José Quintín Bandera Betancourt (ca. 1834 – 1906) was a military leader of the

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

n insurrection against the Spanish during the

Cuban War of Independence The Cuban War of Independence (), 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 Little War (Cuba), Little War (1879–1880). The ...

. In 1906, Bandera, led an army of insurgents toward

Havana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.

, and was killed near

Punta Brava Punta Brava is a small suburb located just to the southwest of Havana, Cuba, with a population of roughly 1500 inhabitants. It is one of the wards (consejos populares) of the La Lisa municipality. Cuban War of Independence Punta Brava and the ne ...

, a village close to Havana.

Biography

Quintín Bandera was a hero of the Cuban War of Independence, "noted for his fearlessness and bravery," during which he had distinguished himself by breaking through the Spanish line which separated

Pinar del Río Province Pinar del Río is one of the provinces of Cuba. It is at the western end of the island of Cuba. Geography The Pinar del Río province is Cuba's westernmost province and contains one of Cuba's three main mountain ranges, the Cordillera de Guanig ...

from

Havana Province La Habana Province , formerly known as Ciudad de La Habana Province, is a province of Cuba that includes the territory of the city of Havana, the Republic's capital. Between 1878 and 2010, the name referred to another province that covered a m ...

. He fought alongside General

Calixto García Calixto García Íñiguez (August 4, 1839 – December 11, 1898) was a Cuban general in three Cuban uprisings, part of the Cuban War for Independence: the Ten Years' War, the Little War, and the War of 1895, itself sometimes called the Cuba ...

, and alongside

Máximo Gómez Máximo Gómez y Báez (November 18, 1836 – June 17, 1905) was a Dominican Generalissimo in Cuba's War of Independence (1895–1898). He was known for his controversial scorched-earth policy, which entailed dynamiting passenger trains and ...

with his ragged band of "Orientales." In 1899, he was considered a leader of the Afro-Cuban population of

Santiago de Cuba Province Santiago de Cuba Province is the second most populated province in the island of Cuba. The largest city Santiago de Cuba is the main administrative center. Other large cities include Palma Soriano, Contramaestre, San Luis and Songo-la Maya. H ...

. He had become popular with black population of the island as a whole, thousands of whom had welcomed him to Havana in 1900 and had carried him through the city's streets for hours, and was known for delivering fiery speeches about how the new republic did not reward its black citizens. In 1906, insurrection broke out against the presidency of

Tomás Estrada Palma Tomás Estrada Palma (c. July 6, 1832 – November 4, 1908) was a Cuban politician, the president of the Cuban Republican in Arms during the Ten Years' War, and the first President of Cuba, between May 20, 1902, and September 28, 1906. His coll ...

, Cuba's first president after independence. Minor protests had already taken place the year before, but in August 1906 a band led by

Pino Guerra Pino or Piño may refer to: People * Danny Pino (born 1974), American actor * Domenico Pino (1760–1826), Italian general of the Napoleonic Wars * Fernando Solanas (born 1936), aka "Pino" Solanas, Argentine filmmaker * Frank J. Pino (1909–200 ...

started a more serious uprising in Pinar del Río Province. One general suspected of participating was

José Miguel Gómez José Miguel Gómez y Arias (6 July 1858 – 13 June 1921) was a Cuban politician and revolutionary who was one of the leaders of the rebel forces in the Cuban War of Independence. He later served as President of Cuba from 1909 to 1913. Early ...

, later president of Cuba, who was quickly arrested and jailed. During that time, General Bandera, "that sexagenarian hero of all the blacks in the island," moved at the head of a group of a thousand black insurgents toward Havana and occupied a railroad station. Bandera had lost his office and broke into the Cuban senate, but instead of being made chief of police, as he demanded, he was appointed "parliamentary doorkeeper." He consequently took up arms. At the Silveira farm near Punta Brava, Bandera made his last stand with twenty of his followers. He was surrounded by troops led by General

Freyre Andrade Freyre originates from religious guards and soldiers. The name come from the french word ''frére'', or brother. People * Fernando Freyre de Andrade (1903–1946), Spanish actor * Gilberto Freyre (1900–1987), Brazilian sociologist * Ricard ...

, and a group of Rural Guards stormed the farm. Most of the insurgents managed to slip away, leaving only Bandera and two of his comrades: shot multiple times, according to reports, he continued "wielding his machete until the foe had cut him to pieces." The three bodies were "horribly mutilated by machete cuts" and moved to Havana to be put on display. Bandera's death put a momentary stop to the 1906 insurrection; he was approximately seventy two years when he died.

References

External links

Report from the ''Bruce Herald''
detailing an act of cruelty by Bandera, 1900 {{DEFAULTSORT:Bandera, Quentin 1830s births 1906 deaths People of the Ten Years' War People from Santiago de Cuba Cuban generals 19th-century Cuban military personnel