning several new squares. He made no further progress, however, and after the return of the Bourbon king Ferdinand VII in 1814 the most important task was the clearing of these ruins. Amongst them was the Plaza de Oriente with the Teatro Real by Antonio Aguado López. In 1843 the equestrian statue of Philip IV from the Buen Retiro was transformed here. The construction of the theatre was completed only in 1850 by Isidro González Velázquez.
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