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THE BATTLE OF THE RIVER PLATE
the death of a commander and a gentleman |
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THE BATTLE OF THE RIVER PLATE
the death of a commander and a gentleman |
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Captain Hans Langsdorff was the commander of the German "pocket"-battleship Admiral Graf Spee. He believed in the Hague Conventions and followed them to an unusual degree. In a perfect world, war would never take place. and all differences would be to resolved by discussion. However, when it comes to war, with the horrible potential that lies in the hands of any belligerent, there better be some rules and the teeth to make them stick. The next best thing is a decent degree of humanity in war such as the conventions imply. Graf Spee and Captain Langsdorff may be a good focal point to promote a serious return to the intent of the conventions and a renewal of the rules of conflict. Langsdorff's example is a beacon from a not so distant past. Langsdorff achieved the objective of his military assignment - sinking specified tonnage of allied merchant shipping - without inflicting the loss of a single life, even though this necessarily put himself at risk. Of his 62 prisoners on board of the Graf Spee, from captured merchant vessels, not one got harmed, not even during the battle of the River Plate. |
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Animated chart of the Graf Spee operations
After the Graf Spee had sunk the first merchant vessel, an allied navy task force went after the raider. The British hunter flotilla, "Force G", composed primarily of four cruisers, located the Admiral Graf Spee in the waters of the south Atlantic, near the River Plate. Two of the four, HMNZS Achilles and HMS Ajax, attacked from the east, while the HMS Exeter, with her heavier 8 inch guns, engaged the German surface raider from the south. The fourth, Cumberland, covering the Falkland Islands, was ordered to the scene along with many other Royal Navy warships. |
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In the heavy engagement with the 3 allied cruisers, the Graf Spee received 20
hits, and 36 crew members were killed, 60 wounded. Langsdorff decided to
disengage from the battle and head to the neutral port of Montevideo in
Uruguay, to seek shelter and to repair some of the serious battle damage
inflicted.
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The 320 crew members of the Graf Spee were allowed on land in full uniform for the burial of the 36 fellow crew members that were killed during the battle in the day before. Everyone brought the nazi salute, amazingly even the priests. Captain Langsdorff brought the navy salute. In the meantime after having refueled in Rio de Janeiro, another British task force of five warships including the aircraft carrier Ark Royal was ordered direction Plate River to join the three cruisers for the kill of one single enemy prey. |
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| 25 years before in a different war, the name patron of the ship, Admiral Reichsgraf Von Spee, died with his complete crew in a naval ambush. |
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Finally, on December 17, 1939, the After the time limit of 72 hours had passed, Capt. Langsdorff took a skelleton crew on board and the ship left the harbor at 17:30 hr with battle ensigns flying on both masts. Three allied cruisers were waiting. The Graf Spee still had enough ammunition for 80 minutes of battling. Erroneously thinking that the british fleet was larger than it really was, Capt. Langsdorff, rather than engaging in a senseless battle and endangering the lives of any more of his crew, scuttled his ship 4 miles out of Montevideo. Thousands of spectators watched from the waterfront in Montevideo. |
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With permission of the Urugayan authorities, the crew of the Graf Spee was brought from Uruguay to Argentina where they were interned and remained there for the rest of the war. Many of them stayed in Argentina after the war.
Auf Den Spuren Der Graf Spee
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The next days parts of the burned ship could still be seen above the water as
the wreck slowly settled in the soft mud.
The Graf Spee is now below the surface in 21-25 ft (7-8,2 mtr) of water depending on the tide level. It lies on the edge of a military practice firing range. The site is marked with two pillar buoys. The wreck festooned with old nets and debris and currents are dangerous. Silt and mud conditions make visibility almost zero. |
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Three days after the Graf Spee scuttle, Capt. Langsdorff committed suicide with a shot to the head in his room in the Navy Arsenal in Buenos Aires. He had dressed himself in full uniform and positioned himself on the "kaiserlichen Reichskriegsflagge" (Imperial German flag without the swastika). Langsdorff's funeral was attended by many. He was an example of the last signs of chivalry in the era of mass murder. |
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Seamen from both sides of the war and local dignitaries paid their last respect to Capt. Langsdorff in a funeral with full military honors. The Battle of the River Plate took place at a time when the belligerents obeyed the rules. It is unique in the Second World War that both British and German participants in this action met several times in friendly reunions after the war.
"Langsdorff was a highly trained, intelligent naval officer. He achieved his
wartime objectives while maintaining his personal codes of decency. Langsdorff
fought like a gentleman and died like a gentleman. However, Graf Spee's
commander never received credit for his efforts. The nation he fought and died
for demeaned his actions and swept his name under the carpet
."
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german
german
spanish
spanish
| If you know German and English language or studying either language, you may want to read the interpretations of this event on these websites and compare the German and English perspectives. We have chosen this subject, because it may be used in interdisciplinary education including: languages, ethics, history, politics, intercultural issues, etc. |
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