War Against the Bandits
Encyclopedia
The War Against the Bandits was a six-year rebellion (1959–1965) in the Escambray Mountains
by a group of Cuban insurgents who opposed the new Communist government led by Fidel Castro
. The rebelling group of insurgents received assistance from the Central Intelligence Agency
and was a mix of former Batista
soldiers, local farmers, and former allied guerrillas who had fought alongside Castro against Batista during the Cuban Revolution
. The end result was the elimination of all insurgents by Cuban government forces in 1965.
in 1959. It was led by former Batista
officials and soldiers, some former Fidel Castro
supporters, and landlords who were disenchanted by his close ties to the Soviet Union
.
Osvaldo Ramirez and Comandante William Alexander Morgan
, both of whom had fought Batista "casquitos" in the same area only a few years before. Morgan himself was executed in 1961 long before the resistance ended, The CIA provided some aid to the insurgents, but withdrew all support after the failed Bay of Pigs Invasion, ensuring their ultimate defeat. Some of the failures could be attributed to Castro’s "roll up" of CIA operatives in Cuba.
Following the failure of the Bay of Pigs invasion
in 1961, Alzado leader Osvaldo Ramirez returned to the Escambray mountains and declined an offer by Fidel Castros' emissary, Comandante Faure Chomón, to surrender. Chomon had been Ramirez's chief in the Revolutionary Directorate in the Escambray during the guerrilla war against Batista.
The Cuban governments main tactic was to deploy thousands of troops against small groups of rebels, forming progressively constricting rings of encirclement. The Communist leaders Castro sent to clear the Escambray Mountains (La segunda limpia del Escambray) were ordered to exterminate the rebels. They were to "comb the brush, elbow to elbow" until they had completely cleared the hills of anticommunist rebels. The generals pledged they would capture Comandante Ramirez himself. Superior numbers and the lack of outside assistance, particularly supplies, led to the rebels' defeat.
The outnumbered anticommunist guerrillas often fought to the death. Cuban forces used sweeps by long columns of militia, which cost the government substantial losses but ultimately won the war. Hispano-Soviet advisor Francisco Ciutat de Miguel
, who was also present at the Bay of Pigs Invasion, played a major role in the pacification operation. Castro employed overwhelming force, at times sending in as many as 250,000 government troops.
gave a pro-Castro viewpoint in his 2002 book From el Escambray to the Congo. This is notable for its virulent condemnation of former comrades from the war against Batista. However, Dreke also describes the tactics and mindset of the Cuban government forces and its ruthless use of force and no-prisoners attitude.
Some of the insurgents ultimately surrendered, but they were immediately executed by firing squad. Others fought to the death. Only a handful managed to escape.
The War Against the Bandits actually lasted longer and involved more soldiers than had the previous struggle against Batista
's forces.
Opposition to Fidel Castro
Escambray Mountains
The Escambray Mountains are a mountain range in the central region of Cuba, in the provinces of Sancti Spíritus, Cienfuegos and Villa Clara....
by a group of Cuban insurgents who opposed the new Communist government led by Fidel Castro
Fidel Castro
Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz is a Cuban revolutionary and politician, having held the position of Prime Minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976, and then President from 1976 to 2008. He also served as the First Secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba from the party's foundation in 1961 until 2011...
. The rebelling group of insurgents received assistance from the Central Intelligence Agency
Central Intelligence Agency
The Central Intelligence Agency is a civilian intelligence agency of the United States government. It is an executive agency and reports directly to the Director of National Intelligence, responsible for providing national security intelligence assessment to senior United States policymakers...
and was a mix of former Batista
Fulgencio Batista
Fulgencio Batista y Zaldívar was the United States-aligned Cuban President, dictator and military leader who served as the leader of Cuba from 1933 to 1944 and from 1952 to 1959, before being overthrown as a result of the Cuban Revolution....
soldiers, local farmers, and former allied guerrillas who had fought alongside Castro against Batista during the Cuban Revolution
Cuban Revolution
The Cuban Revolution was an armed revolt by Fidel Castro's 26th of July Movement against the regime of Cuban dictator Fulgencio Batista between 1953 and 1959. Batista was finally ousted on 1 January 1959, and was replaced by a revolutionary government led by Castro...
. The end result was the elimination of all insurgents by Cuban government forces in 1965.
Origins
The uprising began almost immediately after the success of the Cuban RevolutionCuban Revolution
The Cuban Revolution was an armed revolt by Fidel Castro's 26th of July Movement against the regime of Cuban dictator Fulgencio Batista between 1953 and 1959. Batista was finally ousted on 1 January 1959, and was replaced by a revolutionary government led by Castro...
in 1959. It was led by former Batista
Batista
Batista is a Spanish or Portuguese languages surname , literally meaning "baptist"...
officials and soldiers, some former Fidel Castro
Fidel Castro
Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz is a Cuban revolutionary and politician, having held the position of Prime Minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976, and then President from 1976 to 2008. He also served as the First Secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba from the party's foundation in 1961 until 2011...
supporters, and landlords who were disenchanted by his close ties to the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
.
Cuban government
The leaders of the Cuban Communist forces Lucha contra Bandidos (LCB) were Commandantes Raul Menendez Tomassevich, founding member of the Cuban Communist Party and Lizardo Proenza.Insurgents
The insurgent guajiro rural farmers were aided by some former Batista forces, but were mostly led by former Revolutionary Directorate rebels (13 of March Movement), such as anti-communistsAnti-communism
Anti-communism is opposition to communism. Organized anti-communism developed in reaction to the rise of communism, especially after the 1917 October Revolution in Russia and the beginning of the Cold War in 1947.-Objections to communist theory:...
Osvaldo Ramirez and Comandante William Alexander Morgan
William Alexander Morgan
William Alexander Morgan was a United States citizen who fought in the Cuban Revolution. He was one of only two foreign nationals to hold the rank of Comandante in the revolutionary forces....
, both of whom had fought Batista "casquitos" in the same area only a few years before. Morgan himself was executed in 1961 long before the resistance ended, The CIA provided some aid to the insurgents, but withdrew all support after the failed Bay of Pigs Invasion, ensuring their ultimate defeat. Some of the failures could be attributed to Castro’s "roll up" of CIA operatives in Cuba.
Tactics
At the outset, the insurgents launched dozens of attacks on rural communities, destroying more than 30 houses, setting fire to over 40 rural schools, as well as state farms, grocery stores, and agricultural warehouses. They ambushed nearly 20 civilian vehicles, among other actions. More than 80 Cuban government soldiers were killed fighting against the insurgents, and hundreds more were wounded.Following the failure of the Bay of Pigs invasion
Bay of Pigs Invasion
The Bay of Pigs Invasion was an unsuccessful action by a CIA-trained force of Cuban exiles to invade southern Cuba, with support and encouragement from the US government, in an attempt to overthrow the Cuban government of Fidel Castro. The invasion was launched in April 1961, less than three months...
in 1961, Alzado leader Osvaldo Ramirez returned to the Escambray mountains and declined an offer by Fidel Castros' emissary, Comandante Faure Chomón, to surrender. Chomon had been Ramirez's chief in the Revolutionary Directorate in the Escambray during the guerrilla war against Batista.
The Cuban governments main tactic was to deploy thousands of troops against small groups of rebels, forming progressively constricting rings of encirclement. The Communist leaders Castro sent to clear the Escambray Mountains (La segunda limpia del Escambray) were ordered to exterminate the rebels. They were to "comb the brush, elbow to elbow" until they had completely cleared the hills of anticommunist rebels. The generals pledged they would capture Comandante Ramirez himself. Superior numbers and the lack of outside assistance, particularly supplies, led to the rebels' defeat.
The outnumbered anticommunist guerrillas often fought to the death. Cuban forces used sweeps by long columns of militia, which cost the government substantial losses but ultimately won the war. Hispano-Soviet advisor Francisco Ciutat de Miguel
Francisco Ciutat de Miguel
Francisco Ciutat de Miguel was a Spanish communist Lieutenant of infantry and Commander. He fought the Battle of Santander during the Spanish Civil War in the summer of 1937 as a Chief of Operations of the Army of the North.-Outside Spain:After the end of the Civil War, de Miguel fled to the...
, who was also present at the Bay of Pigs Invasion, played a major role in the pacification operation. Castro employed overwhelming force, at times sending in as many as 250,000 government troops.
Government victory
The insurgency was eventually crushed by the Castros' use of vastly superior numbers. Cuban government combat leader Victor DrekeVíctor Dreke
Víctor Emilio Dreke Cruz is a Cuban Communist Party leader of notable African descent, and a former commander in the Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces....
gave a pro-Castro viewpoint in his 2002 book From el Escambray to the Congo. This is notable for its virulent condemnation of former comrades from the war against Batista. However, Dreke also describes the tactics and mindset of the Cuban government forces and its ruthless use of force and no-prisoners attitude.
Some of the insurgents ultimately surrendered, but they were immediately executed by firing squad. Others fought to the death. Only a handful managed to escape.
The War Against the Bandits actually lasted longer and involved more soldiers than had the previous struggle against Batista
Fulgencio Batista
Fulgencio Batista y Zaldívar was the United States-aligned Cuban President, dictator and military leader who served as the leader of Cuba from 1933 to 1944 and from 1952 to 1959, before being overthrown as a result of the Cuban Revolution....
's forces.
Sources and further reading
- De la Cova, Antonio Rafael. 2007 The Moncada Attack: Birth of the Cuban Revolution. University of South Carolina Press. ISBN 978-1570036729, p. 314 note 47.
- Dreke, Victor (Edited by Mary-Alice Waters) 2002 From el Escambray to the Congo. Pathfinder Press, New York. ISBN 0873489470, ISBN 0873489489.
- Encinosa, Enrique G. 1989 El Escopetero Chapter in Escambray: La Guerra Olvidada, Un Libro Historico de Los Combatientes Anticastristas en Cuba (1960–1966). Editorial SIBI, Miami.
- Encinosa, Enrique G. 2004 Unvanquished — Cuba's resistance to Fidel Castro, Pureplay Press, Los Angeles, pp. 73–86. ISBN 0971436665.
- Faria, Miguel A. Cuba in Revolution — Escape from a Lost Paradise. Hacienda Publishing, Macon, GA, pp. 88–93. ISBN 0-9641077-3-2.
- Fermoselle, Rafael 1992 Cuban leadership after Castro: Biographies of Cuba's top commanders North-South Center, University of Miami, Research Institute for Cuban Studies; 2nd ed (paperback) ISBN 0-935501-35-5.
- Franqui, Carlos 1984 (foreword by G. Cabrera Infante and translated by Alfred MacAdam from Spanish 1981 version) Family portrait with Fidel. 985 edition Random House First Vintage Books, New York. ISBN 0394726200 .
- Priestland, Jane (editor) 2003 British Archives on Cuba: Cuba under Castro 1959–1962. Archival Publications International Limited, 2003, London ISBN 1-903008-20-4.
- Puebla, Teté (Brigadier General of the Cuban Armed Forces) 2003 Marianas in Combat: the Mariana Grajales Women's Platoon in Cuba's Revolutionary War 1956–58, New York Pathfinder (Paperback) ISBN 0-87348-957-8.
- Ros, Enrique 2006 El Clandestinaje y la Lucha Armada Contra Castro (The clandestinity and the armed fight against Castro, Cuba y sus Jueces) Ediciones Universal, Miami ISBN 1593880790.
- Volkman, Ernest 1995 Our man in Havana. Cuban double agents 1961–1987 in: Espionage: The Greatest Spy Operations of the Twentieth Century Wiley, New York ISBN 0-471-16157-8.
Opposition to Fidel Castro
Opposition to Fidel Castro
The Cuban dissident movement is a political movement in Cuba whose aim is "to replace the current regime with a more democratic form of government". According to Human Rights Watch, the Cuban government represses nearly all forms of political dissent....