Cuban History: From Colonization to Contemporary

Cuban History Revision Sheet

1. 📌 Essentials

• Columbus arrived in Cuba in 1492, naming the island Juana.
• Indigenous groups (Guanahatabey, Ciboney, Taíno were eradicated or marginalized- Spanish colonization (16th–17th centuries): economy based on agriculture and pastoralism.
• José Martí (1853–1895): national hero and symbol of independence.
• The 19th-century sugar revolution transformed Cuba into a major sugar exporter.
• The Ten Years’ War (1868–78): first major independence attempt; failed.
• Spanish-American War (1898): U.S. intervention after USS Maine explosion; Spain relinquished control.
• Cuba gained formal independence in 1902; U.S. retained influence via Platt Amendment.
• Batista’s coups (1933, 1952): led to dictatorship and instability.
• Fidel Castro’s 1959 revolution overthrew Batista; established socialist regime.
• U.S. embargo (1960) and diplomatic break (1961); Bay of Pigs invasion (1961).
• Cuban Missile Crisis (1962): Soviet missiles in Cuba; U.S. naval blockade.
• Cold War support: Angola (1975), Nicaragua (1979).
• Collapse of Soviet support (1991): “Special Period” economic crisis.
• 1994: Balsero crisis—mass emigration by makeshift raft.
• Helms–Burton Law (1996): U.S. sanctions tightened.
• Raúl Castro’s leadership began in 2006, ending Fidel’s era.

2. 🧩 Key Structures & Components