Bay of Pigs Invasion

Historical Context, Invasion, and Failure

The Bay of Pigs invasion was motivated by the Cuban Revolution, which resulted in Fidel Castro's ousting of U.S. ally Fulgencio Batista on January 1, 1959. Cuba's relationship with the United States began to deteriorate soon afterward. The Cuban government initiated a wave of nationalization of private land, including U.S.-owned properties and assets on the island, and the United States responded by placing an economic embargo on Cuba in October 1960. In the meantime, President Dwight D. Eisenhower tasked the CIA with preparing the overthrow of the Castro government.

After President John F. Kennedy took office on January 20, 1961, he approved the operation initiated by his predecessor. In an attempt to keep U.S. involvement secret, preparations were conducted abroad and the Cuban exiles who had been recruited by the CIA were trained in Guatemala and Nicaragua. The first attack was launched on April 15, 1961, when eight B-26 bombers left Nicaragua to bomb Cuban airfields. The U.S. planes used for the attack had been repainted as Cuban Air Force planes to simulate a defection from the Cuban military. During the night of April 16, a diversionary force approached the northeastern shore of Cuba, while the members of the brigade, escorted by CIA agents and U.S. ships, landed on the Bay of Pigs. Within two days, most of the members of the brigade had been captured and about 100 had been killed. Those [Page 328]captured were imprisoned, but they were released in December 1962 in exchange for $53 million in food and medicine, raised by private donations in the United States.

Many explanations have been proposed to explain the great failure of the invasion. First, plans for the attack were poorly hidden from the Cuban government which, once aware of an imminent invasion, trained and armed soldiers. Second, because President Kennedy wanted to conceal plans for the invasion from the public, he was not able to provide adequate air, naval, or land support. Finally, and most importantly, the plan relied on the false assumption that the invasion would be popularly supported in Cuba. Contrary to U.S. expectations, however, there was no uprising, mass defection, or insurrection against Castro in Cuba.

...