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Introduction
The Bay of Pigs invasion is one of the biggest unsuccessful invasions in U.S. history. Though the invasion had good intentions, a bit of miscommunication along with being outnumbered, left the Cuban exiles who were fighting for the U.S. back at the hands of Fidel Castro. The purpose of this timeline is to show the process of how President Eisenhower started the process of the invasion but was carried out by President Kennedy. -
January 1st, 1959
Fidel Castro, a Cuban Nationalist, came into power when he went into Havana with his guerilla army and overthrew General Fulgencio Batista.
Source: (http://www.history.com/s3static/video-thumbnails/AETN-History_Prod/84/614/History_Speeches_4010_Castro_Assumes_Power_Cuba_SF_still_624x352.jpg) -
January 1960
U.S. aircrafts begin dropping napalm bombs on oil refineries and sugar cane fields in Cuba.
Source: http://www.urrib2000.narod.ru/Giron6.jpg -
August 18th, 1960
President Eisenhower approves $13,000,000 budget needed for the invasion of Cuba.
Source: (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/88/General_of_the_Army_Dwight_D._Eisenhower_1947.jpg) -
October 1960
The U.S. places an embargo on Cuba after Cuba begins open relations with the Soviet Union. The only export going to Cuba from the U.S. was medicine.
Source: http://media4.s-nbcnews.com/j/streams/2013/november/131119/2d9730522-131118-castro-nikita-446p.nbcnews-ux-2880-1000.jpg -
January 20th, 1961
John F. Kennedy becomes the president of the United States.
Source: http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2005/05/09/books/kennedy450.jpg -
April 15th, 1961
A strike was made by Cuban exiles, who were flying planes that were painted to look like stolen Cuban planes.
Source: https://i.ytimg.com/vi/Tly92K8WcC8/hqdefault.jpg -
April 16th, 1961
President Kennedy cancelled the invasion very last minute due to wanting to make the invasion look like it had been done not by the U.S. but instead by the Cuban exiles.
Source: http://www.researchhistory.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/president-kennedy_AP610316023_620x433.jpg
https://makinghistoryatnorthumbria.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/bay-of-pigs11.jpg -
April 17th, 1961
The invasion officially began. Brigade 2506, made up of Cuban exiles, invaded the Bahia de Cochinos, also known as the Bay of Pigs.
Source: http://www.theblaze.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Bay-of-Pigs-Castro-Militia.jpg -
April 19th, 1961
Castro’s forces had defeated the Cuban exiles due to a miscommunication that had led to the exiles to be without direct air support- which meant no artillery or weapons. Brigade 2506 surrendered to the Cubans.
Source: https://makinghistoryatnorthumbria.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/bay-of-pigs11.jpg -
December 21st, 1961
Castro along with CIA legal officers came to an agreement to exchange 1,113 prisoners, captured during the invasion, for $53 million in food and medicine.
Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4d/Fidel_Castro_-_UN_General_Assembly_1960.jpg
