# Canonical recap data for Fidel Castro Takes Power (1959)
# Source: https://recap.at/1959/castro-revolution-cuba
# Format: YAML 1.2 (UTF-8). Generated at request time.
slug: castro-revolution-cuba
canonicalUrl: "https://recap.at/1959/castro-revolution-cuba"
title: Fidel Castro Takes Power
subtitle: Castro's revolutionary forces ousted Batista and established the Western Hemisphere's first communist state, reshaping Cold War geopolitics for six decades.
recapType: global_event
eventStatus: concluded
startDate: 1959-01-01
datePrecision: year
year: 1959
decade: 1950
country:
name: Cuba
slug: cuba
summaryShort: Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz was a Cuban communist revolutionary and statesman who was the leader of Cuba from 1959 to 2008. He served as prime minister from 1959 to 1976 and president from 1976 to 2008. Ideologically a Marxist–Leninist and Cuban nationalist, he also served as the first secretary of the Communist Party o
summaryLong: Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz was a Cuban communist revolutionary and statesman who was the leader of Cuba from 1959 to 2008. He served as prime minister from 1959 to 1976 and president from 1976 to 2008. Ideologically a Marxist–Leninist and Cuban nationalist, he also served as the first secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba from 1965 until 2011. Under his administration, Cuba became a one-party communist state; industry and business were nationalized, and socialist reforms were implemented throughout society.
heroImageUrl: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4a/Fidel_Castro_1950s.jpg/1280px-Fidel_Castro_1950s.jpg"
heroImageCredit: Wikipedia · "Fidel Castro"
importance: 83
sourceConfidence: 75
keyFacts: []
timeline: []
sources:
- url: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fidel_Castro"
  title: Fidel Castro
  provider: Wikipedia
related: []
categories:
- revolution
metaDescription: Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz was a Cuban communist revolutionary and statesman who was the leader of Cuba from 1959 to 2008. He served as prime minister from 1959
wikidataQid: Q11256
archiveSnapshots:
- url: "https://web.archive.org/web/20260626020856/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fidel_Castro"
  capturedAt: 2026-06-26
  label: Fidel Castro
  originalUrl: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fidel_Castro"
