They stumbled their way to the middle of Plaza Grande. Shawn eased Michelle onto the steps of the Independence Monument and repositioned her leg. She moaned in agony. A military clash began in 1820 between the Royal Audience of Quito, an administrative government unit, and the Spanish Empire. The Ecuadorian War of Independence ended in May of 1822 at the Battle of Pichincha. This obelisk by Francisco Durini Cáceres was erected in 1906 to honor the Heroes de la Independecia. The monument is why Plaza Grande is often called Independence Square.
