Well, here in Guatemala, in 1919 dictator Manuel Estrada Cabrera wanted to demolish the old Presidential Palace, which had been severely damaged by 1917 earthquakes, and build a new one for the centenary f Guatemala's independency, in 1921. Using that as a perfect excuse, he demolished it and held a "competition" between italian architects Guido Albani and Francisco D'Amico.
This was the winner, Albani's design:
And this, D'Amico's:
Everything was prepared for the construction start, but after Estrada Cabrera was removed from office in 1920, the national assembly decided a new design was required for the centenary celebration. With a very limited budget, they built in three months this horrible wooden building:
Luckily, the "Palacio de Cartón" (Cardboard Palace) as it was called, burned down in 1925. In 1927, president Lázaro Chacón held another competition for a new presidential palace. The competition was won by artist Agustín Iriate, but his work never came to be. Finally, in 1937, another dictator, Jorge Ubico published the basis for the design and construction of the palace and installed its first stone. The new building was finished in January 1943. It was finally opened in November of the same year. This is how it looked back in the day:
And this is how it looks today:
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This is what you find when you enter Palacio Nacional: