Fidel Castro: The Cuban

Revolutionary
Riley Hilder
Senior Division Individual Website

While watching the news recently I became intrigued by the story that the
United States had begun to consider opening up trade relations with Cuba. I

did a little bit of preliminary research and became fascinated with Fidel
Castros story and the entire history of Cuba. As I dove deeper into my
research of Fidel Castro, I fell in love with the charisma he brought. I was
envious of his ability to turn a crowd to his side and recognized the traits in
him that made him such a good leader. I knew that he had to be my focus for
National History Day.

I began my research in a number of databases. As I explored the Library of

Congress online database I discovered a lot of documents describing events
during the revolution and immediately following it. I followed these
connections to further databases and library books that gave me incredible
context for all of these events. I continued researching these events while
connecting everything back to Fidel Castro.

I have always had an interest in technology. Whether its programs or

software development or making websites I have learned to appreciate and
use the freedom that the internet gives you. For this reason I chose to make
a website to portray all of my information. It is an organized method that
allows for universal access anywhere that you have a device and internet. It
also provides a vast amount of customization without having to purchase any
supplies. I began using a book on coding I had purchased previously to assist
me in designing my website and also in taking full advantage of all features
offered to me. My website provided me an easy place to organize photos
and quotes as well as to emphasize the points I would like to make.

Fidel Castro and the Cuban Revolution relate to the National Histroy Day
Theme of Leadership and Legacy in History in that Fidel Castro has had
such a great impact on the world and Cuba as a leader. By leading one of the
most revered revolutions in history, Fidel Castro proved his leadership skills
by rallying the country against Batista. He then expanded on the reputation
he had built by expanding this influence to the United States, Soviet Union,
and other parts of the world. He made Cuba a center of discussion for most
of the mid-late 20th century and built a government that still stands today.