Today in History

1939 Battle of the River Plate

At 6.21 a.m. on 13 December 1939, the cruiser HMS Achilles opened fire on the German ‘pocket battleship’ Admiral Graf Spee in the South Atlantic. It became the first New Zealand unit to strike a blow at the enemy in the Second World War.

With the New Zealand ensign flying proudly from its mainmast - as battle loomed, a signalman had run aft with the ensign shouting ‘Make way for the Digger flag!' - Achilles was also the first New Zealand warship to take part in a naval battle.

• Read more about the Battle of the River Plate.

Image: HMS Achilles during the Battle of the River Plate

1642 First recorded European sighting of NZ

Towards noon the Dutch explorer Abel Tasman sighted 'a large land, uplifted high'. What he saw was most likely the Southern Alps, perhaps the peaks of Aoraki/Mt Cook and Mt Tasman.

Tasman sailed from Batavia (today's Jakarta) on Java in the Dutch East Indies in August 1642. His expedition had two aims: to establish whether there was a southern sea route to Chile which could be used to prey on Spanish ships; and to exploit the untapped resources of the 'great southern continent' which many firmly believed existed between Australia and Cape Horn. The Dutch had already charted Australia's northern and western coasts, and part of its southern coast. But how far this land extended to the east was still unknown.

Tasman commanded 110 men on two ships, the Heemskerck and the Zeehaen. He discovered Tasmania (as it would later be called) on 24 November, naming it Van Diemen's Land after the governor general of the Dutch East Indies. He then continued east across the sea which now bears his name.

Also on the expedition was Isaac Gilsemans, who would draw the first European images of New Zealand. His sketches refer to Staten Landt, the name Tasman gave to the country. Tasman's ships veered south before turning north and sailing around Farewell Spit into what is now called Golden Bay, where they anchored on 18 and 19 December. It was here that the Dutch had a violent encounter with local Maori.

Image: detail of image showing Abel Tasman near Three Kings Islands just before leaving New Zealand  (See full image on Timeframes)