The bay has been the focus of military activities for a long time. In the colonial era, British troops tried to land there, during the War of the Jenkin's Ear. That war was between England and Spain. It took place between 1739 and 1742. The troops could land in the bay, and later tried to take the city Santiago de Cuba. As it turned out, this was impossible. So the troops claimed the bay as theirs, and named it "Cumberland Harbour". Later they left the island again, because some of their troops had died from tropical diseases.