Battle of the River Plate, The

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This is a story of sea power.

In November 1939, the war was two months old.

The blitzkrieg on Poland had given the world a

new word and the generals a new idea of battle.

At sea,

the problems were still the same.

In war, Germany could feed herself.

England could not.

If the ships bringing England's food

could be sunk or immobilised.

England would starve

and the war would be won.

For this the Germans

had three powerful weapons,

the magnetic mine,

the U-boat,

and the surface raider.

These pocket battleships were strong and swift.

There had never been anything like them.

They were the tigers of the sea.

Ten days before war was declared,

one of these raiders sailed from a German port

with secret orders.

She sailed by night off the coast of Norway,

passed unobserved through the Denmark Strait

between Iceland and Greenland,

and vanished into the southern Atlantic

where a supply ship was already waiting for her.

Months passed and nobody suspected

that a killer was lurking there,

until ship after ship failed to make its home port.

Poor little Africa Shell.

The fortune of war, Captain.

Pirates! That's what you are.

My ship was well inside

Portuguese territorial waters.

Complain to our captain. Captain Langsdorff.

Complain? What's the use of complaining?

You've sunk my ship. You've stolen my papers.

My position was clearly marked on the chart.

Your chart is inaccurate.

Here, take a look at that.

That's the coast of Portuguese East Africa, isn't it?

We're still within the three-mile limit, aren't we?

Look, there's Cape Zavora. There's the lighthouse

on Quissico Point. You aren't blind.

All I can see, Captain, are two of your lifeboats

carrying all your crew to safety.

So, you are the pocket battleship Graf Spee?

Achtung!

Der englische Kapitn, Dove,

von der Africa Shell, Herr Kapitn.

Danke.

- Warten Sie hier, bis der Kapitn frei ist.

- Leutnant.

Well, Captain Dove?

Well, Captain Langsdorff?

How do you do, Captain?

My boarding officer has reported your protest

about the seizure of your ship.

You say that you were in territorial waters.

If you were, that makes it very difficult for me.

Not half so difficult, sir,

as it makes for me already.

I've lost my ship and everything else.

To my mind, there's not the slightest doubt

I was well within the three-mile limit.

- If I had my chart here, I could...

- Here is your chart.

- Please. Show me.

- I will. Look here.

There. See that line?

It couldn't be clearer.

We're not likely to agree, Captain.

You want the figures to prove you right

and me wrong, whereas I want...

Shall we make a compromise?

You write out your protest

and I'll give you a receipt. Is that fair?

That's fair enough, sir.

Shall we drink?

Scotch.

Genuine. From the steamship Clement.

Oh, so you sunk the Clement.

Cigarette?

Also genuine?

Yes, but not from the Clement, I think.

No. From the Huntsman.

The captain of the Huntsman was a pal of mine.

Is, Captain. Is.

What, is he on board?

Well, not exactly.

Believe me, Captain, I don't like sending ships

to the bottom. What sailor does?

Nor do I like making war on civilians.

Up till now, it's the civilians

who have suffered in this war.

The Army are sitting in armour and concrete,

broadcasting to each other.

The airmen are making reconnaissance flights,

and the sailors...

Take me, for example.

I'm in command of a fine ship, a new ship,

one of the finest battleships afloat.

- We are fast.

- 25 knots.

More. I have immense fire power.

Six 11-inch guns and...

...eight or ten five-inch.

Well, you use your eyes.

And my orders are to sink merchant ships

and avoid a battle.

You never know your luck, Captain.

One of these days,

you might run up against one of ours.

You have only three ships that can catch me.

Repulse, Renown and Hood.

On paper.

Your big battleships

are not fast enough to catch me.

- Plenty of our cruisers are faster than you.

- They can't match my guns.

On paper.

I have one other advantage, Captain.

The vastness of the sea.

- It's very difficult to find me.

- I can appreciate that, sir.

I don't understand how your supply ship

can ever hope to find you.

- She can't. I find her.

- Well, isn't that just as difficult?

It's the simplest thing in the world, Captain.

The details are secret,

but the method is very old.

The ocean is divided into squares,

and I know exactly in which square

my supply ship will be on a certain date.

- Very interesting.

- I know exactly what you're thinking.

But the charts are safe,

and so are you, for the duration.

So, you see, I can hunt the seven seas

from the North Pole to the South.

Well, I hope you won't go as far as that, sir.

I'm not quite dressed for it.

We'll get our tailor

to make you something warmer.

- Oh? So, we are going south?

- Perhaps.

Would you like to see over my ship?

I might as well. I've got an hour or two.

My master-at-arms

will show you to your quarters.

Hier ist Gesund.

Alles klar.

- How do you do?

- Der hat es da.

Der Mensch ist ein kuhler Junge.

Achtung! Achtung!

Leutnant Becker melden Sie sich

bei dem Kommandant.

Leutnant Becker melden Sie sich

bei dem Kommandant.

Leutnant Becker melden Sie sich

bei dem Kommandant.

Sorry, Captain, we've sighted another merchantman.

I must ask you to come to your quarters.

Ich bringe ihn.

Follow me, please.

Lassen wir uns ihn holen.

Was haben wir hier denn erwischt?

- Very nice.

- Ja. Midshipmen's quarters.

- Very nice and spacious.

- Mm-hm.

- You will be with 29 other officers here.

- 29?!

Yes. When we meet our supply ship,

all officer prisoners will be transferred here.

Oh.

I'd better pick my corner first.

We are taking you home for Christmas.

Oh, that's jolly. When?

Oh, sometime. Soon.

From the tailor. Kapitn Langsdorff says

you put them on, you come on deck.

There she is.

Our supply ship.

- Hier kommt die Leine.

- Unterstehen!

- Los! Mach! Mach!

Los, Jungs!

- Zwei.

- Da.

Pull. Pull.

Pull. Pull.

Lutze, hast du Kaffee fr uns?

Ja, besten ersatz, Mensch.

Good morning.

Good morning, Captain.

Kind of you to let me come on deck.

I thought you might be interested.

Ja, das ist gut.

Es! Es! Er wars! Er wars!

I am.

Der Sack ist geplatzt.

Rosinen, Mensch!

Rosinen, Mensch.

For you, Kapitn.

Go on.

Take it.

Thanks, I will.

Looks as if Father Christmas has arrived.

Yes.

Fresh meat, green vegetables, fruit,

and some fuel.

Captain Dove, Santa Claus.

Alt...

Altmark.

Not very well camouflaged.

Now, we do things much better.

For example, we rig this up for neutrals.

One day, I am the Deutschland.

Herumwenden.

The next, I am the Admiral Scheer.

Neutrals always report what they see,

so I keep your Navy interested.

I'm like a pretty girl. I change my frock,

I change my hat, I am a different girl.

This is going to be my new funnel. Canvas.

And over there, a new turret. Wood.

Leutnant Hirth!

Wo ist das Buch, Jane's Fighting Ships?

Hier, Herr Kapitn.

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