This famous square stands at the foot of the Capitol and houses the monumental "Altare della Patria". The enormous building that dominates it, is built completely with marble, in the middle of which different bronze statues and bas-reliefs stand out. In the middle of the imposing building, the Altare della Patria is located, surmounted with the statue of Rome; at its foot in 1921 the grave of the Milite Ignoto ("unknown soldier") was placed, in memory of the Italian soldiers who died during the First World War.

The building of this great monument roused in this century numerous controversies and it is often mentioned as an example of an architectural ruin. The reason for this hostile attitude is that during its building the context was not considered in which the monument had to be erected, that is very near to the Capitol, Roman Forum, even Coliseum, the heart of Rome. This location should have been honored through architectural choices that respected the context; it was not so, from a stylistic point of view, and most of all because of the dimensions. It's quite impressive to go from the proportions of Capitol Square, built for the measure of a man, to the Monument in memory of Vittorio Emanuele, which always gives the idea that human measures are too little.