Granma is mostly an agricultural province that takes up the southwest corner of Cuba’s eastern end. The province has only two towns of size, Bayamo, the capital city, and Manzanillo; but abounds with sites of historical importance and natural beauty and relevance.
Throughout Cuba’s history, the region of Granma has been a furnace of insurrection, beginning in 1512, when the Taíno chief Hatuey rebelled against Spanish domination. Afterwards, at La Demajagua, Carlos Manuel de Céspedes freed his slaves in 1868 and started the first War of Independence, the citizens of Bayamo burned the city before to leave it to the Spanish army, the National Anthem was written and sang for the first time also in Bayamo and in Dos Rios, the great José Martí chose martyrdom in battle in 1895, among other events.
Later on, during the 20th century, the region also became the battleground of the revolutionary efforts to topple the pseudo-republic headed by Batista. In 1953 the Bayamo garrison was attacked in concert with the attack on the Moncada barracks in Santiago, in 1956 the vessel Granma (from which the province takes its name) came ashore at Las Coloradas with Fidel Castro, Che Guevara and 80 fellow revolutionaries to set up the rebel army, establishing the headquarters at La Plata in the Pico Turquino and defeating Batista in 1959.
Granma is neatly divided into plains to the north and mountains to the south.
The Sierra Maestra massif runs about 140 km west-east from the tip of the island, Cabo Cruz, to Santiago de Cuba city; at its widest, it has a girth of 48 km. The spine (firme) averages 1500 meters elevation and rises to Pico Turquino at 1974 meters.
North of the mountains, the Cauto River (Cuba’s longest river) snakes across a vast flood plain and empties into the Golfo de Guacanayabo.
Among the many natural attractions the province has to offer count the UNESCO’s World Natural Heritage “Desembarco del Granma” National Park, the home of relevant flora, fauna and peculiar geographic features; the tallest peak and the longest river of the country, attractive scuba diving sites (including shipwrecks from the Spanish era) and the spectacular and peaceful volcanic beach at a beautiful cove trapped between the mountains and the sea at Marea del Portillo.
Curious people, nature lovers and trekking enthusiasts will certainly find fertile grounds within Granma.