Cuba commemorates 66 years of the assault on the Moncada Barracks led by Fidel Castro

The history of Cuba finds a before and after in the assault on the Moncada Barracks. That group of 131 Cubans led by Fidel Castro risked standing up to a government with dozens of years in power and control of the entire island and, as often happens in historical processes, the first great movement was unsuccessful. The assault on the Moncada Barracks and the movement in general was unsuccessful that day.

When considering the barracks a key fortress to take control of the country by way of arms, Fidel and his men launched themselves in an attempt to take over that structure in a few hours, a second group would take the Hospital and the third the Palace of Justice, both buildings adjoining the barracks and in strategic positions and functions to dominate the scene.

Many coincidences came together for that attempt to be a failure, Castro and his men had the surprise factor, something that failed when an official from the barracks and a vehicle intercepted them almost by chance and the shooting began with them outside and the military who They supported Fulgencio Batista in the fortress, from which the confrontation dragged on until Fidel and his revolutionaries, clearly showing their inferiority in numbers and arms, withdrew.

History will absolve me, speech by Fidel Castro

Once that uprising in arms failed, the government of Fulgencio Batista dedicated itself to capturing those involved and some sympathizers of the event, according to Fidel Castro himself in his defense, and later it was corroborated, many were tortured and then killed, in the case of Fidel, he was imprisoned along with several of his companions.

When assuming his defense, he presented as the maximum argument a speech with high political content, in which he took advantage of listing those that he considered problems caused by the Batista government, he accused him of being a dictator, of torturing and disappearing colleagues and sympathizers of his movement and his military officers to act as tyrants before the population and, in the end, close with the phrase that gave name to the speech and is related to the date that every year they celebrate in Cuba. With total certainty that he would be condemned, he said to close his speech / defense: "Condemn me, history will absolve me".