Santiago de Cuba

Santiago de Cuba is the second-largest city in Cuba and the capital city of Santiago de Cuba Province. The municipality extends over 1,023. 8 square kilometers and contains the communities of Antonio Maceo, Bravo, Castillo Duany, Daiquirí, El Caney, El Cobre, El Cristo, Guilera, Leyte Vidal, Moncada and Siboney. In the 2012 population census, the city recorded a population of 431,272 people.

About Santiago de Cuba in brief

Summary Santiago de CubaSantiago de Cuba is the second-largest city in Cuba and the capital city of Santiago de Cuba Province. The municipality extends over 1,023. 8 square kilometers and contains the communities of Antonio Maceo, Bravo, Castillo Duany, Daiquirí, El Caney, El Cobre, El Cristo, Guilera, Leyte Vidal, Moncada and Siboney. The city was the fifth village founded by Spanish conquistador Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar on July 25, 1515. From 1522 until 1589, Santiago was the capital of the Spanish colony of Cuba. It was the site of the major defeat of Spanish troops at San Juan Hill on July 1, 1898, during the Spanish–American War. It is on a bay connected to the Caribbean Sea and is an important sea port. In the 2012 population census, the city recorded a population of 431,272 people. On July 26, 1953, the 20th-century revolutionary hero Frank País began an ill-prepared attack on the MonCada Barracks led by Fidel Castro. Shortly after, País became an extremely effective urban revolutionary alliance.

He and his followers developed a highly organized cells, coordinating a large-scale urban resistance that became instrumental in the success of the Cuban Revolution. They published a cheap newsletter that reported critical news of the government’s censorship of the mainstream press. They carefully accrued weapons, collecting money, collecting medical supplies, and collecting news about what was happening in the country. They also prepared carefully, accruing weapons, money, and medical supplies for the summer of 1955, when the Batista government began attempting to counter the País’ group of rebel leaders. The group of rebels led by Castro became an effective urban alliance, drawing people around him, drawing him into the battle against the government of Batista. They were able to defeat the government and take control of the island in July 1955. The battle of the Barracks was one of the most significant battles of the revolution.