José Marcelino Maceo Grajales (2 February 1849, La Delicia,

Oriente Province Oriente (, "East") was the easternmost province of Cuba until 1976. The term "Oriente" is still used to refer to the eastern part of the country, which currently is divided into five different provinces. The origins of Oriente lie in the 1607 di ...

, Cuba – 5 July 1896, Loma de Gato,

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 ...

) was a Cuban independence activist and patriot.

Biography

Early years and personality

José was the third of the offspring of the Maceo Grajales family. At the age of 19, he began his military career in 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 ...

, rising from soldier to colonel, a rank that was awarded to him after the

Baraguá Protest Baraguá () is a municipality and town in the Ciego de Ávila Province of Cuba. Its administrative seat is located in the town of Gaspar, Cuba, Gaspar. Geography The municipality occupies the south-eastern part of the province, and the area is do ...

. People who knew him or fought under his command described him as stocky and slim, with a hard look and a stern frown, with great poise, a sweet smile and very concerned for the last of his soldiers. He was a jovial, sincere, disinterested, conceited person, of great musical sensitivity, especially with the guitar. However, others believe that he was sometimes very temperamental and easily angered, which even led him to a duel with Guillermón Moncada. On some occasions he massacred Spanish prisoners and did not listen to other mambises who asked him to act according to the codes of honor. He was described by others to be very brave, always the first in battle, but irascible and lacking in patience, José was also described to be one of the most contradictory patriots among the Cuban ranks.

Revolutionary Activity

The use of the rifle, the handling of the machete as a weapon to defend himself, the agility and dexterity as a horseman, and the maturity of his thought were influential factors for him to become a true warrior very soon. Simple family development, in which honesty, honesty and love of freedom were a permanent presence, would make up his personality. Of his family, he was the only one who participated in the three wars for national independence and in them accumulated an extensive service record and several scars on his body. He gained notoriety and military prominence, which made him earn the rank of general in April 1895. As Antonio, he was an active participant in the

Invasion of Guantanamo An invasion is a military offensive of combatants of one geopolitical entity, usually in large numbers, entering territory controlled by another similar entity, often involving acts of aggression. Generally, invasions have objectives of c ...

and fought in actions such as Rejendón de Báguanos. He remained at the side of his brother Antonio in the Baraguá Protest. His revolutionary battle did not even rest during the so-called "Fertile Truce", since it was one of the Cubans who did not stop conspiring for independence abroad and thus he was seen actively participating in the

Plan of San Pedro Sula A plan is typically any diagram or list of steps with details of timing and resources, used to achieve an objective to do something. It is commonly understood as a temporal set of intended actions through which one expects to achieve a goal. F ...

, from 1884 to 1886 . Together with Antonio he disembarked by Duaba, to restart the

Cuban War of Independence The Cuban War of Independence (), also known in Cuba as the Necessary War (), fought from 1895 to 1898, was the last of three liberation wars that Cuba fought against Spain, the other two being the Ten Years' War (1868–1878) and the Litt ...

where the fighting took place in the

. Separated from his companions after the Alto de Palmarito fight, he crossed maniguas and streams until he managed to contact the Guantanamo Mambises; then he met Martí , Gómez, and the brave men who had landed at Playitas. On April 25, he beat an enemy column in Arroyo Hondo; three days later, he was awarded the stars of Major General. José and his brother Antonio Maceo obtained an important victory in the Battle of Sao del Indio, on August 31, 1895.

Death

In the eastern parts, Maceo was with his struggling troops when on July 5, 1896 he engaged in fierce combat with Spanish forces. Shortly after the fight began, the soldiers, astonished, saw how the general collapsed from his horse, dropping the revolver he had in his right hand. Mortally wounded, he was treated by his doctor who gave no hope of life. A few hours later he died, leaving a great void in the ranks of the Liberation Army. He was 47 years old when he died. Because of his fierceness in wars, he was and is known as the Lion of the East. His remains are buried 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 ...

in the city of

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Maceo, José 1849 births 1896 deaths People of the Ten Years' War People of the Little War People of the Cuban War of Independence Cuban soldiers Cuban generals 19th-century Cuban military personnel Cuban revolutionaries Cuban independence activists