1961 - Detail

April 17, 1961 - The Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba is repulsed by Cuban forces in an attempt by Cuban exiles under the direction of the United States government to overthrow the regime of Fidel Castro.



Cuba, so close to the state of Florida, had been in the eyes of the United States for several centuries. It had been under American control, a dictatorship under Batista, and was now in the control of Fidel Castro, whom we had backed in the uprising that dethroned Batista. However, now, as of 1961, it was pretty apparent that Mr. Castro had no desire to become part of the democratic western hemisphere, he had chosen an alliance with Nikita Kruschev and the Soviet Union. Diplomatic relations had been severed in January of that year. Three months later a secret plan had been hatched under the watchful eye of the Central Intelligence Agency and the National Security apparatus. With President John F. Kennedy's knowledge, an invasion would be launched using Cuban exiles, with some reconnaisance by American planes. For want of a better explanation or sense of the outcome, ... it failed.

Cuba's Fundamental Law

The invasion of the Bay of Pigs by the CIA and NSA Service of the John F. Kennedy Administration in 1961, was a failed effort to removed Fidel Castro and his new regime. Listen to Kennedy in a private conversation with his aide after the battle talking about the failures and how the press is handling the story.

Cuban, United States, and Russian Relations

Photo above: Cuban soldiers marching down a Havana street, part of Fidel Castro's force that would take over the country as well as quell the invasion two years later, 1959, Unknown Author. Courtesy Wikipedia Commons. Photo below: The explosion of the Cuban ship La Coubre, which Castro considered USA sabatoge, 1960, Unknown Author. Courtesy Wikipedia Commons. Info source: Wikipedia Commons;

History Photo Bomb

Crowds of the Civil Rights March in Washington, D.C. surround the Washington Monument. August 28, 1963. Courtesy National Archives.

San Cristobal, Cuba. Aerial photo of the Medium Range Ballistic Missile Launch Site, Number Two. Photo: Department of Defense, November 1, 1962. Courtesy National Archives.

Official Souvenirs
America's Best History

President Richard Nixon. Courtesy National Archives.

ABH Travel Tip

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