the captain of the German pocket battleship Admiral Graf Spee, Hans Langsdorff, did take his own life during the Battle of the River Plate in December 1939.
After a prolonged engagement with three British cruisers, the Exeter, Ajax, and Achilles, the Graf Spee sustained significant damage and was forced to seek refuge in the neutral port of Montevideo, Uruguay. However, fearing that his ship would be destroyed if he attempted to leave port and engage the British ships again, Langsdorff decided to scuttle the Graf Spee to prevent it from falling into enemy hands.
Before doing so, he ordered the crew to abandon ship and then committed suicide by gunshot. Langsdorff's decision to scuttle the ship and his subsequent suicide were seen by many in Germany as acts of heroism, and he was widely mourned as a national hero.
/ @solentships Ahoy Shipmates. Welcome to the Solent Ships YouTube channel. For gifts of rum: https://www.patreon.com/solentships To Donate via PayPal: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted... DJI Affiliate Link Purchase drone: https://click.dji.com/ABU7ZNAmY4cfh8a... Purchase Mavic Mini: https://click.dji.com/ANUtI2jzhPmz9xN... Purchase gimbal camera: https://click.dji.com/AN8GEV7r5ccyQQs... Solent Ships is operated from Town Quay, the Old Town quarter of Southampton, where the Mayflower departed 400 years ago. Utilising various cameras our small crew are dedicated in providing a window onto our historic waterfront in the Solent region. The ‘Captain’ of our crew is a licenced drone pilot and day skipper, with an added passion for photography. This channel has a large library of drone footage, documenting (with commentary) the various vessels that sail by one of the busiest Ports in the UK. At Solent Ships, you can also access 24 hour live streaming video of the day-to-day movements of all shapes and sizes of marine traffic, an ever-changing view that is enjoyed by cruise ship enthusiasts and water watchers worldwide. The channel is expanding with new camera locations and with regular live commentary and millions of views a month, Solent Ships is the most interactive shipping-based channel on YouTube. If you enjoy the content, please like and subscribe. By clicking the notification button you can hop aboard a scheduled broadcast and enjoy the live chat with our warm and welcoming shipmate community. If you need to get in contact, send an email to The Captain, via the link on the about section: / solentships Port of Southampton, Drone, Container Ship, DJI Mavic 2 Pro, Photography, UK Port of Southampton, Drone, Cruise Ship, DJI Mavic 2 Pro, DJI Mavic Mini, Photography, UK, England https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6BU6BMD4-6s? 