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39 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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What is Castro's full name?
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Fidel Castro Ruz
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When was Castro born?
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August 13th, 1926
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What is significant about Communist Cuba?
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It was the first communist state in the Western hemisphere.
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What is Castro in relation to Cuba (officially)?
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He was "premier" until 1976, when he became president of the Council of State and the Council of Ministers.
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Where was Castro born?
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SE Cuba
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What class was Castro's father in?
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peninsular (from Spain)
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What was Castro's father's name?
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Angel Castro y Argiz
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Who was Castro's mother?
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Lina Ruz Gonzalez, his father's cook and later, wife
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Where did Castro attend school?
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Roman Catholic boarding schools in Santiago de Cuba, then Catholic high school Belen in Havana
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What was Castro good at in high school?
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sports
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What are three examples of revolutionary activities Castro was a part of in law school?
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1947 he was a part of a failed coup on Rafael Trujillo of the Dominican Republic, and April 1948 he was a part of riots in Bogota, Columbia.
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What party did Castro join after law school?
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the Cuban People's Party, or Ortodoxos
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What happened politically in Cuba in 1952?
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Elections were scheduled for June, but General Fulgencio Batista overthrew the government and cancelled them.
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What did Castro do initially to challenge Batista?
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July 26, 1953 he led a suicidal attack on a military barracks, hoping to inspire an uprising, and was captured.
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How long was Castro sentenced to after his suicidal attack, and when was he released?
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He was sentenced to 15 years, but was released after 2, in 1955.
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Where did Castro organize his July 26th Movement?
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Mexico
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When and how did Castro return to Cuba?
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December 2nd, 1956, in an armed expedition of 81 men
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How did the amphibious attack on Cuba fare?
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All but 12 were killed, and they fled to the Sierra Maestra mountains.
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How did Castro eventually defeat Batista?
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He used guerilla tactics, the poor organization of the main Cuban troops, and propaganda against the Batista regime.
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When was Batista ousted from Cuba?
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January 1st, 1959
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What did the new government in Cuba look like?
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Castro was commander in chief of armed forces, and Manuel Urrutia was president.
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Where was Urrutia politically?
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moderately liberal
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When did Castro consolidate power in his hands?
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February 1959 he made himself "premier" and July 1959 Urrutia resigned.
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What did Castro promise the people when he came to power?
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restoration of the 1940 constitution, honesty, civil and political liberties, and moderate reform
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What did Castro do once he took power?
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He nationalized private commerce and industry, expropriated US businesses and estates, and introduced sweeping land reforms.
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When did Castro make a trade agreement with the Soviet Union?
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February 1960
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How did the US respond to Castro's anti-American rhetoric?
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by cutting economic ties in 1960 and diplomatic relations in January 1961, and attempting to overthrow Castro with the Bay of Pigs in April 1961
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Detail the events of the Cuban Missile Crisis.
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The USSR secretly stored nuclear missiles which could strike the US in Cuba, but the US found out, and agreed to stop threatening to overthrow Castro and take missiles out of Turkey for the Soviet Union to take their missiles out of Cuba.
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What reforms did Castro introduce?
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He expanded social services, making them equally accessible to all, made education and health free, and employment ensured.
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What problems did Castro face economically?
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Cuba's economy was dependent on cane sugar exports, Castro was an inefficient manager himself, and Cuba became dependent on favorable trade with the Soviet Union due to the US's embargo.
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What changed in 1976?
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Castro created a new constitution, and government by a National Assembly, of which Castro was president.
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What did not change in 1976?
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Castro was still commander in chief, secretary-general of the Communist Party of Cuba, exercised totalitarian rule, with his brother Raul his right-hand man.
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What did the Cuban army do after Castro took power?
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They fought the Soviet Union's battles in Angola and Ethiopia.
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What happened in 1980?
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Castro opened the port of Mariel for five months, releasing 125k immigrants, almost all to the US, straining immigration facilities in the US.
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How did Castro respond to Gorbachev's democratic reforms and the collapse of the USSR?
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He criticized Gorbachev, remaining true to communism, but was forced to liberalize some of the economics due to the loss of Soviet subsidies and favorable trade.
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How and why did Castro lighten up on the social aspects of his rule?
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His daughter criticized his rule from the US in 1993, and in 1994, the first major anti-Castro demonstrations took place, so later that year, Castro lifted immigration restrictions and in 1998 allowed Pope John Paul II to visit Cuba.
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What happened in 2003?
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Castro was 'reelected' by his National Assembly, and cracked down on journalists and activists, convicting 75 of conspiring with the US.
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What has Castro done with Venezuela's Hugo Chavez?
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In 1994, he launched the Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas (ALBA) to exchange doctors for cheap oil.
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What happened most recently?
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On July 31, 2006, Fidel gave his brother Raul power on a provisional basis.
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