VILLA DE SAN CRISTÓBAL DE LA HABANA

Havana was founded by the conquistador Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar about 50 km far (as the crow flies) from its present location on the south coast of Cuba on August 25, 1515. Even though all efforts to find out such a settlement failed, it is believed that the town was founded either at the coast near the present town of Surgidero de Batabanó, or more likely around the Mayabeque river close to Playa Matabeque. This presumption bases on an old map of Cuba, drawn in 1514, that shows Havana at the banks of the Mayabeque river, where the river flows into the sea.

When after years the residents got tired of living in a mosquito-infested swamp, they moved to much more pleasant localizations at the north coast of the island. In this context, the Spanish established some settlements in the area, where the city of Havana lies today. The town that evolved to the city of Havana today, originated from the settlement that was established adjacent to the area called Puerto de Carenas in 1519. The Spanish chose the high ground, now occupied by the Plaza de Armas, as the best spot, because it had a superb location to control the natural bay, where the ships could be easily careened. A Catholic mass was held under a ceiba tree (silk-cotton tree) in this area (the first mass in Havana) and shortly afterwards, the first town council (cabildo) assembled under the same tree on November 15, 1519. This meeting marked the founding of Villa de San Cristóbal de la Habana. San Cristóbal is the patron saint of Havana.

HISTORY OF THE TEMPLE

In 1754, in memory of the first mass, the Governor and the Captain General Francisco Cagigal, erected a commemorative column (Columna Cagigal) on the place, where the first mass was officiated. A small statue of the Virgen del Pillar was placed at the top of the column. The column had three faces that were representing the division of the colony into three provinces, and two inscriptions, one in Latin and the other in old Castiliesan language. On the inscription with the old Castiliesan language it is written that the town of Havana was founded in 1515, and then it changed its seat from its primary localization to the shore of this port in 1519. It is written also that a leafy low ceiba tree was present in this place, where the first mass was held, and it withered later in 1753, so that this column was erected to perpetuate the memory in 1754.

During the restoration of the column in 1903, the Latin inscription was replaced by its replica. It was written on it that this place was adorned by a ceiba and more than two centuries ago the first meeting of the prudent councilmen was held here (the first council of the town Havana).

In 1827, the Captain General and the Governor Francisco Dionisio Vives decided to restore the deteriorated column, to recovery its surroundings and to build a larger monument in honor of Queen Josefa Amalia, the wife of the Spanish King Fernando VII. In the same year the construction of the new building began, and when its construction was finished 4 months later, in 1828, it received the name El Templete. The building was constructed according the plans of Colonel Don Antonio Maria de la Torre y Cárdenas and under the direction of the city councilor (regidor) Francisco Rodríguez y Cabrera. This small Greco-Roman temple is a scaled-down version of the Parthenon in Athens.

The column was placed on four circular stone steps and the statue of the Virgen del Pilar was replaced by a new one. The bishop Juan José Díaz de Espada erected a marble bust (its sculptor is unknown) of Christopher Colombus at his expense in front of the column. Today the bust, the ceiba and the column of Cagigal are enclosed by the iron fence that surrounds the temple.