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Britain Pulls Out Defense in Falklands
British government withdraws HMS Endurance because of annual budget cuts and illusion of safety. -
Galiteri Takes Office Through Coup
General Leopoldo Galtieri takes the position of President of Argentina through a coup. Also plans begin for the taking of the Falklands. -
Argentina Invades Falkland Islands
Argentine forces force Governor Rex Hunt to surrender by entering the capital, Port Stanley. -
UN Denounces Invasion
UN Security Council condemns invasion by Argentina. -
British Task Force Sails
The British task force including more than 100 ships sail for the Falklands. It includes aircraft carriers such as the HMS Hermes and HMS Invincible. The journey will take three weeks to travel to the South Atlantic. -
US Secretary of State Fails to Mediate Peace
US Secretary of State Alexander Haig attempts to negotiate with the Argentine military junta and proposes for them to withdraw. However, Argentina rejects the proposals and peace talks are too late now. -
Territory Close to Falklands is Recaptured
South Georgia, territory close to the Falklands, is retaken by the Royal Marines. They quickly overwhelmed the Argentine encampment by utilizing an onslaught of Royal Navy ships. -
Air Raid of Stanley Airfield
Task force arrives near Falklands and British planes bomb Port Stanley airfield. The commission is a disaster involving several tanker aircraft having to refuel planes during the long and grueling round trip from South Georgia. -
Argentine Cruiser Torpedoed
The Argentine cruiser General Belgrano is torpedoed and sunk by the British submarine HMS Conqueror. It causes the biggest single loss of life in the war as more than 320 Argentinians are killed. Thatcher faces criticism over the sinking because the ship was outside the exclusion zone. -
HMS Sheffield Sunk by Exocet Missle
British destroyer HMS Sheffield is hit by an Exocet missile that kills 20 crew, which leads to the ship being abandoned. A British jet aircraft is lost over the Falklands which is the first to be shot down during the conflict. -
Incursion of Pebble Island
British soldiers attack Argentine forces on Pebble Island, a remote spot on the north coast of the Falklands. Six Argentine ground-attack aircraft were viewed as a major threat to the British so the burned the airstrip. -
Peril in San Carlos
British forces land on San Carlos in East Falkland with 3,000 troops and 1,000 tons of supplies. But the British frigate HMS Ardent is sunk by Argentine aircraft, leaving 22 dead. HMS Argonaut and HMS Antrim are hit by Argentine bombs. -
Battle of Goose Green
It was the first major land conflict of the Falklands War. Seventeen British soldiers died during the battle. British troops, who were vastly outnumbered, took more than 1,000 prisoners of war and as a result, the Argentines surrender. -
Target Territories Acquired
British forces take Mount Longdon, Two Sisters and Mount Harriet. The destroyer HMS Glamorgan is badly damaged by an Exocet missile. Three Falkland civilians were killed during a British naval skirmish. -
Britain Wins War
General Mario Menendez surrenders to General Jeremy Moore as British forces march into capital Port Stanley. 9,800 Argentine troops put down their arms. -
President Galtieri Resigns
Argentine President Leopoldo Galtieri resigns as leader of the country's military junta. UK Defense Minister Peter Blaker announces that the official count of British war dead is 255, with approximately 300 wounded. Rex Hunt reprises his role as leader of the Falklands.
