The Ernst Thälmann Island ( es, Cayo Ernesto Thaelmann or ; german: Ernst-Thälmann-Insel or ) is a long and island in the Gulf of Cazones that is named after

Ernst Thälmann Ernst Johannes Fritz Thälmann (; 16 April 1886 – 18 August 1944) was a German communist politician, and leader of the Communist Party of Germany (KPD) from 1925 to 1933. A committed Marxist-Leninist and Stalinist, Thälmann played a major r ...

, a German communist politician. During a 1970s state visit to the

German Democratic Republic German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

(East Germany),

Fidel Castro Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz (; ; 13 August 1926 – 25 November 2016) was a Cuban revolutionary and politician who was the leader of Cuba from 1959 to 2008, serving as the prime minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976 and president from 1976 to 200 ...

made a promise that Cuba would donate an island to the East German government, and Cayo Blanco del Sur was renamed in a ceremony during a state visit by

Erich Honecker Erich Ernst Paul Honecker (; 25 August 1912 – 29 May 1994) was a German communist politician who led the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) from 1971 until shortly before the fall of the Berlin Wall in November 1989. He held the posts ...

. But after the

reunification of Germany German reunification (german: link=no, Deutsche Wiedervereinigung) was the process of re-establishing Germany as a united and fully sovereign state, which took place between 2 May 1989 and 15 March 1991. The day of 3 October 1990 when the Ge ...

, when a German newspaper tried to visit the island, they were told this transfer had only been "symbolic".

History

1970s

Bundesarchiv Bild 183-L0619-026, Castro, Landkarte Kubas überreicht

Until 1972, the island was known as ( en, Southern White Key). During a state visit in June 1972 by

renamed the island in honour of German

communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...

politician and activist

. According to a newspaper article in ''

Neues Deutschland ''Neues Deutschland'' (''nd''; en, New Germany, sometimes stylized in lowercase letters) is a left-wing German daily newspaper, headquartered in Berlin. For 43 years it was the official party newspaper of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany ...

'' dated 20 June 1972, the Cuban leader announced the renaming of the island, and one of its beaches to ( en,

Beach, german: DDR-Strand). East Germany's state television newscast, ''

Aktuelle Kamera Aktuelle Kamera (''"Current Camera")'' was the flagship television newscast of Deutscher Fernsehfunk, the state broadcaster of the German Democratic Republic (known as ''Fernsehen der DDR'' from 11 February 1972 to 11 March 1990). On air from 21 ...

'', reported on the ceremony and the unveiling of the bust of Thälmann on 18 August 1972 in the presence of the GDR ambassador, some East German delegates, and approximately 100 Cuban representatives. In March 1975, the East German government sent singer

Frank Schöbel Frank Schöbel (born 11 December 1942, Leipzig, Saxony, Germany) is a German musician. He was one of the most successful pop singers in socialist East Germany (GDR), and has continued to perform even after German reunification. Career As the se ...

to Cuba to make music videos. Some footage of the island was also shot, which was later included in a documentary emphasizing the island as a symbol of GDR–Cuban friendship.

Recent history

In 1998, the island was severely hit by

Hurricane Mitch Hurricane Mitch is the second-deadliest Atlantic hurricane on record, causing over 11,000 fatalities in Central America in 1998, including approximately 7,000 in Honduras and 3,800 in Nicaragua due to cataclysmic flooding from the slow motion ...

, knocking over the bust of Thälmann. According to both the Cuban embassy in Germany and the

German Foreign Office , logo = DEgov-AA-Logo en.svg , logo_width = 260 px , image = Auswaertiges Amt Berlin Eingang.jpg , picture_width = 300px , image_caption = Entrance to the Foreign Office building , headquarters = Werderscher Mark ...

, the renaming was a "symbolic act", and the island was never transferred from Cuba. Neither of the German states owned the island during or after the reunification.

References

External links

* ''

Spiegel Online ''Der Spiegel (online)'' is a German news website. Before the renaming in January 2020, the website's name was ''Spiegel Online'' (short ''SPON''). It was founded in 1994 as the online offshoot of the German news magazine, ''Der Spiegel'', wit ...

'':
Ernst-Thälmann-Insel – DDR unter Palmen
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ernst Thalmann Island Islands of Cuba Geography of Matanzas Province 1972 in politics 1972 in international relations Cuba–East Germany relations Uninhabited islands

History

1970s

Recent history

See also

References

External links