Francisco Adolfo Crombet Tejera

Cuban patriot and fighter in the three independence wars. He was appointed head, in commission, of the division of Cuba and Bayamo. Major general. He landed alongside Maceo at "Duaba". He participated in the Ten Years' War and protested alongside Maceo at Mangos de Baraguá in defense of Cuba's total and definitive independence.

He was born in El Cobre, Santiago de Cuba, province of Oriente. A scholar of terrain and of the ordinances and laws of the Liberating Army, for which he distinguished himself as a disciplined officer and diligent in his duties.

Fighter in all three wars. He rose up on November 20, 1868, joining as a soldier the forces of Colonel Ángel Bárzaga. Ten days later he came under the command of then-Colonel Jesús Pérez. He earned his ranks on the battlefield. His fame spread throughout eastern Cuba, especially in Santiago de Cuba and Guantánamo, and he participated in the preparations for the so-called Little War. Some historians claim his second surname was Calderín and others that it was Bayón.

He was promoted to second corporal for the attack on "Nueva Málaga"; to first corporal for the taking of "La Dorotea"; to second sergeant for the attack on "La Matilde"; to first sergeant (July 22, 1869) for the attack on "La Aurora"; to ensign for the defense of the "Gurjiay" encampment; to lieutenant for the taking of "Tío Juan"; to captain (September 13, 1869) for the taking of "El Cristal"; to major (August 12, 1871) for the battle of "Cafetal de La Indiana"; and to lieutenant colonel (July 24, 1872) for the attack on "Samá".

In July 1873 he was subordinate to Brigadier General Antonio Maceo, chief of the second division of the first Eastern corps. He was selected by Major General Máximo Gómez to be part of the first invading contingent in early 1874. During the battle of "Naranjo Mojacasabe" (February 10, 1874) he received a wound on his upper lip that marked him forever. He participated in the battle of "Las Guásimas" on March 19, 1874, and in the attack on "Caobillas" (September 10, 1874), all in the province of Camagüey.

On September 30, 1874, he returned to Oriente alongside Maceo to rejoin the Cuba division (First Corps of the Second Division). On March 3, 1875, he participated in the attack on the sugar mill "Sabanilla". On October 27, 1875, he was promoted to colonel. In January 1876, he attacked and took the settlement of "Guayabales". In 1877, he was appointed head of the "Guanimao Regiment" and participated in the attack on "El Cobre" and in the defense of his encampment at "El Aguacate".

He played an active role in the Protest of Baraguá, where he reproached Major General Antonio Maceo for granting an interview to Spanish Captain General Arsenio Martínez Campos, as he believed there should be no contact whatsoever with the enemy. The provisional government of Baraguá promoted him to brigadier general and appointed him head, in commission, of the division of Cuba and Bayazo. On May 8, 1878, he attacked the settlement of Aserradero.

After capitulating, he went to New York, United States, to return months later with the objective of organizing a new uprising. While preparing for the Little War in Oriente, he was detained in Santiago de Cuba on March 13, 1879, and sent to Spain. After 23 months of imprisonment and exile, he managed to escape and settle in Central America.

In Honduras, he successively held the positions of commanding general of the "La Paz" department, inspector general of quarters, and secretary of the supreme court of war and justice, from which he resigned in 1884 to dedicate himself to the preparations for a new war of independence in Cuba. In 1890, he actively participated in the failed conspiracy known as "La Paz del Manganeso". Discovered, he was forced to leave for Costa Rica, from where he collaborated in the organization of the "Plan Fernandina".

In the United States, he met José Martí, who appointed him to lead the expedition that would arrive on Cuban shores on April 1, 1895, to restart the Necessary War.

After this failed, he departed from the port of "Limón", Costa Rica, on March 25, 1895, on the steamship "Adirondack", leading 22 expeditioners, among whom were the brothers Antonio and José Maceo. After stopping in Kingston, Jamaica, they headed to Fortuna Island in the Bahamas, where they boarded the schooner Honor.

They landed on April 1, 1895, at Duaba, near Baracoa, Oriente, being tenaciously pursued by the enemy. On the 8th, an encounter with an ambush set by guerrillas caused the group to disperse.

On April 10, 1895, Crombet fell fighting at "Alto de Palmarito", Baracoa, where this event is remembered and that Martian phrase is repeated: "...Flor has a noble heart, sound judgment, and thinks as I do about Cuba's future destinies".

On June 30, 1899, the executive commission of the assembly of representatives of the Cuban revolution issued his diploma of Major General with seniority dating from April 1, 1895.

Source: Wikipedia.org