Mount Longdon is a hill located in the east of East Falkland island forming part of the Falkland Islands Archipelago.Toponymic information is based on the Geographic Names Database, containing official standard names approved by the United States Board on Geographic Names and maintained by the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. More information is available at the Resources link at www.nga.mil. The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency name, initials, and seal are protected by 10 United States Code § Section 425. It has an elevation of 186 metres (610 ft) above sea level. It is the highest land in any direction for 2 kilometres (1.2 miles). It is known as the site of the Battle of Mount Longdon, and overlooks Stanley, the capital of the Falkland Islands.
Geography Mount Longdon forms part of a hilly area in the East of the East Falkland Island.Middlebrook, Martin. The Falklands War. London: Penguin Books, 1989
Geology Mount Longdon and the surrounding area primarily consists of sedimentary rocks with formations of sandstones, quartzites, and shales, which date back to the Paleozoic era.Stone, P., and Aldiss, D.T. The Geology of the Falkland Islands. British Geological Survey, Keyworth, Nottingham, 2002. Climate
The Climate for Mount Longdon is extremely similar to Stanley and RAF Mount Pleasant due to its proximity. Mount Longdon has a maritime climate in the polar, tundra zones, Köppen classification ET. The climate is very much influenced by the cool South Atlantic ocean and its northerly Patagonian current. The oceanic climatic type is characterised by both low seasonal and diurnal temperature ranges and no marked wet and dry season while in the sub-arctic zone the average monthly maximum temperature exceeds for no more than four months of the year and the average monthly minimum does not drop below . Mount Longdon's elevation, maritime location and topography frequently lead to cool conditions.
History The Battle of Mount Longdon was fought between the British 3rd Battalion, Parachute Regiment and elements of the Argentine 7th Infantry Regiment on 11–12 June 1982, towards the end of the Falklands War.Christian Jennings and Adrian Weale, Green-Eyed Boys: 3 Para and the Battle for Mount Longdon, p. 142, HarperCollins, 1996Jon Cooksey, 3 PARA Mount Longdon: The Bloodiest Battle, p. 98, Pen & Sword Books Ltd It was one of three engagements in a Brigade-size operation that night, along with the Battle of Mount Harriet and the Battle of Two Sisters. A mixture of hand-to-hand fighting and ranged combat resulted in the British occupying this key position around the Argentine garrison at Port Stanley.Batallón 5: El Batallón de Infantería de Marina No. 5 en la Guerra de las Malvinas, Emilio Villarino, Aller Atucha, 1992 The battle ended in a British victory.
Summit At the summit of the hill now lies a memorial which today attracts some tourism to the area. See also
Battle of Mount Longdon List of mountains of the Falkland Islands
External links British Overseas Directorate 1961 Maps: Falkland Islands 1:50, 000 Topographic Map Sheet 15 OpenStreetMap Geonames | National Geospace Intelligence Agency | "Mount Longdon" Footnotes
References Notes