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Fidel Castro Assumes Power of Cuba
Fidel Takes Cuba
On January 1st, 1959, Fidel Castro took control of Cuba after the Cuban Revolution with his small guerilla forces in Havenna. President Batista and 180 of his associates flee the country. Through the months of January and February, Fidel Castro executes 500 of President Batista's officials. Within the month of February, Fidel Castro becomes the prime minister of Cuba. -
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Cuban Missile Crisis
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Cuba Aligns With The Soviet Union
On December 19, 1960, Cuba openly aligned itself with the Soviet Union and its policies. This is a huge deal as a country not far from the U.S. turns into a communist country. The spread of communism had spread to the western hemisphere. The Soviet Union and Cuba oppose the western civilization and constantly looked for evidence that would undermine economic freedom. The alliance of the two countries meant that trade and financial support would increase greatly between the countries. -
The Bay of Pigs
Bay of Pigs Invasion
On April 17, 1961, backed by the U.S., a group of cuban exiles invaded Cuba at The Bay of Pigs in an attempt to trigger an anti-Castro rebellion. The invasion fails and over a thousand Cuban rebels are captured by Castro's forces. The attack was an attempt to overthrow Castro because the U.S. did not want him as the leader of Cuba. The attack broke all relations between Cuba and the U.S. -
Castro Threatens A World War
On July 27, 1962, Castro announced that Cuba is taking measures that would make any U.S. attack on Cuba the equivelant of a world war. He claimed that the U.S.S.R. had invested greatly in helping defend his country. If another world war occured then that meant that all the countries would be divided to aid either the communist block which had spread though most of western civilization. Although there were neutral countries, this would have made the biggest on society than the other 2 world wars. -
CIA Debriefs Kennedy
On August 10, 1962, the CIA Director John McCone sends a memo to Kennedy expressing his belief that Soviet medium-range ballistic missiles (MRBMs) will be deployed in Cuba. At the time the Soviet Union did not have long ranged missiles like the U.S. Not to mention the U.S. posted nuclear warheads in Turkey. So placing MRBMs in Cuba would give the Soviet Union a foothold on the United States. Missiles in Cuba can not be allowed by the U.S. government. -
A U-2 Discovers Missile Sites
On October 14, 1962, A U-2 flying over western Cuba discovers missile sites. Photographs obtained by this flight provide hard evidence that the Soviet Union have placed missiles in Cuba. These photos show proof that SAMs are in Cuba. These pictures could lead to the fact that the U.S. may invade Cuba to dismantle the Missiles. The SAMs in Cuba could be used to shoot down the U.S.’s U-2 spy crafts that go over Cuba. -
EX-COMM Is Established
McGeorge Bundy (Special Assistant for National Security Affairs) breaks the news to Kennedy who calls a meeting with a group of advisers, which is later known as EX-COMM (Executive Committee), to discuss the recent discovery of the missiles in Cuba. The Committee came up with 6 different options. 1st is Do nothing. The 2ND is negotiate. The 3rd is Invade. the 4Th blockade of Cuba. The 5Th is Bomb missile bases. And 6Th is go to Nuclear War with the Soviet Union and Cuba. -
Kennedy Informs the Nation
Kennedy Announcement
President Kennedy informs the nation that the Soviets have placed nuclear missiles in Cuba. The U.S goes into DEFCON 3. Marines go to support U.S. military base in Guantanamo Bay. The army placed 125,000 men in Florida to wait for orders to invade Cuba. A poll was taken and 3 of 5 Americans believed that we were going to Nuclear War with the Soviet Union. -
DEFCON 2
On October 24, 1962, the nation goes into DEFCON 2 the highest alert phase in the countries history. While the country was at DEFCON 2 that meant that the country was a little less in the force readiness. If the country was to go to DEFCON 1 that would mean missiles have been shot at the U.S. Our armed forces would be at its maximum security and a nuclear war was imminent. Soviet cargo was being shipped to Cuba at the time all of them either slowed down or turned around except for 1 ship. -
Cuban Missile Crisis Ends
President Kennedy and the Soviet leader, Nikita Khrushchev, agree that the United States won’t attack Cuba and that the Soviets will dismantle the missiles and the missile developments in Cuba. Twenty five years without the United States’ knowledge, President Kennedy also agreed to remove the U.S. missiles in Turkey. The Cuban Missile Crises has been averted and has set up a direct line of communication between the U.S. and the Soviet Union.
