21 Nov 2025 at 3:48 PM
Edited on 21 Nov 2025 at 6:43 PM by SPC J.Erickson
Grenada campaign comes to an end!
On October 25, 1983, nearly 2,000 United States Marines led an invasion of the Caribbean island nation of Grenada. Given the codename "Operation Urgent Fury," the invasion was ordered by President Ronald Reagan to counter threats by Grenada’s governments to nearly 1,000 American nationals (including 600 medical students) living on the island at the time. The operation succeeded in less than a week among the rising Cold War tensions. The American students were rescued, and the Marxist regime was replaced by an appointed interim government. In 1984, Grenada conducted free democratic elections and remains a democratic nation today.
In 1974, Grenada gained its independence from the United Kingdom. The newly-independent nation operated as a democracy until 1979, when the New Jewel Movement, a Marxist-Leninist faction led by Maurice Bishop overthrew the government in a violent coup. American officials became concerned when Bishop suspended the constitution, detained several political prisoners, and established close relationships with communist Cuba.
Shortly after taking power, the bishop government, with the help of Cuba, Libya, and other countries, began building the Point Salines Airport. First proposed in 1954, while Grenada was still a British colony, the airport included a 9,000-foot-long runway, which U.S. officials noted would accommodate the largest Soviet military aircraft. While the Bishop government vowed the runway had been built to accommodate large commercial tourist aircraft, U.S. officials feared the airport would also be used to help the Soviet Union and Cuba transport arms to communist insurgents in Central America.
On October 19, 1983, an internal political struggle boiled over when another Cuban-friendly Marxist, Bernard Coard, assassinated Bishop and took control of the Grenadian government. The invasion was controversial and drew criticism from various countries, including a resolution from the U.N. Security Council condemning the action as a violation of international law. In summary, the Grenada campaign ended with the successful establishment of a new government and the restoration of order, but it also highlighted the complexities of U.S. military interventions in foreign nations.
Grenada campaign comes to an end!
On October 25, 1983, nearly 2,000 United States Marines led an invasion of the Caribbean island nation of Grenada. Given the codename "Operation Urgent Fury," the invasion was ordered by President Ronald Reagan to counter threats by Grenada’s governments to nearly 1,000 American nationals (including 600 medical students) living on the island at the time. The operation succeeded in less than a week among the rising Cold War tensions. The American students were rescued, and the Marxist regime was replaced by an appointed interim government. In 1984, Grenada conducted free democratic elections and remains a democratic nation today.
In 1974, Grenada gained its independence from the United Kingdom. The newly-independent nation operated as a democracy until 1979, when the New Jewel Movement, a Marxist-Leninist faction led by Maurice Bishop overthrew the government in a violent coup. American officials became concerned when Bishop suspended the constitution, detained several political prisoners, and established close relationships with communist Cuba.
Shortly after taking power, the bishop government, with the help of Cuba, Libya, and other countries, began building the Point Salines Airport. First proposed in 1954, while Grenada was still a British colony, the airport included a 9,000-foot-long runway, which U.S. officials noted would accommodate the largest Soviet military aircraft. While the Bishop government vowed the runway had been built to accommodate large commercial tourist aircraft, U.S. officials feared the airport would also be used to help the Soviet Union and Cuba transport arms to communist insurgents in Central America.
On October 19, 1983, an internal political struggle boiled over when another Cuban-friendly Marxist, Bernard Coard, assassinated Bishop and took control of the Grenadian government. The invasion was controversial and drew criticism from various countries, including a resolution from the U.N. Security Council condemning the action as a violation of international law. In summary, the Grenada campaign ended with the successful establishment of a new government and the restoration of order, but it also highlighted the complexities of U.S. military interventions in foreign nations.