2007-10-26 Not the last word on the Battle of the River Plate

Well written account of the Battle of the River Plate on December 13th 1939 and its aftermath but ultimately rather disappointing. Grove is particularly good on the diplomatic moves in Montevideo after the Graf Spee took refuge there but throughout the book is rather stronger on the British background than the German. Which is odd as the main figure in the book is ostensibly Kapitain Langsdorff who commanded the Graf Spee. The book is very light on German analysis of whether he did or did not disobey orders to avod engaging enemy warships.
Grove was unlucky in that the true reason for the flight of the Graf Spee was finally revealed in 2000, just as this book was published. A shell from the Exeter destroyed the steam boiler which operated the system for cleaning the ship's diesel fuel before use. Most of the useable fuel remaining was used up in the trip to Montevideo and the fault could not be repaired rapidly. Had she not been scuttled the Graf Spee's journey range might have been only a few hours. She had no prospect at all of reaching the open sea and remaining at large. The fault was concealed by the Germans (and not spotted by the Uruguyan experts sent on board by their neutral government) because it would have rendered the Graf Spee unseaworthy and liable to internment which they were desperate to avoid. There were also military reasons for concealment as they did not want the enemy to know about the fragility of the diesel fuel system. This factor must have placed enormous extra pressure on Langsdorff and of course Grove's account has less worth because he was unable to consider this vital issue.
One final point, the short and highly selective index is a disgrace for a reputable publisher.