Английская Википедия:German cruiser Admiral Graf Spee
Шаблон:Short description Шаблон:Use shortened footnotes Шаблон:Use dmy dates
Шаблон:Infobox ship imageШаблон:Infobox ship careerШаблон:Infobox ship characteristicsШаблон:Lang was a Шаблон:Sclass "Шаблон:Lang" (armored ship), nicknamed a "pocket battleship" by the British, which served with the Шаблон:Lang of Nazi Germany during World War II. The vessel was named after World War I Admiral Maximilian von Spee, commander of the East Asia Squadron who fought the battles of Coronel and the Falkland Islands, where he was killed in action. She was laid down at the Шаблон:Lang shipyard in Wilhelmshaven in October 1932 and completed by January 1936. The ship was nominally under the Шаблон:Convert limitation on warship size imposed by the Treaty of Versailles, though with a full load displacement of Шаблон:Convert, she significantly exceeded it. Armed with six Шаблон:Convert guns in two triple gun turrets, Шаблон:Lang and her sisters were designed to outgun any cruiser fast enough to catch them. Their top speed of Шаблон:Convert left only a few capital ships in the Anglo-French navies fast enough and powerful enough to sink them.Шаблон:Sfn
The ship conducted five non-intervention patrols during the Spanish Civil War in 1936–1938 and participated in the Coronation Review of King George VI in May 1937. Шаблон:Lang was deployed to the South Atlantic in the weeks before the outbreak of World War II, to be positioned in merchant sea lanes once war was declared. Between September and December 1939, the warship sank nine vessels totaling Шаблон:GRT, before being confronted by three British cruisers at the Battle of the River Plate on 13 December. Шаблон:Lang inflicted heavy damage on the British ships, but she too was damaged and was forced to put into port at Montevideo, Uruguay. Convinced by false reports of superior British naval forces gathering, Hans Langsdorff, commander of the ship, ordered the vessel to be scuttled. The ship was partially broken up in situ, though part of the ship remained visible above the surface of the water for years.
Design
Шаблон:Lang was Шаблон:Convert long overall and had a beam of Шаблон:Cvt and a maximum draft of Шаблон:Convert. The ship had a design displacement of Шаблон:Cvt and a full load displacement of Шаблон:Convert,Шаблон:Sfn though the ship was officially stated to be within the Шаблон:Convert limit of the Treaty of Versailles.Шаблон:Sfn Шаблон:Lang was powered by four sets of MAN 9-cylinder double-acting two-stroke diesel engines.Шаблон:Sfn The ship's top speed was Шаблон:Convert, at Шаблон:Convert. At a cruising speed of Шаблон:Convert, the ship had a range of Шаблон:Convert.Шаблон:Sfn As designed, her standard complement consisted of 33 officers and 586 enlisted men, though after 1935 this was significantly increased to 30 officers and 921–1,040 sailors.Шаблон:Sfn The ship was equipped one catapult but had no aircraft hangar. One floatplane was carried on the catapult. The initial Heinkel He 60 was replaced with an Arado Ar 196 before the outbreak of the war.Шаблон:Sfn Шаблон:Lang was the first German warship to be equipped with radar.Шаблон:Sfn A FMG G(gO) "Seetakt" set Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Efn was mounted on the foretop range finder.Шаблон:Sfn
Шаблон:LangШаблон:'s primary armament was six [[28 cm SK C/28 naval gun|Шаблон:Convert]] SK C/28 guns mounted in two triple gun turrets, one forward and one aft of the superstructure. The ship carried a secondary battery of eight [[15 cm SK C/28|Шаблон:Convert]] SK C/28 guns in single turrets grouped amidships. Her anti-aircraft battery originally consisted of three [[8.8 cm SK L/45 naval gun|Шаблон:Convert]] L/45 guns, though in 1935 these were replaced with six [[8.8 cm SK C/31 naval gun|Шаблон:Convert]] L/78 guns. In 1938, the 8.8 cm guns were removed, and six [[10.5 cm FlaK 38|Шаблон:Convert]] L/65 guns, four [[3.7 cm SK C/30|Шаблон:Convert]] SK C/30 guns, and ten [[2 cm FlaK 30/38/Flakvierling|Шаблон:Convert]] C/30 guns were installed in their place.Шаблон:Sfn The ship also carried a pair of quadruple Шаблон:Cvt deck-mounted torpedo tubes placed on her stern.Шаблон:Sfn
Шаблон:LangШаблон:'s armored belt was Шаблон:Convert thick; her upper deck was Шаблон:Convert thick while the main armored deck was Шаблон:Convert thick. The main battery turrets had Шаблон:Convert thick faces and 80 mm thick sides. Шаблон:Sfn
Service history
Шаблон:Lang was ordered by the Шаблон:Lang from the Шаблон:Lang shipyard in Wilhelmshaven.Шаблон:Sfn Ordered as Шаблон:Lang, Шаблон:Lang replaced the old pre-dreadnought battleship Шаблон:SMS. Her keel was laid down on 1 October 1932,Шаблон:Sfn under construction number 125.Шаблон:Sfn The ship was launched on 30 June 1934; at her launching, she was christened by the daughter of Admiral Maximilian von Spee, the ship's namesake.Шаблон:Sfn She was completed slightly over a year and a half later on 6 January 1936, the day she was commissioned into the German fleet.Шаблон:Sfn
Шаблон:Lang spent the first three months of her career conducting extensive sea trials to ready the ship for service. The ship's first commander was Шаблон:Lang (KzS) Conrad Patzig; he was replaced in 1937 by KzS Walter Warzecha.Шаблон:Sfn After joining the fleet, Шаблон:Lang became the flagship of the German Navy.Шаблон:Sfn In the summer of 1936, following the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War, she deployed to the Atlantic to participate in non-intervention patrols off the Republican-held coast of Spain. Between August 1936 and May 1937, the ship conducted three patrols off Spain.Шаблон:Sfn On the return voyage from Spain, Шаблон:Lang stopped in Great Britain to represent Germany in the Coronation Review at Spithead for King George VI on 20 May.Шаблон:Sfn
After the conclusion of the Review, Шаблон:Lang returned to Spain for a fourth non-intervention patrol. Following fleet maneuvers and a brief visit to Sweden, the ship conducted a fifth and final patrol in February 1938.Шаблон:Sfn In 1938, KzS Hans Langsdorff took command of the vessel;Шаблон:Sfn she conducted a series of goodwill visits to various foreign ports throughout the year.Шаблон:Sfn These included cruises into the Atlantic, where she stopped in Tangier and Vigo.Шаблон:Sfn She also participated in extensive fleet maneuvers in German waters. She was part of the celebrations for the reintegration of the port of Memel into Germany,Шаблон:Sfn and a fleet review in honor of Admiral Miklós Horthy, the Regent of Hungary. Between 18 April and 17 May 1939, she conducted another cruise into the Atlantic, stopping in the ports of Ceuta and Lisbon.Шаблон:Sfn On 21 August 1939, Шаблон:Lang departed Wilhelmshaven, bound for the South Atlantic.Шаблон:Sfn
World War II
Following the outbreak of war between Germany and the Allies in September 1939, Adolf Hitler ordered the German Navy to begin commerce raiding against Allied merchant traffic. Hitler nevertheless delayed issuing the order until it became clear that Britain would not countenance a peace treaty following the conquest of Poland. The Шаблон:Lang was instructed to strictly adhere to prize rules, which required raiders to stop and search ships for contraband before sinking them, and to ensure that their crews were safely evacuated. Langsdorff was ordered to avoid combat, even with inferior opponents, and to frequently change position.Шаблон:Sfn On 1 September, the cruiser rendezvoused with her supply ship Шаблон:Ship southwest of the Canary Islands. While replenishing his fuel supplies, Langsdorff ordered superfluous equipment transferred to Шаблон:Lang; this included several of the ship's boats, flammable paint, and two of her ten 2 cm anti-aircraft guns, which were installed on the tanker.Шаблон:Sfn
On 11 September, while still transferring supplies from Шаблон:Lang, Шаблон:LangШаблон:'s Arado floatplane spotted the British heavy cruiser Шаблон:HMS approaching the two German ships. Langsdorff ordered both vessels to depart at high speed, successfully evading the British cruiser.Шаблон:Sfn On 26 September, the ship finally received orders authorizing attacks on Allied merchant shipping. Four days later Шаблон:LangШаблон:'s Arado located Booth Steam Ship Co's cargo ship Шаблон:SS off the coast of Brazil. The cargo ship transmitted an "RRR" signal ("I am under attack by a raider") before the cruiser ordered her to stop. Шаблон:Lang took ClementШаблон:'s captain and chief engineer prisoner but left the rest of her crew to abandon ship in the lifeboats.Шаблон:Sfn The cruiser then fired 30 rounds from her 28 cm and 15 cm guns and two torpedoes at the cargo ship, which broke up and sank.Шаблон:Sfn Langsdorff ordered a distress signal sent to the naval station in Pernambuco to ensure the rescue of the ship's crew. The British Admiralty immediately issued a warning to merchant shipping that a German surface raider was in the area.Шаблон:Sfn The British crew later reached the Brazilian coast in their lifeboats.Шаблон:Sfn
On 5 October, the British and French navies formed eight groups to hunt down Шаблон:Lang in the South Atlantic. The British aircraft carriers Шаблон:HMS, Шаблон:HMS, and Шаблон:HMS, the Шаблон:Ship, the British battlecruiser Шаблон:HMS, and French battleships Шаблон:Ship and Шаблон:Ship, and 16 cruisers were committed to the hunt.Шаблон:Sfn Force G, commanded by Commodore Henry Harwood and assigned to the east coast of South America, comprised the cruisers Cumberland and Шаблон:HMS. Force G was reinforced by the light cruisers Шаблон:HMS and Шаблон:HMNZS; Harwood detached Cumberland to patrol the area off the Falkland Islands while his other three cruisers patrolled off the River Plate.Шаблон:Sfn
On the same day as the formation of the Anglo-French hunter groups, Шаблон:Lang captured the steamer Newton Beech. Two days later, she encountered and sank the merchant ship Ashlea. On 8 October, the following day, she sank Newton Beech,Шаблон:Sfn which Langsdorff had been using to house prisoners.Шаблон:Sfn Newton Beech was too slow to keep up with Шаблон:Lang, and so the prisoners were transferred to the cruiser. On 10 October, she captured the steamer Huntsman, the captain of which had not sent a distress signal until the last minute, as he had mistakenly identified Шаблон:Lang as a French warship. Unable to accommodate the crew from Huntsman, Шаблон:Lang sent the ship to a rendezvous location with a prize crew. On 15 October, Шаблон:Lang rendezvoused with Шаблон:Lang to refuel and transfer prisoners; the following morning, the prize Huntsman joined the two ships. The prisoners aboard Huntsman were transferred to Шаблон:Lang and Langsdorff then sank Huntsman on the night of 17 October.Шаблон:Sfn
On 22 October, Шаблон:Lang encountered and sank the steamer Trevanion.Шаблон:Sfn At the end of October, Langsdorff sailed his ship into the Indian Ocean south of Madagascar. The purpose of that foray was to divert Allied warships away from the South Atlantic, and to confuse the Allies about his intentions. By this time, Шаблон:Lang had cruised for almost Шаблон:Convert and needed an engine overhaul.Шаблон:Sfn On 15 November, the ship sank the tanker Шаблон:MV, and the following day, she stopped an unidentified Dutch steamer, though did not sink her. Шаблон:Lang returned to the Atlantic between 17 and 26 November to refuel from Шаблон:Lang.Шаблон:Sfn While replenishing supplies, the crew of Шаблон:Lang built a dummy gun turret on her bridge and erected a dummy second funnel behind the aircraft catapult to alter her silhouette significantly in a bid to confuse allied shipping as to her true identity.Шаблон:Sfn
Шаблон:LangШаблон:'s Arado floatplane located the merchant ship Шаблон:SS: Langsdorff fired a shot across her bow to stop the ship.Шаблон:Sfn Doric Star was able to send out a distress signal before she was sunk, which prompted Harwood to take his three cruisers to the mouth of the River Plate, which he suspected might be Langsdorff's next target.Шаблон:Sfn On 3 December, Шаблон:Lang sank the steamer Шаблон:SS.Шаблон:Sfn On 6 December, she met Шаблон:Lang and transferred 140 prisoners from Doric Star and Tairoa. Шаблон:Lang encountered her last victim on the evening of 7 December: the freighter Streonshalh. The prize crew recovered secret documents containing shipping route information.Шаблон:Sfn Based on that information, Langsdorff decided to head for the seas off Montevideo. On 12 December, the ship's Arado 196 broke down and could not be repaired, depriving Шаблон:Lang of her aerial reconnaissance.Шаблон:Sfn The ship's disguise was removed, so it would not hinder the ship in battle.Шаблон:Sfn
Battle of the River Plate
At 05:30 on the morning of 13 December 1939, lookouts spotted a pair of masts off the ship's starboard bow. Langsdorff assumed this to be the escort for a convoy mentioned in the documents recovered from Tairoa. At 05:52, however, the ship was identified as Шаблон:HMS; she was accompanied by a pair of smaller warships, initially thought to be destroyers but quickly identified as Шаблон:Sclasss. Langsdorff decided not to flee from the British ships, and ordered his ship to battle stations and to close at maximum speed.Шаблон:Sfn At 06:08, the British spotted Шаблон:Lang; Harwood divided his ships to split the gunfire of Шаблон:LangШаблон:'s 28 cm guns.Шаблон:Sfn The German ship opened fire with her main battery at Exeter and her secondary guns at the flagship Шаблон:HMS at 06:17. At 06:20, Exeter returned fire, followed by Ajax at 06:21 and Achilles at 06:24. In the span of thirty minutes, Шаблон:Lang had hit Exeter three times, disabling her two forward turrets, destroying her bridge and her aircraft catapult, and starting major fires. Ajax and Achilles moved closer to Шаблон:Lang to relieve the pressure on Exeter.Шаблон:Sfn
Langsdorff thought the two light cruisers were making a torpedo attack, and turned away under a smokescreen.Шаблон:Sfn The respite allowed Exeter to withdraw from the action; by now, only one of her gun turrets was still in action, and she had suffered 61 dead and 23 wounded crew members.Шаблон:Sfn At around 07:00, Exeter returned to the engagement, firing from her stern turret. Шаблон:Lang fired on her again, scored more hits, and forced Exeter to withdraw again, this time with a list to port. At 07:25, Шаблон:Lang scored a hit on Ajax that disabled her aft turrets.Шаблон:Sfn Both sides broke off the action, Шаблон:Lang retreating into the River Plate estuary, while Harwood's battered cruisers remained outside to observe any possible breakout attempts. In the course of the engagement, Шаблон:Lang had been hit approximately 70 times; 36 men were killed and 60 more were wounded,Шаблон:Sfn including Langsdorff, who had been wounded twice by splinters while standing on the open bridge.Шаблон:Sfn
Scuttling
As a result of battle damage and casualties, Langsdorff decided to put into Montevideo, where repairs could be effected and the wounded men could be evacuated from the ship.Шаблон:Sfn Most of the hits scored by the British cruisers had caused only minor structural and superficial damage, but the oil purification plant, which was required to prepare the diesel fuel for the engines, was destroyed. Her desalination plant and galley were also destroyed, which would have increased the difficulty of a return to Germany. A hit in the bow would also have negatively affected her seaworthiness in the heavy seas of the North Atlantic. Шаблон:Lang had fired much of her ammunition in the engagement with Harwood's cruisers.Шаблон:Sfn
After arriving in port, the wounded crewmen were taken to local hospitals and the dead were buried with full military honors. Captive Allied seamen, consisting of 6 captains, 9 chief engineers, 25 officers, and 21 seamen[1] still aboard the ship, were released. Repairs necessary to make the ship seaworthy were expected to take up to two weeks.Шаблон:Sfn British naval intelligence worked to convince Langsdorff that vastly superior forces were concentrating to destroy his ship, if he attempted to break out of the harbor. The Admiralty broadcast a series of signals, on frequencies known to be intercepted by German intelligence. The closest heavy units—the carrier Ark Royal and battlecruiser Renown—were some Шаблон:Convert away, much too far to intervene in the situation. Believing the British reports, Langsdorff discussed his options with commanders in Berlin. These were either to break out and seek refuge in Buenos Aires, where the Argentine government would intern the ship, or to scuttle the ship in the Plate estuary.Шаблон:Sfn
Langsdorff was unwilling to risk the lives of his crew, so he decided to scuttle the ship. He knew that although Uruguay was neutral, the government was on friendly terms with Britain and if he allowed his ship to be interned, the Uruguayan Navy would allow British intelligence officers access to the ship.Шаблон:Sfn Under Article 17 of the Hague Convention of 1907, neutrality restrictions limited Шаблон:Lang to a period of 72 hours for repairs in Montevideo, before she would be interned for the duration of the war.[2]Шаблон:Sfn On 17 December 1939, Langsdorff ordered the destruction of all important equipment aboard the ship. The ship's remaining ammunition supply was dispersed throughout the ship, in preparation for scuttling. On 17 December, the ship, with only Langsdorff and 40 other men aboard, moved into the outer roadstead to be scuttled.Шаблон:Sfn A crowd of 20,000 watched as the scuttling charges were set; the crew was taken off by an Argentine tug and the ship was scuttled at 20:55.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn The explosions from the munitions sent jets of flame high into the air and created a large cloud of smoke that obscured the ship which burned in the shallow water for the next two days.Шаблон:Sfn
On 20 December, in his room in a Buenos Aires hotel, Langsdorff shot himself in full dress uniform while lying on the ship's battle ensign.Шаблон:Sfn In late January 1940, the neutral American cruiser Шаблон:USS arrived in Montevideo and the crew was permitted to visit the wreck of Шаблон:Lang. The Americans met the German crewmen, who were still in Montevideo.Шаблон:Sfn In the aftermath of the scuttling, the ship's crew were taken to Argentina, where they were interned for the remainder of the war.Шаблон:Sfn
Wreck
The wreck was partially broken up in situ in 1942–1943, though parts of the ship were visible for some time after; the wreck lies at a depth of only Шаблон:Convert.Шаблон:Sfn The salvage rights were purchased from the German Government by a Montevideo engineering company for £14,000, a front for the British. The British had been surprised by the accuracy of the gunnery and expected to find a radar range finder, which they did. They used the knowledge thus acquired to try to develop countermeasures, under the leadership of Fred Hoyle at the British radar project. The Admiralty complained about the large sum paid for the salvage rights.Шаблон:Sfn
In February 2004, a salvage team began work raising the wreck of Шаблон:Lang. The operation was in part being funded by the government of Uruguay, in part by the private sector as the wreck was a hazard to navigation. The first major section—a Шаблон:Convert gunnery rangefinding telemeter—was raised on 25 February.Шаблон:Sfn On 10 February 2006, the Шаблон:Convert, Шаблон:Convert eagle and swastika crest of Шаблон:Lang was recovered from the stern of the ship;Шаблон:Sfn it was stored in a Uruguayan naval warehouse following German complaints about exhibiting "Nazi paraphernalia".Шаблон:Sfn An attempt to sell the ornament prompted the Uruguayan government to prohibit any sale to prevent neo-Nazis from acquiring it. Instead, the Uruguayan Navy kept it in a storage facility.Шаблон:Sfn
A court case involving the private salvage company that had been involved in the effort to raise the wreck ended in 2019 with a court order for the government to sell the ornament and give some of the proceeds to the salvage company. The decision was later overruled and the government received full custody.Шаблон:Sfn On 2 January 2022, a newspaper in Punta del Este reported that an Argentine Jewish businessman, Daniel Sielecki, had offered to buy the eagle and swastika crest from the Шаблон:Lang from the naval warehouse. Sielecki said he wanted to explode the crest into “a thousand pieces" in order to keep it out of the hands of neo-Nazis.[3][4]
On 17 June 2023, the New York Times reported that the eagle and crest would be melted down and recast into a dove by Uruguayan artist Pablo Atchugarry.Шаблон:Sfn A day later, however, Uruguayan president Luis Lacalle Pou dropped the plan claiming that "there is an overwhelming majority that does not share this decision" and that "if one wants to generate peace, the first thing one has to do is to generate union. Clearly this has not generated it."[5]
Footnotes
Notes
Citations
See also
- The Battle of the River Plate (film) (titled in the United States as Pursuit of the Graf Spee) is a 1956 British war film about the battle
References
- Шаблон:Cite book
- Шаблон:Cite book
- Шаблон:Cite news
- Шаблон:Cite news
- Шаблон:Cite book
- Шаблон:Cite book
- Шаблон:Cite book
- Шаблон:Cite book
- Шаблон:Cite book
- Шаблон:Cite book
- Шаблон:Cite book
- Шаблон:Cite news
- Шаблон:Cite book
- Шаблон:Cite book
- Шаблон:Cite book
- Шаблон:Cite news
- Шаблон:Cite book
- Шаблон:Cite book
Further reading
External links
Шаблон:Deutschland class cruiser Шаблон:December 1939 shipwrecks Шаблон:Good article Шаблон:Authority control
- ↑ Green Final, Saturday, December 16, 1939; Section: Front page, Page: 1
- ↑ Шаблон:Cite web
- ↑ Шаблон:Cite web
- ↑ Шаблон:Cite web
- ↑ Шаблон:Cite web
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