River Plate 1939: The sinking of the Graf Spee (Campaign Book 171)

I really like these Osprey books. I taught U.S. History for 20 years at both the high school & junior college level. My interest in U.S History has given me a passing interest in many events that occur in world history, such as this famous sea battle early in WW2. I became interested in this event when I saw the old movie called "The Pursuit of the Graf Spee". I find myself wanting to know more about these events, but not in the same amount of depth as I need for events that I teach. These books are the perfect balance between depth of narrative, photos, and charts. This series is not intended for dedicated historians researching great events, rather they are intended for casual historians who want to know about major events, their background, and how they influenced history. I have a number of the books by Osprey and I have enjoyed every one of them. Recommended for anyone who wants to know just a little bit more about famous events.

The German pocket battleship Graf Spee waged war against British commerce in the South Atlantic from the outbreak of war in September 1939. Operating in conjunction with the supply ship Altmark, Graf Spee employed deception, tactical excellence and good intelligence to stay one step ahead of the British Royal Navy for weeks. Commodore Harwood's South Atlantic squadron finally brought Graf Spee to fateful battle off South America's River Plate in December 1939."River Plate 1939" is an Osprey Campaign Series book, authored by Angus Konstam, with illustrations by Tony Bryan. The author gets a lot of interest out of a relatively short story, describing in detail both the tactics of the Graf Spee and the challenge for its adversaries in tracking it down in a large ocean. The final battle is described in considerable detail, highlighting the seamanship and undoubted bravery of both sides. The text is nicely supplemented with a good selection of maps, battle diagrams, period photographs, and illustrations. This is an interesting historical account, well told and well recommended.

Excellent account of the naval battle of the River Plate. Excellent illustrations and photographs. Excellent backgrounds on the commanders.

A second to none account of the short lived Graf Spae pocket battleship and her demise.

Well laid out. Edited well and excellent pictures.

Read entire book in one sitting, about 4 hours. Recommend highly. I'm sure there are books that go into more detail but this one fit my desire for an afternoon's read.

I new the story but the book brings out the details especially the battle details, well written book.

thank you

Great account of this interesting sea battle far from Europe.What this tale surely reveals is a continued need for an effective Royal navy to protect the trade routes.

A good book for a reader who wants to achieve a general idea of this intriguing battle. However, the story unfolds in a non-sequential manner as it jumps between the British and German sides. Nevertheless, easy to read and of interest to navy history buffs.

This is a very clearly written and documented account of the battle of the River Plate and the sinking of the Graf Spee. It is very good on describing the damage caused to the British Cruisers, and specifically the Exeter, during the battle. Previous accounts have tended to focus on the Graf Spee and the decisions leading up to the Scuttling.

A few typo errors but otherwise an excellent, concise history of this famous campaign. There was some new information that I picked up that I had not read before.

Add nicely to what I already have on this topic.