short biography of che guevara

His ancestor was Irish. His generated the spirit of the Irish revolt. His father’s name was Ernesto Guevara Lynch and his mother was Celia De la Serna. His father was a enthusiast of Republicans from the Spanish Civil War. Many veterans often came to Che’s home. His name was Ernesto Guevara. He was known el Che or Che. He was a doctor, author, guerilla commander, diplomat, military strategist, and Marxist. He was a symbol of revolution.

He was very athletic even though he suffered from asthma. He played football, golf, rugby. He also enjoyed swimming. His nickname was “ Fuser “ means powerful. Fuser was a reduction of El Furibundo (powerful) and his mother last name de la Serna. Che Guevara got the name because he was very forceful in play.

Guevara studied medicine in University of Buenos Aires in 1948. After finishing his study, he worked as a doctor. Guevara loved reading. There were 3000 books in his home when he was teen. He read Karl Mark, William Faulkner, Jawaharlal Nehru, Vladimir Lenin, Jean Paul Sartre and Robert Frost. He also read Latin literatures. He loved Horacio, Quiroga, Ciro Alegria, and Miguel Asturias. His favorite classes were philosophy, math, engineering, politic, sociology, archeology and history.

Guevara was an explorer. He went to Northern Argentina riding a bicycle with motor engine on it. It was about 4,500 km in 1950. Next year, he did his second expedition for about 8,000 km. The expedition took 9 months. He visited most of South America. Then he and Alberto Granado volunteered near the Amazon River in leper colony in Peru. Guevara also visited Chile, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela, Panama Argentina, and the United States (Miami, Florida for 20 days). His exploration had changed his perspective about live. His journey made him an anti capitalist. He wrote a diary during the trip. The Motorcycle diaries was a New York Times best seller.

"A motorcycle journey the length of South America awakened him to the injustice of U.S. domination in the hemisphere, and to the suffering colonialism brought to its original inhabitants."

— George Galloway, British politician.(Wikipedia)

Guevara took another trip to Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Panama,Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras and El Salvador in July 1953.

Guevara (left) Fidel Castro (Right)

In Guatemala Guevara met Hilda Gaeda Acosta, an economist from Peru. She was related to Alianza Popular Revolucionaria Americana( APRA). She took Guevara to senior officials in the Arbenz Government. Then he made contact with Cuban refugees in association with Fidel Castro. U.S. CIA supported a troop that attacked the Arbenz Government. Guevara joined the militia run by Communist Youth but then he went back to his medical study. Guevara went to Argentina consulate after Hilda Gaeda was caught. He married Hilda Gaeda in Mexico in 1955. Guevara arrived in Mexico in September 1954. He worked in hospital there. A year later, he met Raul Castro, the brother of Fidel Castro. Fidel Castro was the leader of 26 July Movement that aimed to dethrone the dictator Fulgencio Batista. Che and Fidel started as revolutionary friendship.

Guevara (Right) Alberto Granado (left)

Guevara joined military training in the movement. He learned guerilla warfare tactics. He walked through mountains, and rivers. He practiced ambush, and retreat war tactics. The instructor Alberto Bayo praised Guevara as the best student in the training. Guevara lived with poor farmers of Sierra Maestra mountains. Guevara built grenade factories, ovens to bake bread, and organized schools. He also founded health clinics, workshops, and newspaper. He also set up the clandestine radio station Radio Rebelde ( Radio Rebel) in February 1958.

Batista’s army put to death rebel prisoners and killed civilians. In 1958, Guevara took important role in Battle of Las Mercedes. His sparkling tactics amazed Major Larry Bookman, the US Marine Corps. Walking on foot in Havana Guevara continued his guerrilla. He often had no food for some days. He went at night.

Route of che trip

He took his victory in Las Villas province. Then, he sent suicide troops in capital city of Santa Clara. He grabbed the city and became the success of the revolution. Six weeks battle in Santa Clara showed the genius of Che. Radio Rebelde broadcasted that Guevara had seized Santa Clara on New Year’s Eve 1958. Fulgencio Batista flew to Havana for the Dominican Republic.

In January 1959, Guevara wrote his book Guerrilla Warfare when he was at villa Tarara. He earned Cuban Citizen in February. He also got divorced with Hilda Gaeda on June 2, 1959. He then Married Aleida March. He had five children from his two wives.



Fidel Castro became the new leader in Cuba. He took Guevara as the commander of the La Cabaña Fortress prison, from January 2 to June 12, 1959. On January 27, 1959 Guevara spoke the social justice and land reform. On May 17, 1959, the Agrarian Reform Law brought by Guevara was effective. Fidel Castro established National Institute of Agrarian Reform ( INRA). Guevara led the institution.

Castro delegated Guevara for a three- month visit of Bandung Pact countries. He went to Sudan, Morocco, Egypt, Syria, Pakistan, Indonesia, India, Sri Lanka, Burma, Thailand, Japan, Yugoslavia, Greece, Singapore and Hongkong. He visited Hiroshima where US dropped Atomic Bomb.

Guevara commanded over 100,000 volunteers as “literacy brigades”. The volunteers went to countryside. They built schools, taught peasants to read and write, and supplied new teachers. The campaign was called the Cuban Literacy Campaign. Guevara made success in this project. The rate of literacy reached 96 %. He also created links to higher education.


Castro pointed Guevara as the Finance Minister and the president of National Bank. He also was the Minister of Industries. His signature on Cuban currency caused many protests from financial segments. He signed on the bills “Che” instead of his full name. He broke the belief that money was sacred. His signature was a symbol of art. Guevara’s economic program failed. Dropped productivity occurred during this program. His program “moral incentive” raised many critics. The director of Radio Marti, Ernesto Betancourt said that Guevara was ignorant of the most basic economic principles.

After Santa Clara Battle

Guevara drew from public two weeks after his speaking in Algiers. His vanish was mystery for Cubans. His resignation was due to his failure in the industrialization campaign. He discarded his Cuban citizenship. On October 3, 1965, Castro announced publicly a Guevara’s letter with no date few months earlier. Guevara said that he supported the Cuban Revolution but he committed to leave Cuba to fight for revolutionary.


Guevara joined National Liberation Army (Bolivia). Guevara met Tamara Bunke in Germany ( Tania) when he was the ministers of Castro’s Government. She was an interpreter that joined him in Bolivia. Guevara and Tania ended their life in La Higuera , Bolivia on October 9, 1967.