Santiago de Cuba
| Santiago de Cuba | ||
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Santiago de Cuba
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| Motto: Rebels yesterday, hospitable today, always heroic | ||
.png) Santiago municipality (red) within Santiago Province (yellow) and Cuba |
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 Santiago de Cuba
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| Coordinates: 20°01′11.4″N 75°48′50.1″W / 20.019833°N 75.813917°WCoordinates: 20°01′11.4″N 75°48′50.1″W / 20.019833°N 75.813917°W | ||
| Country | Cuba | |
| Province | Santiago de Cuba | |
| Established | 1515 | |
| Founded by | Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar | |
| Area | ||
| • City | 1,023.8 km2 (395.3 sq mi) | |
| Elevation | 82 m (269 ft) | |
| Population (2004) | ||
| • City | 509,143 | |
| • Density | 461.3/km2 (1,195/sq mi) | |
| • Metro | 1,049,084 | |
| Demonym(s) | Santiaguero/a | |
| Area code(s) | +53 22 | |
| Website | http://www.santiago.cu/ | |
Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city of Cuba and capital city of Santiago de Cuba Province in the south-eastern area of the island, some 870 km (540 mi) south-east of the Cuban capital of Havana.
The municipality extends over 1,023.8 square kilometers (395.3 sq mi), and contains the communities of Antonio Maceo, Bravo, Castillo Duany, Daiquirí, El Caney, El Cobre, El Cristo, Guilera, Leyte Vidal, Moncada and Siboney.
Historically Santiago de Cuba has long been the second most important city on the island after Havana, and still remains the second largest. It is on a bay connected to the Caribbean Sea and is an important sea port. In 2004 the city of Santiago de Cuba had a population of about 509,143 people.
Santiago de Cuba was the fifth village founded by Spanish conquistador Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar on July 25, 1515. In 1516 the settlement was destroyed by fire, and was immediately rebuilt. This was the starting point of the expeditions led by Juan de Grijalba and Hernán Cortés to the coasts of Mexico in 1518, and in 1538 by Hernando de Soto's expedition to Florida. The first cathedral was built in the city in 1528. From 1522 until 1589 Santiago was the capital of the Spanish colony of Cuba.
The city was plundered by French forces in 1553, and by British forces under Christopher Myngs in 1662.
The city experienced an influx of French and British immigrants in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, many coming from Haiti after the Haitian slave revolt of 1791. This added to the city's eclectic cultural mix, already rich with Spanish and African culture.
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Wikipedia