Gómez believed that only an economic catastrophe would involve the whole island and force the Spanish to grant independence, as the cost of maintaining control became too great. However, when Martí died in an ambush soon after landing in Cuba, Gómez assumed command and decided to target the already battered sugar industry. Martí announced that the war would be conducted by conventional means.

The military leaders of the new revolutionary army, José Martí, Máximo Gómez, and Antonio Maceo, began offensive operations on the island in April 1895. Many Cuban businessmen blamed Spanish-American competition for their woes, and they thought that autonomy from Spain and closer economic ties with the United States would bring a return to prosperity. Congress responded to the economic crisis in part by raising tariffs on sugar imports from Cuba, plunging the island's export-dependent economy into a deep depression. The movement also gained support in the Cuban business community following the depression of 1893 in the United States.

Cuban emigrés in the United States formed clubs, raised money, and gained support from labor unions and the press.

Navy war college president firing