From an Argentine point of view, the war was sparked less by an \u2018invasion\u2019 and more by a reclamation of territory that was, by rights, theirs. The history of the Falklands is rather convoluted. France was the first nation to establish a colony on East Falkland in 1764, before the British claimed West Falkland as its own the next year. Five years after that, Spanish troops captured the fort of Port Egmont (Britain\u2019s first settlement on West Falkland).<\/p>\n

Fifty years on, a mercenary working for the United Provinces of the River Plate \u2013 a forerunner of what would later become Argentina \u2013 claimed possession of the islands. In 1833, the British reasserted their sovereignty and requested that the Argentine administration leave. Britain retained possession of the Falklands from that point on \u2013 but the issue of the islands\u2019 sovereignty remained controversial.<\/p>\n

In the early 1980s, Argentina was ruled by a military dictatorship \u2013 called a junta \u2013 and rocked by political unrest and economic crises. Its leadership believed that reclaiming the Falklands \u2013 the islands were about 300 miles off Argentina\u2019s coastline, but over 8,000 miles from Britain\u2019s shores \u2013 would appeal to nationalist sentiment and unite an increasingly fractious public behind the government.<\/p>\n

Was the Queen opposed to the Falklands War?<\/a><\/h4>\n
In Netflix drama The Crown<\/em><\/a>, Queen Elizabeth II<\/a> is seen looking distinctly unimpressed by events in the Falkland Islands. What did she really think of the war? Historian Dominic Sandbrook explains | Read more<\/a><\/p>\n
<\/p><\/div>

$\""Queen\"$ <\/div><\/div> <\/div> <\/section>
What was the sinking of the Belgrano<\/em> and why was it controversial?<\/h2>\n
A Commando unit, SAS troops and members of the Special Boat Squadron retook South Georgia on 25 April. Yet it was the sinking of the Argentine cruiser ARA General Belgrano<\/em> by British forces on 2 May that has been remembered as the conflict\u2019s first major engagement \u2013 and it proved to be one of the most controversial acts of the war. Despite being discovered by the submarine HMS Conqueror<\/em> outside of the exclusion zone, the decision was made to torpedo the cruiser \u2013 leading to the loss of 323 Argentinian lives.<\/p>\n
The Sun\u2019s headline in response to the sinking of the General Belgrano<\/em> \u2013 \u201cGotcha\u201d \u2013 remains one of the newspaper\u2019s most famous (or infamous) front pages.<\/p>\n
When and how did the Falklands War end?<\/h2>\n
By 12 June 1982, British forces had reached high ground around the capital, Stanley, and surrounded and blockaded its port. A series of short battles ensued, but it was clear that the town was cut off. Argentina surrendered on 14 June. British rule was restored later that year.<\/p>\n
How many died in the Falklands War?<\/h2>\n
The Falklands War left 650 Argentinian and 253 British people dead. Hundreds more were injured on both sides \u2013 the burns suffered by troops such as Simon Weston (a Welsh guardsman serving aboard the RFA Sir Galahad<\/em> who was left with burns over 46 per cent of his body when his ship was bombed) became some of the most recognisable images of the conflict. Britain also captured around 11,000 Argentine prisoners, all of whom were freed when the fighting finished.<\/p>\n
Sir Max Hastings: witness to the Falklands War<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>
What did the Falklands War mean for Margaret Thatcher?<\/h2>\n
The conflict had received widespread popular support in Britain, possibly because the opening years of the 1980s had been characterised by bad news: economic recession, decline in industry, and \u2013 arguably \u2013 declining influence on the world stage. But the victory became a defining moment in British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher<\/a>\u2019s tenure.<\/p>\n
As she put it in a speech in Cheltenham: \u201cWe have ceased to be a nation in retreat \u2026 we rejoice that Britain has rekindled that spirit which has fired her for generations past and which today has begun to burn as brightly as before.\u201d It was a victory that was to translate into personal success for Thatcher: in the general election of the next year, her Conservative government won by the most decisive landslide since 1945.<\/p>\n
Did the Falklands War resolve the issue of sovereignty?<\/h2>\n
In a word: no. Although the two nations re-established relations in a joint statement in 1989, Argentina still maintains its claim to the Falklands islands, even adding it to its constitution in 1994. In a 2013 referendum, all but three islanders voted to remain a UK overseas territory \u2013 a result dismissed by the Argentine government as a \u201cpublicity stunt\u201d.<\/p>\n
Matt Elton is the deputy editor of BBC History Magazine<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Falklands War timeline: what happened and when?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Sir Max Hastings picks 10 key dates in the conflict<\/em><\/p>\n
19 March 1982 | <\/strong>A group of Argentines (purportedly scrap metal workers) land on South Georgia<\/p>\n
2 April | <\/strong>Argentine forces invade the Falklands, capturing the islands after a brief fight<\/p>\n
3 April | <\/strong>The UN Security Council calls unsuccessfully for an end to hostilities and an Argentine withdrawal<\/p>\n
5 April <\/strong>| The British task force sets sail for the south Atlantic<\/p>\n
25 April | <\/strong>South Georgia is recaptured by British commandos. Meanwhile the main task force has reached the vicinity of the Falkland Islands<\/p>\n
2 May | <\/strong>Argentine cruiser General Belgrano<\/em> is torpedoed by British submarine HMS Conqueror<\/em>, resulting in the deaths of 323. Aerial and naval combat is stepped up<\/p>\n
21 May | <\/strong>After the failure of several international attempts to mediate, British troops land on the Falklands at San Carlos and establish a bridgehead<\/p>\n
29 May | <\/strong>British troops attack the Argentine positions at Darwin and Goose Green, inflicting heavy losses<\/p>\n
8 June | <\/strong>Argentine aircraft raid the British supply ships Sir Tristram<\/em> and Sir Galahad<\/em>, killing 48 and injuring dozens more<\/p>\n
14 June | <\/strong>Having captured important defensive positions, British troops arrive in Port Stanley, compelling the Argentine garrison to surrender<\/p>\n
Sir Max Hastings is a journalist, author and historian, who became a household name reporting on the 1982 battle for the Falkland Islands. Here he shares his memories of what he describes as Britain\u2019s \u201clast really popular war<\/a>\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n
<\/p><\/div> <\/section>
The politics of the Falklands War<\/h2>\n
Sir Lawrence Freedman, official historian of the Falklands War, examines the build up to open warfare<\/em><\/p>\n
Britain\u2019s first surprise at the start of April 1982 was that it was at war; the second that it was able to respond at all to the Argentine seizure of the Falkland Islands.<\/p>\n
Argentina believed the British had taken the islands illegally from them in January 1833. In December 1981 a new military junta, led by General Leopoldo Galtieri, determined that the islands should be retaken, if necessary by force, by the 150th anniversary of this event. The British government had shown little interest in the islands, but stood by a commitment to the islanders, made first in 1968, that gave them the final say over whether sovereignty should be transferred to Argentina.<\/p>\n
The population was tiny, barely 1,800 and declining. The British government saw little long term future, and was reluctant to invest in making the Falklands prosperous and secure. Yet it could not persuade the islanders to join Argentina, even under a lease-back arrangement that would leave them under Argentine sovereignty but British administration. By 1982 it had no policy other than procrastination, hoping the islanders might one day change their minds.<\/p>\n
$\"""\"$ <\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>

When was the Falklands War and how long did it last?<\/h2>\nThe conflict was fought between 2 April and 14 June 1982, lasting for 74 days.<\/p>\n

When was the Falklands War and how long did it last?<\/h2>\n
The conflict was fought between 2 April and 14 June 1982, lasting for 74 days.<\/p>\n