View source for Battle of Two Sisters

{{Short description|1982 engagement of the Falklands War}}
{{Over-quotation|date=September 2025}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2019}}
{{Infobox military conflict
| conflict    = Battle of Two Sisters
| partof      = the [[Falklands War]]
| campaign    = 
| image       = 
| caption     = 
| date        = 11–12 June 1982
| place       = [[Two Sisters Ridge]], [[Falkland Islands]]
| casus       = 
| territory   = 
| result      = British victory
| combatant1  = {{flag|United Kingdom}}
| combatant2  = {{flag|Argentina}}
| commander1  = {{flagicon|United Kingdom}} Lt. Col. Andrew Whitehead
| commander2  = {{flagicon|Argentina}} Maj. Ricardo Cordón
| units1      = [[3 Commando Brigade]]
* [[40 Commando]]
* [[45 Commando]]
* [[29th Commando Regiment Royal Artillery|29th Commando Regiment]]
* [[Royal Engineers|59 Independent Commando Squadron]]
{{flagicon|United Kingdom|naval}} [[Royal Navy]]
| units2      = 4th Infantry Regiment<br>6th Infantry Regiment
| strength1   =600 Royal Marines<br>6 light guns<br>1 destroyer <small>([[HMS Glamorgan|HMS ''Glamorgan'']])</small>
| strength2   =350<br>4 fighter-bombers 
| casualties1 = 22 killed + 4 in a friendly fire incident<ref name="The Falkland Islands">{{cite web |url=http://www.palacebarracksmemorialgarden.co.uk/locationfi.html |title=The Falkland Islands |publisher=Palace Barracks Memorial Garden |access-date=4 April 2015 |archive-date=21 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120321203521/http://www.palacebarracksmemorialgarden.co.uk/locationfi.html |url-status=dead }}</ref><!--Royal Marines (45 Btn) 7, Royal Engineers 1--><br>47 wounded<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.royal-marines.net/1975-1999.html |title=Royal Marines Historical Timeline |access-date=17 February 2019 |archive-date=17 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190217201055/http://www.royal-marines.net/1975-1999.html |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-12472079 |title=HMS Glamorgan: memorial for Falklands War ship |website=BBC News |date=15 February 2011 |access-date=2 May 2025}}</ref><br>1 destroyer damaged<br>3 helicopters damaged<br>1 Harrier crashed
| casualties2 = 20 killed<br>50 wounded<ref name="autogenerated177">{{cite book |last=Van der Bijl |first=Nicholas |author2=David Aldea |title=5th Infantry Brigade in the Falklands 1982 |publisher=Leo Cooper |year=2003 |page=177}}</ref><br>54 captured<ref name="autogenerated177"/>
| campaignbox = {{Campaignbox Falklands War}}
}}

The '''Battle of Two Sisters''' was an engagement of the [[Falklands War]] during the British advance towards the capital, [[Stanley, Falkland Islands|Port Stanley]].  It took place from 11 to 12 June 1982 and was one of three battles in a [[Brigade]]-size operation all on the same night, the other two being the [[Battle of Mount Longdon]] and the [[Battle of Mount Harriet]].  Fought mainly between an assaulting British force consisting of Royal Marines of [[45 Commando]] and an Argentine [[Company (military unit)|Company]] drawn from 4th Infantry Regiment (''Regimiento de Infantería 4'' or RI 4).

One of a number of night battles that took place during the British advance towards Stanley, the battle led to [[British Army|British]] troops capturing all the heights above the town, allowing its capture and the surrender of the Argentine forces on the islands.

==Prelude==
===Composition of forces===
The British force, commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel Andrew Whitehead, comprised the Royal Marines of [[45 Commando]], supported by the anti-tank troop from [[40 Commando]] and six [[L118 light gun|105 mm guns]] of [[29 Commando Regiment Royal Artillery|29 Commando Regiment]]. The [[2nd Battalion, Parachute Regiment]] (2 Para) was held in reserve. [[Naval gunfire support]] was provided by the twin [[QF 4.5-inch Mk I – V naval gun|4.5-inch]] (114&nbsp;mm) guns of [[HMS Glamorgan (D19)|HMS ''Glamorgan'']].

45 Commando was instructed to seize Two Sisters Mountain under cover of darkness, and to continue onto [[Battle of Mount Tumbledown|Mount Tumbledown]] if time permitted. However, Argentine resistance proved stiffer than anticipated, and the second phase of the attack was cancelled.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/263448084|title=The Yompers: With 45 Commando in the Falklands War|website=ResearchGate|access-date=4 August 2025}}</ref>

The Argentinian force originally occupying Mount Challenger was commanded by Major Ricardo Cordón and consisted of the 4th Infantry Regiment or RI 4. The bulk of the defenders were drawn from C Company, with the 1st Platoon (Sub-Lieutenant Miguel Mosquera-Gutierrez) and 2nd Platoon (Sub-Lieutenant Jorge Pérez-Grandi) positioned on the northern peak of Two Sisters, and the 3rd Platoon (Sub-Lieutenant Marcelo Llambías Pravaz) on the southern peak. The 1st Platoon of A Company (Sub-Lieutenant Juan Nazer) and the Support Platoon (Second Lieutenant Luis Carlos Martella) were located on the saddle between the peaks.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.eldia.com/nota/2022-6-14-2-34-0-miguel-mosquera-el-heroico-rescate-de-un-jefe-herido-en-dos-hermanas-el-pais|title=Miguel Mosquera: el heroico rescate de un jefe herido en Dos Hermanas|website=El Día|access-date=4 August 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.infobae.com/politica/2022/04/16/marcelo-llambias-pravaz-el-oficial-argentino-que-peleo-cuerpo-a-cuerpo-en-malvinas-me-entrene-para-no-tenerle-miedo-a-la-muerte/|title=Marcelo Llambías Pravaz: el oficial argentino que peleó cuerpo a cuerpo en Malvinas|website=Infobae|access-date=4 August 2025}}</ref>

Major Óscar Jaimet’s B Company of the 6th Mechanized Infantry Regiment or RI Mec 6, acted as the local reserve, and occupied the saddle between Two Sisters and [[Mount Longdon]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.lanacion.com.ar/politica/a-40-anos-de-malvinas-oscar-jaimet-el-oficial-que-combatio-en-dos-hermanas-sin-apoyo-de-artilleria-ni-nid01042022/|title=Óscar Jaimet, el oficial que combatió en Dos Hermanas sin apoyo de artillería|website=La Nación|access-date=4 August 2025}}</ref> In early June, Jaimet’s company was reinforced by the Support Platoon under Second Lieutenant Marcelo Dorigón, drawn from B Company of the 12th Regiment (RI 12). This platoon had remained on Mount Kent after the rest of B Company had been helicoptered forward during the [[Battle of Goose Green]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.infobae.com/sociedad/2022/06/13/la-resistencia-de-la-compania-b-en-mount-kent-la-ultima-batalla-antes-del-final-de-la-guerra-de-malvinas/|title=La resistencia de la Compañía B en Mount Kent: la última batalla antes del final|website=Infobae|access-date=4 August 2025}}</ref>

==No-Man's-Land==
[[File:Battleoftumbledown.svg|thumb|600px|Night of 11 to 12 June, west of Stanley<ref>{{cite book 
 | last = Middlebrook
 | first = Martin
 | title = The Fight for the "Malvinas": The Argentine Forces in the Falklands War
 | publisher = Viking
 | location = London and New York
 | year = 1989
 | isbn = 978-0-670-82106-8
 | page = 233
}}</ref>]]

On 2 June, the 4th Regiment's Operation Officer, Captain Carlos Alfredo López-Patterson, arrived to help in the defence of Two Sisters. He would visit the rifle platoons in order to maintain the defenders informed and raise morale:

{{blockquote|In those visits, one thing that always moved me was that, while I saluted Second Lieutenant Llambias Pravaz, the soldiers in that platoon would clap and they cheered. It must have been because they noticed that I was recognizing the valour they were acquiring in that place. Because they were very isolated, waiting for the enemy, just them and their souls. Or, perhaps, because seeing their commander who is going to share a few words - a brotherly gesture of a young man towards other young people - they felt their desire revived to fight. One day, a lad approached me and said "Since we have got to dance in this one, we are going to do it well. We are going to support the Second Lieutenant who has fallen sick and still remains with us. We have got to help the one whose feet get cold or the one who freaks out. Because from here we all leave together or no one leaves at all". What could I say?<ref>{{cite book
 | last = Simeoni
 | first = Héctor Rubén
 | title = Malvinas: contrahistoria
 | publisher = Editorial Inédita
 | location = Buenos Aires
 | year = 1984
 | isbn = 978-950-9470-22-4
 | pages = 100–101
 | language = es
}}</ref>}}

On 4 June, the three rifle companies of 45 CDO advanced on [[Bluff Cove]] Peak, on the lower slopes of Mount Kent, and were able to occupy the feature without opposition and were met by patrols from the [[Special Air Service]] (SAS). On the night of 29 May, a fierce firefight had developed over capturing the two important hills, as they were intended to form part of an Argentine Special Forces line.

Captain Andrés Ferrero's patrol (3rd Assault Section, [[602 Commando Company]]) reached the base of Mount Kent but were then promptly pinned down by machinegun and mortar fire. First-Sergeant Raimundo Máximo Viltes was badly wounded when a bullet shattered his heel. Air Troop had two SAS men wounded by rifle fire.{{blockquote|Two SAS men had been flown in with gunshot wounds that were quite obviously more than 24 hours old. We knew better than to ask them about the circumstances of their injuries, and instead simply operated on them. The anaesthetist, Malcolm Jowitt, used Ketalar, in injectable and steroid-based general anaesthetic that had some occasional and highly interesting side effects. One of the SAS men, a big ex-Sapper, came from round his op and started singing bawdy rugby songs, quite tunefully, at the top of his voice! <ref>{{cite book
 | last = Jolly
 | first = Rick
 | title = The Red and Green Life Machine: A Diary of the Falklands Field Hospital
 | publisher = Century Publishing
 | location = London
 | year = 1983
 | isbn = 978-0-7126-0158-0
 | pages = 87–88
}}</ref>}} Probing attacks around the D Squadron, SAS positions continued throughout the night and at 11:00 am local time on 30 May, about 12 Argentine Commandos (Captain Tomás Fernández's 2nd Assault Section, 602 Commando Company) tried to get up the summit of Bluff Cove Peak, but were driven off by D Squadron who killed two of the attackers, First Lieutenant Rubén Eduardo Márquez and Sergeant Óscar Humberto Blas.<ref>{{cite book
 | last1 = van der Bijl
 | first1 = Nicholas
 | last2 = Aldea
 | first2 = David
 | title = 5th Infantry Brigade in the Falklands, 1982
 | publisher = Leo Cooper
 | location = Barnsley, South Yorkshire
 | year = 2003
 | isbn = 978-0-85052-932-0
 | pages = 63–64
 | language = en
}}</ref>

First Lieutenant Márquez and Sergeant Blas had shown great personal courage and leadership in the contact and were posthumously awarded the Argentine [[Medal of Valour in Combat]]. During this contact, the SAS suffered another two casualties from grenades after the Argentine Commandos had stumbled on a camp occupied by 15 SAS troopers.<ref>{{cite book
 | last = Arostegui
 | first = Martin C.
 | title = Twilight Warriors: Inside the World's Special Forces
 | publisher = St. Martin's Press
 | location = New York
 | year = 1997
 | isbn = 978-0-312-15234-5
 | page = 205
 | language = en
}}</ref>

{{blockquote|Suddenly there was a burst of firing, and the distinct crack of at least one grenade going off ... One of the blokes took splinter wounds from the grenade in his back and was brought up to our position to be looked after ... The other casualty's shrapnel wounds were unpleasant but not serious.<ref>{{cite book
 | last1 = Aston
 | first1 = Mark "Splash"
 | last2 = Tootal
 | first2 = Stuart
 | title = SAS: Sea King Down
 | publisher = Penguin Books
 | location = London
 | year = 2021
 | isbn = 978-1-4059-4261-4
 | language = en
}}</ref>}}

Throughout 30 May, Royal Air Force Harriers were active over Mount Kent. One of them, responding to a call for help from D Squadron SAS, was badly damaged by small arms fire while attacking Mount Kent's eastern lower slopes. Sub-Lieutenant Llambías-Pravaz's platoon was later credited with the destruction of Harrier XZ963 flown by Squadron Leader Jerry Pook<ref>{{cite book
 | title = La Guerra de las Malvinas: Versión Argentina
 | publisher = Editorial Oriente
 | location = Buenos Aires
 | year = 1987
 | pages = 352
 | language = es
}}</ref> with another claim going to [[Oerlikon GDF|35 mm Oerlikons]] of the [[GADA 601#The battle for the capital|601st Anti-Aircraft Artillery Group]] under the command of 2nd Lieutenant Roberto Enrique Ferre.<ref>{{cite book
 | last = Rodríguez Mottino
 | first = Horacio
 | title = La artillería argentina en Malvinas
 | publisher = Editorial Clío
 | location = Buenos Aires
 | year = 1984
 | isbn = 978-950-9377-02-8
 | page = 158
 | language = es
}}</ref>
{{blockquote|"During another action, an enemy aircraft fell victim to the 601 Air Defence's 35mm batteries. The plane came down in the water and the pilot, Squadron Leader Pook was rescued shortly after." <ref>{{cite book
 | last = Moro
 | first = Rubén Oscar
 | title = The Falklands War
 | translator = Richard Cave
 | publisher = Brassey’s Defence Publishers
 | location = London
 | year = 1988
 | isbn = 978-0-08-034394-7
 | page = 272
 | language = en}}
</ref> }} The Harrier crashed into the South Atlantic 30 miles from the carrier HMS Hermes, Squadron Leader Pook ejected and was rescued.

On 5 June, two Royal Air Force Harriers operating from 'Sids Strip', the San Carlos Forward Operating Base, attacked the Argentine defenders on Two Sisters with rockets around midday.{{blockquote|The two GR3s remained until 11.30 am when they took off to rocket Argentine troops positions on Two Sisters.<ref>{{cite book
 | last = Brown
 | first = David
 | title = The Royal Navy and the Falklands War
 | publisher = Leo Cooper / Pen & Sword Books Ltd
 | location = London
 | year = 1987
 | isbn = 978-0-85052-059-4
 | page = 284
 | language = en
}}</ref>}}

A heavy mist hung over the [[Murrell River]] area, which assisted the 45 Commando [[Reconnaissance|Recce]] Troop to reach and sometimes penetrate the Argentine 3rd Platoon position under ''Subteniente'' Marcelo Llambías-Pravaz. Marine Andrew Tubb of Recce Troop later recalled:

{{blockquote|''We were actually inside the Argentine position, so we ended up shelling ourselves. We did a lot of patrols up to Two Sisters ... that time [6 June] we pepper-potted [fire and maneouver] for about 400 metres to get out the 3rd Platoon Sergeant, Juan Domingo Valdez, had launched a counter-ambush.,<ref>{{cite book
 | last1 = van der Bijl
 | first1 = Nicholas
 | last2 = Aldea
 | first2 = David
 | title = 5th Infantry Brigade in the Falklands, 1982
 | publisher = Leo Cooper
 | location = Barnsley, South Yorkshire
 | year = 2003
 | isbn = 978-0-85052-932-0
 | page = 169
 | language = en
}}</ref> through the Argy lines, firing [[M72 LAW|66mm rockets]] to fight through and regroup. We got artillery again to smoke us out. It took us well over an hour to get away and it seemed like a few minutes. We killed seventeen of them, and all we had was one bloke with a flesh wound.''<ref>{{cite book
 | last = Neillands
 | first = Robin
 | title = By Sea and Land: The Story of the Royal Marine Commandos
 | publisher = Cassell Military Paperbacks
 | location = London
 | year = 2000
 | isbn = 978-0-304-35258-4
 | page = 402
 | language = en
}}</ref>}}
(2 Army privates, Jose Romero and Andres Rodriguez and three [[sapper]]s of a Marine mine-laying party were actually killed.)

For his patrol action, Lieutenant Chris Fox received the [[Military Cross]], while ''Subteniente'' Llambías-Pravaz was able to pilfer and sport a Commando Beret that the Royal Marines had left behind during the Argentine counter-ambush.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://davidrey.com.ar/cola-dragon-la-compania-comandos-602-accion/ |title="Cola de Dragón", la Compañía de Comandos 602 en acción |access-date=7 August 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180807064711/http://davidrey.com.ar/cola-dragon-la-compania-comandos-602-accion/ |archive-date=7 August 2018 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
In general terms, the Argentines were thoroughly entrenched, about 6,000 metres or less across no-man's-land. The Argentine positions were mined and heavily patrolled.

The 4th Regiment also carried out patrolling, and on the night of 6–7 June, Corporal Oscar Nicolás Albornoz-Guevara along with eight conscripts (including Private Orlando Héctor Stella, his pathfinder) from ''Subteniente'' Miguel Mosquera-Gutierrez's 1st Platoon crossed Murrell River and reached the area of Estancia Mountain where they detected a number of British vehicles, but the patrol soon came under mortar fire from 3 PARA and had to withdraw.<ref>{{cite book
 | last = Farinella
 | first = Jorge R.
 | title = Volveremos!
 | publisher = Editorial Rosario
 | location = Buenos Aires / La Plata
 | year = 1984
 | page = 125
 | language = es
}}</ref>

On 8 June, Corporal Hugo Gabino MacDougall of B Company, 6th Regiment, claimed to have shot down a Harrier using a shoulder-launched [[Blowpipe (missile)#Combat performance|Blowpipe missile]].<ref>{{cite book
 | title = Emocionante historia de vida de Hugo Mac Dougall – cabo primero en la Guerra de Malvinas
 | website = RadioCut
 | publisher = Grupo Zónica
 | chapter = El Arranque
 | host = Maxi Lequi
 | date = 4 April 2016
 | chapter-url = https://radiocut.fm/audiocut/emocionante-historia-de-vida-de-hugo-mac-dougall-cabo-primero-en-la-guerra-de-malvinas-
 | language = es
 | access-date = 26 September 2025
}}</ref> The British confirm the loss of a GR.3 Harrier (XZ989) on that day, following an emergency landing at San Carlos due to battle damage. The pilot, [[Peter Squire|Wing Commander Peter Squire]] walked away uninjured and XZ989 was scrapped post-war. {{blockquote|Harrier GR.3 XZ989 was stripped for spares and repatriated to the UK. In March 1983, it was assessed as beyond economical repair and allocated for ground-instructional duties at RAF Gütersloh in West Germany. The airframe was later scrapped following the closure of RAF Gütersloh in 1993.<ref>{{cite web|title=Report on the crash for Harrier GR3 XZ989|publisher=Aviation Safety Network|year=2020|url=https://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/wiki.php?id=55553|access-date=7 April 2020}}</ref>}}<ref>''In total, we carried out 130 attack sorties and lost three aircraft, all to ground fire. A fourth Harrier crashed during vertical landing at the 850 ft metal runway at San Carlos. This mishap stemmed from damage by small arms fire.'' Harrier: Ski-Jump to Victory, John Godden, p. 29. Brassey’s, 1983.</ref><ref>''The final GR.3 to be lost was XZ989, flown by Peter Squire, which suffered a power loss on returning to the matted landing site; his aircraft hit the ground rather hard, irretrievably damaging it.'' BAE/McDonnell Douglas Harrier, Andy Evans, p. 75. Crowood Press, 1988.</ref>

The 12th Regiment Support Platoon under ''Subteniente'' Dorigón attached to Major Jaimet's B Company would reportedly live off the land. Private Ángel Ramírez:

{{blockquote|We ate raw sheep, we would butcher sheep and place it on flames. You know that the soil in the Malvinas Islands is like coal, it is black turf, you dig a hole, light a fire, and it is all like petrol, everything burns. We ate barbecued sheep, we ate it half raw and cooked.<ref>[https://www.diputados.gob.ar/proyectos/proyecto.jsp?exp=6032-D-2016 Expresar Preocupacion Por La Designacion del Ex Capitan Marcelo Dorigon, Como Responsable de La "Agencia Nacional de Materiales Controlados]</ref>}}
 
At about 2.10 am local time on 10 June a strong 45 Commando fighting patrol probed the 3rd Platoon position. In the ensuing fight, Special Forces Sergeants Mario Antonio Cisneros and Ramón Gumercindo Acosta were killed; two more Argentine Special Forces lying in ambush for the Royal Marines were wounded. The British military historian [[Bruce Quarrie]] later wrote:

{{blockquote|A constant series of patrols were undertaken at night to scout out and harass the enemy. Typical was the patrol sent out in the early hours of the morning of 10 June. Lieutenant David Stewart of X-Ray Company, 45 Commando, had briefed his men during the previous afternoon, and by midnight they were ready. Heavily armed, with two machine-guns per section, plus [[M72 LAW|66 mm rocket launchers]] and [[2-inch mortar|2-inch]] [[mortar (weapon)|mortars]], the Troop moved off stealthily into the moonlit night towards a ridge some four km away from where Argentine movement had been observed. Keeping well spaced out because of the good visibility, they moved across the rocky ground using the numerous shell holes for cover, and by 04.00 [1 am local time], were set to cross the final stretch of open ground in front of the enemy positions. Using a shallow stream for cover, they moved up the slope and deployed into position among the rocks in front of the Argentine trenches. With the help of a light-intensifying night scope, they could see sentries moving about. Suddenly, an Argentine machine-gun opened fire and the Marines launched a couple of flares from their mortar, firing back with their own machine-guns and rifles. Within seconds three Argentine soldiers and two [Royal] Marines were dead. Other figures could be seen running on the hill to the left, and four more Argentine soldiers fell to the accuracy of the Marines' fire. By this time, the Argentine troops further up the slope were wide awake, and a hail of fire forced the [British] Marines to crouch in the shelter of the rocks. The situation was becoming decidedly unhealthy and Lieutenant Stewart decided to retire, with the objective of killing and harassing the enemy well and truly accomplished. However, a machine-gun to the Marines' right was pouring fire over their getaway route, and Stewart sent his veteran Sergeant, Jolly, with a couple of other men to take it out [They knew they were cut off with what looked a poor chance of escape. In these circumstances any panic or break in morale and the game was up]. After a difficult approach with little cover, there was a short burst of fire and the Argentine machine-gun fell silent. Leapfrogging by sections, the Troop retreated to the stream, by which time the Argentine fire was falling short and there were no further casualties.|Bruce Quarrie|The Worlds Elite Forces, pp.53-54, Octopus Books Limited, 1985}}

Major [[Aldo Rico]], commander of the [[602 Commando Company]], had a lucky escape in this engagement, when an enemy 66mm projectile exploded uncomfortably close to him and First Lieutenant Horacio Fernando Lauría.<ref>Comandos en acción: El Ejército en Malvinas, Isidoro Ruiz Moreno, p. 355, Emecé Editores, 01/01/1986</ref> Captain Hugo Ranieri, who took part in this intense engagement as a specialist sniper, claims that First Lieutenant Jorge Vizoso-Posse, although wounded, shot three of the retreating Royal Marines in the back.<ref>Así lucharon, Carlos M. Túrolo, p. 316, Editorial Sudamericana, 1982</ref> First Lieutenant Horacio Fernando Lauría and Sergeant Orlando Aguirre claim to have destroyed a British machine-gun with rifle-grenades in this engagement.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20170212091658/http://www.laperlaaustral.com.ar/contenidos/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=105:lacompania602decomandos&catid=56:companiadecomandos602&Itemid=127 La Compañía 602 de Comandos]</ref>

On that same night (9–10 June), a [[friendly fire]] incident occurred when Royal Marines returning from a [[reconnaissance]] [[Patrolling|patrol]] were mistaken for Argentines in the dark and a British [[Mortar (weapon)|mortar]] team opened fire on them. In the confusion, four Royal Marines (Sergeant Robert Leeming, Corporals Andrew Uren, Peter Fitton and Marine Keith Phillips) were killed and three were wounded.<ref>''"It was during the night of 9/10 June that a returning British fighting patrol from 45 Commando Royal Marines was mistaken for the enemy and Sergeant Bob Leeming, Corporal Andy Uren, Corporal Pete Fitton, and Marine Keith Phillips were killed in the subsequent firefight which occurred just before the main assault on Two Sisters"'' [http://gallery.commandoveterans.org/cdoGallery/main.php?g2_view=keyalbum.KeywordAlbum&g2_keyword=killed+in+action&g2_itemId=7711&g2_fromNavId=xf7a6e6e3 Commando Veterans Association]</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=War in the Falklands: The Full Story |date=November 1982 |author=[[Insight (Sunday Times)|Sunday Times of London Insight Team]] |page=264 |publisher=[[Harper Collins]] |isbn=0-0601-5082-3}}<!--|accessdate=19 July 2013--></ref><ref>[https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=wPs9AAAAIBAJ&sjid=M0kMAAAAIBAJ&pg=4053,288159&dq= Marines shot comrades in Falklands conflict]</ref> 
The next day, Sub-Lieutenant Llambías-Pravaz's men recovered the rucksacks and weapons the Royal Marines had left behind,<ref>Malvinas: relatos de soldados, Martín Balza, p. 120, Círculo Militar, 1985</ref> and these were presented as war trophies to Argentine war correspondents in Port Stanley who filmed and photographed the British equipment.<ref>La Guerra de las Malvinas, p. 420, Editorial Oriente, 1987</ref>

The [[Mountain and Arctic Warfare Cadre]] also carried out patrolling against Two Sisters; Sergeant Joseph Wassell and Lieutenant Fraser Haddow played an important part in the capture of the mountain when they discovered with their binoculars from their observation post on Goat Ridge, the command-detonated barrels of mines the Argentinian Marine engineers (under the direction of Major Jaimet) had dug in and planned to use on the saddle and eastern half of the mountain.<ref>Royal Marine Commando 1950–82: From Korea to the Falklands, William Fowler, p. 57, Osprey Publishing, 21/04/2009</ref>

On 11 June, several GR-3 Harriers took off from San Carlos airbase to drop cluster bombs on Mounts Longdon, Harriet and Two Sisters Mountain.<ref>''"The GR3s, on the other hand, had a busy day. Four two-plane missions took from the airstrip, three to drop bombs on the Argentine positions on Two Sisters, Mount Harriet and Mount Longdon - the objective for the land assault due that night - and the other to bomb the Moody Brook barracks and Mount Tumbledown."'' The Royal Navy and Falklands War, David Brown, p.313, Pen & Sword, 1987</ref>

The Argentine Medical Officer with the 6th Regiment's B Company, First Lieutenant Alejandro Steverlynck reports that one Argentine soldier was killed during the final British air attack on Two Sisters and that he had to comfort with the assurance his wounds were minor and that he would now have a warm hospital bed and be able to watch the 1982 FIFA World Cup in Stanley Hospital before the young soldier died in his arms a short time later, but not before obtaining a smile from the dying man before the morphine that was applied took any real effect.<ref>''Tte médico, Steverlynck Alejandro'', Available on YouTube</ref>

==Night battle==

Captain Ian Gardiner's X-Ray Company spearheaded the assault on Two Sisters, accompanied by the unit's Commando-trained chaplain, the Revd Wynne Jones RN. Lieutenant James Kelly's 1 Troop secured the western third of the spineback on the southern peak ('Long Toenail') without opposition. However, at 11:00 pm local time,<ref>"Ten minutes later the 150 men of X Company were as good as new and began their assault at 11 pm." No Picnic: 3 Commando Brigade in the South Atlantic 1982, Julian Thompson, p. 131, Leo Cooper in association with Secker & Warburg, 1985</ref> Lieutenant David Stewart's 3 Troop encountered stiff resistance on the spineback and was unable to advance. After their attempt to dislodge the Argentine 3rd Platoon failed, Lieutenant Chris Caroe's 2 Troop launched a follow-up attack, but were beaten back by artillery fire called in by the Argentine [[Forward Observation Officer]], Sub-Lieutenant Javier Tagle, of the 4th Airborne Artillery Group.<ref>"2 Troop battered their way to the top, to be temporarily forced off by the enemy artillery firing defensive fire tasks on to the objective." No Picnic: 3 Commando Brigade in the South Atlantic, Julian Thompson, p. 132, Casemate Publishers, 1992</ref><ref>"Inicialmente se apoyó al RI 4 en el Monte Dos Hermanas, dirigió el fuego hasta el momento del repliegue el subteniente Gavier Tagle." La Artillería Argentina en Malvinas, Horacio Rodríguez Mottino, p. 149, Editorial Clio, 1984</ref>

For nearly four hours, X-Ray Company remained pinned on the slopes.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20151019185849/http://www.scotsman.com/news/uk/chain-of-command-1-905162 Chain of Command]</ref> British softening-up fire swept back and forth across the high ground, but the Argentine 3rd Platoon under Second Lieutenant Llambías-Pravaz, supported by a section from Mario Pacheco's 10th Engineer Company and shouting Guarani war cries,<ref>Nine Battles to Stanley, Nick van der Bijl, p. 178, Pen & Sword Books, 2014</ref> repelled all attempts to dislodge them. The position was finally cleared at about 2:45 am.<ref>"Second-Lieutenant Llambías-Pravaz's 3rd Platoon, on Long Toenail, the south-western feature, opened fire on X Company at 11.30 pm and was not dislodged until about 2.45 am." 5th Infantry Brigade in the Falklands 1982, Nicholas van der Bijl & David Aldea, p. 177, Leo Cooper, 2003</ref><ref>"To the west, X Company had pushed Llambias-Pravaz' platoon and Corporal Pacheco's section off Long Toenail by about 2.45am." Nine Battles to Stanley, p. ?, Leo Cooper, 1999</ref>

Recognising that a single company could not secure Two Sisters before dawn, Lieutenant Colonel Andrew Whitehead brought up the battalion’s remaining two rifle companies.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20061005150621/http://www.britains-smallwars.com/Falklands/Two-Sisters.htm 'Zulu!' The Battle for Two Sisters]</ref>  At about 12:30 am local time,<ref>No Picnic: 3 Commando Brigade in the South Atlantic 1982, Julian Thompson, p. 132, Leo Cooper in association with Secker & Warburg, 1985</ref> Yankee and Zulu Companies began their assault on the northern peak of Two Sisters, known as 'Summer Days'. In a hard-fought engagement lasting two hours,<ref>"For the next two hours the men were pinned down, unable to move due to the sheer weight of enemy fire coming down the mountain towards them. In one mortar blast their troop commander was also badly wounded in the neck by shrapnel, a Royal Engineer attached to the troop to clear enemy booby traps was killed and a troop signaller received a scalp injury." [https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2022/06/12/72-hour-battle-won-falklands-war/ The 72-hour battle that won the Falklands War, The Telegraph, 12 June 2022]</ref> the Marines faced two well-positioned Argentine rifle platoons under Subtenientes Mosquera-Gutiérrez and Pérez-Grandi. Despite sustained [[M2 Browning|heavy machine-gun]] and mortar fire, they succeeded in capturing the summit.

Argentine mortar platoon commander Lieutenant Martella, who had already expended much of his ammunition attempting to stop 42 Commando’s advance on Mount Harriet, was killed during this phase of the battle.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.lanacion.com.ar/213369-los-hijos-de-la-guerra |title=Los hijos de la guerra |publisher=La Nación |date=11 June 2000 |access-date=4 April 2015 |archive-date=26 February 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140226071719/http://www.lanacion.com.ar/213369-los-hijos-de-la-guerra |url-status=dead }}</ref> Two British platoon commanders were wounded in the bombardment, and a Royal Engineer attached to clear booby traps was killed. Marine Chris Cooke later recalled: "The three officers in my company pledged to have a drink together at the other end of the island, but only one made it, the other two left with shrapnel wounds."<ref>[http://www.newsandstar.co.uk/news/1.225566 Falklands return, Julie Armstrong, News & Star, 21 August 2008] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140225054701/http://www.newsandstar.co.uk/news/1.225566 |date=25 February 2014}}</ref>

Zulu Company platoon commander Lieutenant [[Clive Dytor]] was awarded the Military Cross for rallying 8 Troop and leading a bayonet charge to take the peak. Reflecting on the moment, he said:

''<blockquote> "I began listening to our rate of fire and I realised we were going to run out of ammunition. Then I remembered a line in a book about the Black Watch in the Second World War. They were pinned down and the adjutant stood up and shouted, 'Is this the Black Watch? Charge!’ What I didn’t remember, until I read it again later, was that he was actually cut in half at that point by a German machine gun. The next thing I knew I was up and running on my own, shouting, 'Zulu, Zulu, Zulu,’ which was our company battle cry and also the battle cry of my father’s old regiment, the South Wales Borderers."<ref>[https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/southamerica/falklandislands/9164691/Falklands-War-hero-explains-why-he-entered-the-church-after-being-awarded-the-Military-Cross.html Falklands War hero explains why he entered the church after being awarded the Military Cross], *The Telegraph*, by Sean Rayment</ref></blockquote>''

Second Lieutenant Aldo Eugenio Franco and his RI 6 platoon, having abandoned a planned counterattack<ref>[https://www.infobae.com/def/2021/07/10/aldo-franco-el-veterano-de-malvinas-que-se-reinvento-y-hoy-tiene-un-proyecto-solidario/ Aldo Franco, el veterano de Malvinas que se reinventó y hoy tiene un proyecto solidario]</ref> in conjunction with Major David Carullo’s Panhard armoured car squadron,<ref>“Cuando aclaró, a eso de las nueve de la mañana del sábado, vi que también se estaban replegando los vehículos cazatanques Panhard: habían sido enviados para apoyar a los dos regimientos y volvieron bajo una lluvia de fuego.” Malvinas A Sangre y Fuego, Nicolás Kasanzew, p. 182, Editorial Abril, 1982</ref> because Argentine forces no longer held the peaks of Two Sisters,<ref>Malvinas: Testimonio de su Gobernador, Mario Benjamín Menéndez, Carlos M. Túrolo, p. 273, Editorial Sudamericana, 1983</ref> provided covering fire for the withdrawal and prevented Yankee Company from attacking C Company during its retreat.<ref name="autogenerated239">The Fight for the "Malvinas": The Argentine Forces in the Falklands War, Martin Middlebrook, p. 239, Penguin, 1990</ref><ref>5th Infantry Brigade in the Falklands 1982, Nicholas van der Bijl & David Aldea, p. 178, Leo Cooper, 2003</ref>

Augusto Esteban La Madrid, a second lieutenant in the local reserve who had been tasked with supporting Major Cordon, told historian Martin Middlebrook that during the final stages of the action, "''Subteniente Franco's platoon was left as a rearguard, but he made it back to Tumbledown OK''."<ref name="autogenerated239" />

Private [[Oscar Poltronieri]], who delayed Yankee Company with accurate fire from his rifle and a machine gun, was awarded the [[Argentine Nation to the Heroic Valour in Combat Cross]] (CHVC), Argentina’s highest decoration for bravery.<ref name="autogenerated239" />

Sub-Lieutenant Nazer had been wounded while covering the withdrawal. The remnants of his platoon, placed under the command of Corporal Virgilio Rafael Barrientos, later occupied positions on Sapper Hill. Sub-Lieutenants Mosquera-Gutiérrez and Pérez-Grandi were also wounded during the British bombardment, and their remaining troops were placed under the command of Captain Carlos López Patterson, the 4th Regiment’s Operations Officer. He established blocking positions between Mount Tumbledown and Wireless Ridge alongside the dismounted 10th Armoured Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron, under Captain Rodrigo Alejandro Soloaga.<ref>[https://www.malvinense.com.ar/notasguerra/blindado10cabchoque.html Escuadrón de Exploración de Caballería Blindado 10]</ref> These forces engaged forward elements of 3 PARA, notably A Company on Mount Longdon, with heavy machine-gun and mortar fire during 12 and 13 June. This pressure eventually forced No. 3 Platoon (Lieutenant David Wright) to withdraw from the eastern summit.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://theparachuteregimentalassociation.com/the-battle-for-mount-longdon-a-company/ |title=The Battle for Mount Longdon – A Company |access-date=7 December 2021 |archive-date=7 December 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211207234355/https://theparachuteregimentalassociation.com/the-battle-for-mount-longdon-a-company/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

After securing Two Sisters, 45 Commando came under retaliatory fire from surrounding Argentine positions. Captain Gardiner’s X-Ray Company reported Corporal Frank Melia wounded during the daylight hours of 12 June, after attracting mortar fire originating from Tumbledown Mountain.<ref>“Corporal Frank Melia heard a mortar coming in which must've had his name on it because as it came in, he dived, and the only place to go was in this hole on top of the bodies! The mortar went off really close and a bit of shrapnel carved a neat nick right out of the top of his head. He survived, and never was nonchalant about mortar fire again.” Above All, Courage: The Falklands Front Line – First-Hand Accounts, Max Arthur, p. 278, Sidgwick & Jackson, 1985</ref>  Several Marines sheltering in abandoned Argentine bunkers on Two Sisters were incapacitated due to near-misses from Argentine shellfire including [[OTO Melara Mod 56|105mm OTO Melara]] and [[CITER 155 mm L33 gun|155mm CITER L33]] rounds. Although the bunkers provided some protection, repeated shock waves from close impacts caused temporary and, in some cases, permanent hearing loss.<ref>“The Argentine artillery fire was pretty accurate, so the bunkers vacated by our enemies were now put to use again and protected many men from the worst of the onslaught ... Shells were landing within a few metres of our positions and the shock waves rattled one to the core. Men were deaf for hours and some the damage to their hearing was permanent and irreparable.” The Yompers: With 45 Commando in the Falklands War, Ian Gardiner, Pen & Sword, 2012</ref>

On 13 June, two Argentine [[Douglas A-4 Skyhawk#Falklands War|A-4 Skyhawk]] from Grupo 5, attacked vehicles and helicopters stationed near 3 Commando Brigade Headquarters, located on the lower western slopes of Two Sisters near the Murrell River. The raid resulted in one helicopter crewman injured and significant damage to three [[Aérospatiale Gazelle|Gazelle]] helicopters.<ref>McDonnell Douglas A-4 Skyhawk, Brad Elward, p. 759, Crowood, 2001</ref><ref>Above All, Courage, Max Arthur, p. 85, Cassell & Co., 2002</ref><ref name="ReferenceA">The Falklands 1982: Ground Operations in the South Atlantic, Gregory Fremont-Barnes, Bloomsbury Publishing, 2012</ref>

The attack, involved one Skyhawk dropping bombs while the second strafed with 20&nbsp;mm cannon fire.<ref>No Picnic, Julian Thompson, p. 147, Casemate Publishers, 1992</ref> The damage was confined to helicopters and nearby vehicles, one crewman suffered a blast wound and perforated eardrums, another a mild concussion.<ref>I Counted Them All Out and I Counted Them All Back: The Battle for the Falklands, Brian Hanrahan & Robert Fox, p. 147, Chivers Press, 1982</ref>  Overall disruption to 3 Commando Brigade operations was limited, though the damage did cause delays to 2 PARA's preparations for the following evening’s assault.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>

On the morning of 14 June, as 45 Commando positioned on the forward slopes of Two Sisters prepared to reinforce the [[Welsh Guards]] consolidating on Sapper Hill, a Snowcat tracked vehicle from 407 Transportation Troop entered a minefield. The driver dismounted to warn following vehicles of the danger, but stepped on an anti-personnel mine, sustaining severe injuries that required evacuation by helicopter.<ref>Forgotten Voices of the Falklands, Hugh McManners, p. 432, Random House, 2008</ref>

==Naval bombardment==
Naval gunfire support was provided by HMS ''Glamorgan'''s twin 4.5-inch (114&nbsp;mm) guns.  The naval gunfire officer accompanying the Royal Marines had been wounded early in the battle for Two Sisters,<ref>"The naval gunfire support spotting officer was wounded during the early stages of the attack, but his assistant, Bombardier E. M. Holt, took over and continued to give accurate directions to the ship and was subsequently awarded the Military Medal." The Royal Navy and Falklands War, David Brown, p. 318, Pen & Sword, 1987</ref> but Bombardier Edward Holt from 29 Commando Regiment Royal Artillery, took over and continued to give swift and accurate directions to the destroyer and was subsequently awarded the Military Medal.<ref>[http://www.commandoveterans.org/falklands_archive Commando Veterans Archive]</ref>

On the night of the battle ''Glamorgan'' was asked to remain in action longer than planned, to help Yankee Company clear ''Subteniente'' Aldo Franco's rifle platoon on the eastern half of Two Sisters covering the Argentine withdrawal.<ref>"While we in 45 Commando were all heavily engaged on our mountain, the battle for Two Sisters continued out at sea. The knock-on effect of all the delays meant that HMS Glamorgan was still being asked for fire missions when she should have been sailing away from the coast before daylight and safety from air attack. Captain Mike Barrow, knowing that 45 Commando were fighting for their lives on Two Sisters, decided that he should stay as long as he possibly could to support us." The Yompers: With 45 Commando in the Falklands War, Ian Gardiner, p. ?, Pen & Sword, 2012</ref>  As the destroyer took a short cut closer to the shoreline a [[RASIT]] radar of the Argentinian Army tracked her movements.<ref>"Glamorgan was about seventeen miles offshore and taking a short cut across the shore-based Exocet limit line when her radar picked up a signature the same size and speed of a 155mm shell ... Glamorgan launched a Seacat missile which passed close to the missile, however, it skipped onto the flight deck and skidded into the hangar. Burning fuel from a Wessex flooded through a hole into the galley and a fireball thundered into the gas turbine room." 9 Battles To Stanley, Nick van der Bijl, p. 63, Pen & Sword, 2014</ref>

Two [[Exocet#Falklands War|MM38 Exocet missiles]] had been removed from the destroyer [[USS Hank (DD-702)|ARA ''Seguí'']]<ref>{{harvnb|Scheina|2003|p=316}}</ref> and secured on launcher, dubbed 'ITB' (''Instalación de Tiro Berreta'')  "trashy firing platform".<ref name=firing>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V8Ch5zBQShQ YouTube video discussing setting up the ITB and showing its firing, narrated in Spanish]</ref> The missiles, launcher, transporter, and associated electronics trailer were flown by transport aircraft to the Falkland Islands on 31 May.<ref>[https://gacetamarinera.com.ar/especiales/la-ingeniosa-instalacion-de-tiro-berreta-en-malvinas/ The ingenious Berreta Shooting Facility in Malvinas]</ref>

At 0336 local time, the British skipper, Commander Ian Inskip, looking at the radar screen, realized that Glamorgan was under attack by an anti-ship missile, and ordered a highspeed turn just before the Exocet struck the port side adjacent to the hangar.  The missile skidded on the deck and detonated, making a {{convert|10|x|15|ft}} hole in the hangar deck and a {{convert|5|x|4|ft}} hole in the galley area below, where a fire started.<ref name="InskipIan">{{cite book|last=Inskip |first=Ian |date=2002 |title=Ordeal by Exocet: HMS Glamorgan and the Falklands War, 1982 |publisher=Chatham |pages=160–185 |isbn=1-86176-197-X}}</ref>

The blast travelled forwards and down, and the missile, penetrated the hangar door, causing the ship's [[Westland Wessex|Wessex]] helicopter (HAS.3 XM837) to explode and start a severe fire in the hangar. Fourteen crew members were killed and about twenty wounded.<ref name="rnaportland.org">{{Cite web |url=http://rnaportland.org/2017/06/07/falklands-war-35th-anniversary-hms-glamorgan-ships-flight/ |title=HMS Glamorgan - Falklands War 35th Anniversary |access-date=8 April 2019 |archive-date=24 September 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200924231001/http://rnaportland.org/2017/06/07/falklands-war-35th-anniversary-hms-glamorgan-ships-flight/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

== Aftermath ==
The next morning Colonel Andrew Whitehead looked in wonderment at the strength of the positions the enemy had abandoned. ''"With fifty Royals,"'' he said, ''"I could have died of old age holding this place."'' (Max Hastings, ''Going To The Wars,'' p.&nbsp;363, Macmillan 2000) Although the British unit seemed at the time to have had an easy victory, those actually engaged with the enemy platoons would have been unlikely to agree. Marine Nick Taylor that fought for the southern peak of Two Sisters as part of X-Ray Company explained in a 2012 interview with a major British newspaper that it was the ''“ferocity and superior firepower of the British forces (that) gained the advantage and the Argentinians retreated”''.<ref>[https://www.audreygillan.com/archives/2012/3/20/after-a-bloody-battle-a-royal-marine-found-an-enemy-camera-thirty-years-later-nick-taylor-tracked-down-the-argentine-soldier-in-the-pictures After a bloody battle a Royal Marine found an enemy camera. Thirty years later Nick Taylor tracked down the Argentine soldier in the pictures]</ref>

Thirty years later, Marine Keith Brown recalled the fighting for the northern peak and concluded

{{cquote|My impression of a night attack was that it was nothing like I expected it to be – in terms of a fairly ordered affair with people running and taking out machine-gun nests. It was just hugely confusing. It was fairly arbitrary as to who seemed to be injured – lots of bangs and flashes and very loud noises. You had naval artillery and mortars and heavy and light small arms fire as well. It was terrifying, to be honest. I don’t know how my colleagues felt. We were pretty much pinned down and we came under direct fire from the Argentinians. Up to that point, it was all to do with artillery and mortar rounds, but this was direct fire and they were using what seemed to us to be tracers, which was pretty daft. So, you could see where their fields of fire were and we were down low on the ground.<ref>{{cite web|author= |url=http://www.scotsman.com/news/remembering-the-falklands-conflict-four-veterans-tell-their-story-1-2211346 |title=Remembering the Falklands conflict: four veterans tell their story |publisher=Scotsman.com |date=2012-04-02 |accessdate=2015-04-04}}</ref>}}

British-American historian Hugh Bicheno has been critical of the 6th Infantry Regiment's 'B' Company who, he claims, withdrew in a disorderly manner from front-line positions at the opening of the battle, although this seems to have little foundation. Brigadier-General Oscar Luis Jofre had certainly been planning to counterattack on Two Sisters but with the defenders no longer in possession of the twin peaks, he ordered the abandonment of the feature and later wrote ''All of a sudden, we suffer the first emotional impact. It was 04.45 when we received reports from Major Jaimet saying that the defenders on Two Sisters could no longer resist the enemy attack and would begin their withdrawal.''<ref>Malvinas: La Defensa de Puerto Argentino, Oscar Luis Jofre, Félix Roberto Aguiar, p. 223, Editorial Sudamericana, 1987</ref> Major Oscar Ramón Jaimet has gone on record, saying in the Argentinean newspaper ''La Gaceta'' that he had designated Sub-Lieutenant Franco to cover the Argentinean withdrawal and that Argentinean artillery fire was brought down in error amongst the company.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lagaceta.com.ar/nota/371038/LGACETLiteraria/realidad_guerra_supera_toda_ficcion.html |title=La realidad de la guerra supera toda ficción |location=AR-Tucumán |publisher=Lagaceta.com.ar |date= 28 March 2010|accessdate=2015-04-04}}</ref> Indeed, the company withdrew in good order, according to the Spanish-speaking warrant officer attached to 3 Commando Brigade Headquarters in the fighting.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=At4WkVvc7tUC&pg=PA14&lpg=PA14&dq#v=onepage&q=&f=false ''Argentine forces in the Falklands''. By Nick Van der Bijl & Paul Hannon. Page 14. Osprey Publishing. (July 30, 1992) ]</ref> The Argentine Army Official Report on the war recommended Major Oscar Ramon Jaimet and CSM Jorge Edgardo Pitrella of the 6th Regiment's B Company for an MVC ([[Argentine Nation to the Valour in Combat Medal]]) for the conduct of their fighting withdrawal and subsequent behaviour on Tumbledown (this was later granted to Major Jaimet, Pitrella was awarded the [[Argentine Army to the Effort and Abnegation Medal]]).<ref>[http://www.infanteria.mil.ar/textos/distinciones.html]  {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131210155656/http://www.infanteria.mil.ar/textos/distinciones.html|date=December 10, 2013}}</ref>

Sergeant-Major George Meachin of Yankee Company later praised the fighting abilities and spirit of the Argentine defenders of the northern peak in the form of the men of Pérez-Grandi and Mosquera-Gutierrez:

{{cquote|We came under lots of effective fire from [[M2 Browning machine gun|0.50 calibre machine guns]] ...At the same time, mortars were coming down all over us, but the main threat was from those machine-gunners who could see us in the open because of the moonlight. There were three machine-guns and we brought down constant and effective salvos of our own artillery fire on to them directly, 15 rounds at a time. There would be a pause, and they'd come back at us again. So we had to do it a second time, all over their positions. There'd be a pause, then 'boom, boom, boom,' they'd come back at us again. Conscripts don't do this, babies don't do this, men who are badly led and of low [[morale]] don't do this. They were good steadfast troops. I rate them.|Bruce Quarrie|op. cit., p. 55, Octopus Books Limited, 1985}}

Hugh Bicheno described the moonscape of devastation:

{{blockquote|Although Wireless Ridge and the saddle between Tumbledown and William are still heavily scarred, even after more than twenty years the beaten zone between the Two Sisters bear the most eloquent witness to the awesome power of the British artillery, which fired 1,500 shells at the Two Sisters that night. The still-churned area occupied by Nazer's platoon in particular leaves one in no doubt why they decamped immediately, while the saddle itself is dimpled with craters, testimony to the tenacity of Martella's Heavy machine guns and mortars.|Hugh Bicheno|Razor's Edge: The Unofficial History of the Falklands War, p. 242, Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2006}}

With the telephone lines to the command post in shreds, Llambías Pravaz led his men to join M Company, 5th Marine Infantry Battalion on Sapper Hill.<ref>Nicholas van der Bijl, Nine Battles to Stanley, p. 182, Leo Cooper, 1999</ref> He had nearly been killed in the fighting when a rock impacted his helmet after a Milan missile exploded close behind him.<ref>Malvinas: Relatos de Soldados, Martín Antonio Balza, p.122, Círculo Militar, 1986</ref>

The X-Ray Company Marines were in awe of the Argentines in the depleted 3rd Platoon who had put up such determined resistance, and their company commander, Captain Gardiner in the book ''Above All, Courage'' (Above All, Courage: The Falklands Front Line: First-Hand Accounts, Max Arthur, pp.&nbsp;389–390, Sidwick & Jackson, 1985) later said:

{{cquote|A hard cadre of some twenty men had stayed behind and fought, and they were brave men. Those who stayed and fought had something. I for one would not wish to face my Marines in battle.}}

Some 30 years later, Marine Nick Hunt of X-Ray Company got in contact with Sub-Lieutenant Marcelo Llambías-Pravaz, and in a televised reunion on the southern peak of the mountain, he returned the pictures he had found of the army officer and his platoon of conscripts the morning after the Royal Marines had stormed the position.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8YtqQ14xf-I YouTube - Ex-Marine Nick Hunt & former Argentine 2d. Lt. Marcelo Llambías-Pravaz in a televised reunion on the mountain.]</ref>

=== Casualties ===
Seven Royal Marine Commandos and a sapper from [[Royal Engineers|59 Independent Commando Squadron, Royal Engineers]] were killed taking Two Sisters.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20240501014518/https://royal-naval-association.co.uk/news/12-june-troops-advance-on-land-but-glamorgan-struck-by-exocet/ 12 June: Troops advance on land, but Glamorgan struck by Exocet]</ref><ref name="The Falkland Islands"/><ref name="ReferenceB">"All three companies then fought brisk battles on their objectives, suffering eight killed and seventeen wounded in the process." Jigsaw Puzzles: Tactical Intelligence in the Falklands Campaign, Giles Orpen-Smellie, p. ?, Amberley Publishing Limited, 2022</ref><ref>"The British had lost twenty-three men on Longdon, eight on Two Sisters and another seven on Mount Harriet, the Argentines having fought more valiantly than is often remembered." Who Dares Wins: Britain, 1979-1982, Dominic Sandbrook, Penguin UK, 2019</ref> Another 17 British marines in 45 Commando,<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20190217201055/http://www.royal-marines.net/1975-1999.html Royal Marines Historical Time Line 1975 - 1999]</ref><ref name="ReferenceB"/>
including platoon commanders (Lieutenants Fox, Denning and Davies) were wounded.  20 Argentines were killed in the first eleven days of June and the night of the battle, with 50 wounded<ref name="autogenerated177"/> and 54 taken prisoner.

HMS ''Glamorgan'', which was providing [[Naval gunfire support]] (NGS) stayed in her position to support the [[Royal Marine Commando]]s who were pinned down. HMS ''Glamorgan'' stayed past the time she was meant to leave and was hit by a land-based [[Exocet missile]], fourteen crew were killed and more wounded as a result of this attack.<ref>[https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/hms-glamorgans-casualties-honoured-long-1851130 HMS Glamorgan’s casualties Wales online]</ref><ref name="rnaportland.org"/>

=== Awards and citations ===
;Argentine forces
* [[Cross for Heroic Valour in Combat]] to Private [[Oscar Poltronieri]]<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.palabrasdelderecho.com.ar/articulo/4934/Heroes-de-Malvinas-el-soldado-conscripto-argentino-que-recibio-la-maxima-condecoracion-militar-de-la-Nacion |title=Héroes de Malvinas: el soldado conscripto argentino que recibió la máxima condecoración militar de la Nación |website=Palabras del Derecho |access-date=4 August 2025}}</ref>
* [[Medal of Valour in Combat|“La Nación Argentina al Valor en Combate”]] to:
** First Lieutenant Rubén Márquez{{KIA}}, 602 Commando Company<ref name=ea>{{cite web |url=https://www.argentina.gob.ar/sites/default/files/ar-ea-cem-cem-03-05.pdf |title=Listado oficial de condecoraciones del Ejército Argentino 1982–1983 |website=Argentina.gob.ar |access-date=4 August 2025}}</ref>
** First Sergeant Oscar Blas{{KIA}}, 602 Commando Company<ref name=ea/> Fb
** Sergeant Sergio García{{KIA}}, 25th Infantry Regiment<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.argentina.gob.ar/noticias/heroes-de-malvinas-heroes-de-la-patria-sargento-sergio-garcia |title=Héroes de Malvinas: Sargento Sergio Ismael García |website=Argentina.gob.ar |date=27 May 2020 |access-date=4 August 2025}}</ref>
** Corporal Mario Castro{{KIA}}, 25th Infantry Regiment<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.argentina.gob.ar/noticias/heroes-de-malvinas-el-legado-de-mario-rodolfo-castro |title=Héroes de Malvinas: Corporal Mario Rodolfo Castro |website=Argentina.gob.ar |access-date=4 August 2025}}</ref>
** Private Fabricio Carrascull{{KIA}}, 25th Infantry Regiment<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.argentina.gob.ar/noticias/heroes-de-malvinas-fabricio-edgar-carrascull |title=Héroes de Malvinas: Soldado Fabricio Edgar Carrascull |website=Argentina.gob.ar |access-date=4 August 2025}}</ref>

All are buried at the [[Argentine Military Cemetery]].

;British forces
* [[Distinguished Service Order]] to Lieutenant-Colonel Andrew Whitehead<ref>{{cite web |title=Whitehead, Andrew Francis |url=https://www.commandoveterans.org/AndrewWhiteheadRM |publisher=Commando Veterans Archive |access-date=4 August 2025}}</ref>
* [[Military Cross]] to:
** Lieutenant Clive Dytor<ref>{{cite web |title=Dytor, Clive Idris |url=https://www.commandoveterans.org/CliveDytorRM |publisher=Commando Veterans Archive |access-date=4 August 2025}}</ref>
** Lieutenant Christopher Fox<ref>{{cite web |title=Supplement to the London Gazette, 8 October 1982 |url=https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/49134/supplement/12837/data.pdf |publisher=The London Gazette |access-date=4 August 2025}}</ref>
** Lieutenant David Stewart<ref>{{cite web |title=Stewart, David James |url=https://www.commandoveterans.org/DavidStewartRM |publisher=Commando Veterans Archive |access-date=4 August 2025}}</ref>
* [[Distinguished Conduct Medal]] to Corporal Julian Burdett<ref>{{cite web |title=Burdett, Julian |url=https://www.commandoveterans.org/search?query=Burdett |publisher=Commando Veterans Archive |access-date=4 August 2025}}</ref>
* [[Military Medal]] to:
** Corporal Andrew Bishop<ref>{{cite web |title=Bishop, Andrew Ronald |url=https://www.commandoveterans.org/AndrewBishopRM |publisher=Commando Veterans Archive |access-date=4 August 2025}}</ref>
** Corporal D. Hunt<ref name="Naval-History.net">{{cite web |title=Battle for Two Sisters – Naval-History.net |url=https://www.naval-history.net/F55-45_Commando_Battle_for_Two_Sisters.htm |publisher=Naval-History.net |access-date=4 August 2025}}</ref>
** Marine Gary W. Marshall<ref>{{cite web |title=Marshall, Gary William |url=https://www.commandoveterans.org/GaryMarshallRM |publisher=Commando Veterans Archive |access-date=4 August 2025}}</ref>
** Corporal Harry Siddall<ref>{{cite web |title=Siddall, Harry |url=https://www.commandoveterans.org/HarrySiddallRM |publisher=Commando Veterans Archive |access-date=4 August 2025}}</ref>
* [[Military Medal]] to supporting units:
** Bombardier Edward Holt, [[29 Commando Regiment RA]]<ref>{{cite web |title=Edward Holt |url=https://www.commandoveterans.org/EdwardHolt29Commando |publisher=Commando Veterans Archive |access-date=4 August 2025}}</ref>
** Sergeant J D Wassel [[Mountain Leader Training Cadre|M&AW Cadre]]<ref name="Naval-History.net"/>
* [[Mentioned in dispatches#United Kingdom|Mentioned in Despatches]]: Corporal Christopher Brown, Lieutenant Christian Caroe, Captain Michael Cole<ref name="MID45">{{cite web |title=45 Commando RM Mentioned in Despatches – South Atlantic 1982 |url=https://www.commandoveterans.org/45_Commando_RM_MID_List |publisher=Commando Veterans Archive |access-date=4 August 2025}}</ref>

==Notes==
{{Reflist}}

==References==
* {{cite book|author=Max Arthur
| title     = Above All, Courage: The Eyewitness History of the Falklands War (Cassell Military Paperbacks S.)
| publisher = Cassells Military Paperbacks|year=2002
| isbn      = 0-304-36257-3}}
* {{cite book|author=Martin Middlebrook|year=2003
| title     = The Fight For The Malvinas
| publisher = Pen and Sword Books / Leo Cooper Paperbacks
| isbn      = 0-85052-978-6}}
* {{cite book|last=Scheina |first=Robert L |date=2003 |title=Latin America's Wars: The age of the professional soldier, 1900–2001. |publisher=Brassey's |isbn=1-57488-452-2}}
* [http://www.naval-history.net/F55twosisters.htm 45 Commando's approach to and Battle for Two Sisters]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20061005150621/http://www.britains-smallwars.com/Falklands/Two-Sisters.htm 'Zulu!': The Battle for Two Sisters]
* [http://news.scotsman.com/uk.cfm?id=914312007 Captain Ian Gardiner recalls the fighting]
* [http://www.mercopress.com/vernoticia.do?id=10705&formato=html Argentine conscripts re-live Two Sisters battle] {{Webarchive|url=https://archive.today/20130128224234/http://www.mercopress.com/vernoticia.do?id=10705&formato=html |date=28 January 2013 }}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20060512103949/http://www.britains-smallwars.com/Falklands/David/Mount-Harriet.htm Two Sisters Mountain: The Argentinian Story]
* [https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/southamerica/falklandislands/9164691/Falklands-War-hero-explains-why-he-entered-the-church-after-being-awarded-the-Military-Cross.html Lieutenant Clive Dytor remembers his role during the attack on Two Sisters. He was awarded the MC (accessed Sunday 25 March 2012)]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070428012116/http://www.mod.uk/DefenceInternet/DefenceNews/PeopleInDefence/MarinesInEmotionalReturnToTheFalklands.htm MOD news: Marines in emotional return to the Falklands]

==External links==
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20061005150621/http://www.britains-smallwars.com/Falklands/Two-Sisters.htm The Battle for Two Sisters]

{{Falklands War|style=wide}}
{{coord|51|41|12|S|58|1|25|W|name=Battle of Two Sisters|type:mountain|display=title}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Two Sisters}}
[[Category:Battles of the Falklands War]]
[[Category:Conflicts in 1982]]
[[Category:History of the Royal Marines]]
[[Category:June 1982 in South America]]
[[Category:Naval bombing operations and battles]]