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Nicaragua Sandinista Guerrilla Movement, 1961-79
The FSLN was officially founded in Honduras on the
symbolic
date of July 26, 1961, the eighth anniversary of the
launching of
the Cuban revolution by Fidel Castro Ruz. The FSLN
operated at
first in the mountainous region that forms the border
between
Honduras and Nicaragua. Early successes were few, however,
and
the hardships and sheer effort of surviving led to
discontent and
desertions. Between 1970 and 1974, the FSLN struggled to
broaden
its bases of support by conducting guerrilla operations in
the
countryside while recruiting new supporters in the cities.
Its
rural guerrilla tactics were patterned after those of
Castro's
forces, and FSLN forces were trained in Cuba.
For many observers, the FSLN first became a force to be
reckoned with when it executed a spectacular raid and
hostagetaking at a reception for the United States ambassador in
Managua
in December 1974
(see The End of the Anastasio Somoza Debayle Era
, ch. 1). The Anastasio Somoza Debayle administration
was
forced to accede to humiliating FSLN demands for ransom
and
political freedom for fourteen FSLN prisoners. The
National Guard
followed with a major counteroffensive that reduced armed
resistance in the countryside. The FSLN remained on the
defensive
until 1977, but the guard's harsh reprisals caused popular
feeling to swing even more toward the Sandinistas.
The seizure of the National Palace by a small group of
Sandinistas in August 1978 sparked a mass uprising in the
following month. The uprising was a turning point in the
struggle
to overthrow Anastasio Somoza Debayle. The FSLN no longer
was
fighting alone but rather was organizing and controlling a
national insurrection of citizens eager to join the
anti-Somoza
movement. Hard-core Sandinista guerrillas numbered perhaps
2,000
to 3,000; untrained popular militias and foreign
supporters added
several thousand more to this total. Although the "first
offensive" of September 1978 declined toward the end of
the year,
fighting did not completely stop. The FSLN mounted its
"final
offensive" in May 1979, capturing a number of cities in
June, and
launching a three-pronged assault against Managua in early
July.
When Anastasio Somoza Debayle, strongly urged by the
United
States, resigned on July 16 and fled the country, the
National
Guard collapsed two days later.
Data as of December 1993
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