Cadets of the Republic

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. 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 at police headquarters 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. 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. 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. 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. The Ponce massacre ,'' was covering the march and took this photograph when the shooting began. The photo was sent to the U.S. Congress. 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. 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. 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. 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. Nineteen people were killed and about 235 were wounded. and for sentencing the Nationalist leadership to prison terms. Díaz Pacheco and his comrades were found guilty of the charges against them and were imprisoned. Puerto Rico's Gag Law (Law 53) After Díaz Pacheco was released from prison he resumed his role as Commander of the Cadets. Unbeknown to him, his brother Faustino had abandoned the Nationalist Party in 1939 and had turned into an informant for the FBI. Nationalist Party Revolts of the 1950s Membership in the cadets began to dwindle as a result of the persecution which the cadets were subject to by local and federal agencies of United States. In the 1950s the official hierarchy of the Cadets of the Republic was the following: It was estimated by the FBI that 40 percent of the Cadet membership participated in the revolts. They participated in every incident of the revolts. However, among the more notable incidents in which the Cadets were involved were the following: In Utuado a group of thirty-two Nationalists fought against the local police. The group was reduced to twelve men and retreated to the house of Damián Torres—which was promptly strafed by 50-caliber machinegun fire, from four American P-47 Thunderbolt planes. Three men died from this aerial gunfire. ::The National Guard arrived later that day and ordered the nine men who survived the attack to surrender. Once the nationalists surrendered they were forced to march down Dr. Cueto Street to the local town plaza where their shoes, belts and personal belongings were removed. ::The group then was taken behind the police station and where, without a trial, they were machine-gunned. Four of the nationalists died. They were nationalists Ríos, Julio Colón Feliciano, Agustín Quiñones Mercado, Antonio Ramos and Antonio González. ::González, who was 17 years old, pleaded for water and instead was bayoneted to death. ::In addition to the three men killed by the P-47 Thunderbolt planes, these four aircraft inflicted massive damage to the houses, buildings and roads of both Jayuya and Utuado. ::Each plane was heavily armed with eight .50-caliber machine guns, four on each wing. They also carried rockets that were five inches wide, and bomb loads of 2,500 pounds. This entire arsenal was unleashed on the towns of Jayuya and Utuado. ::Jayuya Uprising ::The revolt in the town of Jayuya, led by Blanca Canales, was one of the most notable uprisings of October 30, 1950. It may possibly have been the first time a woman has led a revolt against the United States. In the town square, Canales gave a speech and declared Puerto Rico a free Republic. The town was attacked from the air with P-47 U.S. bomber planes and on land with heavy artillery. The town was held by the Nationalists for three days. San Juan Nationalist revolt Díaz Pacheco was in charge of the group involved in the San Juan revolt. The objective of the revolt was to assassinate the Governor of Puerto Rico Luis Muñoz Marín, at his residence La Fortaleza. They got out of the car with a submachine gun and pistols in hand and immediately began firing at the mansion. Díaz Pacheco headed towards the mansion while the others took cover close to their car, and fired pistols from their positions. The Fortaleza guards and police, who knew of the planned attack thanks to a double agent name E. Rivera Orellana, were already in defensive positions and returned fire. Hernández, who was also severely wounded, continued firing at the police from under his car. A police officer and a detective from La Fortaleza with submachine guns approached the car and fired upon Hernández, Carlos Hiraldo Resto and Torres Medina. Both Carlos Hiraldo Resto and Torres Medina were killed, and their motionless bodies were by the right side of the car. Hernández was believed to be dead, however he wasn't, and he was taken to the local hospital along with the wounded police officers where they were operated on for their respective wounds. The battle lasted 15 minutes and at the end of the battle there were five nationalist casualties (four dead and one wounded) plus three wounded police officers. E. Rivera Orellana, a sixth "Nationalist" who later turned out to be an undercover agent, was arrested near La Fortaleza and later released. Arrests and accusations ==Aftermath==

The revolt of October 1950 failed because of the overwhelming force used by the U.S. military, the U.S. National Guard, the FBI, the CIA, and the Puerto Rican Insular Police—all of whom were aligned against the Nationalists. This force was responsible for the machinegunning of Nationalists and Cadets alike and the aerial bombing of the towns of Jayuya and Utuado. The United States Constitution places final control of territorial affairs with Congress. However, the responses to the uprising appeared to emanate independently from the federal and local authorities. President Harry S. Truman distanced himself entirely from the uprisings and acted as though they had never occurred. In addition, the news of the U.S. military response, which killed dozens of Puerto Ricans and wounded hundreds more, was prevented from spreading outside of Puerto Rico. Instead, it was called an "incident between Puerto Ricans." The Carpetas program was a massive collection of information gathered by the island's police on so-called "political subversives". The police had in its possession thousands of extensive carpetas (files) concerning individuals of all social groups and ages. Approximately 75,000 persons were listed as under political police surveillance. The massive surveillance apparatus was aimed primarily against Puerto Rico's independence movement. Thus, many independence supporters moved to the Popular Democratic Party as a means to an end to stop statehood. ==Further reading==