Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz was born on August 13, 1926 in Biran, a former Cuban province in the eastern part of the island. He was the son of Ángel Castro Argiz and Lina Ruz González. His father was a Galician migrant; when he arrived in Cuba he had obtained some property and, as a peasant farmer, he dedicated himself to sugar cane production. His mother came from a peasant family in the province of Pinar del Río. Fidel Castro is one of the great protagonists of 20th century history and politics, and one of the most relevant figures in Cuban and Latin American history. He is considered the father of the Cuban Revolution.
His first studies were in the rural public school of Biran, where he learned to read and write, continuing the following educational levels in private catholic schools in the city of Santiago de Cuba. In 1945 he graduated as a bachelor of arts at the Colegio de Belen in Havana, belonging to the Society of Jesus. He then entered the University of Havana to study social sciences and national and international law.
Restless, observant, sharp in his reflections and outstanding in all learning, in the university environment he joined the socio-political struggles of his time, occupying various positions in the University Student Federation. With an ideology favorable to just, libertarian and popular causes, he soon became involved in revolutionary activities, such as those of the Committee for the Independence of Puerto Rico.
Fidel Castro was 25 years old when he was designated by the party as candidate for Congress in the elections scheduled for June 1952, but on March 10 of that year the coup d'état of Colonel Fulgencio Batista Zaldívar took place, being Fidel Castro one of the first to denounce the reactionary and illegitimate character of the de facto regime and to call for its overthrow.
On July 26, 1953 he commanded the assault on the Moncada barracks in Santiago de Cuba, a plan that included also taking the Bayamo barracks, in an action conceived as a detonator of the armed struggle against the Batista regime. Unfortunately, his tactics failed and he was taken prisoner by the repressive forces of the tyranny a few days after the military setback. He was held incommunicado for 76 days. He was put on trial and sentenced to 15 years in prison. However, the popular reaction in his support and that of the rest of the Moncadistas succeeded in pressuring the government, and they were released in May 1955. Wee
Post too long. Click here to view the full text.