Research report – Cuba

Alex Chețe

Cuba's history has been marked by its reliance on foreign nations, particularly Spain, the US,
and the USSR.

1. Pre-Columbian

Several Amerindian cultures called the island of Cuba home before the advent of the Genoese
explorer Christopher Columbus in 1492. Generally speaking, little is known about Cuba's
earliest inhabitants. About 60,000 Indians were thought to have lived on the island at the time
of Columbus' arrival; they had no written language, and despite being peaceful, the majority
of them perished as a result of the conquest's shock. (Suchlicki, 2002)

2. Spanish colonization and rule

After Spain invaded the island in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, colonial society
took a while to develop. The island remained a forgotten resting place for the Spanish fleet
that explored the New World and brought back to Spain the richness of continental America
for the first three centuries following the conquest. In the nineteenth century, a sugar
revolution occurred on the island as a result of the development of the United States as an
independent state, the demise of Haiti as a sugar colony, Spanish protective measures, and the
inventiveness of the Creole business class in Cuba. Cuba went from being an insignificant
island to becoming the world's largest producer of sugar in just a few short years. While most
of Latin America was breaking with Spain, Cuba remained loyal. Cuban loyalty started to
shift during the end of the nineteenth century as a result of Creole competition with Spaniards
for control of the island, an increase in Spanish oppression and taxes, and the emergence of
Cuban nationalism. The Americans entered the conflict in 1898 as a result of a deteriorating
relationship between Spain and the United States. With the signing of the Treaty of Paris in
December 1898, the United States emerged as the winner of the Spanish-American War,
assuring Spain's exile and U.S. control over Cuban affairs. (Nacaro, 2001)

3. Early 20th century

After nearly five years of American military occupation that ended on May 20, 1902, Cuba
became a nation with fewer issues than most other countries in Latin America. For three
decades, the country was led by former War of Independence leaders, who after being elected
did not serve more than two constitutional terms. Cuba had fair national elections in 1940.
Initially, Communist leaders supported Fulgencio Batista in exchange for the Popular
Socialist Party's legality and Communist control over the labour movement. (Bethell, 2012) In
1954, there were elections, and Batista was re-elected in questionable circumstances.
Throughout Batista's presidency, opposition parties launched a violent campaign and kept
doing so with the aid of the independent press in Cuba. (Office of the Historian, Foreign
Service Institute)

Fidel Castro prepared an armed assault on the Moncada Barracks of the Cuban military after
failing to challenge Batista in court. Following their imprisonment, the rebels established the
26th of July Movement while incarcerated. Following their pardon, the M-26-7 rebels planned
an invasion of Cuba from Mexico aboard the yacht Granma. (Kapcia, 2020)

On December 31, 1958, the rebels succeeded in overthrowing Batista's government. Cubans
commemorate July 26 as the Day of the Revolution. Later, the 26th of July Movement was
reorganized following Marxist-Leninist lines, and in October 1965 it became the Communist
Party of Cuba. (Raz, 2009)

4. Castro’s Cuba and the contemporary period

Late 1980s consumer goods shortages and an economic downturn were brought on by the fall
of communism. Castro gave in by allowing some economic and social liberalization. Having
reached his 80s and being in poor health, Castro handed the presidency to his brother Raul in
2008 and then left public life. As a result of improved ties, and bilateral discussions, tourism
has resumed and trade embargoes have been loosened. After more than 40 years of hostility,
Washington and Havana decided to re-establish diplomatic ties in July 2015. This put an end
to the Cold War. Three months after turning 90 years old, Fidel Castro passed away in
November 2016. (Jennifer Llewellyn, 2020)

References
Bethell, L. (2012). Cuba: A Short History. Cambridge University Press.

Jennifer Llewellyn, S. T. (2020, September 12). Cuba under Castro. Retrieved from alphahistory.com:
https://alphahistory.com/coldwar/cuba-under-castro/

Kapcia, A. (2020). A Short History of Revolutionary Cuba. Bloomsbury Publishing.

Nacaro, J. C. (2001). History of cuba. Editorial SI-MAR S.A.

Office of the Historian, Foreign Service Institute. (n.d.). FOREIGN RELATIONS OF THE UNITED STATES,
1958–1960, CUBA, VOLUME VI. Retrieved from history.state.gov:
https://history.state.gov/historicaldocuments/frus1958-60v06/d12
Raz, G. (2009, January 1). Cuba Marks 50 Years Since 'Triumphant Revolution'. Retrieved from
npr.org: https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=98937598

Suchlicki, J. (2002). Cuba: From Columbus to Castro and Beyond. Dulles, Virginia: Potomac Books, Inc.