• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer
Zippy Facts Logo

Zippy Facts

Interesting Random Facts

  • Animals
  • Culture
  • Firsts
  • Food
  • Geography
  • Health
  • History
  • Inventions
  • Language
  • Mythology
  • Odds
  • People
  • Religion
  • Science
  • Space
  • Universe
  • World
You are here: Home / History / What was the Cuban Missile Crisis and When did it take place?

What was the Cuban Missile Crisis and When did it take place?

August 4, 2020 by Karen Hill

President Kennedy flinched from a full-scale invasion of Cuba because he feared a nuclear showdown with the Soviet Union.

Perceiving Kennedy as weak, the Soviet Union forced that showdown only eighteen months later, in the Cuban Missile Crisis.

In October 1962, U.S. spy planes reported that the Soviet Union was assembling nuclear missile sites in Cuba. Kennedy ordered a naval blockade of Cuba and prepared to invade the island unless the Soviet Union accepted his demand to dismantle the missile sites.

For two weeks, the world hovered on the brink of a catastrophic nuclear war. Then the Soviet Union accepted Kennedy’s demand.

It was clear after the Cuban Missile Crisis that the United States would not be invading Cuba any time soon. The risk of nuclear war was too great.

Cuban exiles settled in for a long, perhaps permanent, stay in the United States.

Related Facts

  • How did the United States government plan to kill Fidel Castro after the Cuban Revolution and Cuban Missile Crisis?
  • What is the difference between "Cuban exiles" and "Cuban immigrants"?
  • How have Cuban Americans changed Miami and Where do Cuban Americans live?
  • When were Heat Seeking Missiles Invented and How does a Heat Seeking Missile find its target?
  • Who were the Little Rock Nine and How was the Little Rock Crisis important in the African American Civil Rights Movement?
  • Who was Jose Marti and How did he contribute to the Cuban struggle for independence?

Filed Under: History

About Karen Hill

Karen Hill is a freelance writer, editor, and columnist. Born in New York, her work has appeared in the Examiner, Yahoo News, Buzzfeed, among others.

Previous Post: « How did the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991 affect Cuba and Castro’s government?
Next Post: Why didn’t the United States just overthrow Fidel Castro’s regime in the 1960s? »

Footer

Follow

  • Facebook
  • Flickr
  • GitHub
  • Google+
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Medium
  • Pinterest
  • StumbleUpon
  • Tumblr
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Categories

Accomplishments Animals Culture Firsts Food Geography Health History Inventions Language Mythology Odds People Religion Science Space Universe World Your Body

About

Zippy Facts empowers the world by serving educational content that is accessible to everyone.

A tribute to growing up, zippyfacts.com showcases interesting and unusual facts about the world.

Our mission is to use technology to facilitate knowledge transfer and sharing.

Copyright © 2021 Zippy Facts

  • About Us
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy