This plaza has witnessed numerous historical events over time. Puerta del Sol saw the uprising of the people of Madrid on May 2, 1808, against the French troops of Napoleon Bonaparte, witnessed the proclamation of the Second Spanish Republic in 1931 from the balcony of the Casa de Correos, and continues to see each year the transhumance passing through it, a practice dating back to the Middle Ages involving the migration of over two thousand sheep between the months of October and November to reach warmer areas located to the south of the plateau.