text: The Battle of Guantánamo Bay was fought from June 6 to June 14 in 1898, during the Spanish–American War, when American and Cuban forces seized the strategically and commercially important harbor of Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. Capturing the bay from the Spanish forces was instrumental in the following Battle of Santiago de Cuba and the subsequent invasion of Puerto Rico. Although overshadowed by the land and sea battles at Santiago, the establishment of the United States naval base at Guantánamo Bay and the rout of defending Spanish troops by American and Cuban forces was important in the final Spanish defeat.
  Background
  Cuba had been in rebellion against Spain since 1895. Soon after the rebellion began, two insurgent leaders – José Martí and General Máximo Gómez – had landed at the beach of Cajobabo, between Guantánamo Bay and Cape Maisí, but after three years of fighting throughout the island, the rebels had only been successful in two provinces – Oriente and Camagüey.