It is no surprise that Santiago de Cuba is known as a city of monuments, as each stone, corner or site marks a significant event or commendable figure, whose imprint is part of the tradition and identity of the city’s people.
Numerous sites make up the historical and cultural heritage of the region, with more than 700 monuments that have become guardians of a living history built over these past 500 years.
The city is thought to have one of the highest numbers of monuments in the country, demonstrating the historical value of the territory.
Two world landmarks are found here, a source of pride for its indomitable people: the San Pedro de la Roca Castle and the fortifications around the bay; and the French-Haitian coffee plantations, the first on the island.
Due to the cultural andnatural importance tothe common heritageof humanity of these places, they receivedthe title of UNESCO WorldHeritage Sites.
Likewise, the buildings of what was the center of the small town founded by the conquistador Diego Velázquez, in July 1515, which today represent great gems of history and Santiago architecture.
Some of the most importantsitesmake up what is known asthe Urban Historical Center, one of the firstdeclared a National Monument,in 1978.
This includes the so-called zero ring area of the city composed of the Primada de Cuba Cathedral, and the centennial Hotel Casa Granda, together with the old San Carlos Club - today the site of the Santiago Museum of Decorative Arts - and the renowned Galería Oriente.
It also includes, along the outer circumference, the Town Hall opened in 1954, the Plaza de Armas cafeteria, the modern bank – formerly the location of the Hotel Venus - and the oldest house in Latin America, home to the Spanish conquistador, first Governor of Cuba and founder of the first seven villas in the country.
The San Basilio Magno Seminary is also among the 48 monuments of great national importance. It received the title of National Monument in 2003 for the architectural, historical and educational value of this site preserved for over three centuries.
This was the first place where university education was offered in Cuba.
Another Santiago site worth mentioning is the Royal Prison, an institution founded in the nineteenth century, in which important personalities were imprisoned, such as fighters of the independence struggle including Perucho Figueredo. Later, in the republican period, those who attacked the Moncada Barracks were held here.
The building currently houses the Provincial Historic Archive, with important documents that testify to the daily life of this Caribbean land.
In the same category are the Emilio Bacardi Moreau museums, a leading cultural center considered the first building constructed for museum purposes in Cuba; the houses where General Antonio Maceo and clandestine leader Frank País were born; and the cultural Heredia Street, named for José María, the first Latin American romantic poet, born in one of its residences.
Finally, and no less important, is the Santa Ifigenia Cemetery, where the remains of Cuba’s National Hero, José Martí, lay together with those of other illustrious sons of this land. The site has been considered a National Monument since 1979.
For this and many other reasons, the city of Santiago de Cuba, together with its inhabitants, honor and respect these great buildings, home to a rich cultural, social and historical heritage, handed down from generation to generation over the past 500 years.
FOTO crédito: Sierra Maestra
