Julio Sanguily y Garritte (1846-1906) y los alzamientos de febrero de 1895 en el occidente de Cuba

Abstract

The subject of the failed uprisings of February, 1895 in Cuba´s West has been a controversial matter among historians for almonst as long ago as the events themselves. A number of Cuban scholars, as well as the accounts of people who participated in the uprisings, have not helped to the search for the truth. The reasons for this controversy are very much related to the hypothetical relevance of an all-out rebellion emerging just a short distance from Cuba´s capital, which would have accelerated the independence movement and changed the conflict's outcome. While in a previous work on Cuban banditry I insisted on the critical importance of these uprisings, in this paper I intend to call attention to new data on them, particularly on their most relevant aspect: the role played by the Cuban general Julio Sanguily y Garritte. He has been blamed for the failure of the western revolt, on account of the death of rebel officer -and former social bandit- Manuel García Ponce.