Ernesto “Che” Guevara was a famous left-wing revolutionary who participated in many Latin American insurrections and rebellions. Born in Rosario, Argentina, he rose to fame as one of the main intellectual leaders of the Cuban Revolution alongside Fidel Castro. After the success of the revolution, Guevara led a brief political career in Cuba. He later traveled to the Congo to support the Simba rebellion movement. Guevara’s revolutionary struggle came to an end when he joined the Bolivian insurgency. He met his fate in October 1967.
1. Che Guevara Wasn’t Born in Cuba
Arguably, Che Guevara’s most notable achievement was his participation in the Cuban Revolution. Given the nationalist bent of the Cuban Revolution, it may be surprising to learn that Che himself wasn’t Cuban. Guevara was born in Rosario, Argentina in 1928, during the “Infamous Decade,” a period in Argentinian history defined by dictatorship and the consolidation of conservative government. Che grew up during the rise of Peronism, the grassroots left-wing labor movement, as well as anti-Peronism, the reaction against it.
Guevara would travel a lot in his youth, eventually ending up in Mexico, where he met Fidel Castro and his revolutionary Movimiento 26 de Julio (July 26th Movement). In 1956, after training in guerilla fighting in Mexico, Che joined Castro and the rest of the guerilla fighters in their covert invasion of Cuba. In 1959, after years of fighting, the revolutionaries triumphed. Guevara eventually became a Cuban citizen.
2. His Real Name Was Ernesto Guevara
Ernesto Guevara was the name given to the Argentinian revolutionary when he was born. His parents were Ernesto Guevara Lynch and Celia de la Serna. In many Hispanic cultures today, including most of Latin America, children are given both parents’ surnames, both of which are part of their legal name, with the father’s last name taking precedence. However, when Guevara was born, this convention was not adopted, and the full name on his birth certificate was “Ernesto Guevara.” Guevara was most famously known as “el Che” or simply “Che,” but this nickname came not from his name but from common Argentinian slang—“che” meant something along the lines of “mate” or “friend” colloquially. To his fellow Cuban fighters, “Che” became the nickname for Guevara, an endearing term of affection derived from mockery.
3. Guevara Had Irish blood
Che’s father, Ernesto Guevara Lynch, was the descendant of generations that originated in Ireland. In the 1700s, Patrick Lynch, Guevara’s ancestor, migrated from Ireland to Argentina. Like other impoverished and marginalized European peoples, many Irish people suffered and chose to leave their country in hopes of a better life in some remote fertile land. Argentina became home to many such Europeans, including Che’s forbearers.
It is said that Che’s father once said that his son’s rebellious nature could be traced to his Irish blood. Juan Guevara, Che’s younger brother, admitted that their father enjoyed the rowdiness and rebellious parts of their Irish heritage. He was known to love a party. In 2017, in honor of Guevara’s Irish ancestry, the Irish post office issued a commemorative stamp depicting Che’s iconic profile.
4. Che Was a Doctor
Long before Ernesto Guevara became the famous guerilla fighter the world would know him as, he trained as a physician. Che studied medicine at the University of Buenos Aires after having been ill for much of his childhood. Guevara had asthma, and his temperature had to be taken 10 times a day, according to his mother. He led a sheltered life until his mother ultimately decided to give him a normal life, even if it meant a struggle for him. In 1953, Guevara graduated from the Faculty of Medicine with a specialty in leprosy. After leaving university in Argentina, Guevara interned at the General Hospital in Mexico City but left in 1955 to join Fidel and Raul Castro as a medic in their expedition.
5. He Held Multiple Positions in the Cuban Government
It is no surprise that one of Fidel Castro’s closest allies became an important leader inside Cuba’s newly established revolutionary government. What some may find surprising, however, is the number of roles Che took on in the Cuban state. Initially, Guevara was named Chief of the San Carlos de la Cabaña Fortress at the Bay of Havana. He soon found himself migrating from role to role, from Director of the National Institute of Agrarian Reform’s Department of Industrialization to Minister of Industry, to even President of the National Bank of Cuba, where he famously signed banknotes “Che.” But perhaps more importantly, officially and unofficially, Guevara became a representative of the Cuban revolution on the world stage, forming a special relationship with the Soviet Union and other world governments aligned to the left of the political spectrum.
6. He Helped Increase Literacy Rates in Cuba
One of the Cuban Revolution’s landmark achievements was the virtual abolishment of illiteracy in the country. Spearheaded by Che, the Campaña Nacional de Alfabetización en Cuba (Cuban National Literacy Campaign) deployed an army of volunteers that promised to educate young and old in a time span of eight months. The literacy campaign produced incredible results, and, by 1961, the Cuban government had proclaimed success and declared Cuba a “Territory Free of Illiteracy.” A Cuban organization was awarded the King Sejong Literacy Prize by UNESCO, and the very same UNESCO published a report that confirmed the campaign’s success and cemented the Cuban government’s efforts.
7. He Took One Crucial Bike Trip Across South America
During his formative years, Guevara took an epic motorcycle trip across South America. Guevara traveled alongside his friend Alberto Granado. Both Guevara and Granado had been studying at university but, upon finishing, chose to take a break from student life and see the world. Before surrendering themselves to the process of getting their “títulos” (professional degrees), Guevara and Granado opted for an exciting change of scene, one that would unwittingly set into motion the creation of the man now known as el Che.
The friends traveled across Argentina, Chile, Peru, Colombia, and Venezuela. By the time Guevara reached the Argentinian border with Chile, a letter sent by “Chichina” was already awaiting him, breaking up with Guevara from a distance. The adventure Guevara and Granado set out to make ended up bringing them into close contact with the broad injustices and inequalities throughout Latin America. Ernesto Guevara was no longer; El Che, the revolutionary, was born.
8. Guevara Became Radicalized Against the United States in Guatemala
Shortly after leaving the University of Buenos Aires, Guevara traveled with friends to Central America. Unrelated to Guevara’s motorcycle journey, this experience proved equally transformative. Eventually, the friend group ended up in Guatemala, hoping to see what they believed was one of the only truly revolutionary endeavors on the continent: the Guatemalan Agrarian Reform. Jacobo Arbenz’s government had issued Decreto 900, by which an ambitious agrarian reform was put into action, going directly against local elites and the American-based United Fruit Company.
The expropriation of land carried out under the reform drew suspicions of communism in the US. In 1954, Arbenz’s government was deposed in a US-backed coup, largely as a result of longtime CIA covert operations in the region and heavy United Fruit Company lobbying of the United States government. Afterward, Guevara became convinced that the United States was an imperialist superpower and began seeing it as a threat.
9. Che Had Five Children
Guevara had at least five children, though there are some suggestions that Che fathered a sixth child in an extramarital affair. Guevara’s first child came from his marriage with fellow Peruvian revolutionary Hilda Gadea. Hilda Guevara was the only child from Guevara’s first marriage but eventually had four half-siblings. After Guevara married fellow Cuban revolutionary Aleida March Torres, the couple had four children: Aleida, Camilo, Celia, and Ernesto.
Guevara and his family were only together until 1967 when he was killed in Bolivia. His daughter, Aleida, recalls having little time with her father; she was only six when he was executed. Her brother, Ernesto, born in 1965, barely even knew his father. That said, the Guevaras were, by all accounts, a humble, caring family. And though they chose not to be surrounded by privilege, they enjoyed a good life in Cuba with friends like Fidel Castro himself.
10. Che’s Face Is Famous Worldwide
Che Guevara’s portrait may be one of the most famous in history. Photographed by Cuban photographer Alberto Korda, Guevara’s stoic front-facing portrait immortalized him as the Guerrillero Heroico, or the heroic guerilla fighter. If there is a single reason that Guevara is known worldwide and so easily recognizable, it is Korda’s portrait. The photograph, taken in a rather solemn context, would later be transformed into a two-color image by Irish artist Jim Fitzpatrick. Both Korda’s and Fitzpatrick’s images proved consequential, and the face of Guevara came to be synonymous with the face of revolution. Yet, while many can identify Guevara as the man in the image, the question remains: how much do they really know about Che?
