Independence House, tied to Paraguay’s 1811 independence movement, is in Asunción. Known in Spanish as Casa de la Independencia, the historic residence stands in the center of Paraguay’s capital, at the corner of 14 de Mayo and Presidente Franco streets.
The building was commissioned in 1772 by Antonio Martínez Sáenz and Petrona Caballero Bazán. On the night of May 14, 1811, conspirators connected with the independence movement gathered there and used the nearby Historic Alley as they moved toward the military barracks. Their actions helped force the surrender of Governor Bernardo de Velasco and led to Paraguay’s independence from Spanish rule.
The house later deteriorated and was acquired by the Paraguayan state in 1943. After restoration, it opened as the Independence House Museum on May 14, 1965. Visitors sometimes confuse the site with a national palace or a battlefield, but it is a preserved colonial home whose rooms and objects interpret the independence conspiracy.