Falklands War: Autographed menu helps historian trace veterans

Brian Short collected the autographs of Argentinian prisoners of war on a menu card

A menu card signed by Argentinian soldiers captured in the Falklands conflict has inspired a historian to track down the veterans.

Royal Marine bandsman Brian Short, from Deal in Kent, was deployed to the South Atlantic aboard the liner SS Canberra.

After the conflict he guarded returning prisoners of war (PoWs), several of whom signed the card.

Historian German Stoessel traced the men after seeing a picture of the card on Facebook.

He said: "When I found that menu, on every single signature I saw a personal story, so that's why I began that search for every single man.

"We are all used to talking about war and its consequences, all of them bad, but in this case I saw an opportunity to show humanity. Men that were fighting each other a week ago, and then they were together, sharing coffee, talking about sports, like men, and in many cases like friends."

He has found 21 of the 24 soldiers, with some now in touch with Mr Short through email and social media.

Ariel Tascon is one of the veterans he contacted.

Mr Tascon said: "They handed out postcards and we left signatures and messages, and in fact specifically the one that I left expressed how grateful we were for the way they treated us, and that there was no longer any hatred between us.

"That was something that had finished on 14 June when we surrendered."

Brian Short (left) guarded PoWs who were being returned to Argentina

Brian said the PoWs received a better reception aboard the Canberra than they did in Argentina.

He said: "The people welcoming them back were not so pleased to see them really, politically it was an embarrassment, they'd lost the war, the soldiers were coming back beaten without their equipment."

Alan Legge filmed the returning POWs aboard the Canberra

Alan Legge, a civilian steward on the Canberra, took a video camera to record the voyage, including footage of the returning prisoners, and also served them in the canteen.

"I was struck by how young the soldiers seemed to be," Mr Legge said, "they were very appreciative of the position they found themselves in."

Brian Short has written a book about his experiences in the Falklands War

Mr Short has sent Mr Stoessel a copy of a book he has written about his time in the Falklands, an experience Mr Stoessel said seems to have helped soldiers from both sides bond on the journey back to Argentina.

"At the beginning they felt like enemies but in the days to come on board the Canberra they began to chat and to talk and to share memories.

"No anger, no hate, just soldiers doing their job for their country, on both sides."

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