Background
Carlos Manuel de Céspedes was born in Cuba on 18 April 1819.
Businessman politician president
Carlos Manuel de Céspedes was born in Cuba on 18 April 1819.
During his youth, he traveled widely in the United States and Europe. While in Spain in the 1840s, he took an active part in revolutionary activity. Upon return to Cuba, he established himself as a prosperous plantation owner. A persistent critic of Spanish policy in Cuba, he led members of the wealthy Creole elite in Oriente in transforming local Masonic lodges into conspiratorial centers.
On October 10, 1868, in the small town of Yara in Oriente Province, Carlos Manuel de Céspedes led a small group of patriots in proclaiming the independence of Cuba and calling for creation of a republic and abolition of slavery. This dramatic “call to arms” was the beginning of the Ten Years’ War (1868-1878).
As self-proclaimed president of the fledgling republic, Céspedes was a cautious, conservative, and often dictatorial leader. Nowhere was this more evident than on the slavery issue. In a proclamation in December 1868, Céspedes decreed a cautious policy of abolition which linked it to the final success of the revolution.
Meanwhile, the rebel movement grew rapidly, from the original 147 men that Céspedes had started with in October 1868 to over 12,000 by the end of the first month of the rebellion. Before the end of 1868 most of Oriente Province was under control of the revolutionary forces.
By late 1869 Céspedes was still the nominal leader of the rebels, although the civilians had lost much of their power to the military commanders. In October Céspedes decreed destruction of sugar plantations to weaken Spanish control of the economy. In November he finally agreed with the more radical rebel leaders that slaves should be encouraged to rise up against their masters. This decision came too late for Céspedes to maintain himself as the unchallenged leader of the republic. He had lost the support of the conservatives on the slavery issue and of the more radical elements when he removed the popular Maximo Gómez from his military command. Céspedes had isolated himself within the revolu-tionary movement.
In 1873 a rump meeting of the House of Representatives and major members of the military removed Céspedes from the presidency. In March 1874 he was ambushed and killed by Spanish forces at San Lorenzo in Oriente Province.