Program Information

In the early months of World War II, the German pocket battleship Graf Spee went on a spree of destruction in the south Atlantic.

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Transcript

Lead: In the early months of World War II, the German pocket battleship Graf Spee went on a spree of destruction in the south Atlantic.

Tag: A Moment in Time with Dan Roberts.

Content: In the Versailles Treaty ending World War I, severe restrictions were placed upon the size of warships the defeated Germany would be allowed to build. In the 1920s the German Navy worked hard to get around these restrictions. They developed a class of high speed Panzerschiffe, or "armored ship," with 11-inch guns displacing 12,000 tons, just exceeding the treaty limits. The British gave these heavy cruisers the name "pocket battleships" because, in speed and armament, only British battle cruisers exceeded their power. Three of these ships were built in the 1930s: Deutschland, Admiral Speer, and Graf Spee.

By late 1939 it became clear to the British and French that their policy of appeasement toward Adolf Hitler was not going to cause his aggressive tendencies to go away. During the spring and summer his propaganda attacks on Poland gathered intensity, and the Allies reaffirmed their commitment to defend the independence of Poland, should war come.

Admiral Raeder, fearful that his tiny navy would be caught behind a British blockade at the outbreak of hostilities, convinced Hitler that he should send Deutschland and Graf Spee out into the Atlantic--just in case the British and French should make a stand and war begin. Hitler agreed and, when hostilities began, the ships were in the Atlantic and began immediately to attack Allied shipping. Deutschland bagged three merchant ships before returning home in November.

Graf Spee headed south for better hunting and, between September 30 and December 7, 1939, sank nine ships totaling more than 50,000 tons. Even worse, so frantic were the Allies to stop this commerce raiding that they committed a huge assortment of warships to tracking down the pocket battleships and sinking them. Deutschland escaped this time, but Graf Spee was still out there ready to do damage. Captain Langsdorf felt he needed to return to Germany for retrofitting but wanted some exciting kills before heading home. From captured documents, he concluded that the best picking available could be had at the mouth of the River Plate in South America.

Next time: Prison, scuttling, or a dash for home.

At the University of Richmond, this is Dan Roberts.

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