My uncle Eddie prisoner on Graf Spee

[martinskoby]

The story starts way back in the 50's My mother always carried in her purse two very small press cuttings featuring a man in uniform, and she told me the story of how his ship the SS. Tairoa was sunk by the Graf Spee, and that he was rescued by the captain of the Graf Spee and taken prisoner, together with all the rest of the Tiaroa's crew, he and many other prisoners stayed aboard the Graf Spee throughout the Battle of the river Plate. This man was her eldest brother. He was released along with all the other prisoners when the Graf Spee entered Montevideo for repairs, he then made his way back to the U.K. He took up a new merchant navy post as an engineer, and was sunk by U Boat action and died in 1942.
To see the full story go to The Graf Spee prisoners To see my efforts at makeing a web page dedicated to my uncle Eddie.

[Eddie Grant]

Read with great interest Uncle Eddie and the Graf Spee having sailed into Montevideo almost every trip in the early 50s I was also in the film Battle of the river plate was handsome then! not now and see myself on all the repeats. Great for me but not for those that were in all the real action during the war, all heroes. I was in Montevideo some years back on a cruise and spent some time talking to a guy at a street market who sold copies of original photographs of the scuttling of the Graf spee it seems its still quite a topic there. I too had pictures taken sitting on the anchor and thought boy this could tell a story. Will read the Uncle Eddie article again and again it fascinated me to learn a thing or to. A great article Eddie Grant.

[Lou Barron]

When we was on the German supply ship Charlotte Schlirmann we often use to talk about the Altmark episode hoping that would happen to us in fact there were rumours of trying to take the the ship over but the Germans must have got a buzz about it as the doubled the guards and had two machine guns trained onto the hold from the bridge we was only allowed on deck in small lots and only for a short time or to use the make shift toilets the guards waswell armed with machine pistols and stick grenades so it would have been a bit silly to do it

[leratty]

John did you see the Graff Spee boiler up on the I think breakwater as you entered Monty + some other bits & pieces. I went to Capt. Langsdorf's grave in B.A. on one trip still kept up too it is in same graveyard as dear old Eva Peron as I recall. I believe that the UK did some diving on her shortly after he scuttling & got some data as to gun sights along with other things. Not too sure if this was just a rumour or something I read somewhere no doubt someone of the site will know & advise.

Capt. Kong when was this memorial put up I do not recall it back in the 60's, do you know?

Tony post 5: I understand a lot of her was demolished via explosives after the war? Why, I guess for clearance reasons, also prior to that quite a bit of salvage had been undertaken.

[Tony Wilding]

​i READ SOMEWHERE THE BRITISH SET UP A SCRAP METAL COMPANY IN MONTEVIDEO TO SALVAGE HER, BUT WAS REALLY TO GET HER RADAR SECRETS.

[sid harmenzon]

The story starts way back in the 50's My mother always carried in her purse two very small press cuttings featuring a man in uniform, and she told me the story of how his ship the SS. Tairoa was sunk by the Graf Spee, and that he was rescued by the captain of the Graf Spee and taken prisoner, together with all the rest of the Tiaroa's crew, he and many other prisoners stayed aboard the Graf Spee throughout the Battle of the river Plate. This man was her eldest brother. He was released along with all the other prisoners when the Graf Spee entered Montevideo for repairs, he then made his way back to the U.K. He took up a new merchant navy post as an engineer, and was sunk by U Boat action and died in 1942.
To see the full story go to The Graf Spee prisoners To see my efforts at makeing a web page dedicated to my uncle Eddie.

[Noel Martin]

For all those engineers interested in the "Graff Spee " she was a Motor ship with 8 double acting diesel engines (so no large boilers) 2 shafts with 4 engines each all connected via vulcan hydraulic couplings. This is so engines could be clutched in and out as the HP was required. The piston dia was 420 mm and the stroke was 580mm with 9 cylinders per engine. The HP per engine was about 6750 HP with a total max HP of approximately 54000 HP (could only run on diesel and not heavy oil) Three of these ships were laid down in about 1932 and took about 4 years to build. Have done a lot of research both here in New Zealand and Argentina and Argentina was where I managed to buy a few page booklet on the engine details which confirmed some of my calculations I had first done 20 years ago mind you my origonal calculations were in imperial measurements as Im an old fart from the 50/60s era Regards Noel Martin Christchurch New Zealand.

[Graham Evans]

If I ever had the luck to visit Monte again, I would be back up the Calle to see all the old establiciamentos, and not bother with Jerry scrap.
BA Gra.

[Ian Malcolm]

Extracted from SHIPPING COMPANY LOSSES OF THE SECOND WORLD WAR

TAIROA (Captain W.B. Starr). Bound for London from Brisbane when intercepted by the Admiral Graf Spee (Captain Hans Langsdorff) in position 21º38´S 08º13´E on 3 December, 1939. Shelled and sunk by torpedo after her crew had been transferred to the warship. On 6 December, the Graf Spee met the Altmark (Captain Dahl) and transferred most of her Merchant Navy prisoners to her, but some of the Tairoa’s men were retained on the Graf Spee so that they were released in Montevideo after the Battle of the River Plate which took place on the 13^th. Those on the Altmark were released by a boarding party from the destroyer HMS Cossack (Captain P. Vian), on 16 February, 1940, when she illegally intercepted the prison ship in Norwegian territorial waters. The Cossack docked at Leith the next day.

[Captain Kong]

Parts of the Graf Spey memorial and anchors in Montevideo on the dockside.
also for GRAHAM, a picture of the California Bar, now empty and se vende, I was going to buy it but SHE said No. I was in a battle in there in 1958 when two Swedes were killed by the Vigies. All the other bars have all gone. there are No seamen today to keep them open, so all gone, BA the same No Bars, Calle Vienty Cinco de Mayo, all gone. all around the South American coasts, except the Scandi Bar in Valpo, all gone.
Brian

[Keith at Tregenna]

'It warmed the cockles of the British hearts': Battle of the River Plate monument to be unveiled to mark Allies' famous victory over Nazi 'pocket battleship' Admiral Graf Spee:

Encounter in Dec 1939, off Uruguay, was first major naval battle of WWII

Four survivors will meet at National Memorial Arboretum for ceremony

Battle fought by heavy cruiser HMS Exeter, light cruisers HMS Ajax and Achilles and Graf Spee; 72 British sailors died

In a radio broadcast, Churchill said: 'This brilliant sea fight takes its place in our naval annals and in a long, cold, dark winter it warmed the cockles of the British hearts'

LINK: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...Graf-Spee.html