Topic 4, Lesson 15: Why did the Falklands war transform Thatcher’s popularity?

Topic 4, Lesson 15: Why did the Falklands war transform Thatcher’s popularity?

Causes of the Falklands War (1982)

• legal ownership of the Falklands had been disputed heavily between Britain and Argentina

• Britain’s claim to the Falklands was that it had been a British Dependency since 1833

• AND 98% of the 2,000 islanders living in the Falklands in 1982 wished to remain under the British flag.

Thatcher commented on this fact by arguing “sovereignty is not negotiable”

• Thatcher’s government was willing to compromise with Argentina until its’ dictator, General Gualtieri, invaded the Falklands on 2nd April 1982

• 4,000 Argentine troops invaded the Falklands island and quickly overcame the resistance of the 80 Royal Marines based there

• Thatcher immediately ordered the retaking of the Falklands by British Armed Forces

Topic 4, Lesson 15: Why did the Falklands war transform Thatcher’s popularity?

Key Events of the Falklands War

Initially, the US refused to assist Britain in the Falklands. However, after Thatcher pressurised Reagan, America did aid Britain by:

• offering Britain the use of the American bases on the British Ascension Island

• providing diplomatic intervention (which prevented Argentina from obtaining new Exocet Missiles

This caused the relationship between Thatcher and Reagan to strengthen.

8th April 1982 - a British task force, which had been rapidly put together in 4 days, set sail from Portsmouth and Southampton

25th April 1982 - South Georgia (which Argentina had also seized) was recaptured

1st May 1982 - Air strikes began

2nd May 1982 - Britain began its naval campaign

Britain managed to sink the Argentine cruiser Belgrano

• This caused much controversy in Britain

• Opponents of the war claimed that Thatcher had personally ordered the sinking of the Belgrano despite the fact it was sailing out of the exclusion zone when it was torpedoed

• The accusation was that Thatcher had purposely done this to wreck the efforts of the UN to bring about a peaceful settlement to the conflict

Two days after the Belgrano was sunk, HMS Sheffield was destroyed by an Argentine Exocet missile

21st May 1982 - Royal Navy landings began on the island

14th June 1982 - climax of the conflict - liberation of the Falklands capital, Port Stanley

Argentina surrendered

Topic 4, Lesson 15: Why did the Falklands war transform Thatcher’s popularity?

Consequences of the Falklands War

• 255 British servicemen died

• 665 Argentine servicemen died

• Britain became a jingoistic society (extremely patriotic)

• Thatcher’s cry of “rejoice, rejoice” at the news of victory

• Pro-war and Pro-Thatcher tabloid press likened her to Churchill

• Thatcher was rewarded for her militaristic leadership in the 1983 General Election

• She won an overwhelming electoral victory in 1983

• In contrast, Labour found themselves in the undesirable position of trying to attack the government while at the same time supporting the British service personnel in the Falklands

Consequently, Michael Foot (and then Neil Kinnock) suffered a dip in their personal opinion polls.

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