Falklands 40: What Portsmouth Saw

An exhibition at Fort Nelson

2022 marks 40 years since Argentine and British troops fought to gain control over the Islas Malvinas or Falkland Islands. The ten-week conflict started on 2 April 1982 and ended on 14 June when Argentina surrendered.

There is a new temporary exhibition at Fort Nelson which marks the 40th anniversary of the Falklands War. This exhibition depicts Portsmouth during the war from the point of view of the local Portsmouth newspaper, The News and features moving stories from Falklands war veterans.

HMS Intrepid in the water with a group of boats

HMS Intrepid returns to Portsmouth from the Falkland Islands. Credit: The News

What Portsmouth saw

Portsmouth played a significant part in the Falklands War. Thousands of Portsmouth dockyard workers rallied to prepare ships that carried British troops to the Falkland Islands.

Later, images of the Dockyard became front page news as huge crowds flocked to welcome the ships and troops back once the war was over. They show some of the scenes that played out in 1982 as the ships of the British fleet returned from the Falklands to Portsmouth Dockyard after the war.

The homecomings

Late last year the Royal Armouries team made contact with the Portsmouth City Archive. We were looking for photographs of Portsmouth at the time of the Falklands War. We found a treasure trove of negatives containing images of the Dockyard. The negatives, taken by journalists for local paper, The News, featured families, crowds, ships and homecoming banners.

Every emotion was visible on the pictures, and we knew we would like to share them with our visitors to help us tell the story of the part Portsmouth played in the war.

View a selection of photographs from the Falklands 40: What Portsmouth Saw exhibition.

People wave jubilantly at the crew onboard warfare ship HMS Intrepid — HMS Intrepid returns to Portsmouth harbour

Families wave flags and banners excitedly, welcoming home their returning war heroes. — Fountain Lake Jetty in Portsmouth Dockyard

A red and white icebreaker ship on water — HMS Endurance

Fountain Lake Jetty is filled with crowds holding up banners to greet the ship's crew — HMS Intrepid docked at Fountain Lake jetty

Small craft welcome the Type 42 Destroyer as the ship returns to Portsmouth harbour — HMS Glasgow Type 42 Destroyer

The ship’s crew line up to look over the crowds gathered and holding up banners — Welcome home crowds gather

The weapons of the war

As a much richer and more powerful nation, Britain entered the war with more and better aircraft, ships and missile systems than Argentina.

Despite this, the soldiers fighting on the ground were armed with weapons that were virtually identical and equally effective. Even the same ammunition was used.

This meant that firearms were not a deciding factor in this conflict, but they did create common ground for the soldiers of each side. They knew exactly how their enemy’s weapons worked and what their capabilities were. If necessary, they could even pick them up and use them.

Weapons of the war will be on display in the exhibition at Fort Nelson. The images below show similar firearms from our collections website.

L1A1 Self-Loading Rifle

The powerful and tough Belgian FN FAL rifle was adopted by many nations during the 1950s. This is the British version, known as the L1A1 ‘Self-Loading Rifle’ or ‘SLR’. Argentina’s version could fire automatically, like a machine gun, but it kicked so hard that it was hard to control.

To see a similar example, view the Centrefire self-loading military rifle – SLR, L1 A1.

Centrefire self-loading military rifle – SLR, L1 A1

Ametralladora Tipo 60-20 (FN MAG) Machine Gun

This FN MAG was the main machine gun used by both sides. Still in service today, the British L7A2 version was nicknamed ‘Jimpy’ from the initials ‘GPMG’ (‘General Purpose Machine Gun’). Soldiers on both sides knew that the gun could fire 850 rounds per minute and kill at a range of 1,000 metres.

A similar example is the Centrefire automatic machine gun – GPMG, MAG 58.

Centrefire automatic machine gun – GPMG, MAG 58

Sterling Patchett Mk.5 submachine gun, (L34A1) commercial model

On 2 April 1982, Argentine Marines used silenced British-made ‘Sterling’ submachine guns in the night attack and capture of Government House, the British Governor’s property in Port Stanley in the Falklands. The Sterling’s built-in silencer made the gun much quieter and the Marines harder to spot as they approached. The British surrendered after around 3 hours of fighting.

Visit our collections website to view the Centrefire automatic silenced submachine gun – Sterling Patchett Mk.5 (L34A1).

Centrefire automatic silenced submachine gun – Sterling Patchett Mk.5 (L34A1), skeleton

Pistola Browning PD Pistol

This is the Argentine version of the popular FN Browning GP35 pistol, known as the ‘Pistola Browning PD’. The same weapon was also the standard British service pistol, designated ‘L9A1’. Like all pistols, it was used for self-defence at close quarters.

Centrefire self-loading military pistol – Pistola Browning PD (FN Browning GP35)

Falklands veterans’ stories

In April 2022, 10 Falklands veterans came to Fort Nelson and shared their stories with us. We spoke about their time in combat and the return home. Some sailed into Portsmouth and were greeted by tens of thousands, others had smaller welcome parties. All told fascinating and moving stories, some of which can be seen as part of the exhibition and in these videos.