Cadets of the Republic, known in Spanish as Cadetes de la República, was the paramilitary wing of the Puerto Rican Nationalist Party in the twentieth century. The organization was also referred to as the Liberation Army of Puerto Rico (Ejército Libertador de Puerto Rico).
The Cadets of the Republic were founded and organized in the 1930s by Dr. Pedro Albizu Campos, the president of the Puerto Rican Nationalist Party. Some members of the cadets participated in the Puerto Rican Nationalist Party revolts of the 1950s against United States colonial rule.
The following is a brief history of the Cadets of the Republic, covering the period from 1930 to 1950.
Origins In the 1920s, there was a non-political student organization in the University of Puerto Rico called Patriotas Jóvenes (Young Patriots). By the 1930s many students, who were also members of the Puerto Rican Nationalist Party and influenced by the teachings of Albizu Campos, joined the Patriotas Jóvenes organization. The Patriotas adopted the Nationalist Party's independence ideals and dismissed any student who would not swear allegiance to them. The organization was later renamed Cadetes de la República (Cadets of the Republic) and Joaquín Rodríguez, a Nationalist, was placed in charge.
Organizational structure
By order of Albizu Campos, the cadets adopted a military structure with companies in various towns of the island. Albizu Campos, who had served as a Lieutenant in the United States Army during World War I, believed that the cadets had to adopt a system of strict military training if they were to become a powerful Puerto Rican Army. He believed that a well-trained and disciplined army would eventually be able to fight against the United States imperialism which ruled the island. Albizu Campos often referred to the cadets as the Ejército Libertador de Puerto Rico (The Liberation Army of Puerto Rico).
Cadet headquarters were located at Número 11 de la Calle del Cristo in Old San Juan. The cadet organization was divided into companies throughout the cities and towns of Arecibo, Cabo Rojo, Cayey, Dorado, Guayama, Humacao, Isabela, Jayuya, Lares, Mayagüez, Naranjito, Ponce, Sabana Grande, San Germán, San Juan, San Lorenzo, San Sebastián and Utuado. San Juan was the only city with more than one cadet corps. Besides the main city, San Juan also had a cadets corps in the sectors of Hato Rey, Santurce and Río Piedras.
Chain of Command The cadets had a chain of command which had to be followed. Regular cadets were First and Second Class Soldiers, and larger companies had Sergeants. The Commanding Officer of each company held the rank of Captain, who reported to a Sub-Commander with the rank of Colonel, who in turn reported to the Commander-in-Chief. The Commander-in-Chief reported only to the President of the Nationalist Party.
Numbers Cadet recruitment was the responsibility of each Captain. United States government reports showed that by the mid-1930s, cadet membership was growing exponentially - particularly amongst younger members, aged 18 through 25.FBI Files: Pedro Albizu Campos; File Number 105-11898, Section 2, p.43 Retrieved Jan. 8, 2014. The female members of the Nationalist Party had their own organization, known as the Hijas de la Libertad (Daughters of Freedom). It is estimated by the FBI and El Mundo newspaper that at its peak, around 1935–36, cadet membership reached over 10,000.
Oath
Cadet candidates were taught the ideals of the party by the Nationalist Municipal Board President. They were then required to take an oath of allegiance to the PRNP. During the verbal oath ceremony the cadets had to place a hand on the Nationalist flag, which was itself symbolic.
The flag showed a white Calatrava Cross, also known as the Cross potent on the middle of a black background. The Cross of Calatrava was first used by the Crusaders of Calatrava and later by the French revolutionists. The black background symbolized the mourning of the Puerto Rican Nation in colonial captivity.
Cadets swore to be faithful to the Nationalist Party and to participate in public activities organized by the party. Contrary to what is believed, they did not swear to overthrow the Government of the United States. They did, however, swear to fight for Puerto Rico's independence from colonial rule by whatever means necessary.
Uniforms All of the Cadets were required to wear uniforms during the celebration of Nationalist activities. These uniforms consisted of white trousers, black shirt, black tie, and an overseas cap. The shirt and cap were both emblazoned with a Cross of Calatrava patch. Cadet officers wore an additional black seam on the trousers and a white headquarters cap. Cadets who could not afford to buy the entire uniform wore white trousers with a black shirt.
Drills and tactics The cadets practiced military drills and were taught military tactics. They used wooden rifles during their training. During the participation of public activities, each cadet company had two standard bearers. One carried the Flag of Puerto Rico, the other carried the Nationalist Party Flag.
Historical events (1930 -1950)
Río Piedras massacre
On October 24, 1935, local police officers confronted and opened fire on supporters of the Puerto Rican Nationalist Party at the University of Puerto Rico. Four Nationalist Party members were killed and one police officer was wounded during the shooting known as the Río Piedras massacre.
Isolina Rondón watched from her front door on Calle Brumbaugh, near the University of Puerto Rico, as the police shot into the car carrying the four Nationalists. Rondón testified how she saw the police officers shooting at the victims and how she heard one police officer screaming "Do not to let them escape alive". However, her testimony was ignored and there were no charges raised against the officers. They were instead given a promotion."Puerto Rico Por Encima de Todo: Vida y Obra de Antonio R. Barcelo, 1868-1938"; by: Dr. Delma S. Arrigoitia; Page 306; Publisher: Ediciones Puerto (January 2008);
At the time of the massacre the top-ranking police chief on the island was appointed by the American government—a former U.S. Army Colonel named Elisha Francis Riggs. Since the entire Insular Police took their orders from Riggs the Nationalists considered him responsible for the massacre.
On February 23, 1936, Riggs was assassinated by Nationalists Hiram Rosado and Elías Beauchamp, both members of the Cadets, on his way home after attending Mass in San Juan's Cathedral. Rosado and Beauchamp were arrested and executed without a trial at the police headquarters in San Juan but not before Beauchamp posed solemnly for a news photographer with a stiff military salute.The Puerto Ricans: a documentary history. Markus Wiener Publishers, 2008P179
Arrest of Albizu Campos On April 3, 1936, a Federal Grand Jury submitted accusations against Pedro Albizu Campos, Juan Antonio Corretjer, Luis F. Velázquez, Clemente Soto Vélez and the following members of the cadets: Erasmo Velázquez, Julio H. Velázquez, Rafael Ortiz Pacheco, Juan Gallardo Santiago, and Pablo Rosado Ortiz.
These men all were charged with sedition and other violations of Title 18 of the United States Code. Title 18 of the United States Code is the criminal and penal code of the federal government of the United States. It deals with federal crimes and criminal procedure.[*text of Title 18 Chapter 601 Immunity for witnesses, via findlaw.com]
By way of evidence, the prosecution referred to the creation, organization and the activities of the cadets, which the government made reference to as the "Liberting Army of Puerto Rico." The government prosecutors alleged that the military tactics which the cadets were being taught, was for the sole purpose of overthrowing the Government of the U.S. A jury of seven Puerto Ricans and five Americans voted 7-to-5 not guilty. However, Judge Robert A. Cooper called for a new jury, this time composed of ten Americans and two Puerto Ricans, and a guilty verdict was achieved.The Imprisonment of Men and Women Fighting Colonialism, 1930 - 1940 Retrieved December 9, 2009.
The Ponce massacre
March 21, 1937, a Palm Sunday, the cadets were scheduled to participate in a peaceful march in the city of Ponce. The march had been organized by the Nationalist Party to commemorate the ending of slavery in Puerto Rico by the governing Spanish National Assembly in 1873. The march was also protesting the imprisonment, by the U.S. government, of Nationalist leader Albizu Campos on the alleged sedition charges."Latino Americans and Political Participation: A Reference Handbook". By Sharon Ann Navarro and Armando Xavier Mejia. 2004. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, Inc.
Raimundo Díaz Pacheco, who by then was the Comandante (Commander) of the Cadets of the Republic, and his brother Faustino were present when the peaceful march turned into a bloody police slaughter, which became known as the Ponce massacre.
Several days before the scheduled Palm Sunday march, Casimiro Berenguer, a military instructor of the cadets, and other organizers received legal permits for the peaceful protest from José Tormos Diego, the mayor of Ponce. However, upon learning of the planned protest, the colonial governor of Puerto Rico at the time, General Blanton Winship (who had been appointed by US president Franklin Delano Roosevelt) demanded the immediate withdrawal of the permits.
Without notice to the organizers, or any opportunity to appeal or any time to arrange an alternate venue, the permits were abruptly withdrawn just before the protest was scheduled to begin."The Puerto Rican diaspora"; publisher=Temple University Press; year=2005; pages=76;
Tomas López de Victoria, who at the time was the Captain of the Ponce branch of the cadets, ordered the band to play La Borinqueña, Puerto Rico's national anthem. As the anthem was being played, the demonstrators—which included the Cadets and the women's branch of the Nationalist Party known as the Hijas de la Libertad (Daughters of Freedom)—began to march."Luis Muñoz Marín: Puerto Rico's democratic revolution"; publisher=Editorial UPR; year=2204; pages=152;
Empowered by the American police chief, and encouraged by the governor, the police fired for over fifteen minutes from four different positions. They fired with impunity on cadets and bystanders alike—killing men, women and children.
The flag-bearer of the cadets was shot and killed during the massacre. A young girl by the name of Carmen Fernández proceeded to take the flag but was shot and gravely injured. A young cadet by the name of Bolívar Márquez Telechea, despite being mortally wounded, dragged himself to a wall and wrote with his blood the following message before he succumbed to his wounds:
Nineteen people were killed and about 235 were wounded. The dead included seventeen men, one woman, and a seven-year-old girl. Some of the dead were demonstrators while others were simply passers-by. Many were chased by the police and shot or clubbed at the entrance of their houses as they tried to escape. Others were taken from their hiding places and killed. Leopold Tormes, a member of the Puerto Rico legislature, told reporters how a policeman murdered a nationalist with his bare hands. Dr. Jose N. Gándara, one of the physicians who assisted the wounded, testified that wounded people running away were shot and that many were again wounded by the clubs and bare fists of the police. No arms were found in the hands of the civilians and cadets who were wounded nor on the dead. About 150 of the demonstrators were arrested immediately afterward; they were later released on bail.
The Judge Cooper incident