Daily List

Today in History, April 2nd

On April 2, 1982, Argentina invaded the Falkland Islands. Plus Wilson's 1917 war message and the death of Pope John Paul II.

By Today in History Updated November 10, 2026 3 min read Sources checked

Published April 2, 2026 · Last updated November 10, 2026

April 2 is best known as the day in 1982 when Argentina invaded the Falkland Islands, setting off a short, sharp war with Britain. The date also saw President Woodrow Wilson ask Congress for a declaration of war on Germany in 1917 and the death of Pope John Paul II in 2005.

The big story: Argentina Invades the Falklands (1982)

Argentina’s military government was in trouble at home in early 1982. Critics attacked its harsh rule and its handling of the economy, and junta leader Lt. Gen. Leopoldo Galtieri wanted something that would rally the country. He chose the Falkland Islands, a British colony in the South Atlantic. On April 2, 1982, Argentine troops landed and quickly overwhelmed the small force of Royal Marines at Stanley. The next day they took South Georgia too. The islands were about 8,000 miles from Britain, but Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher sent a task force of 30 warships anyway, and it needed weeks to get there. British forces retook South Georgia on April 25, landed on East Falkland on May 21 and accepted the Argentine surrender at Stanley on June 14, 74 days after the invasion. Britain lost 256 people and Argentina about 750. The war helped Thatcher win a landslide in 1983, and Argentina’s military rulers were out of power the same year.

More events on April 2

Year	What happened
1681	King Charles II proclaimed the royal charter granting William Penn the colony of Pennsylvania (Old Style).
1792	Congress created the U.S. Mint. Until then, Americans got by on foreign coins and barter.
1863	Hungry residents of Richmond, Virginia, the Confederate capital, rioted over severe food shortages.
1865	Confederate troops pulled out of Richmond as Union forces advanced.
1917	President Woodrow Wilson asked Congress to declare war on Germany. Congress voted for war four days later.
1917	Jeannette Rankin of Montana, the first woman elected to Congress, took her seat in the U.S. House.
1968	Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey premiered in Washington, D.C.
1979	An anthrax outbreak linked to a Soviet biological weapons plant began in Sverdlovsk (now Yekaterinburg). Official records counted 66 deaths over six weeks.
1992	A New York jury convicted mob boss John Gotti, the “Teflon Don,” on 13 counts, including murder and racketeering.
2005	Pope John Paul II died in Vatican City.
2015	President Barack Obama announced from the White House Rose Garden that the United States and its partners had reached a framework understanding with Iran meant to keep it from building a nuclear weapon.

Born on April 2

1805: Hans Christian Andersen, Danish writer of “The Ugly Duckling” and “The Little Mermaid.”
1914: Alec Guinness, British actor of The Bridge on the River Kwai and Star Wars.
1939: Marvin Gaye, American soul singer of “What’s Going On” and “I Heard It Through the Grapevine.”