Bernabé Varona (1845November 4, 1873), also known as Bembetta, was a Cuban

revolutionary A revolutionary is a person who either participates in, or advocates for, a revolution. The term ''revolutionary'' can also be used as an adjective to describe something producing a major and sudden impact on society. Definition The term—bot ...

and

mambí The mambises were the guerrilla independence soldiers who fought for the independence from Spain of the Dominican Republic in the Dominican Restoration War (1863–1865), and of Cuba in the Ten Years' War (1868–1878), Little War (1879–1880), ...

General who was executed during the

Ten Years' War The Ten Years' War (; 1868–1878), also known as the Great War () and the War of '68, was part of Cuba's fight for independence from Spain. The uprising was led by Cuban-born planters and other wealthy natives. On 10 October 1868, sugar mil ...

in 1873.

Early life

Bernabé Varona y Borrero was born in the district of Puerto Príncipe (now Camagüey) in

Spanish Cuba The Captaincy General of Cuba () was an administrative district of the Spanish Empire created in 1607 as part of Habsburg Spain's attempt to better defend and administer its Caribbean possessions. The reform also established captaincies general ...

in 1845. He was the son of Bernabé Varona and María Borrero y Duque de Estrada. His father was a prominent Cuban citizen and wealthy sugar planter in Puerto Príncipe. Sent by his patriotic mother, he received his college education in the United States. After completing his education, he returned to Cuba and began his years-long opposition to Spanish rule. Varona became a member of the Tínima

Masonic Lodge A Masonic lodge (also called Freemasons' lodge, or private lodge or constituent lodge) is the basic organisational unit of Freemasonry. It is also a commonly used term for a building where Freemasons meet and hold their meetings. Every new l ...

No. 16 in Puerto Príncipe, along with other prominent figures of the region's society. In 1868, Varona was taken prisoner and sent to

Havana Havana (; ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.Domingo Dulce Domingo Dulce y Garay, 1st Marquis of Castell-Florite (Sotés (La Rioja (Spain), La Rioja), Spain, 7 May 1808 - Amélie-les-Bains-Palalda, France, 23 November 1869), was a Spanish nobility, noble and general, who fought in the First Carlist War a ...

as one of the most desperate and dangerous men then opposed to the Spanish government.

Ten Years' War

He first returned to the U.S. before returning to Cuba, where he faced intense surveillance in

Nuevitas Nuevitas is a municipality and port town in the Camagüey Province of Cuba. The large bay was sighted by Christopher Columbus and crew during their first voyage of exploration in 1492. History Founded in 1775 during the time of the Spanish Empire ...

. When

Carlos Manuel de Céspedes Carlos Manuel de Céspedes del Castillo (18 April 1819, Bayamo, Spanish Cuba – 27 February 1874, San Lorenzo, Spanish Cuba) was a Cuban revolutionary hero and First President of Cuba in Arms in 1868. Cespedes, who was a plantation owne ...

issued the

Cry of Yara The Cry of Yara () was a declaration, battle cry, and uprising in eastern Cuba on 10 October 1868, initiating the Ten Years' War. The signaling of the Yara uprising occurred near Manzanillo in the eastern province of Oriente, at the sugar plan ...

in October 1868, resulting in the

, Bernabé Varona was one of the first to join the liberating ranks. He managed to leave town to join the uprising in

Yara Yara may refer to: People * Yara (given name) * Yara (surname), a Japanese surname * Yara (Angolan footballer), Yara Lukenia F. da Costa Lima () * Yara (Brazilian footballer), Yara Silva (born 1964) * Yara (singer), Lebanese pop singer Carl ...

. Varona was actively involved in multiple encounters with Spanish troops. Operating out of

Camagüey Camagüey () is a city and municipality in central Cuba and is the nation's third-largest city with more than 333,000 inhabitants. It is the capital of the Camagüey Province. It was founded as Santa María del Puerto del Príncipe in 1514, by Sp ...

, he acquired a general command that extended across the district and additional areas.

Battle of Bonilla

During the

Battle of Bonilla The Battle of Bonilla was a military engagement of the Ten Years' War. It took place on November 28, 1868, at Minas, in Puerto Príncipe (now Camagüey Province) in Cuba. After the Las Clavellinas Uprising in the province, the Spanish colonial g ...

in Las Minas in November 1868, Spanish troops led by

Blas Villate Blas Villate y de la Herra, 2nd Count of Valmaseda (February 3, 1824, in Sestao – January 8, 1882, in Madrid) was a Spanish general. He was several times governor of Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, c ...

were defeated by forces commanded by Varona and Ángel del Castillo, leading to their retreat to San Miguel de

. He routed another force in the Battle of Las Yeguas. By 1869, Varona was a

Brigade major A brigade major was the chief of staff of a brigade in the British Army. They most commonly held the rank of major, although the appointment was also held by captains, and was head of the brigade's "G - Operations and Intelligence" section direct ...

in the

Cuban Liberation Army The Cuban Liberation Army (), colloquially known as the Mambises, Mambí Army () was an insurgency, insurgent army which was formed in the last third of the 19th century and fought for independence from Spain and the abolitionism, abolition of ...

under Gen.

Manuel de Quesada Manuel may refer to: People * Manuel (name), a given name and surname * Manuel (''Fawlty Towers''), a fictional character from the sitcom ''Fawlty Towers'' * Manuel I Komnenos, emperor of the Byzantine Empire * Manuel I of Portugal, king of Po ...

. In April 1869, he was assigned to head the personal escort of the General-in-Chief, leading 300

cavalrymen Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from ''cheval'' meaning "horse") are groups of soldiers or warriors who fight mounted on horseback. Until the 20th century, cavalry were the most mobile of the comb ...

Battle of Las Tunas

Leading the personal escort of Manuel de Quesada, Gen. Bernabé Varona fought in the first Battle of Las Tunas on August 16, 1869.

The Virginius Affair

Gen. Bernabé Varona was the chief of the

filibustering A filibuster is a political procedure in which one or more members of a legislative body prolong debate on proposed legislation so as to delay or entirely prevent a decision. It is sometimes referred to as "talking a bill to death" or "talking ...

''Virginius'' expedition, that occurred during the Ten Years' War. The ''Virginius'' and crew including Captain Joseph Fry were captured by the '' Spanish corvette Tornado'' on October 31, 1873.Johnson, W. F. (2018). The History of Cuba: Volume III. (n.p.): Outlook Verlag. Before the vessel was seized, Varona advised blowing up the vessel with all on board rather than falling into the hands of the Spanish government. All on board were made prisoners and taken to the port of

Santiago de Cuba Santiago de Cuba is the second-largest city in Cuba and the capital city of Santiago de Cuba Province. It lies in the southeastern area of the island, some southeast of the Cuban capital of Havana. The municipality extends over , and contains t ...

. Upon Varona's arrival, fifteen Spanish army officers, who had been taken prisoner by Varona on the battlefield, went to the Governor of Santiago to request that his life be spared since he had spared theirs. On November 2, 1873, he was tried as a pirate and sentenced to death by the

Council of war A council of war

Death

On November 4, 1873, Gen. Varona was

executed by firing squad Execution by firing squad, in the past sometimes called fusillading (from the French , rifle), is a method of capital punishment, particularly common in the military and in times of war. Some reasons for its use are that firearms are usually re ...

, along with the 3 other

insurrection Rebellion is an uprising that resists and is organized against one's government. A rebel is a person who engages in a rebellion. A rebel group is a consciously coordinated group that seeks to gain political control over an entire state or a ...

leaders, Jesús del Sol, Pedro de Céspedes, and William A.C. Ryan. After refusing to kneel, he was murdered alongside W.A.C. Ryan while standing firm in their resistance. Varona was 28 years old at the time of his death. His burial took place in the

Santa Ifigenia Cemetery The Santa Ifigênia Cemetery, officially Santa Ifigênia Patrimonial Cemetery (), is the cemetery, necropolis and main pantheon of the Cuban Oriente and the city of Santiago de Cuba. It is located west of the city, more specifically in the Jos ...

. His brother Col. Oscar Varona met the same fate on November 8 for his involvement in the failed expedition.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Varona, Bernabe 1845 births 1873 deaths Cuban generals 19th-century Cuban military personnel People of the Ten Years' War Cuban independence activists People from Camagüey People from Camagüey Province People executed by firing squad People executed by Spain by firing squad