Fidel Castro begins exile in Mexico

The freed Moncada participants were welcomed by supporters and began rebuilding an opposition movement against Batista.

After the amnesty, the two surviving Moncada participants helped rebuild clandestine networks and preserve the movement’s political memory.

Supporters publicly greeted the Moncada prisoners, demonstrating that the failed assault had become a national political symbol.

Revolutionaries created the July 26 Movement, named after the Moncada attack, to unite urban resistance with preparations for armed struggle.

Facing surveillance and repression, Fidel Castro departed for Mexico to organize an expeditionary force.

Soon after Castro’s arrival, the Argentine doctor Ernesto Che Guevara joined the planned expedition and its anti-imperialist project.

In a speech to expatriates, Castro defended insurrection against Batista and appealed for money and political support for a return to Cuba.

Mexican authorities arrested Fidel Castro, Che Guevara and other expedition members, temporarily disrupting their preparations.

Fidel Castro and José Antonio Echeverría agreed to coordinate opposition to Batista while maintaining their organizations’ autonomy.

Eighty-two revolutionaries sailed from Tuxpan aboard the overcrowded yacht Granma to begin an armed struggle in Cuba.