Antonio Maceo Grajales

José Antonio Maceó y Grajales
Antonio Maceo Grajales
Nickname(s)	Titan de Bronze El Precursor Hijo de la Panadera
Born	June 14, 1845 Santiago de Cuba, Spanish Cuba
Died	December 7, 1896 (age 51) Killed in action at Punta Brava, Cuba
Allegiance	Cuba
Years of service	1868-1896
Rank	Lt. General
Battles/wars	Ten Years' War Cuban War of Independence

Lt. General José Antonio de la Caridad Maceo y Grajales (June 14, 1845 – December 7, 1896) was second-in-command of the Cuban Army of Independence.

Fellow Cubans gave Maceo the sobriquet of the "Bronze Titan" (Spanish: El Titan de Bronce), which was a reference to his skin color, stature and status. Spaniards referred to Maceo as the "Greater Lion" (El Leon mayor). Maceo was one of the most noteworthy guerrilla leaders in 19th century Latin America, comparable to José Antonio Páez of Venezuela in military acumen.

Maceo was the son of a Venezuelan farmer and dealer in agricultural products, , and an Afro-Cuban woman of Dominican descent, Mariana Grajales y Coello. His father when still a young man, fought for the Spanish against the forces for independence led by Simón Bolívar, José Antonio Páez and others. In 1823, he moved from Caracas, Venezuela, to Santiago de Cuba, Cuba, after some of his comrades were exiled from South America. José Antonio Maceo y Grajales (full name) was born June 14, 1845, in the town of San Luis, in the Oriente Province outside Santiago de Cuba, in a farm known to locals as Jobabo. Although his father taught him skills in the use of arms and management of their small properties, it was his mother, Mariana Grajales, who inculcated in him a sense of order. This maternal discipline would be important in the development of Maceo's character and would be reflected later in his acts as a military leader.

At the age of sixteen, Maceo went to work for his father, delivering products and supplies by mule. He was a successful entrepreneur and farmer. As the oldest of the children, he inherited his father's leadership qualities and later would become a decorated general. Maceo developed an active interest in the political issues of his time and was initiated in the mysteries of Freemasonry. The Cuban Freemasonry movement was influenced by the principles of the French Revolution - "Liberty, Equality and Fraternity" - as well as the Masons' main guidelines: God, Reason, Virtue.