— Ch. 1 · Origins Of A Failed Invasion —
Bay of Pigs Invasion.
~8 min read · Ch. 1 of 6
On the 20th of May 1902, a new independent government proclaimed the foundation of the Republic of Cuba. U.S. military governor Leonard Wood handed over control to President Tomás Estrada Palma. By 1905, 60% of rural properties were owned by non-Cuban-born North American citizens. Between 1906 and 1909, 5,000 U.S. Marines were stationed across the island. They returned in 1912, 1917, and 1921 to intervene in internal affairs. In March 1952, Fulgencio Batista seized power on the island. He proclaimed himself president and deposed Carlos Prío Socarrás. Batista canceled planned presidential elections and described his system as disciplined democracy. Many Cubans saw it as a one-man dictatorship. Opponents took to armed rebellion to oust the government. Fidel Castro led a guerrilla army from Sierra Maestra mountains between December 1956 and 1959. On the 31st of December 1958, Batista resigned and fled into exile with more than $300 million. After the revolution, hundreds of executions followed trials of figures involved in the old regime. Critics argued these did not meet fair trial standards. Castro retaliated strongly against such accusations. He organized the first Havana trial before a mass audience of 17,000 at the Sports Palace stadium. When pilots accused of bombing a village were found not guilty, Castro ordered a retrial. Each was sentenced to 30 years in prison.
Planning And Training Operations
In early 1960, President Dwight D. Eisenhower began contemplating ways to remove Castro. He approved Richard Bissell's plan which included training paramilitary forces. The CIA funded Brigade 2506, which also included approximately 60 members of the Alabama Air National Guard. They trained the unit in Guatemala. Over 1,400 paramilitaries assembled and launched from Guatemala and Nicaragua by boat on the 17th of April 1961. Two days earlier, eight CIA-supplied B-26 bombers attacked Cuban airfields then returned to the U.S. In April 1960, Democratic Revolutionary Front rebels went to Useppa Island, Florida. It served as the locale for assessment and training. Instructors came from U.S. Army Special Forces groups and the U.S. Air Force. The group included David Atlee Philips, Howard Hunt, and David Sánchez Morales. Detailed planning occurred under Jacob Esterline and Colonel Jack Hawkins. The force started with 28 men who initially thought an anonymous millionaire paid their bills. They soon guessed Uncle Sam was funding them. Infantry training took place at a base code-named JMTrax. An airfield called JMadd was constructed near Retalhuleu, Guatemala. Gunnery and flight training used six Douglas B-26 Invaders painted as Guatemalan Air Force aircraft. Paratroop training happened at Garrapatenango near Quetzaltenango. Tank training for M41 Walker Bulldog light tanks took place at Fort Knox and Fort Benning. Underwater demolition training occurred at Belle Chasse near New Orleans. The CIA purchased five cargo ships from Garcia Line to create plausible deniability.