Plaza de Armas: first square of Havana

Walking down Obispo street, and without giving in to tempting detours, we will reach Plaza de Armas. Notice it is not a square, but a park with big trees, fountains and surrounded by buildings essential to the history of the city.

The reason is that it was the place where Havana was founded, were the first mass was ever held as well as the first town council. Where the first cathedral and town hall were erected. We are at a fundamental site since when we are in Plaza de Armas we have arrived to a starting point.

Where to begin?

You do not need to be a connoisseur to see the importance of Plaza de Armas once you arrive there. The majestic and very old surrounding buildings, announce that we are in a place to hung around. If we get there feeling exhausted, we can have a refreshing drink or grab some lunch at “La Mina” restaurant. We can also take some rest on the benches around the park, enjoy the breeze, the shade, the itinerant musicians; or we can go into the seductive constructions that attract visitors like magnets.

El Templete

Havana was the seventh town founded by Spanish conquistadors in the island of Cuba. In 1519 under the shade of a “ceiba” the first mass and town council were held, and the site was blessed as well. A few meters form the bay, this small neo-classic construction marks the foundation place of the town. As time went by, the ceiba tree, planted on one of its sides, was vested with divine energies. It is said that if you walk around the tree three times and make a wish… it will come true.

Santa Isabel Hotel

Nearby El Templete, to the left, there is an old big house that belonged to the Counts of Santovenia. It was built early 18th century and was transformed for the first time into a hotel in 1867. Santa Isabel Hotel is one of the most exquisite 5 stars hotels in Old Havana and has been visited by celebrities such as Jack Nicholson, Bruce Willis, Sting, Jimmy Carter and Pedro Almodovar.

Castillo de la Real Fuerza

To the right of El Templete and closer to the sea, we can see the first Spanish fort ever built in Cuba. The construction dates back to 1558 and it is surrounded by a moat that resembles a medieval fortress. Castillo de la Real Fuerza, besides being barracks, it served as home for the Captain Generals and to keep the gold and the valuable merchandise that was on their way to Spain.

In 1899 it became the National Archive, then Army’s headquarters and, between 1938 and 1957 it was used as the National Library of Cuba. After 1959 it was used as offices of different cultural institutions like the Monuments National Commission or the National Center for Conservation, Restauration and Museology. From 1990 to 2005 was the Museum of Ceramics, and in the present time is the Museum of Navigation.

La Giraldilla

We need to take a good look to the top of the lookout tower of Castillo de la Real Fuerza to spot a bronze sculpture in the shape of a weathervane. It is called “La Giraldilla”, and is one of the most recognizable symbols of the city. It was sculpted and cast around 1630, by Havana citizen Geronimo Martin Pinzon, and pays homage to Isabel de Bobadilla, wife of one of Cuba’s Governors, Hernando de Soto.

De Soto, departed Havana in 1539 to conquer Florida and never came back. He left his wife in charge of the island, but it is said that Dona Isabel spent most of the time on top of the tower searching in the sea for the ship that would bring her beloved husband back. The original Giraldilla was brought down by a hurricane in 1926 and today can be seen at the Museum of the City. The silhouette of La Giraldilla is a very common image in the country, since it is the logo of the worldwide known Cuban rum, Havana Club.

Palacio de los Capitanes Generales: City’s Museum

The most relevant building in Plaza de Armas is the old Captain General’s palace. Built in 1791, it was used as the headquarter and home for the 65 Spanish governors to Cuba during the colonial times. With barroque style and distinctive Renaissance features, the Palace covers a whole block and is considered one of the most outstanding Spanish -style buildings in Latin America.

During the US military intervention in Cuba, it served as the main office for the provisional government. Right after the Republic was declared, it functioned as Presidential Palace until 1920, and later on as Havana’s city hall. In 1967, significant collections of very high cultural and historical values were brought to the building and it became the Museum of the City. Forty permanent exhibit halls preserve the memory of the Cuban history in the most important museum of Havana’s Historical Center.

Palacio del Segundo Cabo

On one of the corners of Plaza de Armas and to one side of the Museum of the City we can see the barroque Palacio del Segundo Cabo. It was built in the 1780s by Spanish architect Don Antonio Fernandez Trebejos, the same that gave shape to the idea of Palacio de Capitanes Generales.

Throughout the years it served as Quartermaster Corps Palace and Royal Post Office. Early 20th century it hosted the Senate and the Supreme Court, arterwards it became the Academy of Sciences and the Arts. After 1959 it was turned into the venue for the National Council of Culture and in present times is the main office of the Cuban institute for the edition, publication and commercialization of books.

It was restored using UNESCO and the European Union funds, and in 2017 two permanent halls of the Center for the Interpretation of the Cultural Relations between Cuba and Europe were opened. We can enjoy there an appealing voyage through history using considerable advanced technology.

Natural History Museum and the Public Library

The youngest buildings surrounding the Square are turning a hundred years old and they may seem, in a way, out of context considering the rest of the majestic neighboring buildings. Nevertheless, they are institutions of great interest; the Museum of Natural History and Ruben Martinez Villena Public Library. In the past and until 1952, the building was the US embassy in Havana, and today it holds these centers that have an essential role in the development of education and entertainment among the members of the community.

Havana’s first square

Fundamental apex of Old Havana’s squares circuit, from there we can easily reach similar sites. Plaza de San Francisco de Asis and Plaza de la Catedral are three blocks away in oposite directions, and Plaza Vieja, five blocks from it. But before we continue our meandering around, let us pause at the centre of Plaza de Armas, right next to the statue of Carlos Manuel de Cespedes, the Father to the Homeland. And let us review, the great deal of momentous events of the city that have happened in this, first square of Havana.

Originally published at havanaprivatesuite.com.