García was born in Holguín to parents of Cuban "Criollo" descent. He was a large, strong, educated man with a short fuse. García was the grandson of Calixto García de Luna e Izquierdo, who had fought as royalist in the Battle of Carabobo in 1821 during Venezuelan War of Independence. His grandmother was Maria de los Angeles Gonzalez, said to be the daughter of a "cacique" from Valencia, Venezuela. His grandfather (who had dropped the aristocratic "de Luna" upon taking refuge in Cuba) had been jailed on March 18, 1837 for demanding emancipation of slaves, constitutional freedom for all, and allegedly trying to hang a priest who opposed him. As befitted a man of importance of that time, Calixto had a wife, Isabel Velez Cabrera, and a good number of mistresses; these women gave birth to many children both legitimate (about 7) and illegitimate (at least six, each to a different woman). A number of his sons, most notably Carlos García Velez and Calixto Enamorado, fought in his armies.