Maximilian von Spee | |
|---|---|
 Maximilian von Spee | |
| Born | 22 June 1861 Copenhagen, Denmark |
| Died | 8 December 1914(1914-12-08) (aged 53) SMS Scharnhorst,South Atlantic, off theFalkland Islands |
| Allegiance |  German Empire |
| Service |  Imperial German Navy |
| Years of service | 1878–1914 |
| Rank | Vizeadmiral (Vice Admiral) |
| Commands | SMS Hela SMS Pelikan SMS Wittelsbach East Asia Squadron |
| Battles / wars | |
Maximilian Johannes Maria Hubert Reichsgraf[1] von Spee (22 June 1861 – 8 December 1914) was a German naval officer in theImperial German Navy (Kaiserliche Marine), who commanded theEast Asia Squadron duringWorld War I. Spee entered the navy in 1878 and served in a variety of roles and locations, including on a colonialgunboat inGerman West Africa in the 1880s, the East Africa Squadron in the late 1890s, and as commander of several warships in the main German fleet in the early 1900s. During his time in Germany in the late 1880s and early 1890s, he married his wife, Margareta, and had three children, his sons Heinrich and Otto and his daughter Huberta. By 1912, he had returned to the East Asia Squadron as its commander, and was promoted to the rank ofVizeadmiral (Vice Admiral) the following year.
Following the outbreak ofWorld War I in July 1914, Spee led his squadron across the Pacific to the coast of South America. There on 1 November, he defeated the British4th Cruiser Squadron under Rear AdmiralChristopher Cradock in theBattle of Coronel, sinking two of Cradock's cruisers and forcing his other two ships to retreat. A month later, Spee decided to attack the British naval base in theFalkland Islands, but a superior British force surprised him. In the ensuingBattle of the Falkland Islands, Vice AdmiralDoveton Sturdee's squadron, which included two powerfulbattlecruisers, destroyed the East Asia Squadron. Spee and his two sons, who happened to be serving on two of his ships, were all killed, along with about 2,200 other men. Spee was hailed as a hero in Germany, and several ships were named in his honor, including theheavy cruiserAdmiral Graf Spee, which was built in the 1930s and was scuttled after theBattle of the River Plate duringWorld War II.
Spee was born inCopenhagen, Denmark, on 22 June 1861, though he was raised in theRhineland in Germany, where his family had anestate. He joined theKaiserliche Marine (Imperial Navy) in 1878 and initially served in the main German naval base atKiel.[2][3] He was commissioned an officer at the rank ofLeutnant zur See (lieutenant at sea), and was assigned to thegunboatSMS Möwe, which was sent to western Africa. During this voyage, the Germans signed treaties with local rulers in Togo and Cameroon, creating the colonies ofTogoland andKamerun, respectively.[4] In 1887, Spee was transferred to Kamerun where he commanded the port atDuala. He contractedrheumatic fever while there, and had to be sent back to Germany to recover, though he occasionally suffered fromrheumatism for the rest of his life.[2][3]
After returning to Germany in 1889, he married his wife, Margareta Baroness von der Osten-Sacken.[5] With her he had two sons—Otto, born on 10 July 1890, Heinrich, born on 24 April 1893—and one daughter, Huberta, born on 11 July 1894.[6] By 1895, Spee had been promoted to the rank ofKapitänleutnant (captain lieutenant). From 1 May to 12 September that year, Spee commanded theironcladgunboatNatter.[7] In December 1897, Spee was stationed in Germany'sEast Asia Squadron after it seized theJiaozhou Bay Leased Territory, with its port atQingdao. Here, he served on the staff ofVizeadmiral (Vice Admiral)Otto von Diederichs.[4][5] During theBoxer Uprising in China in 1900, Spee saw action at Qingdao and on theYangtze.[3]
After arriving back in Germany, he was promoted to the rank ofKorvettenkapitän (Corvette Captain) and assigned as thefirst officer aboard thepre-dreadnought battleshipBrandenburg.[5] Between 1900 and 1908, Spee held command of several ships, including theavisoHela, theminelayerPelikan, and finally the pre-dreadnoughtWittelsbach. During this period, he was promoted toFregattenkapitän (Frigate Captain) on 27 January 1904 and toKapitän zur See (Captain at Sea) exactly a year later; his command ofWittelsbach followed the latter promotion. In 1908, he was assigned as the chief of staff to the commander of theNorth Sea Station, and in 1910 he was promoted to the rank ofKonteradmiral (KAdm–Counter Admiral).[2][4][5] Spee was then assigned as the deputy commander for the reconnaissance forces of theHigh Seas Fleet.[3]
In late 1912, Spee was given command of the East Asia Squadron, replacingKAdmGünther von Krosigk on 4 December. Spee raised his flag on thearmored cruiserScharnhorst, and departed on a tour of the southwest Pacific along withScharnhorst'ssister shipGneisenau, during which Spee made visits to several ports, includingSingapore andBatavia.[8] Spee was promoted toVizeadmiral the following year.[3] Over the following year and a half, Spee met with the leaders of several East Asian countries. From 1 April to 7 May 1913,Scharnhorst took Spee to Japan to meet theTaishō Emperor.[8] Later in the year, Spee met withChulalongkorn, theKing of Siam. In May 1914, Spee tookScharnhorst and the torpedo boatS90 on a visit toPort Arthur and then toTianjin; Spee continued on toBeijing, where he met withYuan Shikai, the firstPresident of the Republic of China. He came back aboardScharnhorst on 11 May and the ship returned to Qingdao.[9]
Spee thereafter began preparations for a cruise toGerman New Guinea;Scharnhorst departed on 20 June. The two armored cruisers proceeded toNagasaki, Japan, where they coaled in preparation for their tour. While en route toTruk in theCaroline Islands, they received news of the assassination of ArchdukeFranz Ferdinand, heir to the throne ofAustria-Hungary.[10] On 17 July, the East Asia Squadron arrived inPonape in the Carolines, where the ships remained while tensions steadily rose in Europe. In Ponape, Spee had access to the German radio network, and he learned of the Austro-Hungarian declaration of war on Serbia on 28 July, followed shortly thereafter by the Russianmobilization—tantamount to adeclaration of war—against Austria-Hungary and possibly Germany. On 31 July, word came that the German ultimatum that Russia demobilize its armies was set to expire; Spee ordered his ships' crews to prepare for war. On 2 August,Wilhelm II ordered German mobilization against Russia and its ally, France.[11] Following Germany's violation of neutral Belgium during itsinvasion of France, Britain declared war on Germany.[12]
The East Asia Squadron consisted ofScharnhorst andGneisenau and thelight cruisersEmden,Nürnberg, andLeipzig.[13] At the time,Nürnberg was returning from the west coast of the United States, whereLeipzig had just replaced her, andEmden was still in Qingdao. Spee recalled his ships to consolidate his forces;Nürnberg arrived on 6 August and the three cruisers plus theircolliers moved toPagan Island in theMarianas, at that time a German colony.Emden and the linerPrinz Eitel Friedrich, which had been converted into anauxiliary cruiser, joined the squadron there on 12 August.[14] The four cruisers, accompanied byPrinz Eitel Friedrich and several colliers, then departed the central Pacific, bound for Chile. On 13 August, CommodoreKarl von Müller, captain of theEmden, persuaded Spee to detach his ship as a commerce raider. On 14 August, the East Asia Squadron departed Pagan forEnewetak Atoll in theMarshall Islands.[15] While en route across the Pacific, Spee relaxed formalities aboard his ships, integrating the messes for officers and non-commissioned and engineering officers.[16]
To keep the German high command informed, on 8 September Spee detachedNürnberg toHonolulu to send word through neutral countries.Nürnberg returned with news of theAllied capture of German Samoa, which had taken place on 29 August.Scharnhorst andGneisenau sailed toApia to investigate the situation.[17] Spee had hoped to catch a British or Australian warship by surprise, but upon his arrival on 14 September, he found no warships in the harbor.[18] Spee decided against attacking the Allied troops ashore, since doing so would risk killing Samoans and damaging German property.[19] On 22 September,Scharnhorst and the rest of the East Asia Squadron arrived at the French colony ofPapeete. The Germans attacked the colony, and in the ensuingBattle of Papeete, they sank the French gunboatZélée. The ships came under fire from French shore batteries but were undamaged.[20] Fear of mines in the harbor prevented Spee from seizing the coal in the harbor.[21] Spee then continued across the Pacific, passing through theMarquesas Islands, where his ships acquired supplies including fresh meat by barter, purchase, or confiscation.[22] On 12 October, the squadron reachedEaster Island, where it was reinforced byLeipzig,Dresden, and four more colliers. Spee's ships were off the coast of Chile by 1 November, when he learned that the British cruiserGlasgow was moored inCoronel, ostensibly alone; he decided to try to sink the ship.[23]
Glasgow was assigned to the4th Cruiser Squadron, under Rear AdmiralChristopher Cradock; as it turned out,Glasgow was joined by the armored cruisersGood Hope andMonmouth and the auxiliary cruiserOtranto. After discovering the entire squadron off Coronel, Spee decided to engage the British ships, but he delayed the action using his ships' superior speed until later in the day, when the setting sun would silhouette Cradock's ships. The German ships would meanwhile be obscured against the Chilean coast, making the task of the British gunners more difficult.[24] At 18:07, Spee issued the order to open fire, with his two armored cruisers battling Cradock's armored cruisers and his light cruisers engagingGlasgow andOtranto. Cradock quickly detachedOtranto, as she had no place in the line of battle. By 18:50,Gneisenau had disabledMonmouth and so shifted fire toGood Hope; the combined firepower ofScharnhorst andGneisenau neutralizedGood Hope by 19:23. Spee then withdrew his two armored cruisers and sent in his light cruisers to finish offMonmouth andGood Hope.[25] The British had lost both ships and suffered more than 1,600 dead, including Cradock, though the German ships had expended around 40 percent of their ammunition supply.[26] Spee had inflicted the first defeat on aRoyal Navy squadron since theNapoleonic Wars a century earlier.[27]
After the battle, Spee took his ships north to Valparaiso. Since Chile was neutral, only three ships could enter the port at a time; Spee tookScharnhorst,Gneisenau, andNürnberg in first on the morning of 3 November, leavingDresden andLeipzig with the colliers at Mas a Fuera. There, Spee's ships could take on coal while he conferred with theAdmiralty Staff in Germany to determine the strength of remaining British forces in the region.[28] In addition, Spee sought to counter British press reports that attempted to minimize their losses and exaggerate German casualties. A reception followed at the German Club of Valparaiso, though Spee insisted that the event be restrained in tone.[29] He received a bouquet of flowers to celebrate the victory at Coronel; Spee replied that they would do nicely for his grave.[30] He stated that,
You must not forget that I am quite homeless. I cannot reach Germany. We possess no other secure harbor. I must fight my way through the seas of the world doing as much mischief as I can, until my ammunition is exhausted, or a foe far superior in power succeeds in catching me. But it will cost the wretches dearly before they take me down.[31]
While in port, Spee received the order from the Admiralty Staff to attempt to break through to Germany.[32] The ships remained in the port for only 24 hours, in accordance with the neutrality restrictions, and arrived at Mas a Fuera on 6 November, where they took on more coal from captured British and French steamers.[33]Dresden andLeipzig took their turn in Valparaiso, after which the re-formed squadron continued south and roundedCape Horn into the South Atlantic.[32] In the meantime, the Royal Navy sent a pair ofbattlecruisers—Invincible andInflexible—commanded byVice AdmiralDoveton Sturdee to hunt down Spee's squadron and avenge Cradock's defeat.[27]
On the morning of 6 December, Spee held a conference with the ship commanders aboardScharnhorst to determine their next course of action. The Germans had received numerous fragmentary and contradictory reports of British reinforcements in the region; Spee and two other captains favored an attack on theFalkland Islands to destroy the British wireless station there, while three other commanders argued that it would be better to bypass the islands and attack British shipping off Argentina. Spee's opinion carried the day and the squadron departed for the Falkland Islands at 12:00 on 6 December. The ships arrived off the Falkland Islands two days later;Gneisenau andNürnberg were delegated for the attack. As they approached, observers aboardGneisenau spotted smoke rising fromPort Stanley, but assumed it was the British burning their coal stocks to prevent the Germans from seizing them.[34] As they closed on the harbor, 30.5 cm (12.0 in) shells from the elderly battleshipCanopus, which had been beached as aguard ship, began to fall around the German ships, which prompted Spee to break off the attack. As Spee withdrew, Sturdee quickly got steam up in his ships and sortied to chase the Germans.[35]
By 13:20, the battlecruisers had caught up with Spee, who realized his armored cruisers could not escape the much faster battlecruisers. He ordered the three light cruisers to attempt to break away while he tried to hold off the British squadron withScharnhorst andGneisenau. Sturdee instead ordered his cruisers to chase down the fleeing German light cruisers whileInvincible andInflexible dealt withScharnhorst andGneisenau.[36] Spee deftly maneuvered his ships, taking theleeward position; the wind kept his ships swept of smoke, which improved visibility for his gunners. This forced Sturdee into the windward position and its corresponding worse visibility.Scharnhorst straddledInvincible with her third salvo and quickly scored two hits on the British battlecruiser. The German flagship was herself not hit during this phase of the battle.[37] Sturdee attempted to widen the distance by turning two points to the north to prevent Spee from closing to within the range of his numerous secondary guns. Spee counteracted this maneuver by turning rapidly to the south, which forced Sturdee to turn south as well to keep within range. This allowedScharnhorst andGneisenau to turn back north and get close enough to engage with their secondary 15 cm guns. Their shooting was so accurate that it forced the British to haul away a second time.[38]
The British gunfire became increasingly accurate, and by 16:00,Scharnhorst had begun to list badly, while fires raged aboard the ship. Spee orderedGneisenau to try to disengage while he turnedScharnhorst toward his attackers in an attempt to launch torpedoes at them. At 16:17,Scharnhorstcapsized and sank, taking her entire crew with her, including Spee. The British, still focused onGneisenau, made no effort to rescue survivors.[39]Gneisenau,Leipzig, andNürnberg were also sunk. OnlyDresden managed to escape, but she was eventually tracked to theJuan Fernández Islands and sunk. The complete destruction of the squadron killed about 2,200 German sailors and officers, including both of Spee's sons;[40] Heinrich died aboardGneisenau, and Otto was killed aboardNürnberg.[41]
Spee was hailed as a hero in Germany and the men of the East Asia Squadron were celebrated in the press, which emphasized their bravery and refusal to surrender.[42] In September 1917, the secondMackensen-class battlecruiser was namedGraf Spee, and was christened by Spee's widow Margarete.[43] Construction of the ship had not been completed by the time of theArmistice of 11 November 1918, and she wasbroken up for scrap by 1921.[44] In 1934 Germany named the new heavy cruiserAdmiral Graf Spee after him; as with the earlier vessel, a member of Spee's family christened the ship, this time his daughter.[45] In December 1939,Admiral Graf Spee wasscuttled by her crew after theBattle of the River Plate off the coast ofUruguay.[46] Between 1959 and 1964 the Federal GermanBundesmarine operated thetrainingfrigateGraf Spee.[47]
The wreck of Spee's flagshipScharnhorst was found off the Falklands on 5 December 2019, almost 105 years to the day after her sinking. Wilhelm Graf von Spee, head of the Graf von Spee family, called the location of the wreck "bittersweet", remarking that the family took comfort "from the knowledge that the final resting place of so many has been found, and can now be preserved, whilst also being reminded of the huge waste of life. As a family, we lost a father and his two sons on one day. Like the thousands of other families who suffered an unimaginable loss during the First World War, we remember them and must ensure that their sacrifice was not in vain."[48]
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