Caribbean nation south of Florida that for several centuries was part of the Spanish empire.
Spain claimed possession of Cuba from 1492 through 1898, managing to hold the island longer than it held most of its other colonies. However, a rebellion against Spanish control began in Cuba in 1895. The Spanish used brutal tactics against the revolutionaries, and the conflict was much written about in American newspapers. Without a solution to the fighting in sight, the United States went to war against Spain in 1898 in support of Cuban independence fighters, quickly defeating Spain but giving the Cubans little credit for their role in the fighting. United States troops remained in Cuba after the war, but the Teller Amendment (passed in April 1898 before hostilities began) prohibited American annexation of the island. Therefore, the United States gave Cuba independence but insisted that the Cubans incorporate into their constitution the Piatt Amendment, which gave the United States the authority to intervene in Cuban affairs if the American government believed Cuba’s independence was in jeopardy. It also prohibited the Cuban government from contracting a debt, and it gave the United States the rights to a naval base at Guantanamo Bay on the western end of the island.
In 1934, the Piatt Amendment was abrogated, and the United States passed the Jones-Castigan Act, which lowered the tariff on Cuban sugar entering the United States. Cuban sugar output increased dramatically, but the island became dependent on American sugar purchases and failed to develop a diverse economy. Because of mismanagement and lack of diversification, the Cuban economy began to steadily decline throughout the 1940s. Even so, Havana became famous for its nightlife and was a popular destination for American travelers.
In the face of a sinking economy and charges of government corruption in the mid-1950s, a rebel guerrilla movement led by Fidel Castro moved against the Cuban leader, Fulgencio Batista. In 1959, Castro took control of the government, and economic reforms soon followed. Castro reduced utility rates and raised workers’ wages. Of more interest to the United States, his government seized property and began import restrictions on luxury items that Cuba typically imported from the United States.
Cuba, still largely dependent on the United States, avoided offending its northern neighbor until it began to receive Soviet economic assistance in 1960. Once Cuba developed close ties to the Soviet Union, the administration of President Dwight D. Eisenhower slashed the Cuban sugar quota to zero and the United States stopped importing the product. Cuba remained a communist nation and, in 1962, the United States instigated a full economic boycott against the island following the Cuban missile crisis in October 1962. The crisis occurred when the United States initiated a quarantine of the island after spy flights discovered the construction of ballistic missile silos for which the Soviet Union was providing missiles. After a tense standoff, the Soviets removed all missiles from Cuba in exchange for the United States removing its missiles from Turkey. In the early 1980s, the administration of Ronald Reagan tightened the blockade. The United States refused to import goods that had been transshipped through Cuba or even finished goods that contained materials originating in Cuba. Even travel to and from Cuba was prohibited. The boycott has had a disastrous effect on the Cuban economy that has only increased since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. The embargo and travel restrictions remain in effect. Only academics conducting research, U.S. and international politicians, athletes performing at recognized events, journalists, and family members returning one time per year are allowed to travel to the country.
