The veteran Issue 6

The Falklands
War 2 April to 14 June 1982
TThe Falkland Islands—an archipelago in the
South Atlantic located 8,000 miles away
from the British Isles was one of the U.K.’s
more obscure overseas territories, home to a
community of just 1,800 people, the majority of
whom were of British descent.
Britain’s presence in the Falklands dates back to
1690, when Navy Captain John Strong made the
first recorded landing on the unpopulated islands.
The British started a settlement on the
archipelago in the mid-18th century but
abandoned it around a decade later, leaving the
area under Spanish control. The newly
independent Argentina arrived on the scene in
1820 and promptly laid claim to the Falklands,
arguing that it had inherited the islands from the
Spanish crown earlier that century. British troops
returned to the Falklands in 1833, expelling its
Argentinian officials and reasserting the U.K.’s
claim to the islands. Britain established the
Falklands as an official colony.
The Falklands became increasingly
important for Argentina in the year
leading up to the war. Based on the
information collected in the Falklands
Census of 1980, the islands were
inhabited by just 1,813 people, with some
members of 42 Royal Marines stationed
at Moody Brook Barracks. Nearly all
(1,723) of those people held British
nationality and just 30 were Argentine
nationals.
In 1981, a referendum saw the population
vote in favour of remaining under British
sovereignty.
However, during the very same year,
Argentina was facing a very tough
economic and civil situation.
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