With 3 Para to the Falklands by Lieutenant General Sir Huw Pike (Foreword), Graham Colbeck (15-Mar-2002) Hardcover

by Graham Colbeck

On Friday, April 9, 1982, a British task force set sail for the Falkland Islands. Three months later it, after a short but brutal campaign, it had successfully completed its mission of ejecting the Argentinean occupying forces from the islands. With 3 Para to the Falklands, released to mark the twentieth anniversary of the campaign, is the full story of that dramatic campaign from the point of view of a sergeant in 3 Para. 3 Para played a significant part in the sharp, bloody campaign, marching from Port San Carlos to Port Stanley and fighting one of the crucial battles of the campaign the night assault on Mount Longdon. Graham Colbeck was there every step of the way and his account reveals the realities of fighting in this stubbornly contested conflict. His narrative brings to the fore the chilling nature of the fighting, the challenge of the harsh conditions met on the Falklands, the training and techniques of an elite force, and the comradeship of troops in battle. With 3 Para to the Falklands is one man's story of living through this vivid and intense period and a gripping insight into the experience of modern battle. Published to coincide with the 20th anniversary of the campaign, it provides a stunning account of the struggle for the Falklands.

Genres: Military Fiction

Unknown Binding

First published June 1, 1992

Reviews

[Rick Brindle · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent, gritty account of the Falklands as seen through the eyes of a member of 3 Para. Graham Colbeck talks about what it means to be a paratrooper, the esprit de corps, and speaks of war in a plain, almost matter of fact way. It's hard to imagine how easily he talks about something that most of us would be unable to face, and something that was not nearly the walkover than some people have very wrongly suggested.

[Verhoeve · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is an interesting story. A man part of a tribe, a military tribe, elite, highly trained with esprit de corps. But trained as a Milan-specialist (anti-tank) and sailing for the Argentinian invaded Falklands Islands (Malvinas (Malo-ines)). After arriving on the Falklands this weapon was hardly used because the Agentinians didnot use armour in the fights. The story describes the hardships of the footsoldier (the cold and wet conditions, trenchfoot) and the chaotic and climactic battle on Mount Longdon. Its an interesting and well written personal story. But therefore limited in scope. If you want to read an integral (and great) story you als0 want to read: The Falklands War Then and Now.

[Paul Reynolds · Rating 2 out of 5]

Colbeck kept a diary of the war so a lot of the book, although published 20 years later, has much that was directly lifted from observations at the time.
Unfortunately the author has lifted too much from that sporadic diary, and dropped it directly into the text without concern for how it might benefit the book as a whole.

Consequently the book is neither immersive (a potential strength of diarised retellings), nor comprehensive (the strength of an academic work). Occasional anecdotal paragraphs about drinking, for example, didn’t shock (duh, they’re soldiers), explain any wider point or clarify anything.

There were just too many sections that were not interesting, were poorly written, and added nothing to military or personal context.

A frustrating case of the author having plenty of material from which a very good book may have arisen, but didn’t.

[David Roberts · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book I read to research this post was With 3 Para To The Falklands by Graham Colbeck which is a very good book which I bought at a car boot sale. This book was written to coincide with the 20th anniversary of the Falklands Conflict. Graham was a Major in 3 Para and was in it for 23 years and in the Territorial Army for a further 9 years. He was visited by the police about allegations of war crimes at Mount Longdon and while he didn't witness anything like that he realised most people knew little about the Battle which was decisive in the conflict. 2 Para attacked Goose Green in the conflict & 3 Para had to march all the way across the islands to Port Stanley. At the time a military junta ruled Argentina and had invaded the Falklands which meant the population would have been ruled by a dictatorship. The British government did give the impression they couldn't be bothered about the islands. At Mount Longdon which was attacked at night time some of the Argentine officers shot their men in the leg to stop them retreating. It was one of the fiercest battles of the Falklands Conflict. 3 Para were transported to the Falklands aboard the Canberra which was a cruise ship converted for the conflict and requisitioned. The soldiers didn't have a the benefit of a map of Mount Longdon although obviously they did have a map of the Falklands. One good thing about the war is at least the dictatorship in Argentina did have to make way for a democracy. Apparently the islands were originally discovered by the French who did have a colony there. At one stage the Spanish who at that time ruled Argentina also claimed the Islands. It's a very interesting book which I enjoyed reading.