India, May 21 -- Long before Raul Castro became Cuba's president, his wife Vilma Espin had already emerged as one of the most recognizable women of the Cuban Revolution.

Following renewed attention on Raul Castro after federal prosecutors in the US announced murder-related charges tied to the 1996 Brothers to the Rescue plane shootdown, interest has also returned to the longtime Cuban leader's personal life and family.

Espin, who died in 2007 at age 77, was widely considered Cuba's unofficial first lady for decades and remained one of the Communist Party's most influential women until her death.

Born in Santiago de Cuba in 1930 to a wealthy family connected to the Bacardi rum business, Espin became one of the first Cuban women to earn ...