Cuban War of 1895

In the early 19th century, the Cubans had been put under martial law by the Spanish. Between 1849 and 1851, three revolts were led in Cuba, but they all failed. In 1868, Cuban rebels rose up again, starting the Ten Years' War, but when the Cubans looked to the US for help, they were turned down. The sugar industry was ruined by this war, and in 1878, the Spanish defeated the Cubans. The Cuban economy rested heavily on the US, so when the Panic of 1893 hit, the Cuban financial system was injured. Cubans were becoming severely tired of Spanish colonial rule and Spanish economic policies. Therefore, when the Spanish withdrew constitutional guarantees in 1895, three men, Antonio Maceo, Jose Marti, and Maximo Gomez, led the Cuban Insurrection. Marti wanted racial equality, self-rule, democracy, and social justice, but he was killed not long into the war effort. The Spanish army was weakened by the revolt happening in the Philippines at the same time, and when the USS Maine mysteriously exploded on its way to Havana, the US (with President McKinley) intervened. The US soon won and took control of Cuba. Finally, in 1901, the US handed control back over to the Cuban government with terms outlined, keeping it a United States territory. It stayed this way until 1959, when another Cuban Revolution began, and Cuba became its own independent territory.