Editing History of Cuba (section)

==Conflicts in the late 19th century (1886&ndash;1900)==
{{Main|Cuban War of Independence}}

===Background===
During the time of the so-called "Rewarding Truce", which encompassed the 17&nbsp;years from the end of the Ten Years' War in 1878, fundamental changes took place in Cuban society. With the abolition of slavery in October 1886, former slaves joined the ranks of farmers and urban working class. Most wealthy Cubans lost their rural properties, and many of them joined the urban middle class. The number of sugar mills dropped and efficiency increased, with only companies and the most powerful plantation owners owning them. The numbers of [[Peasant|campesinos]] and tenant farmers rose considerably. Furthermore, American [[capital (economics)|capital]] began flowing into Cuba, mostly into the sugar and tobacco businesses and mining. By 1895, these investments totalled $50&nbsp;million. Although Cuba remained Spanish politically, economically it became increasingly dependent on the United States.<ref>Cantón Navarro, José. ''History of Cuba''. pp. 53–55.</ref>

These changes also entailed the rise of labour movements. The first Cuban labour organization, the Cigar Makers Guild, was created in 1878, followed by the Central Board of Artisans in 1879, and many more across the island.<ref>Cantón Navarro, José. ''History of Cuba''. pp. 55–57.</ref> Abroad, a new trend of aggressive American influence emerged. Secretary of State [[James G. Blaine]] placed particular importance on the control of Cuba: "If ever ceasing to be Spanish, Cuba must necessarily become American and not fall under any other European domination".<ref name="wqswxw">{{Cite web |url=http://www.historyofcuba.com/history/scaw/scaw1.htm |title=Spanish-Cuban-American War – History of Cuba|access-date=19 April 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080416011747/http://www.historyofcuba.com/history/scaw/scaw1.htm |archive-date=16 April 2008 |url-status=live}}</ref>

===Martí's Insurrection and the start of the war===
After his second deportation to Spain in 1878, the pro-independence Cuban activist [[José Martí]] moved to the United States in 1881, where he began mobilizing the support of the Cuban exile community in Florida.<ref>Gerald E. Poyo, ''With All, and for the Good of All: The Emergence of Popular Nationalism in the Cuban Communities of the United States, 1848–1898'' (Duke University Press, 1989).</ref> He sought a revolution and Cuban independence from Spain, but also lobbied to oppose U.S. annexation of Cuba. Propaganda efforts by the [[Cuban Junta]] continued for years and intensified starting in 1895.<ref>George W. Auxier, "The propaganda activities of the Cuban Junta in precipitating the Spanish–American War, 1895–1898." ''Hispanic American Historical Review'' 19.3 (1939): 286–305. {{jstor|2507259}} {{Cite web |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/2507259 |title=Archived copy |access-date=2 December 2017 |archive-date=20 July 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180720165657/https://www.jstor.org/stable/2507259 |url-status=bot: unknown }}</ref><ref>Schellings, William J. "Florida and the Cuban Revolution, 1895–1898." ''Florida Historical Quarterly'' (1960): 175–186.  {{jstor|30150258}} {{Cite web |url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/30150258 |title=Archived copy |access-date=9 March 2019 |archive-date=25 October 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161025174047/http://www.jstor.org/stable/30150258 |url-status=bot: unknown }}</ref>

After deliberations with patriotic clubs across the United States, the Antilles and Latin America, the ''Partido Revolucionario Cubano'' (Cuban Revolutionary Party) was officially proclaimed on 10 April 1892, with the purpose of gaining independence for both Cuba and Puerto Rico. Martí was elected delegate, the highest party position. In Foner's words, "Martí's impatience to start the revolution for independence was affected by his growing fear that the United States would succeed in annexing Cuba before the revolution could liberate the island from Spain".<ref name="wfbftj">Foner, Philip: ''The Spanish-Cuban-American War and the Birth of American Imperialism''. Quoted in: [http://www.historyofcuba.com/history/scaw/scaw1.htm "The War for Cuban Independence"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080416011747/http://www.historyofcuba.com/history/scaw/scaw1.htm |date=16 April 2008}}. HistoryofCuba.com. Retrieved 27 January 2013.</ref>

On 25 December 1894, three ships set sail for Cuba from [[Fernandina Beach, Florida]], loaded with armed men and supplies. Two of the ships were seized by U.S. authorities in early January, but the proceedings went ahead. The insurrection began on 24 February 1895, with uprisings across the island. The uprisings in the central part of the island, such as Ibarra, Jagüey Grande and Aguada, suffered from poor co-ordination and failed; the leaders were captured, some of them deported and some executed. In the province of Havana the insurrection was discovered before it got off and the leaders detained. Thus, the insurgents further west in Pinar del Río were ordered to wait.

Martí, on his way to Cuba, gave the Proclamation of Montecristi in [[Santo Domingo]], outlining the policy for Cuba's war of independence: the war was to be waged by blacks and whites alike; participation of all blacks was crucial for victory; Spaniards who did not object to the war effort should be spared, private rural properties should not be damaged; and the revolution should bring new economic life to Cuba.<ref name="wqswxw" /><ref>Cantón Navarro, José. ''History of Cuba''. p. 61.</ref>

On 1 and 11 April 1895, the main rebel leaders landed on two expeditions in Oriente: Major Antonio Maceo and 22 members near [[Baracoa]] and Martí, [[Máximo Gómez]] and four other members in Playitas. Around that time, Spanish forces in Cuba numbered about 80,000, including 60,000 Spanish and Cuban volunteers. The latter were a locally enlisted force that took care of most of the ''guard and police'' duties on the island. By December, 98,412 regular troops had been sent to the island and the number of volunteers had increased to 63,000 men. By the end of 1897, there were 240,000 regulars and 60,000 irregulars on the island. The revolutionaries were far outnumbered.<ref name="wqswxw" />

The rebels came to be nicknamed "Mambis" after a black Spanish officer, Juan Ethninius Mamby, who joined the Dominicans in the fight for independence in 1846.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Weekend Economists Split for Havana February 6–8, 2015 – Democratic Underground|url=https://www.democraticunderground.com/111664320|website=www.democraticunderground.com|access-date=2020-05-29}}</ref><ref name="wrap_warwick_ac_uk">{{Cite journal|last1=Smith|first1=Iain R.|last2=Stucki|first2=Andreas|date=2011-09-01|title=The Colonial Development of Concentration Camps (1868–1902)|journal=The Journal of Imperial and Commonwealth History|volume=39|issue=3|pages=417–437|doi=10.1080/03086534.2011.598746|s2cid=159576119|issn=0308-6534|url=http://wrap.warwick.ac.uk/44298/1/WRAP_Smith_Andreas%27s_and_Iain%27s_revised_version_of_JICH_article_%28completed%29.pdf}}</ref> When the Ten Years' War broke out in 1868, some of the same soldiers were assigned to Cuba, importing what had by then become a derogatory Spanish slur. The Cubans adopted the name with pride.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Spanish-Cuban-American War – History of Cuba|url=http://www.historyofcuba.com/history/scaw/scaw1a.htm|website=www.historyofcuba.com|access-date=2020-05-29}}</ref>

After the Ten Years' War, possession of weapons by private individuals was prohibited in Cuba. Thus, one of the most serious and persistent problems for the rebels was a shortage of suitable weapons. This lack of arms forced them to utilise [[guerrilla]] tactics, using the environment, the element of surprise, fast horses and simple weapons such as machetes. Most of their firearms were acquired in raids on the Spaniards. Between 11 June 1895 and 30 November 1897, 60 attempts were made to bring weapons and supplies to the rebels from outside Cuba, but only one succeeded, largely due to British naval protection.<ref name="wqswxw" />

===Escalation of the war===
[[File:Judge-2-6-1897.jpg|thumb|Rebel leaders engaged in extensive propaganda to get the U.S. to intervene, as shown in this cartoon in an American magazine. [[Columbia (name)|Columbia]] (the American people) reaches out to help oppressed Cuba in 1897 while [[Uncle Sam]] (the U.S. government) is blind to the crisis and will not use its powerful guns to help. [[Judge (magazine)|''Judge'' magazine]], 6 February 1897.]]

Martí was killed on 19 May 1895, but [[Máximo Gómez]] (a Dominican) and [[Antonio Maceo Grajales|Antonio Maceo]] (a mulatto){{sfn|Clodfelter|2017|p=308}} fought on. Gómez used scorched-earth tactics, which entailed dynamiting passenger trains and burning the Spanish loyalists' property and sugar plantations—including many owned by Americans.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Jones |first1=Howard |title=Crucible of Power: A History of American Foreign Relations to 1913 |date=2009 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield Publishers |page=270}}</ref> By the end of June all of Camagüey was at war. Continuing west, Gómez and Maceo joined up with veterans of the 1868 war, Polish internationalists, General [[Carlos Roloff]] and Serafín Sánchez in Las Villas. In mid-September, representatives of the five Liberation Army Corps assembled in [[Jimaguayú]] to approve the Jimaguayú Constitution. This constitution established a central government, which grouped the executive and legislative powers into one entity, the Government Council, which was headed by [[Salvador Cisneros]] and [[Bartolomé Masó]].

After a period of consolidation in the three eastern provinces, the liberation armies headed for Camagüey and then for [[Matanzas]], outmanoeuvring and deceiving the Spanish Army. The revolutionaries defeated the Spanish general [[Arsenio Martínez Campos]] and killed his most trusted general at [[Peralejo]]. Campos tried the same strategy he had employed in the Ten Years' War, constructing a broad defensive belt across the island, about {{convert|80|km}} long and {{convert|200|m}} wide. This line, called the ''trocha'', was intended to limit rebel activities to the eastern provinces, and consisted of a [[railroad]], from Jucaro in the south to Moron in the north, on which armored railcars could travel. At various points along this railroad there were fortifications, posts and barbed wire; [[booby trap]]s were placed at the locations most likely to be attacked.

For the rebels, it was essential to bring the war to the western provinces of Matanzas, Havana and Pinar del Río, where the island's government and wealth was located.<ref name="wqswxw"/> In a successful cavalry campaign, overcoming the ''trochas'', the rebels invaded every province. Surrounding all the larger cities and well-fortified towns, they arrived at the westernmost tip of the island on 22 January 1896.<ref name=spanamwar-timeline>{{cite web|url=http://www.spanamwar.com/timeline.htm|title=Spanish American War Chronology|publisher=SpanAmWar.com|access-date=30 October 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071023061035/http://www.spanamwar.com/timeline.htm|archive-date=23 October 2007|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>Cantón Navarro, José. ''History of Cuba''. pp. 64–65.</ref>

[[File:Weyler reconcentrados.png|thumb|Cuban victims of Spanish reconcentration policies]]

Unable to defeat the rebels with conventional military tactics,<ref>{{cite book |last1=Tucker |first1=Spencer |title=The encyclopedia offers two complete volumes of alphabetically organized entries ... Philippine- American Wars: A Political, Social, and Military History, Volume 1 |date=2009 |publisher=ABC-CLIO |page=246}}</ref> the Spanish government sent Gen. [[Valeriano Weyler, 1st Duke of Rubí|Valeriano Weyler y Nicolau]] (nicknamed ''The Butcher''), who reacted to these rebel successes by introducing terror methods: periodic executions, mass exiles, and the destruction of farms and crops. These methods reached their height on 21 October 1896, when he ordered all countryside residents and their livestock to gather in various fortified areas and towns occupied by his troops. Hundreds of thousands of people had to leave their homes, creating appalling conditions of overcrowding. This was the first recorded and recognized use of concentration camps where non-combatants were removed from their land to deprive the enemy of succor and then the internees were subjected to appalling conditions.<ref name="wrap_warwick_ac_uk" /> It is estimated that this measure caused the death of at least one-third of Cuba's rural population.<ref>Canalejas, José in Cantón Navarro, José. ''History of Cuba''. p. 66.</ref> The forced relocation policy was maintained until March 1898.<ref name="wqswxw"/>

Since the early 1880s, Spain had also been suppressing an independence movement in the [[Philippines]], which was intensifying; Spain was thus now fighting two wars, which placed a heavy burden on its economy. In secret negotiations in 1896, Spain turned down the United States' offers to buy Cuba.

Maceo was killed on 7 December 1896.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.spanamwar.com/maceodeath.htm|title=The Death of Cuban General Antonio Maceo|publisher=SpanAmWar.com|access-date=2 November 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071108015028/http://www.spanamwar.com/maceodeath.htm|archive-date=8 November 2007|url-status=dead}}</ref> As the war continued, the major obstacle to Cuban success was weapons supply. Although weapons and funding came from within the United States, the supply operation violated American laws, which were enforced by the [[United States Coast Guard|U.S. Coast Guard]]; of 71 resupply missions, only 27 got through.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.spanamwar.com/chadwickcoastguard.htm|title=The Role of US Coast Guard 1895–1898 before entry of US in the war|author=French Ensor Chadwick|publisher=SpanAmWar.com|access-date=2 November 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071108014338/http://www.spanamwar.com/chadwickcoastguard.htm|archive-date=8 November 2007|url-status=live}}</ref>

In 1897, the liberation army maintained a privileged position in Camagüey and Oriente, where the Spanish only controlled a few cities. Spanish liberal leader Praxedes Sagasta admitted in May 1897: "After having sent 200,000 men and shed so much blood, we don't own more land on the island than what our soldiers are stepping on".<ref>Cantón Navarro, José. ''History of Cuba''. p. 69.</ref> The rebel force of 3,000 defeated the Spanish in various encounters, such as the battle of La Reforma and the surrender of Las Tunas on 30 August, and the Spaniards were kept on the defensive.

As stipulated at the Jimaguayú Assembly two years earlier, a second Constituent Assembly met in La Yaya, Camagüey, on 10 October 1897. The newly adopted constitution decreed that a military command be subordinated to civilian rule. The government was confirmed, naming Bartolomé Masó as president and Domingo Méndez Capote as vice president. Thereafter, [[Madrid]] decided to change its policy toward Cuba, replacing Weyler, drawing up a colonial constitution for Cuba and [[Puerto Rico]], and installing a new government in Havana. But with half the country out of its control, and the other half in arms, the new government was powerless and rejected by the rebels.

===USS ''Maine'' incident===
[[File:USSMaine.jpg|thumb|right|The wreckage of the [[USS Maine (ACR-1)|USS ''Maine'']], photographed in 1898]]
The Cuban struggle for independence had captured the North American imagination for years and newspapers had been agitating for intervention with sensational stories of Spanish atrocities. Americans came to believe that Cuba's battle with Spain resembled the United States's [[American Revolutionary War|Revolutionary War]]. North American public opinion was very much in favor of intervening for the Cubans.<ref>
{{cite web|url=https://www.pbs.org/crucible/frames/_journalism.html|title=Crucible of Empire: The Spanish–American War|publisher=PBS|access-date=15 December 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131207053757/http://www.pbs.org/crucible/frames/_journalism.html|archive-date=7 December 2013|url-status=live}}
</ref>

In January 1898, a riot by Cuban-Spanish loyalists against the new autonomous government broke out in Havana, leading to the destruction of the printing presses of four local newspapers which published articles critical of the [[Spanish Army]]. The U.S. Consul-General cabled Washington, fearing for the lives of Americans living in Havana. In response, the battleship {{USS|Maine|ACR-1|6}} was sent to [[Havana]]. On 15 February 1898, the ''Maine'' was destroyed by an explosion, killing 268 crewmembers. The cause of the explosion has not been clearly established, but the incident focused American attention on Cuba, and President [[William McKinley]] and his supporters could not stop Congress from declaring war to "liberate" Cuba. In an attempt to appease the United States, the colonial government ended the forced relocation policy and offered negotiations with the independence fighters. However, the truce was rejected by the rebels and the concessions proved too late. Madrid asked other European powers for help; they refused.

On 11 April 1898, McKinley asked Congress for authority to send [[United States Armed Forces|U.S. Armed Forces]] troops to Cuba for the purpose of ending the civil war. On 19 April, Congress passed [[joint resolution]]s supporting Cuban independence and disclaiming any intention to annex Cuba, demanding Spanish withdrawal, and authorizing military force to help Cuban patriots gain independence. This included from Senator [[Henry Teller]] the [[Teller Amendment]], which passed unanimously, stipulating that "the island of Cuba is, and by right should be, free and independent".<ref name="webhmz">Cantón Navarro, José. ''History of Cuba'', p. 71.</ref> The amendment disclaimed any intention on the part of the United States to exercise jurisdiction or control over Cuba for other than pacification reasons. War was declared on 20/21 April 1898.

===Cuban Theatre of the Spanish–American War===
{{Main|Spanish–American War}}
[[File:Destruction of Admiral Cervera's Spanish Fleet off Santiago de Cuba. 1898. Copy of lithograph published by Kurz & Al - NARA - 532570.tif|thumb|Destruction of Admiral Cervera's Spanish Fleet off Santiago de Cuba. 1898.]]
Hostilities started hours after the declaration of war when a U.S. contingent under Admiral [[William T. Sampson]] blockaded several Cuban ports. The Americans decided to invade Cuba in Oriente where the Cubans were able to co-operate. The first U.S. objective was to capture the city of Santiago de Cuba to destroy Linares' army and Cervera's fleet. To reach Santiago they had to pass through concentrated Spanish defences in the [[San Juan Hill]]s. Between 22 and 24 June 1898 the Americans landed under General [[William R. Shafter]] at [[Daiquirí]] and [[Siboney, Cuba|Siboney]] and established a base. The port of Santiago became the main target of U.S. naval operations, and the American fleet attacking Santiago needed shelter from the summer hurricane season. Nearby [[Guantánamo Bay]] was chosen for this purpose and [[1898 invasion of Guantánamo Bay|attacked on 6 June]]. The [[Battle of Santiago de Cuba]], on 3 July 1898, was the largest naval engagement during the Spanish–American War, and resulted in the destruction of the Spanish Caribbean Squadron.

Resistance in Santiago consolidated around Fort Canosa,<ref>{{cite book |last=Daley |first=Laryy |chapter=El Fortin Canosa en la Cuba del 1898 |editor-last1=Aguirre |editor-first1=Benigno E. |editor-last2=Espina |editor-first2=Eduardo |title=Los últimos días del comienzo: ensayos sobre la Guerra Hispano-Cubana-Estadounidense |date=2000 |pages=161–171 |publisher=RiL Editores |isbn=978-956-284-115-3 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sBN3AAAAMAAJ |language=es}}</ref> while major battles between Spaniards and Americans took place at [[Battle of Las Guasimas|Las Guasimas]] on 24 June, and at [[Battle of El Caney|El Caney]] and [[Battle of San Juan Hill|San Juan Hill]] on 1 July,<ref>[http://www.homeofheroes.com/wallofhonor/spanish_am/10_sanjuan.html The Battles at El Caney and San Juan Hill] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130714045841/http://www.homeofheroes.com/wallofhonor/spanish_am/10_sanjuan.html |date=14 July 2013}}. HomeOfHeroes.com. Retrieved 28 June 2013.</ref> after which the American advance ground to a halt. Spanish troops successfully defended Fort Canosa, allowing them to stabilize their line and bar the entry to Santiago. The Americans and Cubans began a [[Siege of Santiago|siege of the city]],<ref>{{Harvnb|Daley|2000|pp=161–71}}</ref> which surrendered on 16 July after the defeat of the Spanish Caribbean Squadron. Thus, Oriente fell under the control of Americans and the Cubans, but U.S. General [[Nelson A. Miles]] would not allow Cuban troops to enter Santiago, claiming that he wanted to prevent clashes between Cubans and Spaniards. Cuban General [[Calixto García]], head of the mambi forces in the Eastern department, ordered his troops to hold their areas and resigned, writing a letter of protest to General Shafter.<ref name="webhmz" />

After losing the [[Spanish East Indies|Philippines]] and [[Captaincy General of Puerto Rico|Puerto Rico]], which had also been invaded by the United States, Spain sued for peace on 17 July 1898.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.spanamwar.com/|title=The Spanish American War Centennial Website!|publisher=spanamwar.com|access-date=2 November 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071108013101/http://www.spanamwar.com/|archive-date=8 November 2007|url-status=live}}</ref> On 12 August, the U.S. and Spain signed a protocol of peace, in which Spain agreed to relinquish Cuba.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.msc.edu.ph/centennial/pr980812.html|title=Protocol of Peace Embodying the Terms of a Basis for the Establishment of Peace Between the Two Countries|location=Washington, D.C., U.S.|date=12 August 1898|access-date=30 October 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071012131323/http://msc.edu.ph/centennial/pr980812.html|archive-date=12 October 2007|url-status=dead}}</ref> On 10 December 1898, the U.S. and Spain signed the formal [[Treaty of Paris (1898)|Treaty of Paris]], recognizing continuing U. S. military occupation.<ref name=ToP>{{Cite web|url=http://avalon.law.yale.edu/19th_century/sp1898.asp|title=Treaty of Peace Between the United States and Spain|date=10 December 1898|publisher=The Avalon project at Yale law School|access-date=20 April 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150523121634/http://avalon.law.yale.edu/19th_century/sp1898.asp|archive-date=23 May 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> Although the Cubans had participated in the liberation efforts, the United States prevented Cuba from sending representatives to the Paris peace talks or signing the treaty, which set no time limit for U.S. occupation and excluded the [[Isla de la Juventud|Isle of Pines]] from Cuba.<ref name="Cantón Navarro p. 77">Cantón Navarro, José. ''History of Cuba''. p. 77.</ref> Although the U.S. president had no objection to Cuba's eventual independence, U.S. General [[William Rufus Shafter|William R. Shafter]] refused to allow Cuban General [[Calixto García]] and his rebel forces to participate in the [[Santiago Surrender Tree|surrender ceremonies]] in Santiago de Cuba.