War of 1912
 | This articlemay be a roughtranslationfrom Spanish.It may have been generated, in whole or in part, by a computer or by a translator without dual proficiency.(April 2023) |
| War of 1912 | |||||||
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| Part of theBanana Wars | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
 Cuba United States |
CubanPartido Independiente de Color | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
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José Miguel GómezLincoln Karmany |
Evaristo Estenoz†Pedro Ivonnet† | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 16[1] | 3,000–6,000 killed[2][3][4] | ||||||
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TheWar of 1912(Spanish:Levantamiento Armado de los Independientes de Color,lit. 'Armed Uprising of the Independents of Color'), also known as theLittle Race War,theNegro Rebellion,orThe Twelve,was a series ofprotestsanduprisingsin 1912 inCuba,which saw conflict betweenAfro-Cubanrebels and the armed forces of Cuba. It took place mainly in the eastern region of the island, where most Afro-Cubans were employed. After weeks of fighting, which involvedmassacresof Afro-Cubans by theCuban National Armyled by GeneralJesus Monteagudoand a U.S. military intervention to protect American companies, the rebellion was put down. The leaders of the Afro-Cuban rebels,Evaristo EstenozandPedro Ivonnet,were killed during the rebellion and their political movement, TheIndependent Party of Color,was dissolved. Between 3,000 and 6,000 people were killed in the rebellion.[5][6]
Background[edit]
Social conditions[edit]
Conditions in Cuba were poor for the black inhabitants, most of whom worked in thesugarcaneindustry. Evaristo Estenoz began a movement in 1895 to better these conditions, during thewar for independence from Spain.Veterans of that war, primarily the officers, organized theIndependent Party of Colorin 1908. Under the leadership of Estenoz, the party quickly gained the support of a large number of Afro-Cubans in opposition to Cuban PresidentJosé Miguel Gómez.Gómez ordered the party disbanded under the Morúa law, which outlawed political parties based on race.[7]By 1912 the Independent Party of Color had regrouped to stage another rebellion.
US Marines in Cuba[edit]
In early 1912, the United States government sent a detachment of 688US Marines,officers and enlisted men, toGuantanamo Naval Basebecause Estenoz and his followers were preparing a rebellion.[8]Though they were lightly armed, the rebels numbered several hundred men, mainlypeasants.
History[edit]
Beginning[edit]
On 20 May, Estenoz and his men confronted theCuban Army.Fighting took place mainly inOriente Province,where most African Cubans lived, but there were also a few minor outbreaks of violence in the west, particularly inLas Villas Province.Initially, the rebels were successful in engaging the Cuban forces, which included soldiers andmilitia.On 23 May, President Gómez requested aid from U.S. PresidentWilliam H. Taft,who sent additional marines. The first reinforcements arrived on 28 May, landing at Deer Point, Guantanamo Bay, to link up with Major Thorpe's battalion. Colonel Lincoln Karmany was in command of this new force, designated the1st Provisional Regiment of Marines.It numbered 32 officers and 777 enlisted men.[9]
Cuban official response[edit]
The Cuban government and press responded with a very racist demonization of the rebels. The Cuban President called on the Cuban people to fight for "civilization" against "ferocious savagery". The President also invoked the image of a "raped teacher" which turned out to be from a fake news story from a conservative newspaper. The conservative newspaper"El Dia"argued that Cuba should copyJim Crow Lawsin the United States where "blacks are mistreated and society is segregated" concluding that "dominated races do submit". Afro-Cuban politicians became worried and angered over the escalation of racism during the rebellion. The racial demagoguery angeredJuan Gualberto Gomez,former Cuban independence leader, so much that he published a manifesto condemning it.[10]
Arrival of United States forces[edit]
The 2nd Provisional Regiment of Marines with 1,292 officers and men under Colonel James E. Mahoney was also en route. Most arrived at Guantanamo Bay on 7 June, while one battalion landed atHavanaon 10 June.USSMississippilanded her detachment at El Cuero on 19 June. Of the 1,292 men who landed at Guantanamo, only one battalion was deployed. Colonel Karmany took command of all the unassigned troops. Together, the American forces in Cuba totaled 2,789 officers and men and were organized into the1st Provisional Marine Brigade.About half of them were sent to occupy towns and cities in eastern Cuba. The rest remained at the naval base. In June Estenoz rapidly began losing control of his territory to the Cuban military, which was dispersing large bands of the rebels and bystanders. Rebel forces had once numbered at least 3,000 men, but by June there were an estimated 1,800 left alive, although some sources cite 6,000 rebel deaths in total.[8]
Suppression[edit]
The Marines were assigned to protect the American-ownedsugarcaneplantationsand their associated properties, as well ascoppermines,railroads and trains. The Afro-Cubans attacked the Marines only once, at El Cuero, but were repulsed without casualties on either side.[9]President Gómez offered amnesty to any of the rebels who surrendered by 22 June, but Estenoz continued to fight with a few hundred men, though most of the rebels surrendered. By the end of June, the majority had returned to their homes. Estenoz was killed by government forces who shot him in the back of the head at Miraca on 27 June.[2][9][11][12][10]
Estenoz's death splintered the rebel army into small factions which were soon defeated. The most important faction was that of Pedro Ivonnet, who led his forces into the mountains to wage aguerrilla war,but he was driven out by the middle of July. Ivonnet surrendered on July 18, 1912, but was killed, reportedly while "trying to escape".[10]
Aftermath[edit]
Following Ivonnet's surrender, Gómez announced that the American Marines were no longer needed and they began to withdraw, first to the naval base at Guantanamo and then to stations in the United States. The last Marines to leave Cuba embarked on theUSSPrairieon 2 August. The Afro-Cubans suffered between 3,000 and 6,000 casualties, both combatants and non-combatants, and the results of the rebellion were disastrous. The Independent Party of Color was dissolved and conditions in Cuba remained unchanged.[2][9]
References[edit]
- ^Ferrer, A. (2022). Cuba: An American history. Scribner.
- ^abc""Cuba 1912: La masacre racista", AfroCubaWeb ".Afrocubaweb.Retrieved13 October2014.
- ^"Partido de Independiente de Color (Cuba, 1908–1912): The Black Past: Remembered and Reclaimed".BlackPast.18 February 2009.Retrieved15 March2014.
- ^"Cuba 1912: La masacre racista".AfroCubaWeb.Retrieved22 February2016.
- ^Brock, Lisa (1994). "Back to the Future: African-Americans and Cuba in the Time(s) of Race".Contributions in Black Studies.12(3): 9–32.
- ^Castellanos García, Gerardo (1934).Panorama histórico: Ensayo de cronología cubana: Desde 1492 hasta 1933 Tomo III.Ucar, García y Cía. pp. 1370–1371 – via archive.org.
- ^Perez, Louis A. (2006).Cuba Between Reform and Revolution(3rd ed.). New York: Oxford University Press. p. 168.
- ^abMusicant, I (1990).The Banana Wars.New York: MacMillan Publishing Co. pp.70–71.ISBN0025882104.
- ^abcdClark, George B. (2010).Battle History of the United States Marine Corps, 1775–1945.McFarland.ISBN9780786456215.
- ^abcJ. A. Sierra."Race War of 1912 – A Timeline".History of Cuba.Retrieved22 February2016.
- ^"USS Mississippi, Battleship (BB-23) History".Josediaz.net.Retrieved15 March2014.
- ^"The 1912 Massacre of AfroCubans".AfroCubaWeb.Retrieved22 February2016.
Additional sources[edit]
- Aline Helg,Our Rightful Share: The Afro-Cuban Struggle for Equality, 1886–1912( University of North Carolina Press, 1995)
- Pérez Louis A., "Politics, Peasants, and People of Color: The 1912 “Race War” in Cuba Reconsidered ",Hispanic American Historical Review,66 (3),1986, 509–539. doi:https://doi.org/10.1215/00182168-66.3.509