Pedro Betancourt Dávalos was born on August 6, 1858, in La Palma near the town of Sabanilla del Encomendador, Matanzas Province. His parents were Juan Florencio Betancourt and Clotilde Davalos. His early studies took place at "Las Normales" in the city of Matanzas. He would return to the family farm in Sabanilla during the holidays. Later, his secondary school, "La Empresa", was run by the Guitars brothers. At this time he was exposed to liberal and revolutionary ideas. The school was closed by order of the Spanish government at the beginning of the war in 1868. He graduated from high school in 1874, and went on to study medicine at the University of Havana. In 1878, he entered the University of Pennsylvania, from which he graduated in 1881.