Cuba — map and facts

About Cuba

Cuba is the largest island in the Caribbean, located at the northern edge of the Caribbean Sea where it meets the Gulf of Mexico, approximately 150 kilometres south of Florida. The archipelago includes the main island, the Isla de la Juventud, and about 1,600 smaller islets and cays. The country covers approximately 109,884 square kilometres and has a population of around 11 million people. The capital and largest city is Havana (La Habana), a city of approximately 2.1 million. Cuba is a socialist republic governed by the Communist Party of Cuba, which has held a monopoly on political power since the 1959 revolution. Miguel Díaz-Canel has served as President and First Secretary since 2021, succeeding Raúl Castro. The Cuban economy has been significantly shaped by a long-standing United States trade embargo in place since 1962. Key industries include sugar, tobacco, nickel mining, and a large medical services sector. Cuba has notably high literacy rates and a well-regarded universal healthcare system despite economic constraints. Spanish is the official language.

Geography and Landscape

Cuba's main island stretches approximately 1,250 kilometres from east to west, making it by far the largest island in the Caribbean. The terrain is predominantly flat to gently rolling, with three main mountain ranges: the Sierra de los Órganos in the west, which includes the Valle de Viñales with its distinctive mogote limestone formations; the Escambray Mountains in the centre; and the Sierra Maestra in the southeast, where Pico Turquino rises to 1,974 metres as the country's highest point. Cuba has a tropical climate moderated by trade winds, with a dry season from November to April and a wet season from May to October. The island lies within the Caribbean hurricane belt and has been struck by numerous major storms. Cuba's coastline is extensive, featuring numerous natural harbours, mangrove swamps, and coral reefs. The Bay of Pigs (Bahía de Cochinos) on the southern coast is historically significant. Important rivers include the Cauto, the longest river in Cuba at approximately 370 kilometres, flowing through the southeast.

History

Cuba was inhabited by the Taíno and Ciboney peoples before Christopher Columbus arrived on 27 October 1492, claiming it for Spain. Spanish colonisation brought the rapid destruction of the indigenous population through disease and forced labour. Havana became a crucial port in the Spanish colonial trade network. Cuba remained a Spanish colony until the late nineteenth century, far longer than most of the Americas. Significant uprisings occurred, including the Ten Years' War (1868–1878) led by Carlos Manuel de Céspedes and the subsequent War of Independence beginning in 1895, in which poet and independence hero José Martí was killed. United States intervention in the Spanish–American War in 1898 ended Spanish rule. Cuba gained nominal independence in 1902 but remained strongly influenced by the United States. The revolution led by Fidel Castro and Ernesto "Che" Guevara overthrew Fulgencio Batista's government on 1 January 1959. Cuba subsequently aligned with the Soviet Union, leading to the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis, one of the most dangerous moments of the Cold War. Castro's government implemented sweeping social programmes alongside one-party rule.