On this day in military history…
3 PARA’s attack on Mount Longdon was one of the fiercest and most costly British infantry actions of the Falklands War. Mount Longdon lay on the ring of high ground west of Port Stanley, and by June 1982 it had become a key part of Argentina’s defensive line protecting the capital. The British plan for the night of 11–12 June was to seize several major positions at once: 3 PARA would take Mount Longdon, while Royal Marines attacked Two Sisters and Mount Harriet. The battalion, commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Hew Pike, had already endured the long march across East Falkland after the landings at San Carlos, and the men knew that Longdon would not be an easy objective. The Argentine defenders, mainly from the 7th Infantry Regiment, were well dug in among rocks, sangars, trenches and minefields, with machine guns, mortars, snipers and artillery support. The ground itself made the attack especially dangerous: Mount Longdon had false crests, rocky folds and hidden positions, so British troops could overrun one area only to be hit from another concealed pocket of resistance.
The assault began in darkness and was intended to be quiet at first, but the battle quickly turned into close-range fighting with grenades, bayonets, rifles, machine guns and anti-tank weapons used against bunkers and sangars. B Company was heavily engaged as it pushed into the Argentine positions, and the fighting became confused because the rocky terrain broke up sections and platoons. One of the most famous acts of bravery came from Sergeant Ian McKay, who led an attack against a machine-gun position after his platoon commander was wounded; he was killed during the assault and was later awarded a posthumous Victoria Cross. The battle lasted through the night into the morning, with 3 PARA supported by artillery from 29 Commando Regiment Royal Artillery, mortars, anti-tank weapons and naval gunfire, including support from HMS Avenger. The Argentines fought stubbornly, and many British veterans later stressed that the defenders were not weak or unwilling soldiers but determined men in strong positions. When the mountain was finally secured, 3 PARA had taken the objective, but at a terrible price.
Mount Longdon did not become safe once it was captured. After the battle, the Paras had to hold the exposed ridge while Argentine artillery and mortars continued to fall on them from positions closer to Stanley, especially from the direction of Mount Tumbledown and the Moody Valley area. This caused further casualties and made the aftermath almost as grim as the assault itself. In total, 23 British airborne soldiers were killed during the Mount Longdon operation, and many more were wounded; it is often described as the costliest British land battle of the war. Argentine losses are usually given as dozens killed, many wounded and around 50 prisoners taken, though exact figures vary between accounts. The victory at Mount Longdon helped open the way to Wireless Ridge and Port Stanley, and within days Argentina’s forces on the islands surrendered. The battle remains remembered not only for its military importance but for its personal stories: young soldiers fighting at night in freezing conditions, medics treating British and Argentine wounded under fire, acts of courage and horror at very close range, and the lasting trauma carried by survivors on both sides. It stands as one of the clearest examples of how the final advance on Stanley was not a simple collapse, but a brutal infantry battle fought yard by yard across the Falklands’ bleak high ground.
