From the simple indigenous huts known as bohios to sumptuous neo-dassical villas, from the grand palaces of the Spanish occupation to luxurious quintas or country mansions, all the secrets and enchantments of Cuban life, past and present, remain intact today in the city of Havana (now a World Heritage Site), in the towns of Trinidad, Camaguey and Santiago de Cuba, and in Cuba’s beautiful countryside. This superbly illustrated book reveals an architectural heritage that is often hidden from the view of visitors to this fascinating Caribbean island.

From the simple indigenous huts known as bohios to sumptuous neo-dassical villas, from the grand palaces of the Spanish occupation to luxurious quintas or country mansions, all the secrets and enchantments of Cuban life, past and present, remain intact today in the city of Havana (now a World Heritage Site), in the towns of Trinidad, Camaguey and Santiago de Cuba, and in Cuba’s beautiful countryside. This superbly illustrated book reveals an architectural heritage that is often hidden from the view of visitors to this fascinating Caribbean island.

  Drawing upon local archives, museum records, memoirs,diaries and other native sources, Llilian Llanes describes Cuba’s architectural history from the sixteenth to the nineteenth centuries. The evolution of Cuban architecture, influenced by climate and by social conditions, parallels the cultural, political and economic history of the island, and the houses and their decoration reflect periods of greater or lesser prosperity, as well as social inequalities.

  The evocative colour photographs illustrate the subject magnificently with exterior and interior views, images of courtyards,balconies and galleries, and close-ups revealing details such as balustrades, grilles and louvred doors. Extended captions explain the development of the vernacular and the houses themselves over the centuries, and provide fascinating insight into the minutiae of Cuban daily life, customs and pastimes.

Introduction: From cabin to mansion

The island of Cuba

 Gateway to the West Indies

 The legacy of the Indians

A haven for the conquistadors and the first settlers

 The island’s resources

 The supremacy of Havana

 Havana: a port first and foremost

 The house as a place of safety in the sixteenth century

An architecture for the tropics

 An insecure way of life

 The advantages of life in Havana

 The function of patios and balconies

The power of the Creoles in the eighteenth century

 The development of the colony

 The Creole house opens on to the street

 Trade and the growth of Havana

 The houses of the merchants of Havana

  Housing in the provincial areas

The Spanish colony in the nineteenth century

  Growth and recession

 A multiracial population

  The new economic social distinctions

  The Cuban lifestyle

The provincial colonial house

  The creation of towns and villages

  The plantations

Havana in the nineteenth century

  Urban developments

  Houses as status symbols

  Houses in the old town

  Walking through the arcades

  The mansions outside the city walls

  The luxury country villas

Conclusion: An architecture in the spirit of the Cuban people

  Notes

  Bibliography

  Index