- Argentina destroyer was sunk by British submarine with loss of 368 lives
- Navy’s radio signals were intercepted by Falklands force
By
David Wilkes
Last updated at 10:40 PM on 26th December 2011
It was one of the most controversial events of the Falklands War.
The sinking of the Argentine warship the General Belgrano by a Royal Navy submarine with the loss of 323 lives led to accusations of unnecessary force by Britain and became a cause celebre for anti-war campaigners.
It was claimed the ship was returning to its home port and was outside an exclusion zone imposed by Whitehall.
Invasion: The Argentinian cruiser General
Belgrano sinks after being hit by a torpedo as its crew takes to life
rafts in the South Atlantic Ocean during the Falklands War in 1982
But now, just months before the 30th anniversary of the attack, a new book based on a top secret report has revealed that the Belgrano was heading into the exclusion zone when it was hit.
The contents of the report have never been publicly revealed before, but its existence was hinted at by Margaret Thatcher, the prime minister at the time, a year after the attack of May 2, 1982. Quizzed about the Belgrano by teacher Diana Gould on BBC TV’s Nationwide programme during the 1983 election campaign, Mrs Thatcher said: ‘One day, all of the facts, in about 30 years’ time, will be published.’
Resolute: Margaret Thatcher sent a task force of 100 ships to regain control of the Falklands Islands after the Argentine junta invaded
The book’s author, Major David Thorp, tells how after the war Mrs Thatcher ‘requested a complete and thorough investigation into the sinking as pressure was building from opposition parliamentary backbenchers . . . for a ministerial enquiry’.
Major Thorp, who spent 34 years working as a signals expert in an elite military intelligence unit, was ‘provided with every conceivable document, file, report and note imaginable that related to, or included the name, Belgrano’.
These included the Official War Diary from HMS Conqueror, the hunter-killer submarine which fired the two torpedoes that sunk the Belgrano in the South Atlantic.
All the information was covered by the highest security classification.
It is thought that much of the material will be made public via the National Archives next year under the 30-year rule on the release of secret documents.
Major Thorp, now 72, was in charge of a signals interception section hidden on the amphibious warship Intrepid as it travelled with the Task Force.
In his book The Silent Listener, he writes: ‘Shortly after the UK’s announcement of the exclusion zone, the Argentinian Navy HQ notified its warships, possibly for the purpose of re-grouping, of a pre-arranged rendezvous (RV) point.
‘When the co-ordinates for the RV were plotted on a map, the actual location, though east of the Falkland Islands, was nevertheless inside the 200 nautical miles exclusion zone.
‘Some considerable time prior to the
Conqueror firing its torpedoes, my analysis revealed that the General
Belgrano had been instructed to alter course and head in the direction
of the RV inside the exclusion zone.
‘The findings of my report stated that
the destination of the vessel was not to her home port as the
Argentine Junta stated, but the objective of the ship was to relocate to
a pre-arranged RV within the exclusion zone.’
Sunk: The Argentinian destroyer Belgrano was torpedoed by HMS Conqueror with the loss of 368 lives
Major Thorp’s report was never disclosed by Mrs Thatcher because she did not want to reveal the extent of Britain’s ability to intercept enemy electronic and radio signals.
The book was cleared for publication by the security services.
The strike on the Belgrano signalled the first loss of life in the Falklands conflict.
Two days later Argentina hit back with a missile attack on the British destroyer HMS Sheffield, killing 20.
The sea battle continued for many more weeks, then the conflict turned to the land before the Argentine forces finally surrendered and peace was declared on June 20, 1982.
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The General Belgrano was a fair target whichever way it was heading. Argentina declared war when they invaded the Falkland Islands. All Argentinian military assets became fair targets thereafter. As they will again if the Argentine government is foolish enough to attempt another invasion. Rule Britannia!
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Why is this old chestnut being dragged up (again) ?
It was a fair and legitimate target – end of, get over it.
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Argentina wanted a war, they got one and lost.
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I would be more impressed by this article had it not said twice that the ship was a destroyer. It was, in fact, a heavy cruiser. If the writer does not know the difference he had no business writing about it.
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Why all this rubbish, it was war, the Argentine government started it, and we finished it.
There are only two rules in war, and they are to defend yourself and your country, and to beat the opposition into submission, and we did.
So I say again, “why all this rubbish”, it’s finished and dont waste any more money on enquiries.!!!!!!!!!!
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point number two, the general belgrano was an ex ww2 cruiser NOT a much smaller destroyer get it sorted you lot.
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I have no sympathy with the Argentinians then or now. They have no legitimate claim to The Falklands, and their current sabre rattling is entirely due to the oil deposits in and around the islands, and nothing else. If they want to repeat history, let them try.
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It may have been legal but was it the right decision ? Would it not have been better to shadow the Belgrano until its intentions were absolutely clear ? Surely the British Navy could have torpedoed it whenever they wanted. Like most Acts of War we will never know. The war killed a lot of innocent young men who probably didn’t want to fight on behalf of the Argentian Dictators. But maybe the good thing is that the Junta has gone and Argentina is now a free country.
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For Argentina to suggest that we were wrong to kill Argentine forces that were in Falklands’ waters during the Falklands War is outrageous. They seem to be forgetting just who illegally invaded the islands, against the wishes of the people of the Falkland Islands and of the British people.
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I don’t care. They invaded the falklands and killed British troops. I don’t care where their warship was going when it was torpedoed. Tough.
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