Despite widespread criticism in Argentina of the invasion, most Argentines continue to claim the islands as theirs. President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner has previously described British presence as "a blatant exercise of 19th-Century colonialism".
The British government says it will defend the self-determination of the islanders. An overwhelming majority of Falkland residents voted in March to remain a British territory. About 2, people live on the islands. Pope put on spot by Falklands sign. Fernandez seeks Pope Falklands help. Argentina declines Falklands talks. Image source, AFP. In , a British force expelled the remaining Argentine officials and began a military occupation.
In , a British lieutenant governor was appointed, and by the s a British community of some 1, people on the islands was self-supporting. In , the wind-blown Falkland Islands were collectively granted colonial status. For the next 90 years, life on the Falklands remained much unchanged, despite persistent diplomatic efforts by Argentina to regain control of the islands.
In , the 1, Falkland Islanders—mostly sheep farmers—voted in a referendum to remain British, and it seemed unlikely that the Falklands would ever revert to Argentine rule. Meanwhile, in Argentina, the military junta led by Lieutenant General Leopoldo Galtieri was suffering criticism for its oppressive rule and economic management and planned the Falklands invasion as a means of promoting patriotic feeling and propping up its regime.
Argentine amphibious forces rapidly overcame the small garrison of British marines at the town of Stanley on East Falkland and the next day seized the dependent territories of South Georgia and the South Sandwich group. Under orders from their commanders, the Argentine troops inflicted no British casualties, despite suffering losses to their own units. Nevertheless, Britain was outraged, and Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher assembled a naval task force of 30 warships to retake the islands.
As Britain is 8, miles from the Falklands, it took several weeks for the British warships to arrive. After several weeks of fighting, the large Argentine garrison at Stanley surrendered on June 14, effectively ending the conflict. Britain lost five ships and lives in the fight to regain the Falklands, and Argentina lost its only cruiser and lives. Humiliated in the Falklands War, the Argentine military was swept from power in , and civilian rule was restored.
But if you see something that doesn't look right, click here to contact us! Shortly before A. In the aftermath of Fitzroy, Moore reorganised his forces.
After the experiences at Goose Green, both Moore and Thompson put a great deal of attention into the fire plan. They moved as much ammunition forward as possible, and also carefully planned naval gunfire. All the attacks would also be made at night. Nearly 12, rounds of mm ammunition were brought up for the first phase, and four warships were allocated for fire support.
The next 48 hours would see the fate of the campaign decided. First, on the night of June, 3 Para attacked well-prepared positions on Mount Longdon.
Surprise was lost when the advancing Paras triggered a mine, and a hard and vicious fight followed. Sergeant Ian McKay won a posthumous VC for his bravery in rallying momentum and charging a machine-gun post. The difficulty was that the mountain had a false ridge, which meant fighting across a series of crests. There were also small bowls, and concealed sangers, so the Argentines were able to maintain resistance despite a wave of Paras passing over them.
By the time the mount was secured, 3 Para had lost 23 men, making it the costliest battle of the war for the British.
Fifty Argentines were killed, and 50 taken prisoner. The outer ring of Argentine defensive positions was now in British hands. Moore had wanted to maintain momentum and continue operations on the next night with 5th Infantry Brigade.
But the Scots Guards were still at Bluff Cove as the night closed in. Rushing them forward via airlift, in the dark, and then having them fight over terrain they had not reconnoitred in order to assault Tumbledown, and all without adequate artillery support, was too risky.
Brigadier Wilson requested a 24 hour delay, which Moore granted. This time brought the opportunity to conduct reconnaissance, concentrate artillery ammunition for fire support, and prepare the battalion for the attack. On the night of June, operations continued.
In contrast to Goose Green, 2 Para was given much more fire support. The tanks came onto the top of the ridge and began firing onto the second position. The final part of the second ridge proved hard to take, but the Argentines were eventually dislodged. Around Argentines were killed and 17 captured. Argentine defences were anchored on this feature, and it was the final key to unlocking the approaches to Stanley.
In the face of gale force winds and snow, the men scrabbled over the rocky outcrops under heavy fire. It was a hard fight, with some outstanding examples of leadership to motivate the Guardsmen to continue their advance. Nine men were killed and 43 wounded. As the sun came up the next morning, the Gurkhas were spotted in the open, short of their objective, and shelled. As daylight came up, the British began earlier preparations for another night battle, but continued to harass all Argentine movement with heavy artillery fire.
From their high vantage points, the British began to notice that enemy troops were streaming away towards Stanley, and began to follow them up. The British were on the doorstep of the capital. In the days leading up to the battles for the mountains around Stanley, the British had been waging a psychological operation against the Argentines, using an open radio frequency to call on them to surrender. A ceasefire was declared, and Moore went into Stanley to accept the surrender at 9.
The British held fast in their positions overnight, rather than advancing into the town in the dark. The next morning, 15 June, the Paras and Royal Marines moved in to begin disarming the Argentines and moving them to the airport. Following the capture of Stanley, further operations were launched to take the surrender of other Argentine troops on West Falkland. A total of British servicemen and three female civilians were killed liberating the Falklands.
Repatriating Argentine prisoners of war POWs was a long process. Some 5, prisoners were embarked on 'Canberra' and 1, on 'Norland' on 17 June. By 20 June, 10, prisoners had been repatriated. These were held for intelligence gathering and to encourage Argentina to end hostilities. The last prisoners were repatriated by 14 July. The first units to return from the Falklands were 2 and 3 Para, which left on 'Norland' and 'Europic' in June.
They sailed to the island of Ascension, and then flew back to the UK. They were the last of the Army units to leave the Falklands when they sailed on 'Norland' on 19 July for Ascension. Prior to the war, Mrs Thatcher's popularity had been at low ebb.
But victory in the Falklands helped ensure a Conservative win in the General Election. Argentina's junta had gambled all on a popular victory, but now faced humiliation. The country's dictator, General Leopoldo Galtieri, was forced to resign three days after his forces surrendered. Democracy was restored to Argentina in after the fall of the discredited military regime. To date, Argentina has not given up its claim to the Falklands. The Falkland Islanders won a commitment to their sovereignty that any future government would be courageous to question.
Economic investment and a much larger military presence also followed. Nearly 40 years on, Britain still retains a force on the islands. Troops were sent to Northern Ireland in They ended up staying there for nearly 40 years in what became the British Army's longest ever deployment.
Nato has been the cornerstone of British defence planning for 70 years. The war against Iraq in saw the largest single deployment of British troops since the Second World War.
Altogether, about 35, British servicemen and women served in the campaign. One of the most famous counter-terrorism operations in history took place in Gunmen overran the Iranian Embassy in London and took hostages, but the crisis was resolved when the building was stormed by the SAS.
British soldiers first deployed to Bosnia in during the country's vicious civil war. Initially tasked with protecting aid convoys, they have remained there on peacekeeping duties ever since. In , British soldiers deployed to Kosovo as a peacekeeping force. Today, troops still serve in the disputed country as part of a multi-national force helping to ensure security and stability.
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