Battle of Calimete

In the Mambí camp, the target was hit and the men immediately prepared for action. The Spanish column began the march at 06:30 while a thick fog still covered the entire terrain. His vanguard, in which Lieutenant Colonel Perera marched, was made up of a company under the command of Captain Cabello and his extreme guard was made up of the cavalry platoon that received the first shots from the Cuban advance, which immediately fell back on the infantry. The enemy continued to advance for some 1,200 meters until it was contained by the fire generated by the Cuban infantry, which responded while withdrawing, taking action on the road and the surrounding cane fields.

Gómez and Maceo witnessed the execution of a prisoner sentenced to death for violating the honor of a woman. The Spanish projectiles began to arrive there. The enemy cavalry platoon fell back to leave the infantry action. At those moments the horse of the Spanish chief fell, who received a strong blow and had to hand over command to Captain Cabello.

The Cuban vanguard, which had already started the advance when the combat began, stopped waiting for orders. The objective of Gómez and Maceo was to continue the march towards the West as soon as possible. For this reason, although the facilities of the mill offered an excellent defensive position, they did not try to sustain the combat there and, on the other hand, there was a great danger that other Spanish columns would come that could ruin the invasion. The left flank of the Spaniards tried to force the right flank of the Cubans, to force them to lie on the right and force the outcome. The insurrectionary infantry took refuge in the walls of the mill and with effective fire contained the attack.^[2]

The Cuban command ordered the charge against the enemy's right flank to alleviate the pressure it exerted, but it was necessary to give several charges because the Spanish infantry remained firm in their positions. These attacks by the Cuban cavalry were personally directed by Major General Serafín Sánchez, who finally achieved his objective. Later, although the enemy troops maintained their position, their offensive capacity was diminished and their command ordered the withdrawal on Calimete, relying on the reserves.

The Spanish casualties were 22 dead and 75 wounded. The Cubans had 16 dead and 69 wounded. The invading column was organized in order of march still under fire from the Spanish reserve, carrying a convoy of 36 wounded, some of which were serious wounds. After being attacked on two more occasions, she arrived at Mostacilla at 9:00 p.m. that day, about 12 km northwest of Colón.

This combat represented a decisive moment for the "Invasion". After brilliantly executing the "Lazo de la Invasión" and leaving the Spanish forces in the limits of Cienfuegos Province, the invading troops meet a Spanish column in the surroundings of Calimete, causing a devastating defeat and obtaining this way an easy entry into the La Habana Province, moving the war almost to the capital of the Captaincy General of Cuba.

• Testimonies of Lic. IIeana Reyes Herrera Historian of the Municipality.
• Historical Archives of the Municipal Museum Combate de Godínez