Cuban Revolution Succeeds
Fidel Castro's forces entered Havana as Batista fled, completing the Cuban Revolution
January 08, 1959
Guerrillas in the Mountains
On January 1, 1959, Fidel Castro and his rebel army marched into Havana and took control of Cuba, completing one of the most dramatic revolutions of the 20th century. The campaign had begun in 1956 when Castro, his brother Raul, and Argentine revolutionary Ernesto "Che" Guevara landed in Cuba with just 82 fighters after a rough sea crossing from Mexico. They were nearly wiped out immediately, but the survivors retreated to the Sierra Maestra mountains and built a guerrilla army. Over two years, they won popular support from Cuban peasants who resented the corrupt, U.S.-backed dictatorship of Fulgencio Batista.
Batista Flees, Castro Takes Power
As Castro's forces grew stronger and moved down from the mountains, Batista's army rapidly collapsed. When Batista realized he could not hold on, he fled Cuba on New Year's Eve 1958, taking millions of dollars with him. Castro's fighters entered the capital to massive crowds cheering in the streets. Castro gave a victory speech that lasted hours. He promised free elections, land reform, and an end to foreign domination of Cuba's economy. In the months that followed, the revolution took a sharper turn, with mass executions of Batista loyalists and the nationalization of businesses, including many owned by American companies.
Cuba and the Cold War
The Cuban Revolution sent shockwaves through the Western Hemisphere. The United States, alarmed by Castro's communist turn and the nationalization of American assets, broke off diplomatic relations and imposed a trade embargo. In 1961, the CIA sponsored the disastrous Bay of Pigs invasion, which failed humiliatingly. Cuba then became the flashpoint of the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962, the most dangerous confrontation of the entire Cold War. Castro ruled Cuba for nearly five decades until ill health led him to hand power to his brother in 2008. He died in 2016, leaving behind a legacy that remains fiercely debated to this day.