Sánchez Manduley, Celia (1920–1980)

Celia Sánchez Manduley (b. 1920; d. 11 January 1980), Cuban revolutionary and adviser to Fidel Castro. A dentist's daughter born in Oriente Province, Celia Sánchez Manduley was a leader of the Twenty-Sixth of July Movement. She helped to organize the shipment of arms and material to the forces fighting against Fulgencio Batista in the Sierra Maestra. At El Uvero (a battle fought on 28 May 1957), she became the first woman combatant in the revolutionary army; subsequently she formed the Mariana Granjales Platoon for women. She held the position of secretary of the Council of State, and she was a member of both the Communist Party Central Committee and the National Assembly. Her most influential position was as secretary and lifelong companion to Fidel Castro. After her death from cancer, she was given a state funeral and buried in the Mausoleum of the Revolutionary Armed Forces.

See alsoBatista y Zaldívar, Fulgencio; Castro Ruz, Fidel.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Hugh Thomas, Cuba: The Pursuit of Freedom (1971).

Carlos Franqui, Diary of the Cuban Revolution, translated by Georgette Felix, et al. (1980); "Celia Sánchez Manduley," in Cuba Update 1, no. 1 (1980): 6-7.

Tad Szulc, Fidel: A Critical Portrait (1986).

Additional Bibliography

Alvarez Tabío, Pedro. Celia, ensayo para una biografía. Havana: Oficina de Publicaciones del Consejo de Estado, 2003.

Béquer Céspedes, Adelaida. Celia: La flor más autóctona de la Revolución. Havana: Editorial de Ciencias Sociales, 1999.

                                Daniel P. Dwyero. f. m.