Henry Reeve, an American Soldier in the Cuban Wars

Fernando Figueredo, Colonel in Cuba’s first Independence War, affirmed that in the Liberation Army, there was no officer or leader who had been wounded more times than Brigadier Henry Reeve, who was a follower, comrade and friend of Ignacio Agramonte, “El Mayor”, one of the outstanding figures in the struggle against Spanish colonialism.
 
Mildrey Ponce

Fernando Figueredo, Colonel in Cuba’s first Independence War, affirmed that in the Liberation Army, there was no officer or leader who had been wounded more times than Brigadier Henry Reeve.

One of these wounds even rendered his right leg forever useless. Nevertheless, he had himself strapped to his mount so that he could lead his troops.

A follower, comrade and friend of Ignacio Agramonte, “El Mayor”, he suffered his same fate in enemy hands: the Spanish burnt his body and scattered his ashes.

They knew very well the deeds carried out by the young North American combatant on the battlefield, and the admiration that Cuban troops professed for him.

Henry Reeve, best known in Cuba as “Enrique - el Americano” or “El Inglesito”, arrived in the Caribbean nation in May 1869 aboard the steamship Perrit, as part of the expeditionary forces. He had enlisted in New York without his parents’ consent and disembarked on the beaches of Cuba to fight for its independence.

Days later he was taken prisoner by the Spanish. As was usual for the colonial troops, they put him face to face with the firing squad, but miraculously the four bullets that were fired at him did nothing more than slightly wound him on the head, and as a result he was left unconscious among the cadavers of his comrades.

He escaped and wandered lost in the scrubland for two days, until a group of mambises (Cuban combatants) found him.

Assigned to serve with the troops from Camagüey, in the east central part of Cuba, by 1870 he had already won the rank of Captain, and later on he became the adjutant of Major General Ignacio Agramonte, with whom he came to serve as a commander in chief.

Of straightforward perception, intelligent, energetic, and disciplined, he constantly stood out for his heroism in combat. In the year 1873, when Agramonte proposed him for promotion to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel, he pointed out to the President of the Republic in Arms, Carlos Manuel de Céspedes: “…regrettably, among the many higher commanders in the Department I command, I can’t find one who has the indispensable abilities that correspond to this Leader (Reeve) for supporting me. Commander Reeve, with his significant qualities, is worthy of all my trust, and I believe that it’s my duty to favorably advise the Government of the Republic about this young foreigner”.

He was one of the 35 cavalrymen chosen by Agramonte for the historic rescue of Brigadier Julio Sanguily, captured by Spanish troops.

On this occasion, one of the subordinates of the prisoner approached El Mayor and told him: “I beg you to point out the most dangerous spot for me”, to which Agramonte replied: “then march alongside Captain Reeve”.

When General Máximo Gómez, a Dominican, substituted Agramonte after his death, Lieutenant Colonel Henry Reeve, chief of the first division cavalry, put himself at his service.

Gómez oriented Reeve’s actions towards creating the necessary conditions for extending the War to the western part of the country. For that, the combat that took place in the region of Santa Cruz del Sur (Camagüey) was fundamental. In this combat, Colonel Reeve marched in front of 150 men.

During the battle, after jumping over a Spanish artilleryman, Reeve received, almost in his mouth, a gunshot wound that destroyed his right leg beginning from the thigh.

After having lost his leg, the first action in which he took part was in Las Guásimas, where he participated as a Brigadier and as head of the Camagüey Cavalry Corps.

He was named Chief of the mambí vanguard. He took the insurrection up to Matanzas, and even to areas surrounding Havana. He attacked more than 50 sugar refineries and occupied countless towns. He appeared and disappeared, causing great fear among the Spanish.

The fate of his brave troop was sealed at the Gonzalez coffee plantation. Having made camp with his 160 men, he decided to break the siege upon hearing that an enemy column of 500 in-line soldiers was approaching.

After charging twice (attacking only with machetes) without results, Reeve was left with only 15 men, two wounds, and his own horse dead from a gunshot.

Feeling his enemies close and knowing he couldn’t use his own legs, he killed himself with his revolver.

It was August 4, 1876. El Inglesito was only 26 years old. With his death, the vanguard of the Liberation Army forces was extremely weakened.

After Reeve’s fall in action, a group of Cuban patriots sent a message to his mother, in which they wrote: “Moved by his generous impulses, this young and ardent legionnaire of freedom stepped onto these beaches, without any other titles than his fiery enthusiasm and his exceptionally unwavering resolution to fight for the independence of Cuba, which he ever after embraced and loved as his own Homeland”.

*Translated by: Adriana Pinelo Avendaño.

2010-12-26