On 26 July 1953, a group of young people from the Cuban People's Party (Orthodox) stormed the Guillermón Moncada Barracks in the city of Santiago de Cuba, capital of the province of Oriente, which was the country's second military stronghold; and the Carlos Manuel de Céspedes Barracks, located in the city of Bayamo in the centre of the province of Oriente, to hinder the arrival of reinforcements to Santiago de Cuba.
Santiago de Cuba was chosen because, among other factors, it is located on the south coast of Cuba, more than 1,200 km from the city of Havana on the north coast, which was the political and military centre of the government. Santiago de Cuba is also close to the Sierra Maestra mountains, and its population has a long tradition of patriotism and rebellion against injustice and oppression. Cuba's three wars of independence in the 19th century began in Oriente.
The plan of the movement's leaders was to take advantage of the surprise, as it was Carnival Sunday, in the early hours of the morning, which would compensate for the poor and scarce weaponry at their disposal, mainly hunting rifles and handguns.
Once the barracks had been taken, they planned to call on the people via radio to join them and hand over their weapons, and to start a popular uprising in the city. They had no doubt that they would have the support of the majority of the people of Santiago, and the rest of the Cuban people. If the fight became difficult, they would take refuge in the nearby mountains and resort to guerrilla warfare.
The group of 122 combatants, including two women, who attacked the Moncada Barracks, were led by Dr. Fidel Castro Ruz, a 27-year-old lawyer.
Unfortunately, at the very beginning of the action, they were discovered by a patrol and, with the ensuing shootout, the advantage of surprise was lost. Despite their bravery and courage, the disproportionate number of men and weapons gave the military the victory and the attempt failed.
The dictator declared a state of emergency in Oriente and gave the order to execute ten revolutionaries for every soldier of the regime killed in combat. The massacre spread, and 32 of the attackers captured in Santiago de Cuba and the 10 captured in Bayamo were killed. The survivors were arrested after a fierce manhunt, tried and sentenced to prison.
The protests and popular discontent with these crimes were so great that the dictator tried to distance himself from the executions, and they were suspended, which explains, among other reasons, why a group of the attackers, including Fidel and Raúl Castro, were not killed.
The trial for Cause 37 of 1953 for the events at Moncada Fidel Castro, surrounded by the bayonets of his enemies, made his own defence, in which he denounced the torture and murders suffered by the attackers and the terrible conditions in which the people lived under the dictatorial regime in his unforgettable defence speech that we now know as History Will Absolve Me.
This event, which culminated in a military defeat, nevertheless had historical significance for the Cuban people and the revolutionary movement that was beginning, showing us the way and its leaders, and how to transform tactical defeats into strategic victories.
Long live the Cuban Revolution! Long live Fidel! Until victory, always!
24 July 2025