Cuba
La Bayamesa
The Bayamo Song
1868
1902
Pedro Figueredo
Pedro Figueredo
⚔ Battle / War 🕊 Freedom 🗽 Independence ❤ Love of homeland |
Key Facts
- 1. La Bayamesa is one of the few national anthems that explicitly encourages listeners not to fear death, with the line 'to die for the homeland is to live' serving as its philosophical core.
- 2. The city of Bayamo was deliberately burned to the ground by its own residents in January 1869 rather than let it fall back into Spanish hands, an act of defiance the anthem helped inspire.
- 3. Cuba's anthem is notably short compared to other Latin American anthems, with only two stanzas and no chorus, giving it a direct, urgent quality that mirrors its battlefield origins.
Lyrics
¡Al combate corred, bayameses,
Que la patria os contempla orgullosa!
No temáis una muerte gloriosa,
Que morir por la patria es vivir.
Translations are non-official and intended to convey meaning, not replace originals
Analysis
EditorialWritten and composed by Pedro Figueredo during the Ten Years' War against Spanish colonial rule. He wrote the lyrics on horseback on October 20, 1868, the day Bayamo was captured by rebel forces. Figueredo was later captured and executed by the Spanish in 1870. The anthem became official when Cuba gained independence in 1902.