2. Che Guevara was an Argentineanborn, Cuban revolutionary leader
who became a left-wing hero. A
photograph of him by Alberto
Korda became an iconic image of
the 20th century.
3. Ernesto Guevara de la Serna,
known as Che Guevara, was
born on 14 June 1928 in
Rosario, Argentina into a
middle-class family. He studied
medicine at Buenos Aires
University and during this time
travelled widely in South and
Central America. The
widespread poverty and
oppression he witnessed, fused
with his interest in Marxism,
convinced him that the only
solution to South and Central
America's problems was armed
revolution.
4. In 1954 he went to Mexico and the
following year he met Cuban
revolutionary leader Fidel Castro.
Guevara joined Castro's '26th July
Movement' and played a key role in
the eventual success of its guerrilla
war against Cuban dictator Batista.
5. Castro overthrew Batista in 1959 and took
power in Cuba. From 1959-1961, Guevara
was president of the National Bank of
Cuba, and then minister of industry. In
this position, he travelled the world as an
ambassador for Cuba. At home, he carried
out plans for land redistribution and the
nationalisation of industry.
6. A strong opponent of the United
States, he guided the Castro regime
towards alignment with the Soviet Union.
The Cuban economy faltered as a result
of American trade sanctions and
unsuccessful reforms. During this difficult
time Guevara began to fall out with the
other Cuban leaders. He later expressed
his desire to spread revolution in other
parts of the developing world, and in
1965 Castro announced that Guevara had
left Cuba.
7. Guevara then spent several
months in Africa, particularly
the Congo, attempting to train
rebel forces in guerrilla
warfare. His efforts failed and
in 1966 he secretly returned
to Cuba. From Cuba he
travelled to Bolivia to lead
forces rebelling against the
government of René
Barrientos Ortuño. With US
assistance, the Bolivian army
captured Guevara and his
remaining fighters. He was
executed on 9 October 1967 in
the Bolivian village of La
Higuera and his body was
buried in a secret location. In
1997 his remains were
discovered, exhumed and
returned to Cuba, where he
was reburied.
