Todd war diary, 3 August 1914-29 February 1916 / Arthur Todd - Page 303
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[Page 303]
islanders armed; trenches were dug and the harbour entrance mined; in fact, had the Germans arrived, though no doubt they would have captured the islands eventually, they would have had a bitter and costly task before them.
At last all was ready, and the people of the Falklands sat down to await the coming of the Germans. A few days later the place was thrown into a panic by the look-out's report that warships were approaching; but imagine the surprise and joy when it was found that the two battle-cruisers Invincible and Inflexible were in sight. With them were the Kent, Bristol, Glasgow and Carnarvon, and now a force was collected which the Germans could not possibly withstand. So where before the inhabitants had prayed that the Germans might not come, they now prayed for their early arrival, and front-stall seats were freely booked on the hills surrounding the town. On December 8th, the day after the arrival of our squadron, the Germans appeared and the Battle of the Falklands followed. I do not intend to describe the battle, which has already been described in more than one book by people who were actually present; but one or two incidents told us by the Admiral and his Staff may bear retelling.
The Germans arrived off Port Stanley quite confident and prepared for an early victory. Suddenly the look-out man on the Scharnhorst reported that he could see tripod masts in the harbour over the isthmus. Now tripod masts spell battleships or battle-cruisers, neither of which von Spee calculated on meeting