Revision Diary

Cuban Missiles Crisis, 1962

       

The background in Cuba; Castro; friendship with USSR;

       Kennedy and the Bay of Pigs; the crisis of 1962 and its results.

 

 

As you revise this, you ought to know about the background to Cuba (including the Bay of Pigs), the events of the crisis and its results.

 

It is worth knowing about this is good detail - make sure your factual knowledge is secure and extensive.

  

  

  

Background

1.   By 1960, superpower tension was at an all time high:

•    arms race - both sides were nuclear testing, and the Americans had recently put ICBMs in Turkey

•    America was funding anti-Communists in Vietnam,

•    the U2 crisis

•    the failed summit meetings at Paris (1960) and Vienna (1961)

•    the Berlin Wall. 

  

2   There were especial problems in Cuba:

•    In 1959, Fidel Castro took power in Cuba.

•    In 1960 he nationalised all American-owned companies.

•    In retaliation, the Americans stopped trading with Cuba.  

•    So Castro made a trade agreement with Russia, whereby Cuba sent sugar to Russia, in return for oil, machines and money.   Castro became a Communist.

•    April 1961: the CIA supported the failed Bay of Pigs invasion

•    Sept 1961: Castro asked for (and Russia publicly promised) weapons to defend Cuba against America.

  

     

  

The Bay of Pigs, 1961

Background

•    Background of tension - arms race/ U2/ Berlin Wall

•    In 1959, the Communist Fidel Castro took power in Cuba.

•    In 1960 he nationalised all American-owned companies.

•    In retaliation, the Americans stopped trading with Cuba.  

•    So Castro made a trade agreement with Russia, whereby Cuba sent sugar to Russia, in return for oil, machines and money.   Castro became a Communist.

•    President Eisenhower told the CIA to collect, fund and arms a force of Cuban exiles.

Meat

•   The CIA persuaded Kennedy to agree to an invasion.

•   17 April 1961, a force of 1500 Cuban exiles was transported to the Bay of Pigs in Cuba.

•   The local inhabitants immediately betrayed them to Castro's forces.

•   They were easily defeated - by 21 April 1,173 had been taken prisoner.

End

•   Kennedy was humiliated.

•   In Sept 1961: Castro asked for (and Russia publicly promised) weapons to defend Cuba against America - this led directly to the Cuban missiles crisis of 1962.

•   In 1962, America paid $53 million dollars-worth of food and medicines to ransom the captured soldiers.

•   The CIA internal report on the failure blamed CIA ignorance and incompetence - Kennedy never trusted the CIA again

     

  

  

The Cuban Missiles Crisis, 1962

Background

•    Background of tension - arms race/ U2/ Berlin Wall

•    In 1959, the Communist Fidel Castro took power in Cuba.

•    In 1960 he nationalised all American-owned companies.

•    In retaliation, the Americans stopped trading with Cuba.  

•    So Castro made a trade agreement with Russia, whereby Cuba sent sugar to Russia, in return for oil, machines and money.   Castro became a Communist.

•    April 1961: the CIA supported the failed Bay of Pigs invasion

•    Sept 1961: Castro asked for (and Russia publicly promised) weapons to defend Cuba against America.

Meat

•   14 Oct: an American U2 spy-plane took pictures of missile sites being built on Cuba.  Kennedy called the National Security Council, who told him he had 10 days to act.   Some options (e.g. invasion of Cuba) were very dangerous because they would have caused a World War.

•    22 Oct: Kennedy announced on TV that he was mounting a naval blockade of Cuba.   He said he would not 'shrink from the risk' of world war.   Khrushchev accused him of 'piracy', and promised ‘a fitting reply to the aggressor’.

•    25 Oct: the first Russian ship reached the naval blockade.   It was an oil ship and was allowed through.   All the other Russian ships turned back.   Secretly, the US government offered to remove US missiles in Turkey in exchange for those in Cuba.

•    26 Oct: Kennedy was about to authorise an invasion of Cuba.   Then, at 6pm, Khrushchev sent a telegram offering to dismantle the sites if Kennedy would lift the blockade and agree not to invade Cuba.

•    27 Oct: Before Kennedy could reply, Khrushchev sent another letter, demanding that Kennedy also dismantle American missile sites in Turkey.   On the same day, a U2 plane was shot down over Cuba.   War was about to happen.  But Kennedy ignored the U2 incident AND the second letter.   He offered to lift the blockade and promise not to invade Cuba if the missile sites were dismantled.    He also offered secretly to dismantle the Turkish missile sites.

•    28 Oct: Khrushchev agreed.   The crisis finished.

End

•    20 Nov: The Turkish missiles sites were dismantled.   Russian bombers left Cuba, and Kennedy lifted the naval blockade.  

     

  

Results of Cuba

1    Cuba remained a Communist dictatorship, and America left it alone.

2    Surprisingly, Kennedy gained prestige.   Although he had lost, it looked as though he had faced down the Russians.

3    Surprisingly, Khrushchev lost prestige – although he had won, it looked as though he had failed.   Particularly, China broke from Russia.  In 1964, he fell from power.

4    Both sides had had a fright.   They were more careful in future.   The two leaders set up a telephone ‘hotline’ to talk directly in a crisis.

5    In 1963, they agreed a Nuclear Test Ban Treaty.   Cuba was the start of the end of the Cold War.   

  

Revision Focus

This is a Paper 1 topic, so concentrate on learning:

1.   WHAT happened

2.   EFFECTS/ Importance

  

Links

e-book on Cuba.

  

  

Online revision sheet  

  

  

Spidergram:

•    Cuban Missiles Crisis

  

  

An essay: Describe the events of the Cuba crisis

  

  

Check your learning:

Do the Self-test on the Cold War 1953-63

 

Can you pass the Smartass test?