The Bay of Pigs: Cuba 1961

by Alejandro de Quesada, Stephen Walsh (Illustrator)

Overview

ALSO AVAILABLE TO BUY AS AN E-BOOK. The landings by the Cuban exile Assault Brigade 2506 at the Bay of Pigs on April 17, 1961 led to three days of savage but unequal combat. Before they even sailed for Cuba, a White House decision had condemned them to constant attacks by Castro's air force, which sank two of their ships loaded with vital supplies and equipment. Despite stubborn resistance to Castro's troops and tanks, and heroic sorties by Cuban and American B-26 pilots, the Brigade was strangled for lack of firepower and ammunition. Their story is illustrated with rare photos from Brigade veterans, and detailed color plates of the uniforms and insignia of both sides.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781780961422
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Publishing
Publication date:	10/20/2011
Series:	Elite , #166
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	64
File size:	8 MB

About the Author

Alejandro de Quesada is a Florida-based military history writer, an experienced researcher and collector of militaria, photos and documents and runs an archive as a secondary business. He has written 12 books and over 50 articles, including for Osprey Elite 137 The Mexican Revolution 1910–20 and the forthcoming World War II US Home Front.

Stephen Walsh studied Art at the North East Wales Institute and has worked as a professional illustrator since 1988. Since then he has illustrated a variety of books and games including the Settlers of Catan. His projects for Osprey include such diverse subjects as the Battle of Otterburn, the Chinese army 1937–49 and the US Home Front 1941–45. He is married with two children and lives in Macclesfield.
Stephen Walsh studied art at the North East Wales Institute and has worked as a professional illustrator since 1988. Since then he has illustrated a variety of books and games including Settlers of Catan. His projects for Osprey include such diverse subjects as the battle of Otterburn, the Chinese army from 1937 to 1949, and the US Home Front in World War II.

Table of Contents

The Road to Giron 3

The Revolutionary regime

Counterrevolution 6

The CIA

Raising an Army of Revolution 8

Assault Brigade 2506

Creating a clandestine air force

The secret navy

Puerto Barrios: interlude in Guatemala

Changing the plan

The Bay of Pigs 17

D-3, April 14: the failed diversion

D-2, April 15: the air strikes

D-1, April 16: reactions

April 17: the landings

First reactions from the air

The airdrop

Consequences of the loss of the Rio Escondido

April 17/18: night battles

D+1, April 18: strangulation

D+2, April 19: destruction

Aftermath 46

Fading hopes

Fallout

Retrospect

Select Bibliography 55

Uniforms and Equipment 57

Cuban Liberation Forces

Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces

Plate Commentaries 61

Index 64

Editorial Reviews

"Quesada provides all of this information in an easy-to-read format. He includes several photographs from private collections that have never been seen by the public. Also, illustrator Stephen Walsh includes some excellent illustrations that show the uniforms, insignia, and weapons of the combatants and some battle scenes... This book gives an excellent overview of the men who tried and failed to overthrow Fidel Castro in 1961." -Jeff Grim, Collected Miscellany - www.collectedmiscellany.com (July 2009)

From the Publisher