A Cuban revolutionary who fought alongside former Communist leader Fidel Castro, died of a heart attack Friday evening.

Juan Almeida, 82, was among only a handful of surviving Cuban leaders who still bore the title “Commander of the Revolution.”

He was among only a few black leaders in top government posts, occupying the vice presidency of the Communist government Central Committee.

Almeida was a widely admired figure who fought with Fidel and Raul Castro at the start of their campesino-led revolution, participating in the failed attacks on the Moncada army barracks in 1953 and later aboard the famed yacht, “Granma,” that carried the small group of Cuban rebels who would later topple US-backed dictator Fulgencio Batista.

(via CNN)