History of Havana

Foundation and early growth

A port called San Cristóbal de la Habana was founded in 1515 by the Spanish conquistador Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar, possibly near the present town of Batabanó on the south coast of the island. It was not a fortuitous choice, for the climate was poor and the region was swampy. Mosquitoes abounded. The site was abandoned in favour of Havana’s present location (then called Puerto Carenas) on the north coast in 1519. The natural deepwater port, together with the land protection to the harbour, made Havana a site that early attracted growing numbers of settlers. A royal decree in 1634 recognized its importance, calling it the “Llave del Nuevo Mundo y Antemural de las Indias Occidentales” (“Key to the New World and Rampart of the West Indies”). Havana’s coat of arms carries this inscription. The Spaniards began building fortifications, and in 1553 they transferred the governor’s residence to Havana from Santiago de Cuba on the eastern end of the island, thus making Havana the de facto capital. The importance of harbour fortifications was early recognized as English, French, and Dutch sea marauders attacked the city in the 16th century.

Development as a major new world port

During the 17th century eastbound fleets of Spanish ships carrying treasure from the New World rendezvoused at Havana for the trip across the Atlantic to Spain. The port thus became the object of attacks by competing foreign powers and was blockaded several times during that century. By about 1700 the city walls and the major fortifications had been completed. These withstood attacks until, after a three-month siege ending in August 1762, the British under Admiral Sir George Pocock and the Earl of Albermarle took the city as a prize of war. They held it for six months until the treaty ending the Seven Years’ War restored Havana to Spain.

That occupation, as onerous as it was to Habaneros, actually stimulated trade between the New World and Europe, and Havana gained new importance as a port, thriving on the sugar and slave trades. Obstacles to commerce by foreigners were gradually removed as the 18th century ended, and all of Cuba, but Havana in particular, began attracting immigrants from countries other than Spain. This, in turn, added new strains to the ethnic mix of the city—French craftsmen, British merchants, German bankers, and others—and gave Havana a distinct international and cosmopolitan character. Wealthier Cuban colonists visited New York City and Philadelphia. A number of U.S. flagships made port calls at Havana, and there was a small but important U.S. trading community established in Havana by 1850. Nevertheless, Cuba remained a Spanish colony despite the wars of independence that raged on the continent in the early 1800s, wars that led to freedom for most of Spain’s New World empire.

Alliance with the United States

Havana, meanwhile, continued to grow as a major world port, rivaling in population and in trade both New York City and Buenos Aires. Cuba became independent from Spain in 1898 with the aid of the United States, and for six decades thereafter Cuba was a close economic and political ally of that country. Increasing numbers of U.S. businesses and tourists were drawn to Havana, which acquired the look of a U.S. city, with the signs of its northern neighbour’s influence virtually everywhere.

Cuba’s government through these years was frequently a dictatorship; at best, it was a fragile democracy, with corruption often running rampant. Many Cubans were unhappy both with the U.S. influence and with the continued dictatorship. There were a number of abortive coup attempts against the government of Fulgencio Batista, but change did not come until the revolution led by Fidel Castro, who on January 1, 1959, took control of Cuba.

The city under Castro

Havana’s close ties with the United States were quickly ended, and Castro turned to the Soviet Union for economic and military assistance. Soviet vessels frequented the port of Havana, Soviet-made automobiles and trucks became common in the streets, and Soviet or Soviet-bloc goods appeared in stores.

Despite these influences, Havana still retains many of its older traditions, particularly in the narrow streets of Old Havana where past and present merge. This older part of the city deteriorated somewhat after the revolution as Castro first directed resources to the hinterlands. However, the city began a revival as several historic buildings were restored following Old Havana’s designation as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Havana’s economy was nearly crippled following the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. Trade with the Soviet bloc had effectively subsidized the Cuban economy, and the loss of this income translated into shortages of goods, power, and transportation. The government responded to the crisis by relaxing controls on private enterprise (including family restaurants and farmers’ markets) and permitting U.S. dollars to circulate. It also promoted foreign investment, notably in the tourist sector, resulting in markedly increased tourist traffic by the early 21st century. Despite these changes, Habaneros remain largely focused on their families and neighbourhoods, numerous educational and cultural events are still promoted, and the government retains direct or indirect influence at nearly all levels of society, from home ownership to medical care.