Cuban History

THIS DAY  IN CUBAN HISTORY  During the successful “Campaña de la Reforma” (Cuba’s War for Independence) led by General Máximo Gómez in the Sancti Spiritus region of Central Cuba, May 31, 1897 marks the culmination of a month (May) where Cuban and Spanish forces fought over 50 encounters in the guerrilla war. After Maceo’s death, one of Captain General of the island, General Valeriano Weyler’s, main objective was to capture or kill Máximo Gómez, who had been in Las Villas province since January.  Weyler had an available force of 40,000 soldiers.  His nemesis, Gómez, was at 63 a master at guerrilla warfare.  Few military commanders had endured so much physical stress and been so successful at his age.  Gómez decided to challenge Weyler and relayed the plan to his officers. “The hour has come to fight with absolute tenacity.  Don’t waste men or horses and make use of the night.  In these circumstance 20 men can easily conquer one thousand.” One Fourth of the Spanish soldiers Died in Cuba The Cuban forces were divided into small detachments.  Gómez carefully selected a group of 250 horsemen and the Reforma Farm as his command post.  Moving furtively, with swarms of enemy troops looking for his whereabouts. Sometimes marching ahead of the pursuing Spaniards and other times at their rear, Gómez maneuvered for over six months with the express purpose of exhausting the enemy without a fight.  La Reforma was the most important military victory of Gómez’ career.  He knew that yellow fever and malaria were killing Spanish soldiers by the thousands.  The numbers again speak volumes.   Spanish Officers and Soldiers Deaths 1895-1898 Causes of Death Officers Soldiers Total In Combat 61 1,314 1,375 Due to Wounds 82 704 786 Yellow Fever 313 13,000 13,313 Other Diseases 127 40,000 40,127 During the Sea Voyage   60 60 TOTAL 583 55,078 55,661                                         From its large supply of men, mostly poor illiterate peasants, Spain paid the staggering price of losing over 25% of those who made the voyage to Cuba.  By comparison, U.S. losses in World War I were fewer than 52,000, the Korean War, 34,000, and Viet Nam, 58,000.  One in every four soldiers never returned to their families in Spain.  With tens of thousands in hospitals beds, it was obvious from a statistical standpoint that Weyler’s army was going through a process of uncontrollable deterioration.  Given the available data, one wonders why 1898 is referred to in Spanish history as the “year of the disaster.”  Most of the soldiers had died before 1898 when the United States entered the war in April., the majority of the 300,000 Cuban civilians in concentration camps were dead before 1898, and both Cuba and Spain were in ruins.  Why then is it called the “year of the disaster?”  Perhaps it was the year of the unbearable humiliation at the hands of the Americans and Cubans and a wake-up call from the Spanish national addiction to fantasy and demagoguery.  Andalusian poet Antonio Machado said it best: “It was a time of lies and infamy.” *Pedro Roig is Executive Director of the Cuban Studies Institute. Roig is an attorney and historian that has written several books, including the Death of a Dream: A History of Cuba. He is a veteran of the Brigade 2506.

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