Caribbean the intensity of the little over
three weeks he spent in Cuba attached to
a Spanish Army unit.
RECOGNITION
And the icing on the cake of that fortnight
was the proposal and award of the Cross of
the Order of Military Merit with Red Ribbon.
The proposal for the award was submitted,
with Martínez-Campos’ approval, by General
Valdés on December 6 —a few days after
the ambush— and ratified on January 25,
1896. The Cross of the Order of Military
Merit was the first decoration that Churchill
wore on his chest. This was no small feat.
When I read the paragraphs that Roberts
devotes to these events in his biography, I
was eager to find out more about them and
went to our magnificent —and often not
sufficiently recognised— Military History
and Culture Institute, whose director, Major
General Bohigas Jayme,
provided me with a copy of
the Decoration Certificate
awarded to Lieutenant Chur-
chill, the original of whichis
kept in the General Military
Archives of Segovia.
This certificate justifies the
award on the following terms:
“To British Army Lieutenants
Winston Spencer Churchill
and Reginald Barnes. Having
informed His Excellency the
District Commander General
of the distinguished conduct
observed by them during
the action that took place in
Guayos on the 2nd day of
the current month against
the assembled forces of Maximiliano
Gómez and Antonio Maceo, and making
use of the powers conferred upon me by
His Majesty’s government, I have awarded
them the Cross of the Order of Military Merit,
First Class, with Red Ribbon. For your
knowledge and satisfaction and in witness
whereof I hereby sign this certificate in
Havana on December 6, 1895”.
As I have already pointed out, the final
award of the decoration was signed on
January 25, 1896, and the letter from the
General Staff of the Cuban Operations
A R C H I V E S
Decoration Certificate granted
to Second Lieutenant Winston
Spencer Churchill. The original
is kept in the General Military
Archives of Segovia.
In Cuba, he
was seeking to
gain military
experience and
even earn some
money with his
war reports
Army (Field Section Staff) states verbatim:
“In view of the statements made by Your
Excellency’s predecessor in this Ministry
on December 6 of last year, the King —God
bless him— and on his behalf, the Queen
Regent of the Kingdom, according to the
resolution of the 15th day of this month, has
seen fit to approve the award of the Cross
of the Order of Military Merit, First Class,
with Red Ribbon, free of charge to Hussars
Lieutenants of the British Army, Messrs.
Winston Spencer Churchill and Reginald
Barnes, in recognition of their assistance
together with the Army forces in the combat
held against the rebels in Guayos on the
2nd day of this month of December. I state
this by Royal Order for your information
and use. May God bless Your Excellency
for many years. Madrid, January 25, 1896.
Signed by the General in Chief of the Army
in Cuba”.
The Cross of the Order
of Military Merit with Red
Ribbon was not the only
Spanish decoration Churchill
earned. In 1914, when he
was already Lord of the
Admiralty, the government of
King Alfonso XIII granted him
the Cuban Campaign Medal
(1895-1898). However, unlike
the previous one, this award
was a mere act of protocol.
From Churchill’s writings
on these events —some
in his war reports in the
Daily Graphic, others in
his memoirs of youth (My
Early Life) and others in his
General Military Archives of Segovia
correspondence with his mother— I would
like to conclude by drawing your attention
to a paragraph that shows Lieutenant
Churchill’s feelings towards the Spanish
Army and that Martínez Viqueira highlights:
“Though not very many men were hit, the
bullets traversed the entire length of the
column, making the march very lively for
everybody…These men had marched that
day about 21 miles over the worst possible
ground carrying their kits and ammunition,
and had in addition been fired at for the best
part of four hours. They are fine infantry”.
Fine infantry. The Spanish. The faithful.
Imperial War Museum
50 Revista Española de Defensa August 2020