warships but merchant ships and cruise liners as well. This bulked up the size of the
dwindling British fleet to well over 100. A total exclusion zone was set up around the
Falklands stretching 200 miles all around and to the neighbouring islands of South
Georgia and the South Sandwich islands. Any unknown vessels were warned that if
they ventured inside that area they may well be attacked and sunk. Sea harriers joined
the British fleet as well as them being equipped with brand new torpedoes and anti
aircraft weapons. To join the British Task Force, nuclear submarines were summoned
from their stations in Gibraltar since they would be a powerful weapon if they were
needed.
3, Why did Britain win the Falklands war in 1982?
The organisation of the British army was a main reason for its success because of the
lack of planning and tactical nous of the Argentinean army. Each unit of the task force
was assigned to a particular duty and so every man knew what was required of him.
British men were also the best trained soldiers in the world at this time and were
therefore far superior to their half-starved, untrained opponents. Our weapons of war
and our technology was also far ahead of the Argentineans, whose only serious
weapons were exocet missiles bought from Europe.
As I said earlier the Argentine army were not as fortunate as the British when it came
to their army. Unlike the British force most of the Argentineans had been made to join
the army through conscription and so were not up to the standard of many of our men,
since all of our men were volunteers and therefore much more enthusiastic. There was
much confusion in the Argentine ranks with many soldiers having little or no contact
with their commanding officer. These men often ended up without instructions or
guidance for several days and eventually had to go to the nearest town in search of
food so they didn’t starve.
The fighting between the Argentines and the British on land was often one-sided, with
the superior tactics of the British once again winning through against the much more
ragged Argentinean troops. Many of the men we faced in battle merely surrendered
without a fight, their need for rest and a square meal overwhelming any fears about
their enemies. The British men who captured them were perhaps kinder than the
troops own commanders. Such harsh treatment angered the Brits and made them even
more hungry for victory.
Britain, once the king of the seas, now had a dwindling naval force. The Argentines
believed that with their own fleet, which was much closer, they could easily take out
our ships. They did well against the British from the start, sinking several ships but
when the British destroyed the General Belgrano it unnerved the Argentineans and
after that their navy did not leave their port again and withdrew from the war. They
were also guilty of not harnessing the full potential of their submarines which could
have been a devastating opponent to the British if used properly. However the
Argentines, afraid of the consequences of being discovered, struggled to get within
range. As I said earlier the Argentines did have one weapon which the British feared,
their exocet missiles. These missile were highly powerful and deadly accurate since
when they locked onto a target, you could then not escape the missile. The skill of the
Argentine pilots was not up to standard and this meant that some of the bombs either
landed unexploded or didn’t hit the target at all. These pilots ineptitude, along with
the supreme skill of the British pilots meant that we were far ahead of Argenitina in
the war in the air.
Having fought their way across the island, with a very small number of casualties and
using their superior skill. The British then went on to surround Port Stanley. The
desire to end the war was at an all time high for the British whilst the Argentineans
were tired and de-moralised. This meant that General Menendez had little choice but
to surrender on the 14th of June 1982.
