Carlos Castillo Armas

Carlos Castillo Armas was an army officer who became President of Guatemala after a military coup in 1954 overthrew President Jacobo Arbenz. The Castillo family came from modest means and when Carlos joined the Army it offered one of the only ways to achieve social mobility in Guatemala.

Castillo gained the reputation of being a tough, brave, and persistent man. His differences with Arbenz came from the president's social reforms that included an agrarian reform and a pro-labor union stance. Castillo established his rebel army in neighbouring Honduras and received financial and material support from the American CIA. His rebel army invaded Guatemala in June, 1954 successfuly overthrowing Arbenz.