the cuban revolution and beyond... a somewhat modern history of cuba
TRANSCRIPT
Christopher Columbus landed on the island of Cuba and claimed the land for Spain on his first voyage to
the New World in 1492.
For a while Cuba was under U.S. rule. The United States
helped them establish a democracy and set up
elections.
Thinking his chances of winning the election were slim, he and his
military friends staged what is called a coup d'état, or military takeover.
While most of the country lived in poverty,
Batista encouraged
Americans to come in and build
hotels and casinos.
After leading un unsuccessful attack on the Monaco barracks in Santiago de Cuba,
Castro was captured, tried, and thrown in jail. He defended himself by saying,
"History will absolve me!"
In 1955, Fidel Castro was released from prison. He hid in the mountains of Cuba, waging guerrilla warfare on
the government for the next four years.
On January, 1959, Batista fled the country. On January 8, Castro marched
into Havana, and became prime minister.
Although Castro promised free elections and free press to Cubans, he soon took
away sugarcane plantations from American owners, took over American-owned businesses, and shut down all
the casinos. Americans thought of him as Anti-American.
Then, in 1960, Castro signed a trade deal with the Soviet Union, who had a strained relationship with the U.S.
A year later, President Eisenhower broke off diplomatic relations with Cuba. Tensions
increased.
In April 1961, the United States trained some Cuban exiles, transported them to
the Bay of Pigs in Cuba, and attempted to overthrow Castro. To the embarrassment of
the U.S....
They failed.
In 1961, Castro declares himself a Communist.
In 1962, he allows the Soviet Union to install ballistic missiles on Cuban soil, capable of
carrying nuclear warheads.
Reconnaissance air photos show these
missiles, close enough to reach the
U.S.
In October of 1962, the United States holds its breath for fifteen days,
later known as the Cuban Missile Crisis.
Negotiations resolved the
issue:
•The Cuban missiles would be removed.
•U.S. missiles in Turkey would be removed.
•The U.S. would no longer try to overthrow Castro.
•The U.S. would end the blockade.
That year, the United States began an
EMBARGO
against Cuba. We refused to do trade with them. This embargo
continues today.
Support from the Soviet Union was important to Cuba's economy. When the USSR collapsed in the 1990's, Cuba's economy suffered
greatly.