By: Alejandro García Gutiérrez & Oreidis Pimentel Pérez

Camagüey is also a city of lawyers. Not only can we talk about the Agramontes, an illustrious family of Camagüey lawyers, but we must also take into account personalities such as Tomás Pío Betancourt, also recognized as the first historian of the city.

Similar is the case of José Ramón Betancourt, who took the lead in the study and dissemination of history in the territory and was the promoter of the famous charity fairs, in which the people of Camagüey used to sell their products, mainly livestock, and that sometime later it was linked to one of the most genuine traditions of this land: the San Juan Camagüeyano.

This profession was strongly linked to the Independence of Cuba, it is estimated that around 18 lawyers conspired against the crown in the last five years of 1860.

We must also speak of other well-known personalities such as Emilio Agramonte Piña, Alfredo Correoso Quesada, Antonio and Felipe Pichardo Moya, Rubén de Queda and a very peculiar character such as Temístocles Betancourt del Castillo, who became President of the Supreme Court of Cuba during the first years of the Republic and in his youth he earned merits and was considered the best baseball player in Camagüey in the 19th century.

In the same way, Camagüey was the headquarters of renowned institutions related to law such as the Royal Court of Puerto Príncipe or the prestigious Puerto Príncipe Bar Association, where important personalities such as Antonio Bachiller y Morales, the Father of Cuban Bibliography, graduated.

Throughout history, the legal profession has become a prestigious profession in the city of the waterpots, reaching its highest point of pride in the figure of Ignacio Agramonte, El Mayor, a patriot for whom it is celebrated every June 8th the day of the Cuban lawyer.

Translated by: Aileen Álvarez García