Havana Museo de la Revolucion
About Museo de la Revolucion
Completed in 1920 by the Cuban architect Carlos Maruri and the Belgian architect Paul Belau this building was constructed for the Provincial Governor Ernesto Asbert as the seat for the Provincial Government but President Mario García Menocal changed his mind and he moved in instead.
This SU-100 Soviet tank was apparently used against an American tank called ‘Houston’ in April 1961 during a mercenary campaign on behalf of the CIA.
Built at a cost of 1.5million pesos, the former Presidential Palace reflects eclectic characteristics and is said to harmoniously combine Spanish, French and German architectural elements. White stone from Capellania was used in its construction while Italian Carrara marble adorns the principal stairway and throughout the floors above. Tiffany Studios of New York was responsible for the internal decorations.
On the first floor is this room called Salon de los Espejos (Room of Mirrors). It was the most important room since all legal sessions were held here including any protocols and official ceremonies. It was conceived from the same idea of the room in the Palacio de Versailles in Paris. Famous Cuban painters who decorated the room were Armando G Menocal and Antonio Rodriguez Morey.
For 40 years this was the power base for many Presidents from Mario García Menocal to Fulgencio Batista until March 13, 1957 when a group of university students stormed the Presidential Palace with the aim of executing the dictator Batista. The attack failed and most of the students were subsequently shot dead or caught and then executed as summary justice. This set in motion the stage for the national insurrection in 1959. As a result of that successful outcome this palace was turned over as a museum on the 12th of December 1959 by Raul Castro and dedicated to the revolution.
Throughout these rooms there is a rich collection of memorabilia including weapons, propaganda, photos, paintings and sculptures. The furniture and decorations in the rooms where official meetings took place are original. A key figure who was responsible for collecting and organising the museum was Celia Sanchez Manduley.
During the years immediately after the revolution Fidel and Raul Castro, Ernesto Guevara and Camilio Cienfuegos would often take part in ordinary sessions here on Tuesdays and Fridays. There were many laws and social benefits passed here that would later characterise the future program of Fidel Castro’s government. This new reality was in stark contrast to the past anti-nationalist laws and wide scale repression under previous governments who were acting under direct American influence.
More exhibits here show uniforms and guns belonging to the insurgents. This large radio transmitter plant was reputedly used by Che during the campaign in Las Villas Province. A window on this floor provides a great view over the front of the building and even down to the Malecón.
Although the museum’s exhibits are largely devoted to the period of the revolutionary war of the 1950s there’s also a part dedicated to pre-revolutionary Cuba, including its War of Independence waged against Spain. This large canvas called Victoria de las Tunas, by Armando Menocal celebrates an 1895 battle against the Spanish. Seen from the second floor here the four smaller pieces of art work just under the dome – considered to be one of the most beautiful in Havana – allude to mythological figures Mercury, Pomona, Volcano and Apollo. They are the work of Esteban Valderrama and Mariano Miguel Gonzalez.
To sum up what has been seen as a controversial building, the respected architect Pedro Martínez Inclán, said, ‘that despite its defects, which are none too few, what modern architect could boast of having been the author of a piece of work that is constructively one of the best in Havana.’
In a hallway behind the grand stairway is this little memorial plaque to Gerardo Medina Cardentey who died during that ill-fated attack to oust Batista in March 1957.
References
http://www.cuba-museums-guide.com/cuba_museums/museum_revolution.htm
Visitor’s Guide, Museo de la Revolución – República de Cuba, Guía del visitante.
Ediciones Niocia S.L., La Habana Vieja – Old Havana, 2004, p258.