Syllabus Edition
First teaching 2024
First exams 2026
The Cuban Missile Crisis (Edexcel GCSE History)
Revision Note
Written by: Zoe Wade
Reviewed by: Bridgette Barrett
Was the Cuban Missile Crisis Inevitable? - Timeline & Summary
Cold War tensions between the USA and the Soviet Union had reached its peak by October 1962. The early 1960s saw the USA and the Soviet Union clashing over numerous world issues:
Many historians believe that the Cuban Missile Crisis was inevitable. The events before and during 1962 brought the world to the brink of nuclear warfare. It was a necessary event to reduce Cold War tensions and cause a 'thaw' in US-Soviet relations. |
Why did the Cuban Missile Crisis Happen?
The Cuban Missile Crisis was a result of decades of tension between the USA and the Soviet Union
The causes of the Cuban Missile Crisis
Causes of the Cuban Missile Crisis, 1962 | ||
|---|---|---|
Short-term | Medium-term | Long-term |
On 14th October 1962, a U-2 spy-plane took photographs of missile launch pads in Cuba. Intelligence informed Kennedy that approaching Soviet ships could be carrying ballistic missiles to Cuba | The Bay of Pigs incident in 1961 heightened Cold War tensions between the USA and the Soviet Union. Castro publicly announced that he was a communist. Kennedy warned Khrushchev not to place nuclear weapons on Cuba | Since 1945, US-Soviet relations had been tense. Both countries competed against each other to become the biggest superpower. The USA and the Soviet Union developed powerful nuclear weapons that could destroy the world |
Khrushchev decided to place nuclear weapons in Cuba because:
NATO had missiles pointing at the Soviet Union in Turkey. The Soviet Union wanted the USA to experience what this nuclear threat felt like. Khrushchev may have wanted the missiles removed from Turkey
Khrushchev was under political pressure in the Soviet Union. His colleagues saw him as a weak leader after the building of the Berlin Wall in 1961. A victory in Cuba could restore his power and reputation
The Soviet Union became increasingly worried about the military power of the USA. Khrushchev needed Cuba to remain communist to strengthen the Soviet Union
Kennedy's Options to Deal With Cuba
Missiles in Cuba worried the USA
Soviet missiles on Cuba had significant political consequences for the USA. The US government felt determined to stop the Soviet missiles from arriving in Cuba
The US Defence Secretary, Robert McNamara, told Kennedy that the Soviet missiles would become operational two weeks after their arrival. This gave Kennedy time pressure to make his decision about how to react to missiles in Cuba
What options did Kennedy have to deal with Cuba?
Before making a decision, Kennedy had to consider:
How the American public would react to missiles on Cuba. Little to no reaction by the US government could cause widespread panic in the USA
How his decision would affect election results. Elections for the US Congress were in November. If Kennedy failed to deal with the situation in Cuba effectively, it would damage the success of his political colleagues, the Democrats
The impact of his decision on other Cold War issues. Kennedy worried that a strong reaction to Cuba would encourage Khrushchev to become more aggressive over the issue of Berlin
Kennedy had limited options to deal with Cuba
The US government had already attempted an invasion of Cuba during the Bay of Pigs incident in 1961
Kennedy knew that this would be unpopular in Cuba and may cause a major conflict within the country
Bombing Cuba would make the USA look aggressive
Depending on the bomb that the USA used, it could cause a significant number of civilian deaths in Cuba
The Cold War was a war of propaganda
Kennedy had to make the best decision that would not damage the USA's reputation internationally
The Thirteen Days, 16th- 28th October 1962
The 'Thirteen Days' refers to the period of 16th October to 28th October 1962
Between these 13 days, the world became the closest it had ever been to nuclear war
Kennedy made a series of decisions about how to deal with the missile sites in Cuba
What happened in the Thirteen Days?
The Soviet ships' reluctance to break the naval blockade of Cuba was a key moment in the Cuban Missile Crisis
Kennedy had prepared the US military to sink the Soviet ships. This would have triggered a war between the USA and the Soviet Union
The actions of the Soviet ships proved that the Soviet Union was unwilling to cause direct armed conflict with the USA
The events of the Thirteen Days shocked the world
Kennedy's announcement had warned the US public about the possibility of nuclear warfare if the Soviet ships ignored the blockade
Internationally, people became even more afraid of the threat of nuclear warfare
Examiner Tips and Tricks
Students are often overwhelmed by the amount of events that happened in a short space of time in the Cuban Missile Crisis. This revision note displays these events in a flow diagram and in a timeline. This should help you visualise how one event triggered the next event to happen. Knowing the order of the events in the Thirteen Days is crucial if a question asks you to write a narrative account of the Cuban Missile Crisis.
The Solution to the Cuban Missile Crisis
On 26th October, Khrushchev telegrammed Kennedy to resolve the issue of missiles in Cuba
He promised to remove the missile launch pads from Cuba if Kennedy promised not to invade the country
The next day (27th October), Kennedy received a further request from Khrushchev
Khrushchev added that he wanted the USA to remove the NATO missiles from Turkey
Kennedy's brother, Robert, secretly met with the Soviet ambassador in Washington
They verbally agreed to the removal of the US missiles in Turkey
The Hawks in the US government pressured Kennedy to go to war over Cuba
Kennedy refused to succumb to this pressure
By 28th October, Kennedy and Khrushchev had resolved the Cuban Missile Crisis
Kennedy agreed not to invade Cuba in return for the removal of the missile launch pads in the country
The US public had no knowledge of the removal of the US missiles in Turkey
Consequences of the Cuban Missile Crisis on US-Soviet Relations
While both countries continued to threaten war, the Cuban Missile Crisis made the world safer
Khrushchev and Kennedy faced pressure from their government and the public to start a full-scale war with each other. They did not do this
The USA and the Soviet Union had more motivation to avoid a situation like the Cuban Missile Crisis from occurring again
Post-1962 agreements between the USA and the Soviet Union
Name of agreement | Details of the agreement |
|---|---|
The 'hotline' (June 1963) | Moscow and Washington established a direct communications line with each other. This improved communication between the USA and the Soviet Union |
The Test Ban Treaty (August 1963) | Signed by the USA, the Soviet Union and Britain. The treaty banned the testing of nuclear weapons in space, underwater and in the atmosphere. This treaty slowed down the nuclear arms race |
The Outer Space Treaty (1967) | The USA and the Soviet Union agreed not to use space for military purposes. It also banned placing nuclear weapons in orbit. This helped to control the developing space race between the two countries |
The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (1968) | Signed by the USA, the Soviet Union, Britain and 59 other countries. The treaty formalised a promise to not share nuclear technology with other countries |
The Cuban Missile Crisis had significant impacts on Kennedy and Khrushchev
Kennedy's popularity increased
The US public believed that Kennedy had dealt with the Cuban Missile Crisis effectively. Kennedy looked stronger as the removal of US missiles in Turkey was unknown to the public
Kennedy had stood up against the Hawks in his government. The Cuban Missile Crisis had proved that he was a strong leader
Kennedy gained more confidence in dealing with the Soviet Union
Khrushchev's popularity decreased
While Khrushchev interpreted the Cuban Missile Crisis as a success for the Soviet Union, his military did not. His government believed that Khrushchev had humiliated the country by withdrawing their missiles from Cuba
Leonid Brezhnev ousted Khrushchev from power in 1964
Overall, US-Soviet relations improved
Worked Example
Explain one consequence of the Cuban Missile Crisis (1962)
4 marks
Answer:
One consequence of the Cuban Missile Crisis was better regulation of nuclear weapons. The Cuban Missile Crisis had shown how dangerous the nuclear arms race had been. When the Soviet Union planned to place missiles on Cuba, it showed the US public the real threat of nuclear technology. If ICBMs had been placed in Cuba, the Soviet Union could have destroyed every major city in the USA. When nuclear war was avoided in 1962, it highlighted to the world the need to control the testing and production of nuclear weapons. For example, the Test Ban Treaty (August 1963) and The Outer Space Treaty (1967) restricted where nuclear weapons could be tested. This made the possibility of nuclear warfare between the USA and the Soviet Union less likely.
Examiner Tips and Tricks
In this example, you can see the development of wider knowledge of the period. The example has linked the development of ICBMs to the Cuban Missile Crisis. The existence of this type of nuclear weapon is significant to understanding why the Cuban Missile Crisis increased tensions between the USA and the Soviet Union. This answer would not be effective if it only discussed ICBMs. The example is linked back to the consequences of the Cuban Missile Crisis in the creation of the Test Ban Treaty (August 1963) and The Outer Space Treaty (1967) to help better regulate nuclear weapons.
This question has previously asked you to explain two consequences. In the Superpower Relations exam paper for 2025, this question will ask you to explain one consequence. However, there will be two different "Explain one consequence of" questions, each worth four marks.
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