Fidel Castro: History Will Absolve Me

Context

The major event leading up to Castro's speech was the attack on the Moncada Barracks, located on the southern part of the island in Santiago de Cuba, and the simultaneous attack on Carlos Manuel de Céspedes Barracks in the city of Bayamo. The Moncada Barracks were the second-largest military base in Cuba at the time, and Castro's failed attack on it was the first attempt at armed struggle against the Batista regime and the first battle in the Cuban revolutionary war. Although it was unsuccessful, the assault put Castro on the national stage as the main revolutionary leader against Fulgencio Batista. Batista ruled Cuba twice. His first presidency was from 1933 to 1944. The second time Batista came to power was through a coup on March 10, 1952, and he then ruled until December 31, 1958. Batista's government became widely unpopular among Cuban citizens because of the regime's corruption, repression, and censorship.

Castro's organization was one of many that sought to oust Batista. In Havana in 1952, soon after Batista's coup, Castro began organizing with student leaders to overthrow the regime. For one year he gathered supplies and weapons and worked with two hundred other members of the Orthodox Party. The Orthodox Party's political platform encompassed the reformation of political corruption, nationalism, social reform, and economic independence. Included in this group were Fidel Castro's brother, Raúl, who was second in command; Abel Santamaría, one of the commanders who had served under Fidel Castro during the Moncada Barracks attack; and Santamaría's sister, Haydée. Their objective was to take over the Moncada Barracks and to occupy the Palace of Justice, the Joaquín Castillo Duany Military Hospital, and a radio station. The attack began in the morning on July 26, 1953. One hundred and eleven men and two women fought against seven hundred troops from the Batista military. Castro hoped that the Cuban people would rally in support of his plan and that Batista's army would break ranks and join his forces. However, neither of these plans came to fruition. Castro and his troops were severely outnumbered. Eight of Castro's people were killed during combat, and Batista's troops captured sixty-one others. Francisco Tabernilla, Batista's chief of staff, ordered the torture and execution of the detainees.

Fidel Castro escaped and hid on a farm in the Sierra Maestra range in Santiago Province. One week later Castro turned himself in, after being assured by the Batista government that he would not be tortured or killed. He was held in Boniato, a large prison near Santiago. On August 1, 1953, Castro was imprisoned in the Provincial de Oriente prison, and it was while awaiting trial there that he wrote History Will Absolve Me. With help from the imprisoned Castro fighters, other inmates, and the custodian and prison employees, the prisoners were able to maintain an open flow of information to prepare for their defense. Castro and thirty of his men were put on trial between September 21 and October 16, 1953. In the course of his trial, Castro delivered a speech defending his rebellion and asserting his political position.