Bay of Pigs

• Year of the Bay of Pigs?

  1961
• What happened in the Bay of Pigs?

  • The USA had sent 1,400 Cuban exiles into Cuba with weapons to start a rebellion and topple Castro's government
  • Castro had found out about the plan and sent 20,000 soldiers to fight them off
  • The exiles surrendered within 24 hours as the CIA did not train them and the USA could not send US ground forces or air strikes to support them
• Why did the plan in the Bay of Pigs fail?

  The USA and exile army assumed that most Cubans would support them but most were happy with Castro's government
• What were the consequences of the Bay of Pigs plan failing?

  • It looked like the USA were acting in the same way to restore American influence in an independent country after accusing the USSR of the same thing
  • Was a humiliating and embarrassing failure for the USA
  • Led to stronger relations between Cuba and USSR
  • Castro declared himself as communist after the attack