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Fidel Castro

Definition

Fidel Castro was a Cuban communist revolutionary and politician who served as Prime Minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976 and then as President from 1976 to 2008.

Analogy

Think of Fidel Castro as the captain of a ship (Cuba) navigating through stormy seas (Cold War tensions). Despite facing numerous obstacles, he managed to keep his ship afloat for nearly five decades.

Related terms

Communism: A political theory derived from Karl Marx advocating class war leading to a society where all property is publicly owned and each person works and is paid according to their abilities and needs.

Cold War: The geopolitical tension between Soviet Union (and its allies) and United States (and its allies) after World War II, marked by economic, political, and military competition but not direct warfare; Cuba under Castro became an important player in this conflict.

Cuban Missile Crisis: A major confrontation that brought the United States and the Soviet Union close to war over the presence of Soviet nuclear-armed missiles in Cuba; occurred during Castro's rule.