The map plots the merchant ships Admiral Graf Spee captured or sank and makes the long gaps between encounters visible. A criticism of many histories of the cruise is that they treat the ship as a straightforward surface raider and give those gaps too little attention. A tally of captures and sinkings cannot by itself explain the route. Political aims and individual decisions help explain what the cruise was intended to achieve. Its results can then be judged against those aims.
Chapter · 0:16-1:34
Reading Admiral Graf Spee's cruise as strategy
Admiral Graf Spee's scattered attacks are easier to understand when political aims and individual decisions are considered alongside merchant ships captured or sunk.