Thirty years after the Falklands War 'Secret Millionaire' Tony Banks is still haunted by his experiences in the South Atlantic. As a member of the crack Parachute Regiment his unit was the first to land on the Falklands and he fought in the bloody first and last battles of the war before liberating Port Stanley. In this memoir Tony vividly recalls the fighting in the Falklands. He relives the bombing raids in San Carlos bay, the Battle of Goose Green, the Argentinian attack on the Sir Galahad and the Battle of Wireless Ridge. But he also tells of his own battles with Combat Stress and of how three decades on the war is still claiming victims. He tells the stories of British and Argentine veterans and travels to Argentina to return a war trophy - a trumpet he had taken from a prisoner - to its rightful owner. The return of the trumpet brings closure to both men. And finally Tony returns to the Falklands to lay the ghosts that have haunted him to rest.
"The Battle of the Falkland Islands Before and After" with the aid of Henry Edmund Harvey Spencer-Cooper is a historic masterpiece that delves into the intricacies of naval conflict for the duration of a pivotal moment in World War I. Spencer-Cooper's meticulous evaluation unfolds the events main up to and following the Battle of the Falkland Islands, offering readers with a complete information of the navy techniques, geopolitical factors, and the profound effect of this maritime engagement. As a wonderful historian and creator, Spencer-Cooper not handiest dissects the info of the conflict however additionally weaves a narrative that connects readers to the broader historical context. His insightful analysis is going beyond the tactical components, providing a profound exploration of the human testimonies, political selections, and the effects that reverberated before and after this considerable naval clash. The creator's elegant prose and passion for historical storytelling shine thru, making the complexities of naval struggle handy to a huge target market. Spencer-Cooper's paintings will become a gateway for readers to have interaction with and recognize the multifaceted dimensions of this historical event. "The Battle of the Falkland Islands Before and After" stands as a testament to Spencer-Cooper's potential to mix scholarly depth with attractive storytelling, creating a compelling narrative that enriches our knowledge of a vital moment in naval history.
WINNER OF THE LONGMAN-HISTORY TODAY BOOK PRIZE 2019 WINNER OF THE TEMPLER MEDAL BOOK PRIZE 2019 WINNER OF THE DUKE OF WELLINGTON MEDAL FOR MILITARY HISTORY 2019 LONGLISTED FOR THE ORWELL PRIZE FOR POLITICAL WRITING 2019 'Brilliant. The best discussion of soldiers in combat, their motivation, behaviours and fears, that I have come across' Robert Fox, Evening Standard Our Boys brings to life the human experiences of the paratroopers who fought in the Falklands War, and examines the long aftermath of that conflict. It is a first in many ways - a history of the Parachute Regiment, a group with an elite and aggressive reputation; a study of close-quarters combat on the Falkland Islands; and an exploration of the many legacies of this short and symbolic war. Told unflinchingly through the experiences of people who lived through it, Our Boys shows how the Falklands conflict began to change Britain's relationship with its soldiers, and our attitudes to trauma and war itself. It is also the story of one particular soldier: the author's uncle, who was killed during the conflict, and whose fate has haunted both the author and his fellow paratroopers ever since. 'This is an extraordinary book. It is partly about the Falklands War itself and the terrible things that the Paras endured, and the terrible things that some of them did, but it is also about the white working class of the 1970s and why some men born into this class ended up marching across an island that most of them had never heard of. Thoughtful and sometimes heart-breaking' Richard Vinen, author of National Service
It was to be one of the most ambitious operations since 617 Squadron bounced their revolutionary bombs into the dams of the Ruhr Valley in 1943... When Argentine forces invaded the Falklands in the early hours of 2 April 1982, Britain's military chiefs were faced with a real-life Mission Impossible.
The Battle of Goose Green was the first and longest land conflict of the Falklands War, which was fought between British and Argentine forces in 1982. The British forces, attacking over featureless, wind-swept and boggy ground, were heavily outnumbered and lacked fire support, but brilliantly defeated the Argentine garrison in a fourteen-hour struggle. If you want to understand what happened and why – read Battle Story.Detailed profiles examine the personalities of the British and Argentine commanders, including that of Victoria Cross winner Lt Col ‘H’ Jones.First-hand accounts offer an insight into this remarkable fourteen-hour struggle against the odds.Detailed maps explore the area of Darwin Hill and Goose Green, and the advance of the British forces.Photographs place you at the centre of this pivotal battle.Orders of battle show the composition of the opposing forces’ armies.Packed with fact boxes, this short introduction is the perfect way to explore this crucial battle.
Two pivotal moments in British military history, separated by more than a century, yet both with decisive impacts on Britain’s national identity and power overseas. At Isandlwana, South Africa, as at Goose Green in the Falkland Islands, British commanders underestimated local forces and found themselves unprepared for the full extent of combat on the ground. One engagement ended in disaster and a total rethinking of tactics. The other, thanks to hard lessons learned, ended in British victory. Two renowned experts tell the full stories of both battles, complete with detailed profiles of key figures and a moment-to-moment breakdown of history in the making. Isandlwana 1879 On January 22, 1879, a 20,000-strong Zulu army attacked 1,700 British and colonial forces. The engagement saw primitive weapons of spears and shields clashing with the latest military technology. However, despite being poorly equipped, the numerically superior Zulu force crushed the British troops, killing 1,300 men, while only losing 1,000 of their own warriors. It was a humiliating defeat for the British Army, which had been poorly trained and which had underestimated its enemy. The defeat ensured that the British had a renewed respect for their opponents and changed their tactics; rather than fighting in a straight, linear formation, known as the Thin Red Line, they adopted an entrenched system or close order formations. The defeat caused much consternation throughout the British Empire, which had assumed that the Zulu were no match for the British Army; thus, the army was greatly reinforced and went on to victory at Rorke’s Drift. Isandlwana 1879 puts you at the forefront of the action. Goose Green 1982 The Battle for Goose Green has become an integral part of the Falklands story, and yet it nearly didn’t take place at all. Originally earmarked to be isolated, Goose Green was eventually attacked due to the loss of momentum in the invasion force. The British 2 Para Regiment were deployed against the 12th Argentinean Regiment, which numbered about 1,200 men. The British believed that the Argentinean force numbered at least half this and set off with a strength of 690 men. They took two days’ rations, weapons, and ammunition in the belief that it would be a swift conquest. There followed a bitter and bloody fight as the Argentine forces fiercely defended Goose Green. Despite reconnaissance, the British were hampered by trench systems that they had been unaware of. It was the first major engagement of the Falklands War.
A battle that helped decide a rare modern confrontation between an imperial power and an emerging one over territory is expertly related and explained by a leading historian, with detailed illustrations and supplementary facts.
As the firing died down and the merciless bombardment ended, the Argentine forces in and around Stanley, the capital of the Falkland Islands, were forced to surrender. As the detritus of war was burned or buried over time, healing the scars across the land, which faded faster than the scars in the minds of the men who fought in this terrible conflict, one bundle of papers survived. They were the letters which never made it home on the last flight out of the war zone before the final battle ended: the letters of a group of Argentine soldiers who recount the hope and the horror of their daily lives alongside some of the most dramatic and famous events in the war's history, telling the story as it is - gritty and visceral - against the backdrop of the war which the junta's press machine tells their families they are winning. Carrying the hopes of their nation on their shoulders, the men who fought the war for a place they called "Malvinas" - a place they were taught to love but never knew - tell the untold story of the war first hand. As veteran historian Ricky D Phillips fills in the canvas around them and tells the story of the Argentine army at war, of the men who fought in the conflict, and attempts to track down the authors of the Last Letters from Stanley.
During the Falklands war Jerry Pook, a pilot in No. 1(F) Squadron RAF, flew air interdiction, armed reccon, close-air-support and airfield attack as well as pure photo-reccon missions. Most weapons were delivered from extreme low-level attacks because of the lack of navigation aids and in the absence of Smart weapons. The only way he could achieve results was to get low down and close-in to the targets and, if necessary, carry out re-attacks to destroy high-value targets. Apart from brief carrier trials carried out many years previously there had been no RAF Harriers deployed at sea. The RAF pilots were treated with ill-disguised contempt by their naval masters, their professional opinions ignored in spite of the fact that the RN knew next to nothing about ground-attack and reccon operations. Very soon after starting operations from the aircraft carrier HMS Hermes the squadron realized that they were considered as more or less expendable ordnance. The Harriers lacked the most basic self-protection aids and were up against 10,000 well-armed troops who put up an impressive weight of fire whenever attacked.
