Ajax

HMS Ajax was a Royal Navy Leander-class light cruiser whose most celebrated action took place just off the Uruguayan coast in December 1939. In the Battle of the River Plate — the first major naval engagement of World War II — Ajax joined HMS Achilles and HMS Exeter in confronting the German pocket battleship Admiral Graf Spee, forcing her to seek refuge in Montevideo. The Graf Spee was subsequently scuttled by her own crew, a dramatic episode that drew global attention. The Ajax's direct connection to this battle gives the Punta del Este site a rare geographical authenticity: the waters where the engagement unfolded are visible from the shore nearby.