Customer Reviews

One Hundred Days: The Memoirs of the Falklands Battle Group Commander (Bluejacket Books Series)

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This fine naval autobiography takes us behind the scenes of the Falklands sea/air (not ground) war and modern battle management in general. Admiral Woodward didn't exactly know what he was sailing into back in 1982, and makes no attempt to hide his personal sense of vulnerability as Britain's first fighting admiral in high-tech warfare. In fact, the entire book is refreshingly down-to-earth. Woodward is quick to note that he was tapped for the job because he happened to be the navy's closest flotilla commander at the time (in Gibraltar)--and confides that his superiors almost replaced him with a higher-ranking officer even as he led the task force into danger. This is no stuffed-shirt memoir.

Woodward and co-author Patrick Robinson weave accounts of grand strategy and military politics through a genuinely absorbing narrative of men and machines in heavy weather, incessant tactical maneuvering, and flashes of terrifying combat. Along the way, there are plenty of 'what-if's to chew on. We learn that Woodward had to manipulate London to get HMS Conqueror to sink the Argentine cruiser General Belgrano (British subs weren't under his tactical command). He explains why the sinking was both necessary and tragic, and how Conqueror watched but spared Argentine ships coming to Belgrano's aid. He also reveals that his ships almost shot down a Brazilian airliner mistaken for a pesky Argentine recon jet; he personally gave the order to withhold fire. And Woodward's character shines through his account of ordering HMS Alacrity on a potential suicide mission to scout mines--in an exceptionally gracious mea culpa of command, he praises the captain's sterling courage while faulting his own mundane direction.

Also fascinating are the individual stories of the high number of British ships damaged or sunk, and Woodward's frustration with underperforming anti-aircraft and anti-missile systems. This was more of a close call than the world knew at the time, as he makes abundantly clear. Ultimately, his modest approach on paper belies the fact that he and his task force pulled off a truly impressive naval feat. And it's a credit to Woodward the author-analyst that 'One Hundred Days' transcends the Falklands War to give an illuminating, first-person view of campaign and tactical battle coordination. It could find a home on bookshelves of Fortune 500 executives as well as students of naval and air operations. The style is also breezy (and occasionally humorous) enough for the casual reader. I've never seen it in a U.S. store, so thanks, Amazon.

In this book Admiral Woodward has provided the reader with an informative and candid view of a task force commander at war. His myriad of concerns; logistics, weather, technology, numbers, and the interference of politics and the modern media in the campaign are presented in a very readable format. It was interesting to read his asessments that Argentina could have won the war by concentrating their air attacks on the 2 British carriers (fortunately the Brits hadn't sold them) or the amphibs. As a naval officer, and a student of military history, it was refreshing to see a modern commander admit that such things as acceptable losses and expendable commands really do exist in the conduct of warfare. His humor and leadership style, warts and all, are a primer in command and control under fire. The book presents dramatic descriptions of many tragic episodes, such as the sinkings of the HMS Coventry and the Atlantic Conveyor. Unfortunately, since the book was written from a naval officer's point of view, the land campaign was given rather short notice therefore leaving out an important portion of the fight. I highly recommend the book for professionals and buffs alike.

I read this book as a midshipman in my efforts toward professional development as a future naval officer. This is an EXCELLENT book. Admiral Woodward provides insight into some very important lessons learned from the Falklands War - the first time the Royal Navy went to war since WWII and using weapons systems that had not been tested in battle and the first war in the age of instant satellite news networks. I couldn't put the book down.

A superior autobiography. Although the focus is plainly on the Falklands, the author provides a fascinating account of the RN's submarine training program -- which reminds one of why the British military, though tiny in size, still maintains some of the best trained warriors in the world.

The meat of the book retells the story of PM Thatcher's courageous decision to retake the Falklands. The author provides a fine defense of the UK's controversial decision to sink the Argentine crusier Belgrano and a compelling account of the terror visited upon his task force by (French-made) exocet anti-ship missles. Unlike many commanders' post-mortems, this book contains little of the standard blame shifting usually found in such works. The Admiral takes you through his decision-making process step-by-step never letting the reader forget that the decisions he made often were made on the basis on VERY incomplete information under intense time-pressure (from the US, the UN and the coming South Atlantic winter) and, often, under fire.

Overall, one comes away thinking the author would have done a bang-up job at Trafalger or Jutland . . . or even taking on the Soviet Navy in the North Atlantic. A must have for those interested in finding out what -- to paraphrase the Iron Duke -- a damn near run thing the Falklands campaign really was.

This is an absolutely first-rate memoir by the man who led the British fleet to victory in the Falkland Islands War. Only 50 years-old when he was chosen to lead the battle group to recapture the islands in 1982 (hard to believe this gentleman is now 73!), Admiral Sir John F. "Sandy" Woodward was courageous and competent commander. That being the case, he is also refreshingly honest and humble as he tells his remarkable story.

As the Admiral mentions in the epilogue, many will always regard the Falklands as having been "a pushover war - the mighty Brits crushing the ridiculous Args" (349). But as this book makes clear, it was anything but a cakewalk. The Argentinian sailors and pilots were brave and worthy oponents. The British fleet took heavy casualties: 6 ships sunk (2 destroyers, 2 frigates, 1 amphibious warfare vessel and the transport vessel Atlantic Conveyor with its precious cargo of 10 Wessex and 4 Chinook helicopters). Another 10 ships were badly damaged. Many of these were not sunk only because the Argentinian bombs reguarly failed to detonate. The British, of course, won decisively though, thanks to the professionalism and courage of the British forces. But it was an intense and bloody six weeks.

The campaign was also a turning point in the history of naval warfare. Although anti-ship missiles were first used to sink Syrian missile boats by the Israelis back in 1973, the destruction of HMS Sheffield by the French Exocet missiles fired from Super-Etendard fighter-bombers grabbed the attention of the world's militaries. Newsweek's subsequent cover-story on the incident read "Falklands Fallout: Are Big Ships Doomed?" Many wondered if large warships had been rendered obsolete by the effectiveness of anti-ship missiles. Indeed, the two British aircraft carriers in the South Atlantic were very vulnerable. If even one of them had been put out of commission by an Exocet, it is unlikely the Falklands could have been recaptured. It is very interesting to read about how the British struggled with some of their new high-tech weaponry such as the Sea Dart. It took some failed attempts in battle before the bugs got worked out and they got comfortable with the new system.

Admiral Woodward is an excellent writer. His descriptions of the battles are riveting, especially the moments of calamity such as when HMS Sheffield was crippled by Exocets. You really get a sense of the fear, anxiety and adrenaline. It's as exciting as any Tom Clancy novel without a doubt.

As a former naval officer myself, who has served with Brits at sea, I found Adm. Woodward's book valuable not only as an historical record but also as a humane look at people in combat. Adm. Woodward's insights on this subject should be training material for every military officer.

Adm. Woodward's writing style is diary-sourced, with a high sense of the immediate. He accents the text with his own illustrations sketched on the spot -- jolly good.

Highly recco'd to everyone interested in military history and leadership.

As Wellington famously said of the Hundred Days Campaign culminating in the Battle of Waterloo, the Falklands Campaign was a also damn near run thing, according to the Battle Group Commander, Adm Sandy Woodward, in this excellent book. Writing in what can best be called a distinctly British style, Woodward takes the reader into the bridge of the Hermes, his command ship for the Falklands expedition. What we get is a brutally honest, technically detailed, and gripping narrative not only into how the British pulled off a decisive victory, but also the self-doubts and mentally taxing minutia of a Commander sending troops and sailors into harm's way. This book is especially valuable for its detailed description of how navies fight. This is no small task. For example, the reader learns how:

1. submarines track ships and the risks they run to track them and shoot them. The example of the sinking of the General Belgrano is first rate
2. how a routine matter such as cross-decking troops between ships bedevils commanders and can end in tragedy
3. ship's tactics for defending themselves against aircraft (this is particularly helpful. In the US military, we have become so accustomed to air and sea superiority that those who operate on the ground take it for granted. It's not! It must be gained and earned - if need be, the hard way.)
4. The inevitable tension that will arise between sea, air, and land commanders during the prosecution of an amphibious campaign. We get Woodward's side here, but he is brutally honest on when he was right and when he was wrong.
5. The role of destroyers, frigates, aircraft carriers, amphibs, and supply ships, and the risks they ran -- and still do -- to do their jobs.

This is one of the only books I know of that actually explains how modern navies fight, and it is thus indispensable to navy officers and to those who seek to learn more on control of the seas.

I read this book several years ago, butI felt the need to comment on it becuase I found it so good. The author provides a thoughtful, moving, and human report of the Falklands war.

It is certainly worth reading for that alone.

Admiral Woodward's account manages to deliver the sense of being in charge of tens of ships loaded with thousands of men, all involved in a modern armed conflict at sea.
The professionalism necessary to handle the situation is clearly conveyed. As well as the stress that life-or-death decisions place on the shoulders of those "managing" a war-front.

British Admiral Sandy Woodward recalls his experiences from the 1982 War in the Falklands in this 1992 classic, "One Hundred Days: The Memoirs of The Falklands Battle Group Commander." He offers very candid and poignant perspectives on what it was like to bear the burden of command of this naval armada. Even in 2010, this is an important work since the War in the Falklands is still the only war featuring a successful, sustained aerial assault of jet aircraft against a naval battle group.

Sir Max Hastings and Simon Jenkins "The Battle for the Falklands" is still the most complete book on the campaign, featuring not only the combat operations, but also the political perspectives of London, Buenos Aires, and Washington DC. Readers will learn about the operational level of war for the naval combat in this book. This book is a perfect complement to Brigadier Julian Thompson's "3 COMMANDO BRIGADE IN THE FALKLANDS: No Picnic"