Battle of the River Plate

Aftermath

The German propaganda machine had reported that Admiral Graf Spee had sunk a heavy cruiser and heavily damaged two light cruisers while only being lightly damaged herself — her scuttling was therefore difficult to explain. The Battle of the River Plate was a contributory factor to Adolf Hitler's low opinion of the German surface fleet. The battle was a major propaganda victory for the British during the Phoney War, and the reputation of the First Lord of the Admiralty Winston Churchill was enhanced.

Related Topics:
Propaganda - Phoney War - First Lord of the Admiralty - Winston Churchill

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Exeter, badly damaged, was taken to the Falkland Islands and later to Devonport and repaired. It has been said that she was damaged beyond economic repair, but that Churchill chose to carry out repairs so that she could not be reported as having been destroyed.

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Prisoners taken from merchant ships by Admiral Graf Spee who had been transferred to her supply ship Altmark were freed by a boarding party from the British destroyer HMS Cossack, called the Altmark Incident (February 16, 1940) — whilst in Jøssingfjord, in then neutral Norwegian waters. Prisoners who had not been transferred to Altmark had remained aboard Graf Spee during the battle, and were released on arrival in Montevideo.

Related Topics:
HMS ''Cossack'' - Altmark Incident - February 16 - 1940 - Jøssingfjord - Norwegian

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On 22 December 1939 over 1000 sailors from the Admiral Graf Spee were taken to Buenos Aires, Argentina, and interned. There are many stories, but little reliable information, about their later wartime activities, including escapes, illegally returning to the German armed forces, espionage, and clandestine German submarine landings in Argentina. After the war many German sailors settled permanently in various parts of Argentina and Uruguay, some returning after being repatriated to Germany.

Related Topics:
22 December - Espionage - Argentina - Uruguay - Germany

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Plans to raise the wreck are discussed in the article on Admiral Graf Spee.

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