1. Little Fidel was born on a summer day in 1927 into the family of a landowner. By this point, his father had become rich, although he himself was from a poor Spanish family and emigrated to Cuba at the beginning of the century. Angel Castro was a very enterprising man, but he married Fidel’s mother, cook Lina Rus, when she had 5 children from him.
2. At the age of 5, the boy was sent to boarding school, giving him an extra year. Many years later, Castro would confirm this fact, but leave the year of his birth as 1926. The kid studied very well at school, because he had an excellent memory. The parents were proud of the talented child, since they themselves did not receive any education.
3. Fidel's rebellious spirit manifested itself already in his teens, when he participated in a workers' revolt on his father's plantation. Eyewitnesses recalled that not everyone can be so brave.

Youth

• Fidel's courage sometimes reached the point of recklessness. So, while studying at a Jesuit college, where he took part in numerous fights, the guy crashed his bicycle into a wall on a dare. Great vanity and determination helped the Comandante graduate from the University of Havana with honors;
• Fidel's favorite books were the revelations about communism of Marx and Engels, Lenin, Marty, Trotsky, Mussolini. After studying, the newly minted lawyer handles the cases of the poor for free and tries to become a deputy from the revolutionaries;
• In 1952, as a result of a coup d'etat, Batista came to power and abolished all constitutional rights and freedoms. Castro organizes an attack on government troops, for which he is sentenced to 15 years in prison.

The fate of the revolutionary Castro

However, under an amnesty, the revolutionary is released after 22 months and leaves for Mexico. There, Fidel again thought over a plan to overthrow Batista and in 1957, together with volunteers, went to Cuba. Among them is Argentine Ernesto Guevara.

In 1959, the Comandante became the permanent dictator of Liberty Island. He repeals the 1940 Constitution and rules by decrees. During this period, enterprises owned by American businessmen, hectares were taken from large landowners and distributed to the poor.

In the spring of 1961, Castro personally led a detachment to disarm Cuban rebel troops formed from emigrants (the counter-revolutionaries were financed by the US government). In 1964, the Americans announced sanctions on Cuba, and a year later Fidel headed the Central Committee of the Cuban Socialist Party.

The Comandante sends troops to support communist revolutionaries around the world. The sponsor becomes the USSR, which determines foreign policy Cubes. Trained soldiers from Cuba are sent to countries in Africa and Latin America.

The end of the dictator's reign

• in the mid-80s, during the beginning of the collapse of the USSR, subsidies to Cuba were stopped. The Cuban economy is stagnating, and the standard of living of the population is deteriorating several times;
• in 1989, Castro was diagnosed with intestinal problems and underwent the first operation. In 2006, the family had to constantly deny rumors about the death of the Cuban leader. After another surgical intervention, Fidel speaks from the podium with a fiery speech. During his speech, he never sat down, and yet he spoke for about 5 hours without a break!
• in the same year, power officially passed to Castro’s brother Raul. And 10 years later, Fidel dies of intestinal cancer at the age of 89. After cremation, the ashes are solemnly delivered along the route that the Comandante took during the overthrow of Batista's power. The urn containing the ashes is brought to Santiago de Cuba, the city where it all began.

Personal life

Castro has always been partial to women. Among his many novels it is worth highlighting:

1. Marriage to Mirta Diaz. From my daughter famous politician During the Batista government, Fidel gives birth to a son, who was named after his father. A few years later, the couple separates, as Castro is consumed by another passion - the passion for revolution.
2. Nati Revuelta. While married to someone else, Nati has an affair with a charismatic Cuban revolutionary. From their love Alina is born, whom Fidel recognized many years later.
3. Deliv Soto. From this woman, Castro had 5 children: 4 boys and 1 girl.
4. Celia Sanchos. The woman was Fidel's secretary and main assistant. In 1985 she committed suicide.

Now it is not known for certain how many women and children the great comandante actually had. However, with great confidence we can call Fidel a ladies' man with a capital L.

• young Castro once wrote a letter to Roosevelt asking him to send him $10. The boy congratulated the US President on his next election to office. It is interesting that the answer to the brave child did come from the Roosevelt administration, but they were not able to send the child any money;
• After the coup d'etat in Cuba, Fidel's sister escapes to the United States. The woman settles in Florida and continues to collaborate with American intelligence. Another betrayal on the part of loved ones is the escape of Comandante Alina’s illegitimate daughter to the United States. Castro himself was able to recognize her as his daughter when she turned 20 years old. And after emigration, my father crossed Alina out of his heart and memory forever, forbidding even the mention of her name;
• at the moment Castro proclaims himself a communist, the current pope in the Vatican excommunicates the commandante from the church, in accordance with the order of Pius the Ninth. However, this circumstance did not prevent Fidel from going to the Vatican many years later and having a warm conversation with the head of the Catholic Church.

Unprecedented luck Comandante

1. There have been official attempts on the revolutionary’s life more than 100 times. US presidents, from Eisenhower to Clinton, as well as opponents of the communist regime who emigrated from the country, made attempts to remove the brave dictator from the road.
2. Castros were given pens with poisoned needles, baseballs with explosives, cigars soaked in poison, given diving cylinders infected with the tuberculosis bacillus, and staged car and plane crashes. However, ironically, Fidel died at a fairly old age from intestinal cancer.
3. The politician himself was included in the Guinness Book of Records for the huge number of attempts on his life. Castro was a heavy smoker and could easily have been poisoned by a cigar, but fate favored him always and everywhere. Comandante quits smoking after 40 years of addiction to tobacco, but his love for Rolex watches, which he wears two on his hand, does not leave him until his death.

What do you think about Fidel Castro? We are waiting for your comments.

The current leader of Cuba, his brother Raul Castro, said on state television, writes El Pais. He died on the night of Friday, November 25th.

Fidel Castro came to power in 1959 and ruled for almost 50 years. He retired in 2008, handing over his powers to his brother Raul. In 2013, Castro said that he made this decision in 2006 after doctors discovered he had a fatal stomach disease. Last time former president seen in public on August 13, his 90th birthday. In 2013, Fidel wrote that he did not expect to live such a long life.

Biography of the Comandante

Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz was born in 1926 into the family of a wealthy landowner who emigrated from Spain. Castro attended law school at the University of Havana, where he acquired left-wing views and developed extraordinary oratory skills. He later participated in street protests in Havana and a rebellion against the government of the Dominican Republic, but this plot was stopped by the United States, writes the BBC.

In 1948, Fidel Castro married the daughter of a wealthy Cuban politician, Mirta Diaz-Balart, but did not join the elite, but leaned towards Marxism and believed that Cuba's economic problems could only be solved with the help of a popular revolution.

After graduation, Castro founded his own law firm, but his business was poor. At the same time, he remained a political activist. When Fulgencio Batista became President of Cuba in 1952, overthrowing his predecessor Carlos Prio, who abolished the constitution. Fidel Castro tried to attack the military town of Moncada in 1953, but was unsuccessful, and was imprisoned for two years.

After his release, he, together with Raul and Che Guevara, organized the July 26 revolutionary movement in Mexico. After returning to Cuba, he began a guerrilla war against Batista, and in 1959 overthrew his regime. Later, a one-party system was introduced in the country, and hundreds of people were imprisoned as political prisoners, hundreds of former Batista devotees were executed, and thousands of Cubans left the state.

After coming to power, Castro nationalized American businesses, and the United States responded by imposing a trade embargo that continued into the 21st century. The ban began to be rolled back in 2014, and in 2016, US President Barack Obama restored diplomatic relations with Cuba.

In 1961, after the outbreak of the conflict with the United States, Castro became close to the USSR, received economic assistance from it and allowed the deployment of nuclear missiles in Cuba, which, according to the United States, provoked the Cuban Missile Crisis. The United States has repeatedly made unsuccessful attempts to assassinate Fidel.

After the collapse of the USSR in 1991, Cuba's economic situation worsened and Castro began to implement cautious market reforms. In 2016, the island authorities decided to legalize small and medium business. Cuba's per capita GDP is $5,351.

Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz (Spanish: Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz). Born August 13, 1926 in Biran (Oriente province, Cuba) - died November 25, 2016 in Havana. Cuban statesman, politician, party leader and revolutionary, was Chairman of the Council of Ministers and Chairman of the Council of State of Cuba (President) in 1959-2008 and 1976-2008 and First Secretary of the Central Committee of the ruling Communist Party of Cuba in 1961-2011.

Under his leadership, Cuba was transformed into a one-party socialist state, industry and private property were nationalized, and large-scale reforms were carried out throughout society.

He was the Secretary General of the Non-Aligned Movement in 1979-1983 and 2006-2009.

The son of a wealthy farmer, Castro acquired left-wing, anti-imperialist views while attending law school at the University of Havana. After participating in rebellions against the right-wing governments of the Dominican Republic and Colombia, he attempted to overthrow the military junta of President Batista with a failed attack on the Moncada barracks in 1953. A year after his release, he headed to Mexico, where, together with his brother Raul, he organized the revolutionary July 26 Movement. Returning to Cuba, he led a guerrilla war against the Batista regime, beginning with the landings in the Sierra Maestra. As the government's fortunes deteriorated, Castro gradually assumed a central role in the Cuban Revolution, which successfully overthrew Batista in 1959, giving the revolutionaries control of Cuba.

The US administration, alarmed friendly relations Castro with the USSR, organized a number of unsuccessful attempts to assassinate him and imposed an economic embargo against Cuba. The peak of the confrontation was the unsuccessful military operation organized by the CIA to overthrow him in 1961. In an effort to counter these threats, Castro formed a military and economic alliance with the USSR, allowing the latter to station nuclear missiles in Cuba, which, according to the American version, provoked the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962 (according to the Soviet version, the crisis was provoked by the previous deployment of American intermediate-range missiles in Turkey) .

In 1961, Castro proclaimed the socialist nature of the Cuban revolution. Cuba became a one-party state under the leadership of the Communist Party, the first of its kind in the Western Hemisphere. The Marxist-Leninist model of development was adopted, socialist reforms were carried out, the economy was placed under centralized control, measures were taken to develop education and health care, which, at the same time, were accompanied by the establishment of state control over the press and the suppression of dissent. Hoping to overthrow global capitalism, Castro supported foreign revolutionary organizations and Marxist governments in Chile, Nicaragua and Grenada, sending Cuban troops to support leftist allies in the Yom Kippur War, the Ethiopian-Somali War and civil war in Angola. These measures, combined with the activities of the Non-Aligned Movement, led to Cuba gaining prestige among developing countries. After the collapse of the USSR and CMEA, a “special period” was introduced in Cuba, accompanied by a limited introduction of market mechanisms into the economy, and strong relations were established in the international arena with a number of left-wing Latin American leaders, such as. Cuba, along with Venezuela, became a co-founding country of ALBA.

On July 31, 2006, Castro transferred all of his key positions to his brother Raul due to health reasons.

On February 24, 2008, he left all government positions, and on April 19, 2011, he resigned from the post of head of the ruling party.

Castro is a controversial figure. His supporters highly appreciated his socialist, anti-imperialist and humanistic policies, commitment to protecting environment and Cuba's independence from American influence. At the same time, he is viewed by critics as a dictator whose regime violated the human rights of Cubans and whose policies led to the departure of more than a million people from Cuba and the impoverishment of the country's economy. Through his actions and works he significantly influenced various organizations and politicians around the world.

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Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz was born on August 13, 1926 in Cuba in the town of Biran (Oriente province) in the family of a native of the Spanish province of Galicia, Angel Castro.

According to many available sources, Fidel Castro was actually born on August 13, 1927 - this is supported by both the church record created at Fidel's baptism, which lists August 13, 1927 as his date of birth, and public confirmation in the late 1950s Fidel's mother and three sisters of this date of birth. And the date of birth, August 13, 1926, appeared due to the fact that when placing him in an elementary boarding school, his parents assigned Fidel one more year, since he was then 5 years old, and was accepted into school only from the age of 6.

When agreeing on his biography, prepared for Soviet newspapers, Fidel Castro himself asked to leave 1926 as his birthday, since this date appeared in all the documents he used.

His father is Angel Castro Argis (1875-1956), an emigrant from Spain, a former poor farmer who became rich and became the owner of a large sugar plantation. Mother - Lina Rus Gonzalez (1903-1963), was a cook on her father's estate. She bore Angel Castro five children before he married her. Remembering his childhood, Fidel said this: “I was born into a landowner’s family. What does it mean? My father was a Spanish peasant from a very poor family. He came to Cuba as a Spanish immigrant at the beginning of the century and began to work in very difficult conditions. Being an enterprising man, he soon attracted attention and occupied certain positions. leadership positions at construction sites that were carried out at the beginning of the century.

He managed to accumulate some capital, which he invested in the purchase of land. In other words, as a business man, he became successful and became a land owner... Such things were not so difficult in the early years of the republic. Then he rented additional land. And when I was born, I was really born into a family that could be called landowning.

On the other hand, my mother was a simple, poor peasant woman. Therefore, in our family there was no what could be called oligarchic traditions. However, objectively speaking, our social position at that moment was such that we belonged to families with relatively high economic incomes. Our family was the owner of the lands and enjoyed all the advantages and, one might say, privileges inherent in landowners in our country.".

Although Castro's parents were illiterate, they tried to provide a good education for their children. At school, Fidel was one of the best students thanks to his truly phenomenal memory. At the same time, Fidel's revolutionary character manifested itself - at the age of 13, he participated in a workers' uprising on his father's plantation. Max Lestnik, Castro's school friend, recalled: “He had great courage. They said who would follow Fidel, die or win.”.

In 1940, he wrote a letter to the then American president. In the letter, the boy congratulates the president on his re-election to a second term and asks: “If you don’t mind, please send me an American 10 dollar bill. I've never seen it, but I'd really like to have it. Your friend". In the return address line - he indicated the coordinates of the school where he studied. The Comandante himself once mentioned this act: “I was very proud when I received a response from a member of the presidential administration. The message was even posted on school blackboard advertisements Only there was no banknote in it.”. In 2004, a letter from young Fidel was found by employees of the National Archives Office in Washington.

In 1941, Fidel Castro entered the privileged Jesuit College Bethlehem. His mentor was the Jesuit Father Lorento, who noted determination and vanity in the boy. In college, Fidel got into many fights and often carried a gun. I once bet with a friend that I would crash into a wall while riding a bicycle at full speed. And crashed. I had to stay in the hospital later, but Castro won the bet.

In 1945, Fidel brilliantly graduated from college and entered the University of Havana to study law. During his student years he lived modestly. His room at the boarding house was in chaos; the only thing that was in order were the books of the revolutionary José Martí on the shelves. In those years, Fidel Castro read a lot of Mussolini and General Primo de Rivera. He had no sympathy for communists, but once joked: “I am ready to become a communist immediately if they make me Stalin”.

In 1945 he entered the Faculty of Law of the University of Havana, from which he graduated in 1950 with the degrees of Bachelor of Laws and Doctor of Civil Law. After graduating from university, he entered into private legal practice in Havana; in particular, he handled the affairs of the poor for free. At this time, he joined the Party of the Cuban People ("Orthodox"), and was considered for nomination to parliament from the same party in the 1952 elections. On March 10, at the same time, the party leadership did not approve Castro’s candidacy as a candidate for deputy, citing his radicalism.

On March 11, a military coup took place, as a result of which Fulgencio Batista seized power. The Cuban Congress was dissolved, and legislative power passed to the Council of Ministers, constitutional guarantees were suspended for a month and a half, and the 1940 Constitution was soon abolished. Fidel Castro was at the forefront of the fight against the dictatorship, and on March 24 he presented to the Havana Court of Particularly Important and Urgent Cases a lawsuit accompanied by evidence to prosecute Batista for violating constitutional norms and seizing power. He demanded that Batista be tried and punished, while posing the following question with great subtext: “Otherwise, how can this tribunal judge an ordinary citizen who takes up arms against this illegal regime that came to power as a result of betrayal? It is absolutely clear that the conviction of such a citizen would be an absurdity, incompatible with the most elementary principles of justice.”.

In conclusion, Fidel, addressing the judges, said that if they do not find the strength to fulfill their professional and patriotic duty, then it would be better to take off their judicial robes and resign, so that it would be clear to everyone that there are the same people in Cuba people exercise legislative, executive, and judicial power.

During the struggle against the Batista government, the Orthodox Party gradually disintegrated. Castro managed to unite a small group of former members of this party, which began preparations for the fight to overthrow the Batista dictatorship. Fidel Castro and his comrades decided to seize the Moncada military barracks in Santiago de Cuba and the barracks in the city of Bayamo. Preparations for the assault took about a year. On July 25, 1953, 165 people gathered in the Siboney estate, located near Santiago de Cuba, under conditions of strict secrecy. Their main slogan was the words: “Freedom or death!” .

After the failure of the assault on the Moncada barracks, many of the attackers fled. Raul Castro was arrested on July 29, and Fidel went into hiding until August 1. The next day he was transported to the provincial prison of the city of Boniata, where Fidel was placed in solitary confinement, prohibited from using books and the right of correspondence was limited. The military tribunal began on September 21 and took place in the building of the Palace of Justice, from where Raul Castro’s group once fired at the barracks. At one of the court hearings, Fidel made a famous speech “History will justify me!”, in which he sharply condemned the Batista regime and called on the Cuban people to take up armed struggle against tyranny.

On September 21, the court sentenced Castro to 15 years in prison. In mid-February 1954, Batista visited the Presidio Modelo prison, where the participants in the assault on the Moncada barracks were serving their sentences. Fidel organized a noisy protest and, as punishment, was placed in solitary confinement, located opposite the prison morgue.

On May 15, 1955, Castro was released under a general amnesty, having served about 22 months for organizing an armed rebellion. That same year, Castro emigrated to Mexico.

On July 7, 1955, Fidel flew to Mexico, where Raul and other comrades were waiting for him. Fidel Castro flew from Havana to Merida, the capital of Yucatan, from there he took a local company's plane to the port city of Vera Cruz, and from there he boarded a bus and went to Mexico City. The revolutionaries settled in the house of a woman named Maria Antonia Gonzalez Rodriguez, who had been living in exile for several years. Maria Antonia recalled: “Fidel arrived with one suitcase full of books, and under his arm he held another bundle of books. There was no other luggage".

Here they began to prepare an uprising. Fidel founded the “26 July Movement” and began preparing for the overthrow of Batista. On August 26, 1956, the most popular Cuban magazine, Bohemia, published his letter in which he warned the dictator: “...in 1956 we will either be free or victims. I solemnly confirm this statement, being in full consciousness and considering that there are 4 months and 6 days left until December 31st.".

On November 25, 1956, on the motor yacht Granma, Cuban revolutionaries, led by Fidel Castro, went to Cuba, among them was the Argentine doctor Ernesto Guevara (Che Guevara), who described this picture as follows: “The whole ship was a living tragedy: the men were holding their stomachs with sadness on their faces; some simply plunged their faces into buckets, others sat motionless in strange positions with clothes covered in vomit.".

A detachment of revolutionaries created in Mexico was supposed to land in the Sierra Maestra mountains, in the southeast of Cuba. The landing was unsuccessful. Soon after landing, the revolutionaries were attacked by troops, many died or were captured. Two small groups survived, meeting by chance in the forests a few days later. At first, they did not have sufficient strength and did not pose a threat to the Batista regime, although they carried out individual operations attacking police stations. A decisive turn of events was caused by the proclamation of land reform and the distribution of land to peasants, this ensured massive support from the people, the movement increased its strength, Fidel’s troops numbered several hundred fighters. At this time, Batista sent several thousand soldiers to suppress the revolution. The unexpected happened - the troops entered the mountains and did not return. Most fled, but several thousand went over to the side of the revolutionaries, after which the revolution developed rapidly.

During the period 1957-1958. Armed rebel groups, conducting guerrilla warfare tactics, carried out several large and dozens of small operations. Then partisan detachments were transformed into the Rebel Army, whose commander-in-chief was Fidel Castro. In all the battles in the Sierra Maestra mountains, Fidel was always in the first line of attack. Often with his shot from sniper rifle he gave the signal for the start of the battle. This was the case until the partisans wrote a collective letter asking Fidel to refrain from direct personal participation in hostilities in the future.

In the summer of 1958, Batista's army launched a major offensive against the revolutionary forces, after which events began to develop rapidly. Castro's armed forces were joined by units of the Student Federation, which opened the so-called Second Front in the Sierra del Escambray mountains in the central part of the island. In the west, in Pinar del Rio, the Third Front operated, under the control of the Revolutionary Movement of July 26.

On January 1, 1959, the Rebel Army entered Havana. The population of the capital rejoiced over the overthrow of Batista. On the same day, Batista's political opponents gathered at a meeting where a new government was formed. Manuel Urrutia, known for his honesty, became interim president, and liberal lawyer Miro Cardona became prime minister.

On January 8, Fidel Castro, appointed Minister of War, arrived in the capital and immediately showed claims to a leading role in the government. Back in 1957, Castro, giving an interview in the Sierra Maestra with journalist Herbert Matthews of the New York Times, said: “Power doesn’t interest me. After the victory, I will return to my village and practice law.". The famous revolutionary Ernesto Che Guevara said then: “He possesses the qualities of a great leader, which, combined with his courage, with his energy and with his rare ability to recognize the will of the people again and again, have raised him to the place of honor that he now occupies.”.

However, in reality everything happens differently. After Prime Minister Miro Cardona resigns on February 15, Fidel Castro becomes the new head of government. In June, he cancels previously planned free elections, suspends the 1940 Constitution, which guaranteed fundamental rights, and begins to govern the country exclusively through decrees.

On May 17, 1959, the Council of Ministers of Cuba adopted an agrarian reform law; in accordance with it land plots with an area of ​​more than 400 hectares, it was planned to seize it from the owners and divide it among the peasants. This law, as well as Castro's rapprochement with the communists, caused discontent in the United States. Thousands of counter-revolutionaries were arrested. A militia of thousands was created to protect the revolution. Fidel then announced the nationalization of large enterprises and banks, mostly owned by Americans.

October 10 by the Minister armed forces Raul Castro was appointed. This caused great dissatisfaction with the commander of the troops in Camagüey, Uber Matos. On the same day, he, along with fourteen other officers, resigned and accused Fidel of becoming a communist. This point of view was held by the Cuban leadership, and later by Cuban and Soviet historians. From their point of view, Major Matos and the officers who supported him were about to announce their collective resignation, with the goal of starting a mutiny throughout the Rebel Army. This would entail the resignation of some members of the Revolutionary Government and cause a crisis of the entire revolutionary power. At night, Fidel received a telephone message that Uber Matos’s speech was scheduled for the morning of October 21. He ordered Camilo Cienfuegos to go to Camagüey, disarm and apprehend Matos and his men.

After some time, Fidel himself arrived in Camagüey. A message was broadcast on the radio that Fidel Castro had arrived to investigate an emergency case and all citizens speaking in defense of the revolution should come to the square. In the square, the commandant addressed them with a short speech, saying that a conspiracy was brewing in the province, led by Uber Matos, who was currently holed up in the regimental barracks, and that he had arrived to thwart the counter-revolutionary plot. Fidel invited everyone who cares about the fate of the revolution to follow him. Fidel Castro moved unarmed in front of the crowd following him, personally broke the lock on the barracks gate, disarmed the sentry and arrested the conspirators. “The process lasted 5 days, if, of course, you could call it that. It was more like a tribunal. Before we started, they showed me a stack of papers, and for the first time I saw that I was being accused of treason and sedition,” Matos recalls. Uber Matos was sentenced to 20 years in prison, and after serving his sentence he was deported to Venezuela, after which he joined the militant emigration; his son also became a prominent figure in emigrant circles.

Repression against figures of the Batista regime and opposition to the Castro regime (including former anti-Batista fighters) began in Cuba shortly after the revolution and continued thereafter. Particularly massive arrests were carried out in 1961, when stadiums and other similar places were converted to hold those arrested.

In January 1961, John Kennedy took office as President of the United States, who received from the previous administration plans for an operation to overthrow the revolutionary government in Cuba.

On April 15, eight B-26 Invaders (with Cuban markings and piloted by Cuban exiles) bomb Cuban Air Force airfields. The next day, during the funeral of the victims of the bombing, Fidel calls the accomplished revolution socialist and, before the upcoming invasion, declares: “They cannot forgive us for the fact that we are under their noses, and that we carried out the Socialist Revolution under the nose of the United States!”

Until this point, Castro's political views were unknown to American intelligence. During testimony before Congress in December 1959, the Deputy Director of the CIA stated: “We know that the communists consider Castro to be a representative of the bourgeoisie.”. Castro himself never renounced Marxism, and while studying at the university he was exposed to strong influence ideas of Marx, Engels and Lenin, his closest ally in the fight against capitalism in Latin America was Che Guevara, who repeatedly emphasized his commitment to communist ideas.

At dawn On April 17, 1961, about 1,500 people from the so-called “2506 Brigade” landed in the Bay of Pigs area.. Most were Cubans trained in Nicaragua. The “brigade” headed to the shores of Cuba from Guatemala, which allowed the United States to deny its involvement in the incident at the UN. Although Kennedy later admitted his government's participation in preparing the operation.

From the very beginning, the attackers encountered desperate resistance from members of the people's militia and units of the Insurgent Army, command of which was assumed by Fidel Castro. The paratroopers managed to seize a bridgehead and even advance several kilometers into the interior of the island. But they failed to gain a foothold at the achieved levels. Over the next three days, the fighters of brigade 2506 were defeated first at Playa Larga, and then in the Playa Giron area. 1,173 people were captured, 82 (according to other sources 115) paratroopers were killed. The government army lost 173 soldiers killed, and according to some reports, several thousand militias were also injured.

Many versions of the failure of the operation have been put forward. The most popular of them is the version about the Americans’ refusal of previously promised military assistance to the landing of emigrants; version of an incorrect assessment of the strength of the Cuban army and the support of Castro by the population; version about poor preparation of the operation as such.

After attempting to overthrow the revolutionary government of Cuba, Fidel Castro announced his country's transition to a socialist path of development.

In 1962, the United States imposed an embargo on trade with Cuba and achieved its expulsion from the Organization of American States. The Castro government was accused of assisting revolutionaries in Venezuela, after which the OAS imposed diplomatic and trade sanctions against Cuba in 1964.

Assassination attempts on Fidel Castro:

Fidel Castro survived many assassination attempts during his life. He was one of the leaders whose life was under constant threat.

Behind the 638 planned and carried out attempts on his life were the American government, Cuban opponents of Castro and American mafia groups, who were unhappy that after the victory of the revolution, Castro took over the famous Havana casinos and brothels.

During his presidency, 38 assassination attempts were made on Castro, Kennedy - 42, - 72, Nixon - 184, Carter - 64, - 197, - 16, Clinton - 21. For the United States, the destruction of Castro has become a kind of obsession. “Everything else is less important, do not spare money, time, human resources and effort,” said one of the White House memos.

Assassination attempts on Fidel Castro - 638 ways to kill Fidel Castro

The most famous and original attempts to assassinate Fidel Castro include:

On November 22, 1963, a CIA officer handed over a poisoned ballpoint pen Cuban for use against Fidel Castro during a meeting between President Kennedy's emissary and Castro to explore the possibility of improving relations between the two countries. The attempt failed.

In 1963, American lawyer Donovan went to see Castro. He was supposed to give the commandant a gift of scuba gear, in the cylinders of which CIA agents had brought a tuberculosis bacillus. The lawyer, unaware of this, decided that the scuba gear was too simple for a gift, and bought another, more expensive one, and kept this one for himself. He soon died, but Castro remained alive.

In the 1960s, CIA intelligence agencies made another attempt on the commander's life. An exploding cigar was prepared as a gift for the Cuban leader. But the “gift” was not missed by the security service.

Knowing about Castro's passion for diving, American intelligence distributed a large number of shellfish in the area of ​​​​the Cuban coast. CIA agents planned to hide explosives in a large shell and paint the shellfish in bright colors to get Fidel's attention. However, a storm foiled the attempt.

The Americans also tried to remove the commander with the help of women. One of Fidel's former lovers was tasked with killing him with poison pills. She hid the pills in a tube of cream, but they dissolved in it. It is said that Castro, who uncovered the plot, offered her a gun so that she could shoot him, but the woman refused to do so.

In 1971, during Fidel Castro's trip to Chile, two snipers were supposed to shoot at him, but just before the assassination attempt, one of them was hit by a car, and the other was struck down by an acute attack of appendicitis.

In 2000, during the visit of the Cuban leader to Panama, 90 kg of explosives were planted under the podium from which he was supposed to speak. But it didn't work.

In 2000, a document was declassified that outlined the CIA's plans to destroy Fidel Castro. Among them there was a plan to use thallium salts.

Despite the fact that small Cuba successfully resisted its giant neighbor, it also participated in many wars around the world. Fidel Castro did not limit himself to fighting the United States; he actively helped the revolutionary forces of many third world countries. His army at one time consisted of 145 thousand people, not counting 110 thousand people in reserve and about one million men and women in the militia of the territorial troops; 57 thousand were sent to Angola, 5 thousand to Ethiopia, hundreds to South Yemen, Libya, Nicaragua, Grenada, Syria, Mozambique, Guinea, Tanzania, North Korea, Algeria, Uganda, Laos, Afghanistan, Sierra Leone.

On July 11, 2014, during his visit to Latin America The President met with Fidel Castro Russian Federation V.V. Putin.

On July 12, 2014, he met with the Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Cuba, Raul Castro. Before this, he wrote off 90% of Cuba's debts to the USSR, and the remaining 10% ($3.5 billion) is supposed to be invested in the Cuban economy by repaying it in equal semi-annual payments over 10 years. The foreign ministers of Russia and Cuba signed an intergovernmental agreement on cooperation in international information security, as well as a Russian-Cuban statement on not being the first to deploy weapons in space.

January 27, 2015 already former manager Cuba's Fidel Castro said that although he does not trust the United States, he nevertheless welcomes the possibility of negotiations with Washington. In his written address, read out on Cuban central television, 88-year-old Castro stressed that any negotiations aimed at solving existing problems are accepted by Havana in accordance with international laws.

In February 2016, during a meeting between Patriarch Kirill of the Russian Orthodox Church and Pope Francis of the Russian Orthodox Church, the Patriarch attended a reception with Fidel, after which 6 photographs and a video without sound were published.

Cuban national television broadcast a meeting of 89-year-old Fidel Castro with schoolchildren at the educational complex. V. Espin.

Fidel Castro's height: 191 centimeters.

Personal life of Fidel Castro:

Fidel's personal life has always been surrounded by an aura of legends and numerous rumors. He himself always did not like to dwell on this topic.

Retired KGB Lieutenant General Nikolai Sergeevich Leonov, author of books and a close friend of the Castro brothers, when he was about to write about Fidel, received the following order from him: “Write everything that concerns my political activities. I have no secrets here. And my personal life , leave my spiritual affections to me - this is my only asset."

The official wife of Fidel Castro is considered to be Mirta Díaz-Balart, from whom he has his only legitimate son - Fidel Félix Castro Díaz-Balart, who was born in 1949 (he studied at Moscow State University at Faculty of Physics under the name Jose Raul Fernandez and interned at the Soviet Kurchatov Institute; he was married twice, the first time to a Russian, the second to a Cuban woman).

After divorcing his wife, Castro did not enter into a legal marriage. Mirta never talked about her marriage anywhere.

A book by Serge Raffy was published in France. original title which (Castro l "infidèle) contains a pun that plays on Fidel's name. In this biographical or fantasy novel, "The Unfaithful Castro." It says that Fidel has about twenty illegitimate children. In particular, Francisca Pupo lives in Miami nicknamed “Paquita” (Pajita - “straw”): “She was born after Castro met a young girl from Santa Clara in 1953.”

The daughter of Spanish immigrants who fled to Mexico after General Franco's rise to power, Isabel Custodio met Fidel in Mexico City while he was serving a short prison sentence after raiding revolutionary bases while preparing for the Granma expedition. In the book “Love will absolve me of my sins” (El amor me absolverá), published in Mexico, she claims that after leaving captivity, Fidel himself found her, spoke about his plans to rid Cuba of the Batista dictatorship and asked her to marry him.

A native of Bremen, Germany, Marita Lorenz claims that she became the mistress of 33-year-old Fidel immediately after the victory of the Cuban revolution. Marita was born on August 18, 1939 in the family of German sea captain Heinrich Lorenz and American dancer Alice June Lorenz, née Lofland. Her mother was arrested by the Gestapo on charges of spying for the United States. Together with Marita, they were in the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp until 1945. On February 28, 1959, Marita met Castro on board the passenger ship Berlin, captained by her father. While her father was enjoying his afternoon nap, the 19-year-old girl invited the tall "Barbudos" onto the ship.

Fidel invited Marita Lorenz to become his translator and personal secretary. She dropped out of her studies at an American university and flew to Havana. The affair with Fidel ended in the fall of 1959, when Marita was five months pregnant. Their child died. It is unclear whether there was a miscarriage or whether Lorenz was forced to have an abortion. The girl's mother filed a lawsuit against Fidel Castro for $11 million. She wrote an angry letter to Fidel Castro, copies of which she was not too lazy to send to the Pope and US President Dwight Eisenhower.

The first lady of Cuba, according to reporters from Western agencies, could be considered a tall, blonde woman with green eyes named Dalia Soto del Valle, to whom Fidel Castro has allegedly been married since 1980. She has five children with Fidel. There is currently no confirmation of this information.

Lazaro Asensio, a journalist and former commander of the revolutionary troops, recalled: “In October 1959, a plane sank near Casilda Bay in Trinidad. Comandante Peña suggested that we use his niece by wife, a girl named Dalia Soto del Valle, as a diver. She was very young, beautiful, thin, with very white skin. We took her on the boat, she dived, but did not find the plane. When Fidel arrived in Trinidad, he was introduced to Dalia, he fell in love with her and no one ever saw her again."

Fidel Castro and Dalia Soto del Valle at a meeting with Pope Francis

Interesting facts about Fidel Castro:

In 1962, Castro was excommunicated by Pope John XXIII on the basis of the Decree against Communism of Pope Pius XII for organizing the communist revolution in Cuba.

His sister Juanita Castro fled Cuba in 1964 and settled in Florida upon arriving in the United States; even before that, in the early sixties, she began collaborating with the US Central Intelligence Agency.

During the revolutionary years, Fidel often added two more zeros to the amount of the reward announced for his head.

Fidel Castro entered the Guinness Book of Records as the most fiery speaker - his speech to the UN on September 29, 1960 lasted 4 hours 29 minutes. According to Reuters: Castro's longest speech was delivered at the Third Congress of the Cuban Communist Party in 1986 and lasted 7 hours and 10 minutes. However, according to AN Cuba-vision, this speech lasted 27 hours.

Fidel Castro played in at least two American films, including the quite famous one at the time, “School for Mermaids.”

Castro has always been a fan of Rolex watches. In many photographs he can be seen with two Rolex Submariners on his wrist.

The NBO company, which ordered Stone's film Comandante, considered it a propaganda film praising Cuba and its leader. The film was banned from showing in the United States, and again went to Cuba in order to investigate how things are with human rights on Liberty Island. Ironically, in 2006, American authorities fined the Finding Fidel film crew for “violating the economic embargo” against Cuba.

At the end of April 2010, Fidel started a microblog on Twitter, intending to bypass the number of readers, Sebastian Piñera and Benjamin Netanyahu, but in the first weeks their number only grew to a couple of tens of thousands, and during the same time Hugo Chavez received 10 times more “votes” "

At the beginning of August 2010, the first part of Fidel's memoirs, La Victoria Estratégica, was published for the first time in Cuba. He is currently working on the second part of La contraofensiva estratégica final.

Fidel Castro has been an Arsenal fan since the Gunners' double gold in the 1970/71 season.

IN computer games"Call of Duty: Black Ops" and "The Godfather 2" have an operation to eliminate Castro. Both operations end in failure, which again hints at his “invulnerability.”

Fidel Castro entered the Guinness Book of Records for surviving 638 different assassination attempts, including poison in cigars and a bomb in a baseball.

The leader of the Cuban revolution, Fidel Castro, has died at the age of 90.

This was announced by his brother Raul Castro.

Castro Sr. died at 19:00 Friday local time.

Fidel Castro's body, in accordance with his will, is being cremated today.

Castro served as head of the Council of State and Council of Ministers of Cuba for 30 years, since 1976. He also served as commander-in-chief of the revolutionary armed forces and led the country's national defense council.

Castro handed over his powers to brother Raul in 2006 due to deteriorating health.

Fidel Castro was born in 1926 in Cuba in the province of Oriente. Trained as a lawyer. In 1953, he led an unsuccessful uprising against dictator Batista and was imprisoned. Two years later he was released under an amnesty.

In 1956, Castro began a war against the Batista government together with the Argentine revolutionary Che Guevara. Three years later, Cuban revolutionaries achieved success and seized power in the country. From then on, Castro ruled the country continuously for almost 50 years.

The most tense moment in modern history Cuba began with the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962, when the USSR tried to place missiles with nuclear warheads on the island aimed at the United States. According to historians, this situation could have turned into World War III.

IN recent years throughout his life he experienced health problems. In 2008, he was forced to transfer power to his younger brother. He later admitted that he did this because of a stomach illness, since in 2006 doctors diagnosed him with a fatal diagnosis.

Last May, at a meeting with French President Francois Hollande, Castro spoke about his health: problems with his knee and how difficult it was for him to stand. At the same time, the French delegation noted the mental acuity of the former leader and said that he uses the Internet to learn about world problems.

In April, Castro gave a speech at the final day of the Cuban Communist Party convention. At the time, he mentioned his advanced age, but said that he believed in communist ideals and the victory of the Cuban people.

Castro spent a year in Mexico, and in 1956, on the boat Granma, together with a group of supporters, among whom was Ernesto Che Guevara, he landed in eastern Cuba. Started guerrilla warfare against the Batista regime, which ended with the rebels occupying the capital of Cuba, Havana, on January 1, 1959.

Castro headed the country's government, and his brother Raul headed the Cuban Armed Forces.

Castro announced Cuba's transition to a socialist model. In 1961, the United States attempted to overthrow Castro, but the Bay of Pigs landing ended in the destruction of the landing force. The Americans responded by organizing an economic blockade of the island.

Under Castro, Cuba actively developed relations with the USSR, which economically supported Liberty Island.

In 2006, Castro, who was experiencing serious problems health problems, left the post of head of the State Council of Cuba, losing it to his brother Raul. For the past five years, he has been writing memoirs and periodically giving speeches, commenting on the most important events in the world.

World and Russian politicians expressed their condolences over Castro's death.

“Gone into immortality”: politicians’ reaction to Castro’s death

Russian President Vladimir Putin:

“The free and independent Cuba built by him and his comrades has become an influential member of the international community and has served as an inspiring example for many countries and peoples. Fidel Castro was a sincere and reliable friend of Russia. He made a huge personal contribution to the formation and development of Russian-Cuban relations and close strategic cooperation in all areas."

Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev:

“Fidel Castro lived a great life, full of events and challenges. He was not just a politician and leader. First of all, he was a bright person, a leader. Friendly and allied relations between our country and Cuba were built thanks to his personal participation. The last time we spoke by phone was in August of this year, when Fidel Castro celebrated his 90th birthday. He was keenly interested in what was happening in the world, in Russia, until the last moment he retained a sharp mind and kept a lot of information in his head. Without exaggeration, an entire historical era passed away with Fidel Castro. I will always remember my meetings with this outstanding man. My deepest condolences to the family and friends, to the entire Cuban people."

“For us he was a great man”: Cubans’ reaction to Castro’s death

After Castro's death, mourning was declared in Cuba. At the same time, the Cuban diaspora in Florida (USA) greeted the news of the death of the leader of the Cuban revolution with jubilation, chanting “Fidel is a tyrant.” Dozens of people who took to the streets consider the incident a chance to change the situation in Cuba.

Cuban community in Miami celebrates death of Fidel Castro (Photo: Reuters/Pixstream)

What do they think about Castro's death:

Milaida Ramos del Pino, manager of the Aruba restaurant in Moscow:

“The departure of Fidel Castro is a huge loss for Cuba and all the people. After his death, nothing will change for the island - relations with the United States will remain the same, and communication with relatives will not be affected by Fidel’s death. At least that's what we hope. Many people from home have already called me and expressed their condolences.”

Roberto Jacomino, brand chef of the Pub Lo Picasso restaurant in Moscow:

“What Fidel did for Cuba is unique. Changes began when Fidel handed over the reins of power to his brother. [But] it won’t happen that we wake up tomorrow and Cuba is already different. This process will be slow and perhaps difficult, but I expect that the people of Cuba will feel a change in better side. Both in relations between Havana and Washington, and in relations between relatives, everything should be even better. Wherever a person lives, he should be able to live where he is more comfortable. Cubans maintain contact with their relatives abroad mainly through telephone communications, and there is also the Internet, although not everywhere.”

Antonio Rondon Garcia, correspondent for Prensa Latina:

“For us [Fidel Castro] was a great man. Not only for Cuba, but for all of humanity, all the transformations that we had in Cuba, they generally had an impact not only on the course of our country, but also on history in general. Now they are preparing an appeal from the Cubans who live here permanently and will speak out about this loss, the loss of our people.”