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History of Architecture in Havana (page
1 of 2)
sHavana, the capital city of Cuba, has
a special character; different from many Latin American cities.
It did not undergo the building boom of the 1960's that destroyed
so many historic buildings and towns in the region.
After the Cuban Revolution in1959, priority
was placed on other matters, so the City was not transformed
according to Modern trends. However, due to their advanced
age and lack of maintenance, historical quarters were quite
deteriorated.
The historic core of Havana was founded
in 1519 at Carenas Bay. Unlike most Latin American towns where
there is a central plaza, Havana has a peculiar urban structure
composed by several main squares, each one with one dominating
public, social or religious function. Impressive buildings
were built on Plaza Vieja, Plaza de Armas, Plaza de San Francisco,
Plaza del Cristo and Plaza de la Catedral. Probably, the most
outstanding among them belong to the 18th century, like the
Baroque Cathedral of Havana and the Governor's Palace on the
Arms Square.
Owing
to its function as a port city with a unique geographical
location at the mouth of the Gulf of Mexico since the
16th century, Havana had a relevant role as a trade and
communication enclave between the Old and the New Worlds.
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| Morro-Cabaña
Fortress |
For this reason, the city was
constantly attacked by pirates and corsairs, which represented
the various enemies of Spain. Since the third decade of the
16th century the Spanish crown had to build fortresses as
a protection from these dangers.
The most impressive ones are La Fuerza,
the oldest one remaining from mid 16th century, inspired on
Italian Renaissance patterns, the 17th century Morro and La
Punta Castles at the harbors´ entrance channel and the
18th century La Cabaña, more than seven hundred meters
long facing this channel. Additional protection was provided
by the stone walls which surrounded the town.
In the 19th century Old Havana's most
wealthy inhabitants moved to more modern housing or villas
in Vedado and Cerro Districts, where new urban development
comprised larger gardens and public green spaces. Most of
the historic core´ s old palaces were then subdivided
into small rooms for rent in order to lodge the increasingly
growing population mainly workers- of the Old Town.
The demolition of the city walls began
in 1863 and it continued until the early years of the 20th
century. The urban space formerly occupied by the walls became
the main focal point of the City.
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Inglaterra, Plaza and Telégrafo Hotels, the modern
cigar factories as magnificent examples of industrial
architecture, the impressive headquarters of the Centro
Asturiano and the Centro Gallego both of them representing |
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Centro Gallego in Havana |
the economic achievements of Spanish
immigrants, were among the most significant buildings on this
zone.
History
of Cuban Architecture
Interesting Places
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