The Museum of the Revolution is located in the former palace of the Cuban dictator Fulgencio Batista, deposed by Fidel Castro in 1959. The building was built in the period 1913-1920 in a monumental neoclassical style, and the interior was fitted out by Tiffany’s store in New York.
One of the sections is dedicated to the revolutionary activities of Cuban nationalists during the National Liberation War, and visitors are greeted by the Jose Martí stone and the huge Cuban flag in the impressive hall. The exhibition is spread over three floors, connected by majestic marble stairs that lead to the magnificent dome lined with magnificent ceramic tiles. Just below, you can see murals, saturated with heroism, in which Cuban fighters fight for independence with the Spanish colonizers.
Of note is the Salón de los Espejos (Hall of Mirrors), a magnificent reception hall on the second floor with three balconies from which Batista and his predecessors spoke to the crowd in front of the building.
Another valuable monument, not directly related to the revolution, is the Baluarte del Ángel, a watchtower built from the old city walls, which today serves as a backdrop to the park park parked next to the Soviet tank SAU-100, which Fidel Castro used during the successful counteroffensive in the Bay of Pigs in 1961.
However, most of the exhibits have to do with the Cuban revolution and especially its greatest heroes such as Camilo Cienfuegos, Ernesto Che Guevara and Fidel Castro. The exhibition is a chronological account of the events that preceded the overthrow of the Batista regime since the first attack on the Moncada barracks in 1953. It also presents the history of the confrontations with the Americans and the greatest achievements of the revolution.
Outside, attention is drawn to trucks, tanks and planes (including a fragment of a downed U2 spy). In the center is a large motorboat “Granma” under the lampshade, which Fidel Castro and Che Guevara, along with eighty other revolutionaries, sailed to the island in 1956.
You need at least 1 hour to see all the exhibitions.
Refugio street 1, between Monserrate and Zulueta, Avenida Bélgica, La Habana 10600, Cuba
Open every day 10: 00 to 17: 00;
4 CUC $ (4€, 4$), children up to 12 years old free, additional guided tours 2 CUC $).