ABSTRACT
The Cuban Revolution had all the appearance of a triumph of individual heroism. Castro's achievement in overthrowing the Batista regime and defying the United States encouraged a millenarian belief in the capacity of the will to overcome all obstacles. The relative ease of the Revolution and the enthusiasm it aroused among millions of Cubans led Castro and his followers to believe that with the same determination and political flair the Cubans could be mobilised to triumph over the intractable problem of underdevelopment. The handicaps were immense: Cuba was a small, only partially developed island that seemed trapped by its sugar monoculture and dependent on Soviet support for the survival of the Revolution. Nevertheless, the battle for modernisation and economic sovereignty, fought under the banner of socialism, became Castro's central preoccupation as soon as he had won power. The swings in his policies during the first decade of his rule can only be understood in the light of this grand illusion.
