The following is
reprinted from Arquitectura y Urbanismo, Vol. XII, No. 3, 1991.
It is said that
Havana began its fortuitous existence in 1519— on November 16th,
to be exact. I imagine that a mass was celebrated in the morning hours under
the thick branches of a ceiba tree, probably because it was one of the few
places that offered any shade in that area.
From that moment on,
a number of religions have attributed divine properties to that tree, and have
forbidden that it should be cut down. This has been so successful that it
would be good if the prohibition were extended to other kinds of trees. It
would save many trees in our city from being cut down by unbelievers.
But human life had
existed there for thousands of years before these events. The settlement of
Guanabacoa is excellent proof of this, to give only one example.
During the first
fifty years, the colonizers enthusiastically engaged in the sport of
eliminating the indigenous population, which they undoubtedly carried out with
great delicacy, following the norms of the religion to which they were
converting these same indigenous peoples.
The educated men who
accompanied the conquistadors saw no need to record the way of life, religious
beliefs, constructive morphology, and other things which would have been of
interest to posterity. The only exceptions were the holy Father Las Casas (who
entrusted his observations to his memory, since he was already very old), and
an occasional soldier who was gifted with writing talent. Thanks to such
people we know that the indigenous males walked around naked, which greatly
troubled the conquistadors, at least until they saw the females in the same
condition (this means that it was just as hot then as it is now), that they
liked to play ball (just as we do now), and that they had discovered tobacco
and smoked it (just the same as we do now).
But concerning their
towns and architecture, we have only vague references to bateyes
(plazas) and bohíos (houses built around the bateyes). Nothing
really informative, aside from the fact that they had great architectural
talent (also like many people today).
Which means that our
cities were modeled on those of Spain, and were built by Spaniards. Well, this
is just a figure of speech, since they were planned and their construction was
directed by Spaniards, but they were built first by the indigenous people and
later by Africans. I should add another important component in our national
makeup: the Chinese.
But it must be
recognized that the European colonizers were the first and most qualified city
planners, who carried out the unique achievement of urbanizing an entire
continent. An obvious result of this was the construction of many beautiful
settlements which were feasible, flexible and coherent. Perhaps this is due to
the fact that the norms established by the Spanish Laws of the Indies were
somewhat more flexible than the norms we have now, and that the Spanish urban
planners of the 16th century were more sensible than those of the
20th century.
The beauty of the
Havana beaches, the quality of its typical architecture, the beauty of its
women, and— why not— the treasures that were stored there resulted in the
city suffering frequent sieges for more than two centuries by those we will
call pirates of the first generation. On more than one occasion it was
devastated. This brought about actions which had a great deal of influence on
its future development: the city was fortified and a system of fleets was
employed for the galleons' mutual protection, which led to ships loaded with
riches coming from Central and South America to gather in Havana before
crossing the Atlantic.
In 1592, the
creativity of Havana's residents was demonstrated in the construction of the
first aqueduct in America, in the zone of Husillo, and its port and shipyards
were the largest in the Western world.
In 1762, as everyone
knows, a new kind of pirates—the second generation—besieged and conquered
the city, this type in the pompous form of the English Armada. The city showed
great courage in its resistance, and Spanish General Don Luis Velasco and
native-born Pepe Antonio, from the town of Guanabacoa, distinguished
themselves with their bravery. Both fought heroically, and the former died on
the field of battle.
But Havana was
already so important that the English were content to stay there and not
invade the rest of the country. After a year of occupation they withdrew,
graciously accepting Florida in compensation. These events brought about the
construction of the La Cabaña Fortress and the completion of an extremely
powerful defensive system which would make the city impregnable.
During the 19th
century the capital continued with its surprising technological advances.
These included the first steamship in Latin America, the railroad in
1837—even before the mother country built hers—the impressive Albear
aqueduct, the telephone system, and public electric lighting.
The 20th
century saw the development of the idea of a Cuban nationality by Félix
Varela. It is said that he was the first person to teach us to think, and he
died—how significant destiny can be—in the same year that José Martí,
the most famous son of this city, was born.
The final stage of
our war of independence contributed to the demographic growth of the capital
due to the system of peasant concentration camps imposed by Spanish General
Weyler. This same strategy was employed seventy years later by the North
Americans in Vietnam with their "strategic hamlets," which only goes
to show that not all urban planning is as positive as that of Sorla y Mata, or
that of the Garden City.
At that moment in
history, on the magnificent natural stage provided by Havana bay, the
astonished inhabitants of the city saw the Maine, a North American
cruiser, fly into the air, thus placing the United States, against their
wishes (as they themselves said), in the unavoidable position of having to
declare war on Spain and incidentally take possession of Cuba, and the
Philippines, and Puerto Rico after their victory in Cuba was assured.
Thus there a third
generation of pirates appears in our land and teaches the Cubans—especially
the unsophisticated inhabitants of the Havana of that period—very rapid and
efficient methods of speeding up development: thievery, speculation,
profiteering, gambling and botellas, jobs for which one received a
salary without carrying out any of the duties associated with them.
A succession of
presidents took turns in office, the most notorious being dictators Machado
and Batista. The former carried out some important construction projects, such
as the Central Highway, which, instead of resulting in the economic
development of the interior of the island, served to bring products and people
to Havana, and a Capitol which was only an empty architectural symbol of the
city.
Batista took power at
a time of economic growth, which expressed itself in the construction of
buildings, highways, and subdivisions, mainly in the capital. Some of these
projects were quite daring.
By now the city had a
population of nearly a million and a half inhabitants, in a country with a
total population of six million.
In those days Havana
was a city praised as the "little princess of the sea" with
magnificent buildings, great mansions, and gigantic Cadillacs in terrible
taste. It was a flashy vision of a capital to be enjoyed by the ruling class;
it was, as Guillén said, "the snake oil of joy for its sentimental
syphilis."
Then the Revolution
arrived. By then the capital had achieved a certain level of development. It
had had, for example, television since 1950, and a high standard of living in
other sectors, in great contrast with the impoverished remainder of the
country. It was necessary to devote greater efforts toward the economic and
social development of the interior, and this was done.
Thus towns,
industrial zones, and hospitals were developed. The system of settlements grew
into more than four hundred new towns. The transportation infrastructure was
extended into even the most isolated zones. Cuba, at last, was one country.
This was decisive in
the most outstanding characteristic that the city of Havana presents today and
which most surprises foreign specialists: its demographic growth has been
halted at surprisingly low levels. It is the only large city in Latin America
which does not have a population which reaches the multimillion mark. The most
impressive examples of this megagrowth are São Paulo in Brazil and Mexico
City, both of which have eighteen million inhabitants and which almost
certainly will reach thirty million within ten years, by the year 2000.
Perhaps the most impressive example is in the comparison of Havana with Lima,
the capital of Peru, which in 1959 had a population of one million (five
hundred thousand less than Havana) and today possesses a population of more
than seven million. But no one should think that this is a triumph of Cuban
urban planning: it is a triumph of revolutionary strategy.
Urban planning
arrived with the Revolution. The Central Plan for Havana soon began its
studies and produced proposals and general schematics in 1863, 1971, and 1984.
It recently concluded its fourth readjusted version for the year 2010.
Other measures which
helped were the provincial hierarchy, the establishment of local organs of
People's Power, and the growing participation of the citizenry.
The beautiful image
of Havana has many facets: its coasts and beaches, the Malecón or sea wall,
the internationally famous city skyline, and the quality of its architecture
and engineering.
This has made Havana
one of the most beautiful cities in the world. Yet writer H. Zumbado has
noted, quite correctly: Havana: it is and it isn't.
This is because the
work which has been carried out in the capital has been hampered by general
ineffectiveness due to its slowness, its focus on certain sectors to the
exclusion of others and mistaken conceptualizations, not to mention economic
difficulties. This has produced as a consequence the deterioration of our
buildings, a lack of hygiene and cleanliness, and these are compounded by
other problems in areas such as transportation and communications, housing and
the infrastructure.
No less important is
the fact that there has been a gradual deterioration in environmental quality,
above all in our water and our air, produced particularly by pollution caused
by urban transportation and also the pollution which exists in our rivers,
watershed, and harbor.
In flagrant
contradiction with the architectural and urban traditions of our country,
there was a notable loss of aesthetic quality in current construction caused
by, among other factors, the insufficient development of building systems and
technology, together with the lack of quality and variety in building
materials.
All this could be
seen most clearly in the new developmental zones. Together with most advanced
international movements we fell, during the disastrous decade of the
Seventies, into monotony, poor building quality, and lack of services. There
was a dearth of initiative and exacting standards on the part of planners,
project directors and builders, a lack of technical authority, tendencies
toward facile solutions and improvisation, and, above all, no understanding of
the need for the necessary regulations which would enable us to achieve a high
degree of integration in urban planning.
The participation of
the general population has improved, but it is still very far from what it
should be in regard to the development of people's neighborhoods and the
necessary improvement in the urban cultural level.
Perhaps it would be
well to end this already long speech in a style consonant with the historic
times in which we are living during this quincentennial observation of the
arrival of the Spaniards in America. Allow me to return to the above-mentioned
conquest of Havana by the English in 1762, and say something about the main
antagonists in that event.
The tenacious
resistance of the defenders of a Havana blockaded, besieged, and invaded was
centered in the Morro Fortress and directed by the valiant Spanish general Don
Luis de Velasco.
On the other hand,
the Count of Albemarle was chief of the invading armada, which consisted of
one hundred and seventy-five warships and a large army. More than eighteen
thousand shells and grenades fell on the Morro Fortress during the almost two
months that the military action lasted. Two thousand nine hundred men from
both sides paid with their lives for the demand to surrender.
When hope for
defending the city was practically nil—it will never be known why, for two
months, Spain could not send aid to Havana—Albemarle sent a long letter to
Velasco, in which he said, among other things:
(I quote, translating
from Old Spanish.)
"It would be
as painful for me to not take the fortress which you are so heroically
defending, as it would be for your valiant spirit to place you in danger of
being killed in the struggle . . .
"I am
convinced that if the Catholic King of Spain could witness all that you have
done, he would be the first to order you to surrender, in order to save such
an illustrious and distinguished officer. Men like yourself should not be
exposed to the risk of a bullet. As a result of these considerations, I hope
to see you tomorrow and embrace you so that you may dictate all the articles
of surrender which you feel are necessary to preserve the honor
corresponding to you and to those of your garrison . . . "
To which Don Luis de
Velasco replied:
(I quote as above.)
" . . . I do not aspire to immortalize my name, my only desire is to
breathe my last breath in defense of my sovereign, the honor of my nation
and my love for the motherland . . .
"When I think
that I am the person to whom such praise is directed, I accept it only
because you are the guarantor . . . "
And he concludes
firmly:
"Absorbed, my
lord, in the gracious praise that you show toward my person, I was about to
forget that this is the moment for replying to you as I offered to, and not
finding any possibility of reconciling your goals and mine, and with much
sorrow that this should be the case, while I would prefer to serve you, the
last word must be spoken on the field of battle."
With that same spirit
we must defend our country and our city from enemies from without as well as
from those within who, unconsciously, commit damaging acts that affect our
nation's functioning and its image.
Havana has the
potential to be the most beautiful city in the world, but it isn't there yet.
It is for this reason
that we have been developing an energetic plan of construction of all kinds,
mainly in the form of joint ventures: housing, direct services, open and
closed sites for exhibitions and hotels for national and international
tourism, among other things.
This ambitious plan
for construction ought to fill us all with the will to carry it out while
recovering our architectural and urban tradition with the participation of
planners, project directors, and other professionals.
As Fidel said
recently:
"For five
centuries marvelous buildings were constructed by slaves and exploited
workers. While much of the spirit of the architecture of the exploiting
classes was exemplified by good taste and not love, today we build with free
men and their works should be carried out with both good taste and
love."
We must recover the
combative spirit of making technical advances with the determination to
develop in the newest and most advanced ways while remaining rooted in our
Havana traditions. That is what the history of this city teaches us, so that
we may shout at the top of our lungs: Havana is!
Mario González
Sedeño is an architect and Doctor of Technical Sciences, Instituto Superior
Politécnico José Antonio Echeverría (ISPJAE), City of Havana and part of
the Grupo para el Desarrollo Integral de la Capital (GDIC).
Translated by
William Rose