This piece belonged to the German battleship “Admiral Graff Spee” recovered in 2004 from the sunken 1939 battleship, eight kilometers away from the Port of Montivedeo. A 27-ton optical instrument allowed the battleship to improve the accuracy of its cannon shots. The German made Graff Spee was modern and considered state of the art due to its range finder - the first radar ever mounted in a battleship. The construction of the ship started in August 23, 1932 at Wilhelmshaven Port in Germany. After two years of construction and under the direction of Captain Lottman, the ship was completed on June 24, 1934. Known as pocket battleships, they had a high-powered armament of six cannons (280 mm) with a top speed of 28 knots. Germany had three vessels: the Deutchland, the Von Scheer and the Graf Spee. The Graf Spee was the most modern of these exclusive class of ships. The concept of pocket battleship was a novelty in those years. Any vessel with a displacement of 10,000 tons would not be considered a battleship simply because they have 200 mm or larger size cannons. Larger size cannons could damage the structure. The Germans solved the problem by using lighter materials and replacing the rivets with welding. Equipped for battles against commercial ships, the battleship Admiral Graf Spee launched from the Port of Wilhelmshaven on August 21, 1939. The ship headed northeast by the Commandant Hans Langsdorf. Its mission was to act as corsair in the South Atlantic Ocean. Supported by the oil carrier Altmark, their orders were to sink British merchant ships, avoid combat with enemy forces, weaken supporting crossways of allied forces and distracting British naval units from its other overseas bases.
Extract from Puerto de Montevideo Administracion Nacional de Puertos
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