Table Of ContentCUBA 1933 >4^
Prologue to Revolution
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CUBA 1933
Prologue to Revolution
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Luis E. Aguilar
Cornell University Press
Ithaca and London
Copyright © 1972 by Cornell University
All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations in a review, this
book, or parts thereof, must not be reproduced in any form without
permission in writing from the publisher. For information address
Cornell University Press, 124 Roberts Place, Ithaca, New York 14850.
First published 1972 by Cornell University Press.
Published in the United Kingdom by Cornell University Press Ltd.,
2-4 Brook Street, London W iY iAA.
International Standard Book Number 0-8014-0660-9
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number 70-162544
PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
BY VAIL-BALLOU PRESS, INC.
Librarians: Library of Congress cataloging information
appears on the last page of the book.
To my parents in Cuba, with gratitude.
To my children, Louis, George, and
Elizabeth Anne, with love and hope.
“Todo noble tesón al cabo alcanza
a fijar las justas leyes del destino.”
[Noble tenacity finally results in
restoring the justice of the laws of fate.]
Enrique Hernández M iyares
Cuba, i p i$
Contents
”
Preface ix
1. Creation of the Republic i
Struggle for Independence i
American Intervention and the Platt Amendment 13
First Steps of the Republic, 1902-1906 20
2. Failure of the Republic, 1906-1925 27
Second American Intervention and Its Consequences 27
Political Developments, 1909-1925 32
Economic and Social Developments, 1909-1925 40
3. The Elections of 1924 49
4. Machado as President, 1925-1927 55
5. Extension of Powers and Re-election, 1927-1928 61
6. Winds of Change 68
The Intellectuals 69
The University 72
Rise of Cuban Labor 78
The Cuban Communist Party 84
7. The Calm before the Storm, 1928-1929 88
8. Depression and General Opposition, 1930-1953 98
Economic Crisis 98
Political Crisis 99
Position of the American Embassy 108
Last Attempt of the Old Guard 111
vii
viii Contents
9. New Tactics and New Programs 116
The ABC 118
Role of the Communist Party 121
Terrorism and Repression 124
10. The Mediation of Sumner Welles 128
11. The Downfall of Machado 144
12. Failure of the Provisional Government, August 12-
September 4, 1933 152
13. The Revolutionary Government 163
Significance of the Movement 163
A Strange Triumvirate 168
Increasing Radicalism 174
14. Enemies of the Revolutionary Government 183
The Left 183
The Right 186
15. The Ambassador, the Army, and the Revolutionary
Government 200
16. The Downfall of the Revolutionary Government 219
17. Reflections on the Cuban Revolutionary Process 230
Index 249
Historians writing about Cuba today commonly make a
great mistake. They dismiss what happened in Cuba before
Castro and ignore the earlier struggles, triumphs, and defeats
of the Cuban people. Sometimes this tendency arises from
ignorance; occasionally it is the result of political partiality;
usually it is born of a desire for oversimplification. Some re
cent studies have even attempted to discover parallels between
the Mexico of 1910, the Bolivia of 1952, and the Cuba of
1959. One common factor—a more or less successful revolu
tion—has caused some historians to overlook the historical
past of these three nations, and important racial, economic,
and cultural differences.
This book is a modest attempt to correct the historical
perspectives on Cuba. In 1959, Cuba was not the somnolent
Mexico of Porfirio Díaz or the remote Bolivia of the tin
barons. By the mid-1920’s Cuba had already entered a revolu
tionary period from which she emerged deeply and radically
transformed: a popular revolutionary party had been formed;
a constitution emphasizing social legislation had been adopted;
a new sense of nationalism prevailed; and the necessary forces
for an economic revival were present. Some of the programs
and ideas which seemed radical and new to those who ignore
Cuban history evolved to a great extent from the ideals and
frustrations of the revolution of 1933. These historical links
ix
x Preface
are significant and interesting. They illumine present-day
Cuban history.
Of the many persons, some still in Cuba, to whom I am
indebted for making this book possible, there are a few who
deserve special mention: the former President of Cuba, Dr.
Carlos Prío Socarrás, who graciously tolerated long hours of
questioning; the late José Emilio Obregón (Machado’s son-
in-law), who not only talked candidly about Machado’s per
sonality, but also gave me old newspaper clippings and
pamphlets of the period; Joaquín Martinez Saenz, founder of
the secret revolutionary society ABC and former President of
the Cuban National Bank, who wrote me two long letters
explaining ABC’s historical position; Juan Antonio Rubio
Padilla, a former member of the Student Directory of 1930,
whose remarkable memory provided me with many insights;
and last but not least, a group of the “generation of 1933,”
whose presence in and around Washington, D.C., forced them
to suffer my continuous demands for details and explanations
—Felipe Pazos, Carlos Martinez, and Justo Carrillo. For them,
and for Isa and Gerardo Canet, Fernando and Joanna Leyva,
and Jorge and Diana Beruff, I would like to recall an old
Hispanic tradition of the era when writers had time to be
polite to their readers, and say:
“Lo que esta obra valga, por ellos va logrado;
Yo sólo puse el esfuerzo y lo menguado.”
[What is good in this book is because of them;
I only add the effort and the limitations.]
Translations from the Spanish have been made by the
author unless otherwise noted.
L. E. A.
Georgetown University
Washington, D.C.
