The Cuban Revolution was the overthrow of Cuban dictator Fulgencio Batista by the 26th of July Movement and the establishment of a new regime led by Fidel Castro in the 1950s. It began with the assault on the Moncada base on the 26 July 1953, and ended on 1 January 1959, when Batista was driven from the country and the cities Santa Clara and Santiago de Cuba were seized by sections of the people’s army, led by Che Guevara and Fidel Castro, respectively. The term "Cuban Revolution" is also used to refer to the social revolution from 1959 to present and the adoption of Marxist principles by the new Cuban Government.

Early Revolution years

On July 26, 1953, a group of 119 rebels attacked the Moncada Barracks in Santiago de Cuba. Many of them were killed in the attack, the survivors, among them Fidel and his brother Raúl Castro were captured shortly afterwards. In a highly political trial, they were sentenced to long prison terms; Castro got 15 years in the presidio modelo located on Isla de Pinos. After the 1955 elections, Batista freed all political prisoners, including the Moncada attackers. The Castro brothers went into exile in Mexico where they gathered more exiled Cubans ready to fight for a Marxist regime. During that period, Castro also met the Argentinian doctor Che Guevara, who joined their forces. In November 1956, a total of 82 rebels left Mexico onboard the vessel Granma heading for Cuba. All but 12 of them were killed or captured in the first combat immediately after their landing in what was later renamed Granma Province, although there is some dispute about how many survivors. Some of the captured guerrillas were extra-judicially executed. Both Fidel and Raúl Castro as well as Che were among the survivors.

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