View source for Landing of the Granma

{{Short description|Invasion of Cuba done by a single yacht in the Cuban revolution}}
{{Italic title|string=Granma}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{Infobox military conflict
| conflict    = Landing of the ''Granma''
| width       = 
| partof      = the [[Cuban Revolution]]
| image       = Expedicionarios-del-yate-granma.jpg
| image_size  = 300px
| alt         =
| caption     = Fighters disembarking from the ''Granma'' onto the Cuban coast
| date        = November 25 – December 2, 1956
| place       = [[Caribbean Sea]]
| coordinates = <!--Use the {{coord}} template -->
| map_type    = 
| map_relief  = 
| map_size    = 
| map_marksize = 
| map_caption = 
| map_label   = 
| territory   = 
| result      = * Landing delayed 2 days due to bad weather
* Rebels ambushed by Batistiano forces 3 days later
| status      = 
| combatants_header = 
| combatant1  = {{flagicon image|M-26-7.svg}} [[26th of July Movement]]
| combatant2  = {{flag|Republic of Cuba (1902–1959)|name=Cuba}}
| combatant3  = 
| commander1  = [[Fidel Castro]]
| commander2  = [[Fulgencio Batista]]
| commander3  = 
| units1      = 
| units2      = 
| units3      = 
| strength1   = 82
| strength2   = 
| strength3   = 
| casualties1 = 67 (killed in ambush 3 days later)<ref>{{cite book |last= |first= |author-link= |date=2022 |title=The Che Guevara Reader Writings on Politics & Revolution |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0iMZEAAAQBAJ&dq=guevara+1956+granma&pg=PT21 |location= |publisher=Seven Stories Press |page= |isbn=9781644211137}}</ref>
| casualties2 = 
| casualties3 = 
| notes       = 
| campaignbox = {{Campaignbox Cuban Revolution}}
}}
'''''Granma''''' is a [[yacht]] that was used to transport 82 fighters of the [[Cuban Revolution]] from Mexico to [[Cuba]] in November 1956 to overthrow the regime of [[Fulgencio Batista]]. The 60-foot (18 m) diesel-powered vessel was built in 1943 by Wheeler Shipbuilding of Brooklyn, New York, as a light armored target practice boat, US Navy C-1994, and modified postwar to accommodate 12 people. "Granma", in English, is an affectionate term for a grandmother; the yacht is said to have been named for the previous owner's grandmother.<ref>{{cite news |url = http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20061126/ts_nm/mexico_castro_dc  | title = Fifty years on, Mexico town recalls young Castro | first = Frank Jack | last = Daniel | agency = [[Reuters]] | date  = November 25, 2006| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20061128124436/http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20061126/ts_nm/mexico_castro_dc | archive-date = November 28, 2006 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url = http://www.foxnews.com/printer_friendly_wires/2006Jul25/0,4675,CubaRootsoftheRevolutionLH1,00.html   | title =Roots of Cuban Revolution lie in the east  |publisher=Fox News | first =Vanessa   | last =Arrington  | agency=Associated Press | date= July 2006  | access-date= January 14, 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine  | title = Down with Imperialism* 12,000 Miles Away |magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]] | url= http://jcgi.pathfinder.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,899011,00.html |date= December 2, 2008  | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081202165523/http://jcgi.pathfinder.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,899011,00.html | access-date= December 3, 2006| archive-date= December 2, 2008 }}</ref>

==Background==
===Exile of Moncada attackers===
{{Main|Attack on the Moncada Barracks}}
In 1953, beginning their first attack against the Batista government, Fidel Castro gathered 160 fighters and planned a multi-pronged attack on two military installations.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cubatravelinfo.com/historical-sites/moncada-army-barracks.html|title=Historical sites: Moncada Army Barracks and|publisher=CubaTravelInfo|access-date=10 July 2013|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130710203403/http://www.cubatravelinfo.com/historical-sites/moncada-army-barracks.html|archive-date=10 July 2013|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref> On 26 July 1953, the rebels attacked the [[Attack on the Moncada Barracks|Moncada Barracks]] in [[Santiago de Cuba|Santiago]] and the barracks in [[Bayamo]], only to be defeated decisively by the far more numerous government soldiers.<ref name=Faria>{{cite web|last1=Faria |first1=Miguel A. Jr. |author-link1=Miguel A. Faria, Jr.|title=Fidel Castro and the 26th of July Movement|url=http://haciendapublishing.com/articles/fidel-castro-and-26th-july-movement|publisher=[[Newsmax Media]]|access-date=14 August 2015|date=27 July 2004|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150822211554/http://haciendapublishing.com/articles/fidel-castro-and-26th-july-movement|archive-date=22 August 2015|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref> It was hoped that the staged attack would initiate a nationwide revolt against Batista's government. After an hour of fighting most of the rebels and their commander fled to the mountains.<ref>{{Cite book|title=The World Transformed: 1945 to the present|last=Hunt|first=Michael H.|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2004|isbn=9780199371020|location=New York, New York|pages=257}}</ref> The exact number of rebels killed in the battle is debatable; however, in his autobiography, Fidel Castro wrote that six were killed during the fighting, and an additional 55 were executed after being captured by the Batista government.<ref>{{harvp|Castro|2007|p=133}}</ref> Due to the government's large number of men, Hunt revised the number to about 60 members taking the opportunity to flee to the mountains along with Castro.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|title=The World Transformed: 1945 to the Present|last=Hunt|first=Michael|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2014|location=New York|pages=257}}</ref> Among the dead was [[Abel Santamaría]], Castro's second-in-command, who was imprisoned, tortured, and executed on the same day as the attack.<ref>{{harvp|Castro|2007|p=672}}</ref>

Numerous important revolutionaries, including the Castro brothers, were captured soon afterwards. During a political trial, Fidel spoke for nearly four hours in his defense, ending with the words "Condemn me, it does not matter. [[History Will Absolve Me|History will absolve me]]." Castro's defense was based on nationalism, representation and beneficial programs for the non-elite Cubans, justice for the Cuban community, and his patriotism.<ref name=":1">{{Cite book|title=The World Transformed: 1945 to the Present|last=Hunt|first=Michael|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2014|location=New York|pages=258}}</ref> Fidel was sentenced to 15 years in the prison [[Presidio Modelo]], located on [[Isla de Pinos]], while Raúl was sentenced to 13 years.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www2.fiu.edu/~fcf/estoria.presidio.html|title=Chronicle of an Unforgettable Agony: Cuba's Political Prisons|work=Contacto Magazine|date=September 1996|access-date=10 July 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130128090116/http://www2.fiu.edu/~fcf/estoria.presidio.html|archive-date=28 January 2013|df=dmy-all}}</ref> However, in 1955, yielding to political considerations, the Batista government freed all political prisoners in Cuba, including the Moncada attackers. Fidel's [[Jesuit]] childhood teachers succeeded in persuading Batista to include Fidel and Raúl in the release. Fidel Castro left Cuba for exile in Mexico.<ref name="Castro_174">{{harvp|Castro|2007|p=174}}</ref>

===Conception===
In Mexico, Fidel Castro soon met with [[Spanish Civil War]] veteran [[Alberto Bayo]]. Castro informed Bayo he had a plan to invade Cuba but had no money for weapons or a single volunteered soldier. Despite the lack of resources Bayo decided to assist Castro's plan because giving military advice would not cost him anything. With time Fidel would be joined by his brother [[Raúl Castro]], and his old comrade Antonio "Ñico" López. Lopez would bring Raúl Castro to a nearby hospital where an exiled [[Che Guevara]] was working as a doctor. Guevara, who had met Lopez previously in Guatemala was invited to meet with [[Fidel Castro]] by Lopez. The Castro brothers, Lopez, and Guevara were to be the first volunteers for the expedition. On the evening of July 8, 1954 Guevara and Fidel Castro met in the home of Maria Antonia Gonzalez. The apartment later became a headquarters for the rebels. Castro realised he had little money for his plans and in October travelled to [[New Jersey]] and [[Miami]] to raise money from [[Cuban exiles]] for his invasion.<ref>{{cite book |last=Skierka |first=Volker |date=2014 |title=Fidel Castro A Biography |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=stZxBAAAQBAJ&q=26th+of+july+movement+granma |publisher=Polity Press |page= |isbn=9780745693040}}</ref>{{page needed|date=September 2024}}

===Preparations===
[[Image:Granma-route-mine-20.png|thumb|right|400px|The route of ''Granma'' from Tuxpan to Playa Las Coloradas]]
The yacht was purchased on October 10, 1956, for [[Mexican peso|MX$]]50,000 ([[US$]]4,000 in 1956) from the United States–based Schuylkill Products Company, Inc., by a Mexican citizen—said to be Mexico City gun dealer Antonio "The Friend" del Conde<ref>{{cite news
 |url         = http://www.caribbeannetnews.com/cgi-script/csArticles/articles/000044/004447.htm
 |title       = Fifty years on, Mexico town recalls young Castro
 |author      = Frank Jack Daniel
 |date        =   November 27, 2006
 |work        = Caribbean Net News
 |access-date  = December 2, 2007
 |url-status     = dead
 |archive-url  = https://web.archive.org/web/20071123035527/http://www.caribbeannetnews.com/cgi-script/csArticles/articles/000044/004447.htm
 |archive-date =  November 23, 2007
}}</ref>—secretly representing [[Fidel Castro]].
The builder, Wheeler Shipbuilding, then of Brooklyn, New York, now of Chapel Hill, North Carolina, also built [[Ernest Hemmingway]]'s boat [[Pilar (boat)|''Pilar'']].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://wheeleryachts.com/history.html|title=History – Wheeler Yacht Company|website=wheeleryachts.com|access-date=August 12, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190323203323/http://www.wheeleryachts.com/history.html|archive-date=March 23, 2019|url-status=dead}}</ref> It is still unknown who removed the light armor and expanded the cabin postwar to convert the navy training boat into a civilian yacht.
Castro's [[26th of July Movement]] had attempted to purchase a [[Consolidated PBY Catalina|Catalina flying boat]] maritime aircraft, or a US naval [[crash rescue boat]] for the purpose of crossing the [[Gulf of Mexico]] to Cuba, but their efforts had been thwarted by lack of funds. The money to purchase ''Granma'' had been raised in the US state of [[Florida]] by former [[President of Cuba]] [[Carlos Prío Socarrás]]<ref>{{cite book | last = Thomas | first= Hugh | title = Cuba: The Pursuit of Freedom | date= March 21, 1998 | isbn = 0306808277 | pages = 584–585| publisher= Da Capo Press }}</ref> and [[Teresa Casuso Morín]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/lot.197.html/2015/fine-books-and-manuscripts-n09516|title=Humanismo. Mexico City: January-February 1958, No. 4|website=Sotherbys.com|publisher=Sotherbys|access-date=December 28, 2016|archive-date=May 8, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190508200038/http://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/lot.197.html/2015/fine-books-and-manuscripts-n09516|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Soon after midnight on November 25, 1956, in the Mexican port of [[Tuxpan, Veracruz]], ''Granma'' was boarded surreptitiously by 82 members of the 26th of July Movement including their commander, Fidel Castro, his brother, [[Raúl Castro]], [[Che Guevara]], and [[Camilo Cienfuegos]]. The group—who later came to be known collectively as ''los expedicionarios del yate Granma'' (the ''Granma'' yacht expeditioners)—then set out from Tuxpan at 2&nbsp;a.m.<ref>{{cite book | last = Guevara | first= Ernesto | title = Pasajes de la guerra revolucionaria. "Una revolución que comienza" | url = http://patriagrande.net/cuba/ernesto.che.guevara/pasajes/01.htm | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100612004553/http://patriagrande.net/cuba/ernesto.che.guevara/pasajes/01.htm | archive-date= June 12, 2010 | language = es}}</ref> After a series of vicissitudes and misadventures, including diminishing supplies, sea-sickness, and the near-foundering of their heavily laden and leaking craft, they disembarked on December 2 on the [[Playa Las Coloradas]], in the municipality of [[Niquero]], in modern [[Granma Province]] (named for the vessel), formerly part of the larger [[Oriente Province]]. ''Granma'' was piloted by [[Norberto Collado Abreu]], a World War II Cuban Navy veteran and ally of Castro.<ref name=ap>{{cite news|title=Cuban Revolutionary Collado Abreu Dies |url=http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5iwmSiVGv7YJhIJt2qN4o-3rWEQ-QD8VQ3DSG0 |agency=[[Associated Press]] |date=April 3, 2008 |access-date=April 3, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080407185221/http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5iwmSiVGv7YJhIJt2qN4o-3rWEQ-QD8VQ3DSG0 |archive-date= April 7, 2008 }}</ref>  The location was chosen to emulate the voyage of national hero [[José Martí]], who had landed in the same region 61 years earlier during the [[Ten Years' War|wars]] of independence from Spanish colonial rule.

==Operation==
===Santiago de Cuba uprising===
{{Main|Santiago de Cuba Uprising}}
A rebellion organized by the [[26th of July movement]] and planned by [[Haydée Santamaría]], [[Celia Sánchez]], and [[Frank País]] occurred in [[Santiago de Cuba]]. The rebellion happened on November 30 and was meant to take place in conjunction with the landing of the Granma, which was expected to land in Cuba five days after departing from Mexico. A reception party was assigned to wait for the rebels during the uprising at the lighthouse at Cabo Cruz, with trucks and 100 men. After this, the plan was that they would raid the towns of Niquero and [[Manzanillo, Cuba|Manzanillo]] together, after which they would escape into the [[Sierra Maestra]] to conduct guerilla warfare. However, due to choppy weather, the Granma had landed two days late on December 2, and as a result, the supporting uprising was left isolated and was quickly destroyed. As a result of this, the rebels had lost the element of surprise, and the military was put on high alert in the region.<ref>{{cite book |last=Santamaria |first=Haydee |author-link= |date=2003 |title=Haydée Santamaría Woman Guerilla Leader in Cuba Whose Passion for Art and Revolution Inspired Latin America's Cultural Renaissance |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=y3_sa9kwRusC&dq=1956+granma&pg=PP12 |location= |publisher=Ocean Press |page=x |isbn=9781876175597}}</ref>

===Granma landing===
<blockquote>
We reached solid ground, lost, stumbling along like so many shadows or ghosts marching in response to some obscure psychic impulse. We had been through seven days of constant hunger and sickness during the sea crossing, topped by three still more terrible days on land. Exactly 10 days after our departure from Mexico, during the early morning hours of December 5, following a night-long march interrupted by fainting and frequent rest periods, we reached a spot paradoxically known as Alegría de Pío (Rejoicing of the Pious). – Che Guevara<ref>{{cite book | title = Ernesto "Che" Guevara |  series = World Leaders Past & Present | first = Douglas | last = Kellner | year = 1989 | publisher  = Chelsea House Publishers | isbn  = 1-55546-835-7 | page  = 40}}</ref>
</blockquote>

The Granma had approached the Playa las Coloradas in the early morning of December 2, 1956. Trying to spot the Cabo Cruz lighthouse, the navigator had fallen overboard, after which he had to be rescued. With the night quickly departing, Fidel ordered for the ship to land at the nearest point of land. However, they had crashed into a sandbar, a mile short of the intended point of rendezvous, in a mangrove swamp. The reception party had departed from the lighthouse the night prior after waiting for two days. They departed the boat and were forced to leave much of their food, ammunition and medicine behind, landing onto shore in the mid-morning. During the landing, they had been spotted by the Cuban coast guard, after which news of the landing was relayed to the armed forces.

After splitting into two groups upon reaching dry land, the rebels were forced to gradually abandon more equipment as they navigated the bush. During this period, Batista predicted correctly that the landing would occur, and his troops were ready. Consequentially, the landing party was bombarded by helicopters and airplanes soon after landing. Since the terrain on the coastline provided little cover, the party was an easy target. After two days on December 4, the separate groups had found each other and trekked further inland in the direction of the Sierra Maestra with the help of a local peasant guide.{{sfn|Cuba Libre|2016|loc=24:00}}

=== Ambush at Alegría de Pío ===
{{Main|Battle of Alegría de Pío}}
Shortly after midnight on December 5, the rebel column had halted to rest for the night at a sugarcane field, where they had feasted on stalks of cane, leaving behind their presence to enemy forces. During this time, their guide had abandoned them, telling nearby soldiers of the presence and location of the rebels. Passing by the edge of a cane field, the rebels were then ambushed in the afternoon at Alegría de Pío. Caught by surprise, the rebels panicked and milled around as their organization and cohesion were destroyed. Fidel ordered his men to follow him into the forests to escape, however, in the midst of the fighting, many abandoned their equipment, and others who were paralyzed by shock and terror remained where they were.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Guevara |first=Ernesto |title=Reminiscences of the Cuban Revolutionary War |publisher=Monthly Review Press |year=1968 |location=United Kingdom |pages=42–48 |language=English}}</ref>

Many casualties ensued, most of them during battle at {{ill|Alegría de Pío|es}} further inland. The survivors continued to the foot of [[Pico Turquino]] in the [[Sierra Maestra]] to perform guerilla warfare.{{sfn|Cuba Libre|2016|loc=25:00}}

Initially, Batista did not know who exactly were among the casualties, and international media widely reported that Fidel had died.{{sfn|Cuba Libre|2016|loc=26:00}} This was, however, not the case. Of the 82, about 12 had survived. According to the most credible version, the survivors were Fidel, Raúl, Guevara, [[Armando Rodríguez (revolutionary)|Armando Rodríguez]], {{ill|Faustino Pérez|es}}, [[Ramiro Valdés]], [[Universo Sánchez]], [[Efigenio Ameijeiras]], [[René Rodríguez]], [[Camilo Cienfuegos]], [[Juan Almeida Bosque]], [[Calixto García (revolutionary)|Calixto García]], [[Calixto Morales]], [[Reinaldo Benítez]], [[Julio Díaz (revolutionary)|Julio Díaz]], [[Luis Crespo Cabrera]],{{citation needed|date=October 2023}} [[Rafael Chao]], {{ill|Ciro Redondo (revolutionary)|es|Ciro Redondo|lt=Ciro Redondo}}, [[José Morán]], [[Carlos Bermúdez]], and [[Fransisco González]]. All others had been either killed, captured, or left behind.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Bonachea|first1=Ramon L.|last2=Martin|first2=Marta San|title=Cuban Insurrection 1952–1959|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EbawDQAAQBAJ&pg=PT107|year=2011|publisher=Transaction Publishers|location=New Brunswick, NJ|isbn=978-1-4128-2090-5|page=107n49}}</ref>

==''Granma'' yacht expeditioners==
The 82 expeditioners were:<ref>{{Cite web |title=Lo que brilla con luz propia, nada lo puede apagar |work=Granma Cuba Si |access-date= September 3, 2018 |url= http://www.granma.cu/granmad/secciones/50_granma-80_fidel/la_travesia2.html |language=es }}</ref>
{{div col}}
# [[Fidel Castro]]
# {{ill|Juan Manuel Márquez Rodríguez|es|Juan Manuel Márquez Rodríguez}}
# {{ill|Faustino Pérez|es}}
# [[José Smith Comas]]
# [[Juan Almeida Bosque]]
# [[Raúl Castro]]
# [[Pablo Díaz (revolutionary)|Pablo Díaz]]
# [[Félix Elmuza]]
# [[Armando Huau]]
# [[Che Guevara]]
# [[Antonio López (revolutionary)|Antonio López]]
# [[Teniente Jesús Reyes]]
# [[Cándido González]]
# [[Onelio Pino]]
# [[Roberto Roque]]
# {{ill|Jesús Montané|es}}
# [[Mario Hidalgo]]
# [[César Gómez (revolutionary)|César Gómez]]
# [[Rolando Moya]]
# [[Horacio Rodríguez]]
# [[José Ponce Díaz]]
# [[José Ramón Martínez]]
# [[Fernando Sánchez-Amaya]]
# [[Arturo Chaumont]]
# [[Norberto Collado Abreu|Norberto Collado]]
# {{ill|Gino Donè Paro|it|Gino Donè Paro}} 
# [[Julio Díaz (revolutionary)|Julio Díaz]]
# [[René Bedia]]
# [[Evaristo Montes de Oca]]
# [[Esteban Sotolongo]]
# [[Andrés Luján]]
# [[José Fuentes (revolutionary)|José Fuentes]]
# [[Pablo Hurtado (revolutionary)|Pablo Hurtado]]
# [[Emilio Albentosa]]
# [[Luis Crespo]]
# [[Rafael Chao]]
# [[Ernesto Fernández (revolutionary)|Ernesto Fernández]]
# [[Armando Mestre]]
# [[Miguel Cabañas]]
# [[Eduardo Reyes (revolutionary)|Eduardo Reyes]]
# [[Humberto Lamothe]]
# [[Santiago Hirzel]]
# [[Enrique Cuélez]]
# {{ill|Mario Chanes|es|Mario Chanes de Armas}}
# [[Manuel Echevarría]]
# [[Fransisco González]]
# Mario Fuentes
# [[Noelio Capote]]
# [[Raúl Suárez (revolutionary)|Raúl Suárez]]
# [[Gabriel Gil]]
# [[Luis Arcos]]
# [[Alfonso Guillén Zelaya]]
# [[Miguel Saavedra (Cuban revolutionary)|Miguel Saavedra]]
# [[Pedro Sotto]]
# [[Arsenio García]]
# [[Israel Cabrera]]
# [[Carlos Bermúdez]]
# [[Antonio Darío López]]
# [[Oscar Rodríguez (revolutionary)|Oscar Rodríguez]]
# [[Camilo Cienfuegos]]
# [[Gilberto García (revolutionary)|Gilberto García]]
# [[René Reiné]]
# {{ill|Jaime Costa|es|Jaime Costa Chávez}}
# [[Norberto Godoy]]
# [[Enrique Cámara]]
# [[Raúl Díaz (revolutionary)|Raúl Díaz]]
# [[Armando Rodríguez (revolutionary)|Armando Rodríguez]]
# [[Calixto García (revolutionary)|Calixto García]]
# [[Calixto Morales]]
# [[Reinaldo Benítez]]
# [[René Rodríguez]]
# [[Jesús Gómez (revolutionary)|Jesús Gómez]]
# [[Francisco Chicola]]
# [[Universo Sánchez]]
# [[Efigenio Ameijeiras]]
# [[Ramiro Valdés]]
# [[Tomás Royo]]
# [[Arnaldo Pérez (revolutionary)|Arnaldo Pérez]]
# {{ill|Ciro Redondo (revolutionary)|es|Ciro Redondo|lt=Ciro Redondo}}
# [[Rolando Santana]]
# [[Ramón Mejias]]
# [[José Morán]]
{{div col end}}

==Legacy==
{{Further|Day of the Cuban Armed Forces}}
[[File:Pavil Granma.jpg|thumb|right|200px|''Granma'' Memorial in [[Havana]]]]
Soon after the revolutionary forces triumphed on January 1, 1959, the cabin cruiser was transferred to [[Havana Harbor|Havana Bay]]. Norberto Collado Abreu, who had served as main [[helmsman]] for the 1956 voyage,<ref name= ap/> received the job of guarding and preserving the yacht.{{Citation needed|date = December 2016}}

Since 1976, the yacht has been displayed permanently in a glass enclosure at the Memorial ''Granma'' adjacent to the [[Museum of the Revolution (Cuba)|Museum of the Revolution]] in [[Havana]]. A portion of old [[Oriente Province]], where the expedition made landfall, was renamed [[Granma Province]] in honor of the vessel. [[UNESCO]] has declared the [[Desembarco del Granma National Park|Landing of the Granma National Park]]—established at the location (Playa Las Coloradas)—a [[World Heritage Site]] for its natural habitat.<ref>{{cite web|title=Desembarco del Granma National Park|url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/889|website=whc.unesco.org|access-date= February 12, 2017|language=en}}</ref>

The Cuban government celebrates December 2 as the [[Day of the Cuban Armed Forces]],<ref>{{cite book|title=Expedición del Granma | url = http://www.cubagob.cu/otras_info/minfar/granma.htm | publisher = Cuban Ministry of the Armed Forces | access-date = November 19, 2006}}</ref> and a replica has also been paraded at state functions to commemorate the original voyage. In further tribute, the official newspaper of the [[Central Committee]] of the [[Cuban Communist Party]] has been named ''[[Granma (newspaper)|Granma]]''. The name of the vessel became a symbol for [[Communist Party of Cuba|Cuban communism]].<ref name="Oltuski2002">{{cite book|author=Enrique Oltuski|title=Vida Clandestina: My Life in the Cuban Revolution|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=re4dh_XLCOIC&pg=PA292|date= November 29, 2002|publisher=John Wiley & Sons|isbn=978-0-7879-6658-4|pages=292–}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

===Works cited===
* {{cite book |title=Fidel Castro: My Life |last=Castro |first=Fidel |publisher=Penguin Books |others=Translated by Andrew Hurley |year=2007 |isbn=978-0-14-102626-8 |author-link=Fidel Castro |editor=[[Ignacio Ramonet]] }}
* {{Cite episode| series = [[The Cuba Libre Story]] | number = 4 | title = A Ragtag Revolution| network = Yle| date = 2016| language = fi | ref = {{SfnRef|Cuba Libre|2016}}}}
* {{Cite web| url= https://www.passagemaker.com/trawler-news/granma-yacht-changed-history  | title = The Amazing True Story of Fidel Castro's Mystery Motoryacht | work = PassageMaker | first = Peter | last = Swanson | date = February 23, 2018 }}

==External links==
{{commonscat|Granma (ship, 1943)}}
{{Portal|Cuba}}
* [http://www.wheeleryachts.com Wheeler Yachts Home Page]
* [http://www.themilitant.com/1996/6013/6013_25.html Che Guevara's account of the ''Granma's'' voyage]
* [http://www.cuba.cu/gobierno/discursos/2001/ing/f021201i.html Fidel Castro recalls the ''Granma'' crossing]
* [http://www.historyofcuba.com/history/granma.htm Landing of the ''Granma'' on historyofcuba.com]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20060901074401/http://www.psupress.psu.edu/Justataste/samplechapters/justatasteDosal.html The Voyage of the ''Granma'']
* [http://www.companeroche.com/index.php?id=94 Che Describes his Departure to Cuba from Mexico Aboard the ''Granma'']

{{Coord|23|8|27|N|82|21|25|W|type:landmark_region:CU|display=title}}
{{Cuban Revolution}}
{{Che Guevara}}
{{Fidel Castro}}
{{Authority control}}
[[Category:Invasions of Cuba]]
[[Category:Military operations of the Cuban Revolution]]
[[Category:Motor yachts]]
[[Category:Museum ships in Cuba]]
[[Category:Che Guevara]]
[[Category:1956 in Cuba]]