Battle of The River Plate - Legacy

Legacy

In 1956, the film The Battle of the River Plate (US title: Pursuit of the Graf Spee) was made of the battle and Admiral Graf Spee's end, with Peter Finch as Langsdorff. Finch portrayed Langsdorff authentically as a gentleman, in contrast to the treatment of German characters in some other post-war films. HMS Achilles, which had been recommissioned in 1948 as HMIS Delhi, flagship of the Royal Indian Navy, played herself in the movie. HMS Ajax was "played" by HMS Sheffield, HMS Exeter by HMS Jamaica and HMS Cumberland by herself. Graf Spee was portrayed by the U.S. heavy cruiser Salem.

The battle was for many years re-enacted with large-scale model boats throughout the summer season at Peasholm Park in the UK seaside resort of Scarborough. The re-enactment now portrays an anonymous battle between a convoy of British ships and an unspecified enemy in possession of the nearby shore.

After the battle, the new town of Ajax, Ontario in Canada, was named after HMS Ajax. Many of its streets are named after Admiral Harwood's crewmen on Ajax, Exeter and Achilles.

The names of each ship, and the commander of Force G, have also been used for the Cadet Corps. The Royal Canadian Sea Cadet Corps (RCSCC) Ajax #89 in Guelph, Ontario; the Navy League Cadet Corps (NLCC) Achilles #34 in Guelph, Ontario; the Navy League Wrenette Corps (NLWC) Lady Exeter (now disbanded) and the camp shared by all three corps, called Camp Cumberland (this camp no longer exists. It was decommissioned around 1999). RCSCC Harwood #244 and NLCC Exeter #173 are situated in Ajax, Ontario.

According to an article in the German language paper Albertaner on 6 October 2007, a street in Ajax, Ontario was named after Captain Langsdorff, this despite protests by some Canadian veterans. Steve Parish, the mayor of Ajax, defended the decision, declaring that Langsdorff had not been a typical Nazi officer. An accompanying picture shows Langsdorff at the funeral of his crew members who were killed in the battle. He is paying tribute with a naval salute, while people beside and behind him—even some clergymen—are giving the Fascist salute. The picture is credited to Diego Lascano (Gilby Collection).