1. Circle Cuba on the world map.
What hemisphere is Cuba in?

3. Struggle for Independence
·Originally a colony of Spain
·1898, The Spanish American War. With the help of the United States, Cuba wins independence from Spain.
·The U.S. appoints a military governor to Cuba and sends troops to the island
·1902, Cuba gains full independence. The U.S. withdraws troops, but still keeps a base at Guantanamo Bay

4. Cuba: The richest island in the Caribbean.
·After gaining independence from Spain, Cuba became the richest nation in the Caribbean due to SUGAR.
·Cuba became the place for the rich and famous to visit.
·Hotels, casinos, and restaurants were built to cater to the tourists coming to Cuba.

5. Fulgencio Batista
·President of Cuba- 1940
·Dictator of Cuba by military coup
·Only allowed staged elections
·Good relationship with the United States
·Most Cubans were very poor under Batista's rule
·He fled from Castro's revolt in stealing millions of dollars

6. 1. Who was Batista?
2. Do you think the Cuban people were happy with him?
3. How do you think Cubans felt about Americans?

7. Fidel Castro
·Law degree from University of Havana
·Disliked Batista's government
·Attacked Moncada Army Barracks in 1953
·Arrested, but pardoned after 2 years
·Lived in exile in Mexico with other revolutionaries, such as Che Guevara
·Invaded Cuba in 1956, but most of Castro's small army were killed
·Castro, his brother, and Che Guevara survived and hid in the Sierra Maestra moutains
·Batista was forced to flee in 1959 and Castro took over.
·Many Cubans left after realizing that the revolution was communist.

8. Che Guevara
·Marxist (Communist) Revolutionary
·Born in Argentina
·Joined Castro's Revolutionary force in Mexico
·Helped convert Castro to communism
·Was captured and executed after a failed attempt to overthrow the government in Bolivia (1967)

9. 4. Why do you think Castro had such a poor relationship with the United States?
5. Why do you think Che Guevara was a hero in the minds of many Latin Americans?

10. Was never the dictator of any country
Castro
Had a good relationship with the U.S.
Che Guevara
Was never the dictator of any country
Stole millions of dollars from Cuba
Batista
Was a military dictator
Took over all U.S. property in Cuba
Established a relationship with Soviet Union
Helped Castro take over Cuba

11. Cuban Revolution
·An army led by Fidel Castro and others overthrew the government of Cuba on January 1, 1959.
·Castro took control of the country by July of 1959
·The people of Cuba welcomed the new leadership and ideas of Fidel Castro
·Cuba will become a communist nation, and will break ties with the U.S.
·Today the U.S. has a trade embargo with Cuba
·People from the U.S. are not able to travel freely to Cuba, Cubans are unable to leave their country

12. 6. What language do most people in Cuba speak?
7. What religion would you expect to be the most common in Cuba?
8. Why don't they celebrate Christmas?
9. Why might some Cubans think that Castro has helped their nation and others think he has hurt it?

13. Why does the United States own part of Cuba?