The Generalisimo,Maximo Gomez 

Havana, November 18 (PL) - Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel, today highlighted the independence hero Máximo Gómez on the occasion of the 184th anniversary of his birth.

On Twitter, the head of state wrote: "Máximo Gómez: The reason for our existence lies in the people," and shared a journalistic work on the life and work of the figure considered an example of internationalism.

The Generalissimo, as he is recognized in Cuba, was born on November 18, 1836, in Bani, Dominican Republic, and in 1865 he settled in Cuba with his family.

Very soon, he was part of the independence movement initiated by the revolutionary lawyer Carlos Manuel de Céspedes on October 10, 1868, against the Spanish colonial rule.

He demonstrated his skill as a military strategist in the Ten Years' War (1868-1878) and in the so-called Necessary War of 1895 and held the Liberating Army's highest responsibilities.

He was the protagonist of milestones in the island's history, such as the first charge with the machete in the independence process. In  November 1868. together with Lieutenant General of the Liberator Army, Antonio Maceo, he led the east-west invasion, described as a remarkable military feat of that time.

According to historians, Gómez defied death in more than 235 combats without suffering more than two wounds, and, in the end, he died in his bed on June 17, 1905, killed by an acute infection, at the age of 69.

The National Hero of Cuba, Jose Marti, considered Gomez "Dominican by birth, Cuban at heart."

The historic leader of the Revolution, Fidel Castro, said in 1998: "He knew how to become a distinguished and beloved son of the Cuban people by right,  won in the struggle for the independence of Cuba, to which he contributed his arm and machete, his military genius and courage, a remarkable political talent and a deep revolutionary thought."