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Type of bind: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 997.11
EAN num: 9780393301984
ISBN number: 0393301982
Label: W. W. Norton & Company
Manufacturer: W. W. Norton & Company
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 384
Printing Date: 1984-09
Publishing house: W. W. Norton & Company
Sale Popularity Level: 128654
Studio: W. W. Norton & Company
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Rated by buyers 
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Sir Max Hastings and Simon Jenkins have written a masterpiece in "Battle for the Falklands". In a single volume, between the two authors they provide a comprehensive look at the diplomatic efforts and an unparalleled record of the events on the ground.
Almost 30 years later, what lessons does the Battle for the Falklands have for the world? The lessons from "Aftermath" contain lessons learned that are still very applicable today. There is an oft quoted maxim in the US Military that "Amateurs talk about strategy, dilettantes talk about tactics, and professionals talk about logistics." The Falklands battle only serves to reemphasize that lesson. The Argentine soldiers had stockpiles of materiel in the towns that never made it out to the field. The British soldiers had to completely redesign their logistics plan when they lost a significant portion of their helicopter fleet when the Atlantic Conveyor sank.
After two major American wars with instantaneous reporting from embedded reporters, the world does not have the patience to wait two weeks for news from the front. More importantly, there are lessons here for releasing information to the media. In the battle for Goose Green, the defenders heard media reports that the British were ready to attack. Until that moment in time, the defenders had no idea the British were even in the area.
From a battle study perspective, the book contains all the important elements - the strategic context for the battle, the sequence of events, and the units involved. It also contains the most important element - that of the personal histories of the men involved in the fighting.
The only perspective missing is that of the defenders. Considering the nation was run by a military junta whose only goal was to stay in power, we will probably never see the opposing side of the war. Overall, it's a fantastic book that would do justice to any military historian's library.
Rated by buyers -
The Falklands war was one of the most peculiar wars of the 20th century.
Argentine`s Galtierei was a gambler who lost against the determined Mrs Thatcher and her "crew". But yesterday he would perhaps have got away with it.
The authors have described the development of the conflict very thorougly,
with interesting descriptions of the considerations on both sides, and of the battles. Exciting subject - well written!
Rated by buyers 
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The Falklands War has been described as the last of the old style conflicts, indeed a throw back to 19th century colonial wars. That being said it was also a classic example of warfare being politics by other means. Few other modern wars provide such a strong example of events influencing the political situation on a almost daily basis.
This book was consdiered at the time of its writing one of the best on the Falklands War. Max Hastings was the original embedded journalist. He managed to gain the trust of many British commanders because of the quality of his reporting, and thus was given acess to events that others did not have. That having been said I was surprised that his book did not have more insights into the commanders of the conflict. When all is said and done this book reads pretty much like a standard history of the conflict.
The origins of the war are discussed by his co-writer. This account was not as clear as I would have wished. A lot was implied on the part of the reader in terms of being familier with the very intricate and protracted political dealings that lead up to the war. As is often the case with such a complicated process one tends to find diferent emphasis depending on who is writing. The lead-up was certainly complete, but different personages were mentioned in this book as being important as compared to others. The general impression is that while the British were playing for time in the on-going Falklands negotiations, the Argentine side was quickly running out of it. The British Foriegn Office should have seen the writing on the wall, but didn't and so when the invasion took place some heads had to roll in Thatcher's government.
The military aspects of the war are described decently but without the kind of detail I was expecting from this highly regarded book. Still, the reader will find a nice and concise description of the action. In particular the 2nd Para's action at Goose Green is given the attention it deserves. This, the very first land portion of the campaign was deffinitely infleunced by the daily political situation in London, with near fatal results. Not only was 2nd Para's impending attack announced in the British media just hours before it was launched, but the whole attack nearly fell afoul of bad intelligence work. Argentine strength was woefully underestimated and it was only the skill and determination of 2nd Para itself which prevailed. The battalion commander was himself killed in the attack. Had he lived he would have sued the BBC for their negligence.
The ongoing action in San Carlos Bay could have been a calamity for the Royal Navy had the Argentines fused their bombs more effectively. As it was the few air-launced exocet missiles came close to causing massive damage. Many British vessels were damaged, and not a few sunk, but fortunately not either of their two carriers. The Argentine Air Force, unskilled, though brave, could not sustain the high losses from the effective British aerial defenses.
The author provides a lenghy chatpter on the series of mishaps which lead to the Welsh Guards disasterous landing near Port Stanley. This could have been prevented had various commanders not stepped in when they did, but this was partly because of the passive Argentine defense so far. The British became reckless and fortunately for the them they did not lose more men than they did.
The final land battles in the mountains around Port Stanley show that once the British got on land with the better part of a division the Argentines were doomed. Their poorly trained troops simply could not stand up to the amazing professionalism of the British. Still, we must regard the Falklands conflict as a near run thing for the British on both land and sea. Had the Argentines fought with more coodination within their services, and with aggression they could have caused the British infinitely more loss, and perhaps won. Overall one is astonished by the relatively low casaualty counts. The fighting was certainly intense, but the losses were low consdiering this. Several factors may explain this: one that most of the land fighting was conducted at night time, and at sea many of the Argentine ordinance failed to explode on impact.
Still, the war cost almost a thousand lives, and with another equal number wounded as well. In the USA this conflict remains little known, at the time Americans were surprised at the reality of the situation. President Reagan was caught napping, and Haig stacked his career on trying to replicate Kissenger's shuttle diplomacy to prevent war at the last minute. On this 25th Anniversary of the conflict we should reflect on how even remote political situations can easily become military confrontations. The performance of the British army and navy was supurb throughout. At the time the US had stumbled in several low-level conflicts where ... Read More
Rated by buyers 
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I was in college when the Falklands war broke out and never really understood what actually happened and why.
I bought "The Battle for the Falklands" as a way of finding out and whilst this book is easy to read and well written I found it lacked a certain personnel perspective. I researched other titles and ended up seeking out "9 battles to Stanley" by Nicholas Van De Bijl.
This told me more of what I wanted to know in terms of how hard both sides had actually fought and the reality of battle. It showed, in several cases, how close the British forces came to defeat and ultimately that victory was a result of superior training, ability and a certain amount of luck. Despite the rhetoric the Argentineans weren't a walk over and although this book only deals with the land base forces I think it is more realistic and informative.
It certainly helped me understand the sacrifices each side made and the futility of war.
Rated by buyers -
A superb collection of the players and events leading up to the Falklands conflict. The comparisons between the infamous 1983 South Atlantic war and today's headlines are not accidental. Hastings and Jenkins lend a broad stage to the conflict and protray it well as it unfolded among the nations of the world. As the book unfolds, the challenges of an ill equipped force against an uncertain enemy and the politics of every move are made clear. One of the most telling lines was the reference to the revelation of the assault on Goose Green by the BBC prior to the actual attack, a revelation which cost the British and Argentinians additional lives and casualties.
Although there is some treatment of Argentina's perspective, this is largely a book about the UK effort. I was very impressed with the detail, honesty and flow of the work. And nary a mention of Prince Andrew!
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