Cuba\'s Loyalty to Spain During

¶ … Cuba's loyalty to Spain during the wars for independence in Spanish America

The Spanish empire had a stronghold in Cuba. However, the Cubans were not very satisfied with the rule and small instances of rebellion had started to emerge. In 1895 the rebellion gained momentum and the Spaniards were forced to send troops to Cuba to suppress the rebellion. The Cuban rebellion was unorganized and not that strong as there were still Spanish loyalists within the nation and while they were unable to take the cities they caused major damage by burning down the towns and the plantations. However, once the Spaniards attacked they were able to repress the rebellion.

Yet, the small rebellion gained a lot of sympathy from the American neighbors. The Americans had some investments in the plantations and the American press printed a lot of sympathetic stories some true and others mere figments of their imagination. This allowed the Americans to gain support from the Congress in declaring war on Spain and on April 11, 1898 President McKinley asked Congress to declare war on Spain and the declaration was passed on April 25.

Theodore Roosevelt led a group of soldiers called the Rough Riders into Cuba landing on the south coast and entering the city of Santiago. They began the attack through San Juan Hill and eventually captured the city.

Introduction

It was an astonishing fact that while most of the Spanish colonies rebelled against it, Cuba the 'Pearl of the Antilles' remained a colony and loyal to the Spaniards, to some extent, even after gaining independence. Cuba remained a Spanish colony ruled by 'a governor/captain-general and the audiencia (high court).' [Mabry, 2005] majority of the population consisted of African slaves as they were needed to work on the plantations that yielded tobacco and sugar in great quantities making it a major attraction for export. The establishment of slavery was needed to keep trade going and the profits up so that the plantation land owners remained loyal to the Spanish.

They knew that an independent land could cause the system of slavery to be abolished and thus, change the society as they knew it. They had heard stories of atrocities when the slaves rebelled against the whites and needed the support of the government in ensuring control. The Spanish government also aided in trade and the economic conditions were considered satisfactory as the infrastructure of the nation was run independently.

These two factors were the main reason the Cubans remained loyal to the Spanish even during the Spanish American Wars.

Analysis

During the era of the Spanish Wars the various colonies were trying to gain independence from Spain. Latin American nations rebelled and for the most part gained freedom. Yet, Cuba remained loyal. However, the Americans believed that Cuba would soon rebel and this rebellion would be favored toward the U.S. And the nation would become a part if not a state of the U.S. This aspiration came through the concept of the Manifest destiny where it was believed that the U.S. was destined to expand into other territories as a divine right. [Alger, 1901]

However, while certain segments of Cubans did want independence from the Spaniards the majority remained loyal. The cause of this loyalty can be attributed to three factors:

Economics

Social

Political.

While these there factors may seem both diverse and encompassing the truth of the matter is that the Cubans had some specific reasons within each category that caused them to accept that loyalty towards the Spanish would be better than freedom.

Economically Cuba was a small yet stable nation. They had some natural resources and plantations that made them it attractive for trade and investors. The natural resources were not mined to a large extent but the sugar and tobacco plantations were quite profitable. As in most other nations of the time the plantations were cropped by slaves from the African nations and most of the landowners were slave holders as well. At this point in time neighboring lands had seen bloody slave revolts e.g. Haiti and this had caused them to become wary of any change in the system. [Halstead, 1898]

Haitian rebellious ideas had seeped into the nation but to a large extent the slaves were controlled due to the power of the Spanish forces. The Spanish forces ensured that there laws were enforced without question. The enforcement sometimes took a brutal aspect and caused many citizens to feel rebellious however, ultimately they did not revolt.

This suggests that while the idea of revolt against the Spanish was present there was an even greater need to maintain a status quo that caused them to remain peaceful. The fact of the matter was that in terms of economy the Cubans needed the Spaniards more than they hated them. [Brands, 1995]

The majority of the economy was focused on trade and plantations and for both categories the Spaniards helped provide the protection and force the Cubans needed.

Socially in terms of the social aspect there was a definite hierarchy within the nation that caused the people to fear change. The various plantation owners could not allow their slaves to be freed for fear of persecution and tried to establish a status quo that was hard to break.

They realized that slaves were their economic base and if freed could cause an ethnic strife within the nation that would be hard to control. The citizens needed the Spanish rule for the fear aspect. The Spaniards were known for their bloody and complete subjugation of rebellions and the callousness with which they repressed any form of revolt was hated and yet accepted. [Bradford, 1993]

The Cuban nation was not strong enough on its own and needed the control of the Spaniards to help maintain the status quo.

Politically by the late 1800s the native Americans were almost annihilated and a peace of sorts had been established. The government was in control and for the first time the stability of the states allowed the government to look outside the U.S. borders.

An expansionist concept began to grow as the U.S. began to seek profits through its neighbors. The Caribbean became a prime target as the region had a strong relationship with the U.S. By the late 1890's the U.S. had almost 50 million dollars invested in the various Cuban industries allowing it to believe and hope that the nation would be annexed within its own territories.

It was during this time that small insurgent groups within Cuba began to grow and small revolutions began to arise within the nation. These rebellions were brutally suppressed by the Spaniards and the atrocities were heralded in U.S. newspapers. At that time the popular mode of news transmission was yellow journalism and these papers sensationalized the events in Cuba demanding action against Spain. [Schley, 1904]

The main concern was the investments of the American nation with Cuba and how it could be protected. The Spanish on the other hand began to use methods of terrorization to suppress the revolts. They created 'reconcentration' sites within villages and fenced in entire areas creating concentration camps of sorts for all those involved and arrested in the rebellions. Again the cases of terror were presented in the U.S. papers and caused the sympathies of the nation to move towards the Cubans.

The final move was the sinking of the U.S.S. Maine in Havana harbor on February 15, with almost 266 crewmen lost. While the cause of the blast aboard the U.S.S. Maine was not the fault of the Spaniards the media presented it as such and citizens called for war. Thus, war was declared on April 11, 1898 when the Congress declared Cuba a free country.

The main problem with the support that the U.S. gave the Cubans was its own imperialistic need. The U.S. did not declare war to free Cuba but rather the war was about trying to gain Cuba as a part of the U.S. Cuba did understand this imperialistic tendency. The first military action it took against Spain was in Manila, Philippine's which suggested that the U.S. had more than freedom from the Spaniards on its mind.

This understanding created a void in the war as the Cubans had already realized that the support from the U.S. would come at a cost which could be an attributing factor to its remaining loyal to the Spanish. The U.S. navy was the victor in the war when it came towards Cuba because while the Spanish had the might it did not have the technology to win the war. The war itself was short and instead of being a war of independence for the Cubans it was known as the Spanish American war.

This in itself caused Cuba to remain loyal to the Spanish. However, the triumph of the Americans over the Spanish allowed Cuba to gain independence but dependent on the U.S. The Cubans patriots role was considered and made to be insignificant and the forces were not allowed to attend their own surrender ceremonies. The U.S. created the Platt Amendment allowing the U.S. The right to interfere in the sovereign interest of Cuba.

Yet, regardless of the seeming loyalty of the Cubans towards the Spaniards the fact remains that the majority of the people were not satisfied with the rule. The people realized that they needed to be free but were not in a situation to take advantage of the fact, they were simply biding their time for freedom. The various rebellions over the years had taken its toll on the Cubans and none were in a hurry to create a situation that would adversely affect the land and the people.