While on February 24, 1895, in Baire, the cry for independence was raised, reigniting the war against Spanish colonialism, in the distant region of Las Tunas, then considered marginal and sparsely populated, an insurgent movement was already brewing that would challenge the official narrative of its “minimal participation” in the conflict.

From the first days of March 1895, according to colonial documents reproduced in the press of the time, groups of rebels began to organize in the areas of Cauto and Victoria de Las Tunas. Names like Capote, Manuel Martínez Robles, Panchín Varona, and Aquilino Sánchez emerge in Spanish military reports as leaders of groups that, although small in number, demonstrated a fearless capacity for mobilization and combat.

BOLD AND EARLY ACTIONS

Newspapers such as El Avisador Comercial, Diario del Ejército, and La Tribuna de Puerto Príncipe attempted to downplay the Las Tunas uprising, labeling it as “bandits” or “isolated groups.” However, their own accounts betray the military's unease: on April 1, 1895, the commander of Victoria de las Tunas reported having “defeated a group of more than 60 mounted men.” Days later, an insurgent force of “500 men” was mentioned, forcing Spanish troops to pursue them as far as Las Arenas.

One of the most symbolic events occurred in San Miguel de Nuevitas, where Panchín Varona's group stormed in shouting “Long live free Cuba!” and attacked the Civil Guard barracks. Although the assault was repelled and Varona died in combat, the action demonstrated that the people of Las Tunas did not passively wait for the war to arrive: they took it to enemy territory.

The strategic position of Las Tunas, between Oriente and Camagüey, made it a key logistical hub. Spanish convoys passed through its territory between Puerto Padre and the interior, making it the scene of constant ambushes and harassment. As early as 1896, with the Invasion of the West led by Gómez and Maceo, colonial forces were forced to concentrate on the defense of towns, while the Las Tunas countryside fell under Mambí control.

THE LAS TUNAS BRIGADE: ORGANIZATION AND SACRIFICE

Under the command of leaders such as Julián Santana, Enrique Collazo, and Calixto Enamorado, the Second Brigade of the Third Division of the Second Corps was structured, with more than 2,500 troops, 36.8 percent of the estimated population of the jurisdiction. Of these, 128 men from Las Tunas died between 1895 and 1898, most of them in combat. Names like the Ávila and González brothers, who fell at Velasco and Los Güiros, or the Osorio and González brothers, who died at Becerra, testify to the family's contribution to the cause.

On December 3, 1897, in the Battle of Guamo, the Las Tunas Brigade suffered a costly defeat when attempting to assault a well-defended Spanish fort. The action, ordered against the instructions of Major General Calixto García, left dozens dead and exposed the material and tactical limitations of the Liberation Army in the region.

However, even in failure, the men of Las Tunas demonstrated fearless courage that was recorded in both Cuban sources and the laudatory Spanish reports on the defense of the colonial garrison.

By the end of the war in 1898, Las Tunas had been the scene of significant battles, including the city's capture by Calixto García in August 1897. Far from being a passive region, it was a territory in constant dispute, where the civilian and military population contributed men, sacrifice, and unwavering resistance.

As researcher Raúl Izquierdo Canosa pointed out in *Las Tunas in the War of 1895-1898*: “(...) a region's participation in the war is not measured solely by the number of battles, but by its geopolitical role, its human contribution, and its capacity to wear down the enemy (...)”. In this, Las Tunas was no exception: it was a necessary link, a rebellious territory that, from February 1895 onward, knew that independence was also written with a Las Tunas accent.