Victory at Sea - HMS Achilles

With an empire and trade commitments that spanned the entire globe, the Royal Navy had a clear need for small, light cruisers that could be produced in large numbers. Though displacing more than their intended 6,500 tons, the Leander-class fulfilled this requirement admirably. Perhaps the most famous examples of this class were the HMS Ajax and Achilles which, together with a cruiser of another class, outmanoeuvred the Admiral Graf Spee during the Battle of the River Plate. Despite it being a victory won more by bluff and guile rather than effective gunnery, the scuttled Admiral Graf Spee was welcome news at a time when Britain was in the depths of its darkest hour.