Sancti Spíritus () is a municipality and capital city of the province of Sancti Spíritus in central Cuba and one of the oldest Cuban European settlements. Sancti Spíritus is the genitive case of Latin Sanctus Spiritus ("Holy Spirit"). History The city was founded by Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar in 1514. The city contributed men for Hernán Cortés' 1518 expedition to Mexico, including Alonso Hernandez Puertocarrero, Gonzalo de Sandoval, and Juan Velazquez de Leon. Francisco Iznaga, a Basque landowner in the western portion of Cuba during the first thirty years of the colonization of Cuba, was elected mayor of Bayamo in 1540. Iznaga was the originator of a powerful lineage which finally settled in Sancti Spíritus and Trinidad, where Torre Iznaga (Iznaga Tower) is. His descendants fought for the independence of Cuba and for annexation to the U.S., from 1820 to 1900. Geography The municipality is divided into the barrios of Banao, Bellamota, Bijabo, Guasimal, Hospital, Jíbaro, Manacas, Mapos, Paredes, Paula, Pelayo, Pueblo Nuevo, San Andrés, Tuinicú, Tunas de Zaza and Zaza del Medio. The Zaza Reservoir is located southwest of the city. The city has a central park which is a place of great entertainment for the persons of all ages. The geographic center of Cuba is located off the shores of the municipality. Climate According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Sancti Spíritus has a tropical savanna climate, abbreviated "Aw" on climate maps. Demographics In 2004, the municipality of Sancti Spíritus had a population of 133,843. With a total area of , this means a population density of . Main sights The Parroquial Mayor is located two blocks south of the town's main square; it is a venerable green-towered church whose early 16th-century origins make it the country's oldest. Nearby is the Museo de Arte Colonial (Colonial Art Museum), one of Sancti Spíritus's most attractive colonial homes and a standout attraction. The opulent former palatial mansion of the Valle Iznaga clan, one of Cuba's most elite families who fled Cuba after Fidel's Revolution, it became the property of the state in 1961. Ninety percent of what you see inside, from furniture to paintings, is original. Though the family obviously kept an impressive collection of Limoges porcelain, French gilded mirrors, Italian marble tables, and Baccarat crystal chandeliers here, it wasn't their primary residence; the house was used mostly to host family members in transit, so the furnishings were rather eclectic.