Prayer Changes a Nation
How My Mum Sank the Graf Spee
How My Mum Sank the Graf Spee Video.
The Graf Spee
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George VI
Most families in Britain have stories of relatives in the World Wars. My late mother loved the Royal navy. Her father had been an able seaman in the Navy during the First World War. He had been sunk twice by torpedoes. The second time he was on board an armed merchant cruiser called HMS Avenger which was sunk in the icy waters off Iceland. He said afterwards that he never wanted to have a cold bath again.
At the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939 my mum was a young teenager and the newspapers were full of stories of the German heavy cruiser Admiral Graf Spee, commanded by Captain Hans Langsdorff. This powerful ship was raiding merchant vessels in the South Atlantic. The Royal Navy sent a squadron of cruisers to chase the German ship. The Exeter, the Ajax and the Achilles. The chase across the ocean was reported daily in the papers. My mum, being basically a non-violent person, prayed that the whole thing would be resolved with as little loss of life as possible. The upshot of it all was that after a sea battle the Graf Spee entered the port of Montevideo, the capital of neutral Uruguay, to effect urgent repairs. Langsdorff was told that his stay could not be extended beyond 72 hours. Apparently believing that the British had gathered a superior force to await his departure (which wasn’t the case) he ordered for the ship to be scuttled on 17 December. Langsdorff then committed suicide two days later. Over 1,000 lives of his crew were preserved.
Since that time there has been a lot of debate about why Langsdorf scuttled his ship. Whatever the reason I believe that it was an answer to prayers by my mother and others like her.
This story and others like it have often made me wonder how many great historical events have been influenced by the power of prayer. In a recent video I noted how the fortunes of the First World War allies were at a low point in the Spring of 1918. However, when George V called a national day of prayer later in the year things immediately changed and the allies won a series of stunning victories that led to the armistice.
I am planning to do a series of videos on how prayer has influenced national events. As I am British this will mainly be about how God has, many times, intervened to save our nation from destruction. Time and again the nation has been on the brink of disaster and then something has happened to save us. I don’t believe that we saved ourselves. I believe that it has been an act of God’s grace. The prayers of ordinary people have been heard. Prayer is the tool we have as believers to influence and change events for the better.
This is what Daniel understood.
[Dan 2:20-21 KJV] 20 Daniel answered and said, Blessed be the name of God for ever and ever: for wisdom and might are his: 21 And he changeth the times and the seasons: he removeth kings, and setteth up kings: he giveth wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that know understanding:
Ultimately, although man makes his plans it is God who rules over all.
[Psa 22:28 KJV] 28 For the kingdom [is] the LORD'S: and he [is] the governor among the nations.
Prayer Saves a Nation. Alfred the Great
Prayer Saves a Nation. Alfred the Great
Statue of Alfred the Great in Winchester, England
Æthelred as depicted in the early fourteenth-century Genealogical Roll of the Kings of England
A Victorian representation of Guthrum's baptism in 878
This is the first in a series I’m doing on how prayer influences the course of national events. A while ago I did a series on four kings who shaped the fate of their nations; Brian Boru, Kenneth MacAlpin, King Arthur and Alfred the Great
Alfred is the one I want to focus on now. Without prayer I don’t believe that he would have succeeded in his battle with the Vikings. Alfred was possibly the greatest king the English have had. His heart was for God and he desired to learn and grow in the knowledge of God. He translated many works into English including the first fifty Psalms. His biographer was a devout Welsh monk called Asser whom he invited to his court to help in the task of educating the English. Alfred was dismayed that the levels of literacy and bible knowledge were negligible in England at the time. He invited many scholarly people to his court to help him improve the level of education in his kingdom. Asser wrote this of Alfred:
“…he used to moan and sigh continually because God had created him lacking in divine learning and knowledge of the liberal arts.”
Asser likened Alfred to Solomon who sought wisdom from God. Asser tells us that he was “In the invariable habit of listening daily to divine services and Mass and of participating in certain psalms and prayers and in the daytime and night offices.” As well as translating the first fifty Psalms he translated several other religious works and drew up a law code based on biblical principles.
When Alfred came onto the scene, the north of England, the Midlands and the east of England had all been defeated by the Vikings. Wessex in the south of England was the one remaining Saxon kingdom that had not been invaded. In January 871 the Vikings invaded Wessex itself. At that time Æthelred was king of Wessex. Alfred was his younger brother. The famous Battle of Ashdown was about to commence. Alfred’s biographer, Asser, states the following:
But Alfred, as I have been told by truthful eye-witnesses, marched up swiftly with his men to the battle-field; for King Æthelred had remained a long time in his tent in prayer, hearing mass, and declaring that he would not depart thence alive till the priest had done, and that he was not disposed to abandon the service of God for that of men; and according to these sentiments he acted. This faith of the Christian king availed much with the Lord, as I shall show more fully in the sequel.
Alfred commenced the battle against the Vikings and was later joined by his brother, the king. The Christian Wessex army won the first major victory against the Viking invaders. Later in the year Æthelred died and Alfred, as his successor, became king. There were many ups and downs in the war against the Vikings after this but if the Vikings had won the battle of Ashdown they would have destroyed all opposition and England would have become a Viking territory.
Things didn’t go well for the Wessex army despite their victory at Ashdown. Eventually Alfred attempted to buy off the Danes with gold and secure five years of peace. During this period a change came over the Viking army and many of them decided to settle down and work the land. This was I believe an answer to prayer. The Vikings remained heathen but they were moving closer to a place where they would be open to Christianity.
Unfortunately after the five years was up a new Viking leader named Guthrum came on the scene who had a plan for the conquest of Wessex. Alfred tried buying the Vikings off again but this time the Vikings simply took the gold and carried on as usual. Once again the tides of war swung to and fro between the Vikings and the Christians culminating in the battle of Edington, or Ethandun. This time the Viking army was decisively beaten and chased back to their camp. Guthrum, the king of the entire Viking army was trapped in his camp at the mercy of Alfred.
Normally in war this would have been the point when the defeated double crossing Vikings were annihilated. Amazingly Alfred dealt with the situation according to real Christian principles. He invited Guthrum and the Viking chieftains into his camp for twelve days of talks. He treated the Vikings well. He entertained them and showed them Christian love. He was fulfilling the biblical injunction to overcome evil with good. At the end of the the twelve days Guthrum agreed to be baptised as a Christian and Alfred regarded him as a son. This was followed by a whole series of Viking conversions. This act of grace laid the foundation for the whole of England to eventually become a Christian nation.
England has never had another king of the stature of Alfred. He was a model of a Christian king. However, I hope to show that every time the nation has faced disaster it has been amazingly preserved by the power of prayer and Christian faith.