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| Alberto Herrera (interim) | |
|---|---|
| Name | Alberto Herrera (interim) |
| Office | Interim President of Cuba |
| Term start | 1933 |
| Term end | 1933 |
| Birth date | 1874 |
| Death date | 1948 |
| Nationality | Cuban |
| Occupation | Military officer, politician |
Alberto Herrera (interim) was a Cuban military officer and politician who briefly assumed the role of interim head of state during the revolutionary turmoil of 1933. His short tenure occurred amid the aftermath of the ouster of Gerardo Machado and the rise of factions involving Ramón Grau, Fulgencio Batista, and other military and civilian leaders. Herrera's interim role intersected with actors and institutions across Havana, the United States, and Latin American political networks.
Born in the late 19th century in Cuba, Herrera's formative years overlapped with the Cuban War of Independence, the Spanish–American War, and the establishment of the Republic of Cuba (1902–1959). He received military training influenced by traditions from the Spanish Army, the United States Military Academy, and regional staff colleges in Mexico City and Bogotá. Herrera's education exposed him to doctrines associated with figures such as Maximilian Hernández Martínez, Porfirio Díaz, and reformist officers who later inspired leaders like Álvaro Obregón. He maintained contacts with Cuban elites linked to institutions including the University of Havana, the National Museum of Fine Arts (Cuba), and civic groups precursor to the Cuban League of Nations Association.
Herrera's service record connected him with units modeled after the Cuban Revolutionary Army and organizational structures seen in the Spanish Civil Guard and the Argentine National Army. He advanced through ranks during administrations of Tomás Estrada Palma, Mario García Menocal, and Gerardo Machado, engaging with military contemporaries such as Fulgencio Batista, Serafín Sánchez, and officers associated with the Sereno de Maceo legacy. Politically, Herrera moved within networks tied to the Conservative Party (Cuba), the Liberal Party (Cuba), and political patrons like Carlos Mendieta and Carlos Manuel de Céspedes y Quesada. His alliances intersected with labor leaders from the Confederación Nacional Obrera de Cuba and university reformers influenced by activists such as Eduardo Chibás and Alfonso Luaces.
Herrera assumed interim authority during the revolutionary convulsions following the collapse of the Machado regime and the brief rule of the Pentarchy of 1933. His appointment involved negotiations among military chiefs including Fulgencio Batista, civilian politicians like Ramón Grau San Martín and Carlos Manuel de Céspedes y Quesada, and interests represented by the US State Department, the United States Embassy in Havana, and commercial actors from United Fruit Company and Standard Oil. The political environment also reflected currents from regional events, such as the 1929 Great Depression, the Nicaraguan Liberal Revolution, and interventions reminiscent of the Platt Amendment era. Herrera's interim mandate was situated amid competing claims involving constitutionalists loyal to the 1901 Cuban Constitution and revolutionary currents seeking structural reforms akin to programs proposed by José Martí-inspired movements.
During his brief stewardship, Herrera engaged in administrative measures concerning military reorganization, public order, and negotiation with labor and student movements tied to the Federación Estudiantil Universitaria and trade unions aligned with the Confederación Nacional Obrera de Cuba. He authorized liaison with foreign diplomatic missions including the British Embassy, Havana, the French Embassy, Havana, and delegations from the Pan American Union, while managing fiscal concerns that involved creditors such as the International Monetary Fund predecessors and banking houses connected to Banco Nacional de Cuba and Bank of New York. Herrera's actions responded to pressures from political leaders like Ramón Grau, Carlos Mendieta, and regional actors including Getúlio Vargas and Lázaro Cárdenas whose policies influenced agrarian and labor expectations across Latin America. Security measures brought him into contact with police chiefs shaped by models from Argentina and Chile and with naval officers linked to the United States Navy presence in the Caribbean.
Herrera's interim role elicited responses from a broad spectrum: student activists of the Federación Estudiantil Universitaria, labor organizations connected to the Confederación Nacional Obrera de Cuba, political parties including the Liberal Party (Cuba) and Conservative Party (Cuba), and revolutionary groups aligned with figures such as Ramón Grau San Martín. Internationally, diplomats from the United States, the United Kingdom, France, and regional actors in Mexico and Argentina monitored developments alongside commercial interests like the United Fruit Company and financial houses in New York City. Press coverage came from newspapers such as El Mundo (Havana), Diario de la Marina, and international wire services like Agence France-Presse and Associated Press, while intellectuals associated with the University of Havana and cultural institutions debated the interim arrangements in salons influenced by writers like Alejo Carpentier and José Lezama Lima.
After his interim role, Herrera receded from central political prominence as leaders including Ramón Grau San Martín and Carlos Mendieta consolidated power and as military figures like Fulgencio Batista expanded influence that later affected mid-century Cuban history. His later years intersected with the trajectories of activists such as Fidel Castro, Ernesto "Che" Guevara, and politicians like Fulgencio Batista whose 1952 coup reshaped the island. Historians and archivists at institutions including the Academia de Historia de Cuba, the University of Havana, and international research centers in Madrid, Washington, D.C., and Mexico City examine Herrera's role within narratives that also involve the 1933 Revolution in Cuba, the Platt Amendment, and the broader currents of Latin American republican transitions. His legacy is referenced in studies alongside contemporaries such as Ramón Grau, Carlos Mendieta, Gerardo Machado, and institutions like the National Archives of Cuba.
Category:Cuban politicians Category:1874 births Category:1948 deaths