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Re: Hood v Vittorio Veneto
Posted: Sat Jan 07, 2017 10:06 am
by paul.mercer
RF wrote:Thorsten Wahl wrote:
I dont know the "Millington-Drakes compendium". So it would be useful for me to get more details.
Eugen Millington-Drake was the British ambassador to Uruguay at the time of this battle.
After WW2 he compiled a very large book utilising a number of sources including official RN and RNZN documentation, the personal testimonies of the Allied commanders, all of whom he knew personally. He also utilised from the German side the publication by F W Rasenack, a junior gunnery officer on AGS, entitled ''Panzerschiffe Admiral Graf Spee'' plus also personal accounts of German internees in Argentina after AGS was scuttled. The book was published around 1958 and was out of print by 1970. I read a copy held in a public library in the early 1970's, and have not seen a copy since.
The book was entitled ''The Battle of the River Plate: a compendium.''
Gentlemen,
Had a look on Amazon but could not find a copy, but there was the following by Milllington- Drake.
The drama of Graf Spee and the Battle of the Plate: A documentary anthology 1914-1941 Jan 1964
Re: Hood v Vittorio Veneto
Posted: Sun Jan 08, 2017 3:12 pm
by Dave Saxton
I have perused the Millington Drake works a few years ago at a university library.
One of the factors was that the Germans thought the light cruisers were destroyers until well after the battle commenced. Another factor was the supply of ammunition types available to the Graf Spee.
Re: Hood v Vittorio Veneto
Posted: Sun Jan 08, 2017 5:58 pm
by RF
According to the final interview between Captain Patrick Dove and Kapitan Langsdorf the latter was able to identify Ajax and Achilles by name before AGS anchored at Montevideo. This interview is detailed verbatim in the Millington-Drake book.
Langsdorf said that the Allied force was encountered and identified as a convoy screen of one light cruiser and two destroyers. However once all three Allied cruisers had opened fire the Germans correctly identified them.
Rasenack confirms that B-Dienst had already detailed the four cruisers under Harwoods command so their presence in the South Atlantic was known to Langsdorf.
Re: Hood v Vittorio Veneto
Posted: Sun Jan 08, 2017 6:05 pm
by RF
paul.mercer wrote:
Had a look on Amazon but could not find a copy, but there was the following by Milllington- Drake.
The drama of Graf Spee and the Battle of the Plate: A documentary anthology 1914-1941 Jan 1964
I think this is the second print of the book.
There was a small section in it concerning the 1914 battles of Coronel and Falklands, which was relevant to the 1939 defence of the Falklands as the 25th anniversary of the Falklands battle fell a few days before the River Plate battle. HMS Cumberland was stationed at Stanley around 8 December 1939 in case AGS attacked there. Langsdorf never had any intention of doing so.
Re: Hood v Vittorio Veneto
Posted: Mon Jan 09, 2017 6:06 am
by dunmunro
paul.mercer wrote:RF wrote:Thorsten Wahl wrote:
I dont know the "Millington-Drakes compendium". So it would be useful for me to get more details.
Eugen Millington-Drake was the British ambassador to Uruguay at the time of this battle.
After WW2 he compiled a very large book utilising a number of sources including official RN and RNZN documentation, the personal testimonies of the Allied commanders, all of whom he knew personally. He also utilised from the German side the publication by F W Rasenack, a junior gunnery officer on AGS, entitled ''Panzerschiffe Admiral Graf Spee'' plus also personal accounts of German internees in Argentina after AGS was scuttled. The book was published around 1958 and was out of print by 1970. I read a copy held in a public library in the early 1970's, and have not seen a copy since.
The book was entitled ''The Battle of the River Plate: a compendium.''
Gentlemen,
Had a look on Amazon but could not find a copy, but there was the following by Milllington- Drake.
The drama of Graf Spee and the Battle of the Plate: A documentary anthology 1914-1941 Jan 1964
I'm pretty sure those books are one and the same. I have the latter book, above.