SeaWaves Today in History January 16 ********************************************************************* January 16 1547 - Ivan the Terrible was crowned Czar of Russia 1780 - The First Battle of Cape St. Vincent - This engagement, more commonly known as "The Moonlight Battle," was a British victory by a fleet under the command of Admiral Sir George Rodney over a Spanish squadron under Don Juan de Lángara. The battle took place during the American War of Independence. France, Spain, and the Dutch had joined in on the American side. This had two major effects - the balance of power was shifted in favor of the Americans; and British seaborne commerce in Europe and to the colonies became threatened. Britain felt that her vital interests were at stake and she reacted strongly. Admiral Rodney set sail for the Americas in early January with 21 ships of the line. An intercepted neutral merchantman informed him that a Spanish fleet of 11 ships of the line had left Cadiz and was headed northward along the coast. Rodney altered southward in the hope of intercepting them. At 13 -00 on 16 January, the 74-gun ship Bedford sighted the enemy force off Cape St. Vincent. Clearly outnumbered, the Spanish turned away and headed back towards Cadiz. Rodney ordered "General Chase". He also ordered his force to engage from leeward (the wind was from the NW), vice from windward, as per normal procedure, which also involved forming a line-of-battle. His purpose was to overtake the Spaniards and get between them and safety. The swiftest British ships soon forged ahead - Resolution, followed closely by Defense and Edgar, caught the first of the trailing Spanish ships as the sun was setting and a full was moon rising. A mêlée of single-ship actions lasted through most of the night, fought by moonlight. Rodney's flagship, Sandwich, captured two ships - the Spanish flagship Fenix and the smaller Monarcha. In total, four of De Langara's ships managed to escape while four were taken as prizes, two were wrecked on the Spanish coast, and one blew up. The Battle of Cape St. Vincent was not of strategic significance but it had major implications for the future conduct of British naval warfare. The battle was unique on two counts. First, Admiral Rodney abandoned the standing fleet tactical instructions. No other fleet engagement had ever been fought from the outset under the signal "General Chase." Second, the battle had tremendous romantic impact because it was fought at night under a full moon. This captured the public imagination and focused Britons attentions on naval affairs in a way an 'ordinary' engagement of this scale could never have done. Admiral Rodney received many awards for his victory in this battle and, despite a very distinguished career afterwards, always regarded this The Moonlight Battle as his greatest triumph 1809 - The British expeditionary force under Sir John Moore in Spain, which had been forced to retreat in the face of massively superior French forces, fought a superb rearguard action at Corunna, where the Royal Navy had arrived to evacuate it. Marshal Soult's French army was mauled, but Sir John Moore, who had done much to resurrect the concept of light infantry in the British Army, was fatally wounded 1813 - Captain Grey of the Provincial Marine reports from Kingston on the progress of two warships wintering at the naval dockyards. Both ships, Royal George and Moira, and their crews are found to be in a state of disorder 1914 - Submarine USS H-3 (ex-Garfish) commissioned 1917 - Patrol vessel (ex-survey ship) HMCS Acadia commissioned Halifax NS 1917 - Berlin sent the famous "Zimmermann telegram" to the German ambassador in Washington. The signal was intercepted by the British and decoded by Royal Navy cryptologists. The contents were then passed to the United States Government, where the revelation of German efforts to maneuver Mexico against the US provoked outrage 1919 - Rescue tugs HMS Rollicker & St Blazey launched 1919 - Destroyer HMS Witherington launched 1930 - USS Lexington provides power to Tacoma, WA, when floods knocked out city power plants 1934 - Submarine HMS Severn launched 1935 - Sloop HMS Londonderry launched 1935 - Minesweeper HMS Hussar commissioned 1936 - U-19 commissioned 1937 - Soviet submarine SC-208 commissioned 1937 - German Naval High Command announced that warships and naval craft of foreign powers thereafter had to obtain previous authorization to pass through the Kaiser Wilhelm [Kiel] Canal 1939 - Submarine USS Sculpin commissioned 1939 - Submarine HMS Tambor laid down 1939 - Minesweeper FS Commandant Duboc launched 1940 - U-455, U-456, U-457, U-458, U-587, U-588, U-589, U-590, U-591, U-592, U-593, U-594, U-595, U-596, U-597, U-598 ordered 1940 - U-651 laid down 1940 - At 1619, the unescorted SS Inverdargle struck a mine laid on 9 Nov, 1939 by U-33, broke in two &sank in the Bristol Channel SW of Nash Point. The master and 48 crewmembers were lost. The stern section lies in 51°16´31N/03°47´15W and the bow lies 1300 meters NE 1940 - At 0611, the unescorted SS Panachrandos was hit by one torpedo from U-44 west of Brest, broke in two & sank within three minutes 1940 - The emperor of Japan today appointed Admiral Mitsumasa Yonai, aged 60, to form a new cabinet after General Abe & his ministers resigned after an urgent session early on 14 January 1941 - Minesweeping trawler HMS Desiree mined & sunk in Thames Estuary 1941 - Corvette HMS Cowslip laid down 1941 - Corvette KNM Soroy (ex-HMS Eglantine) laid down 1941 - Destroyer FS La Combattante (ex-HMS Haldon) laid down 1941 - Corvette HMS Armeria launched 1941 - MS Zealandic sunk by U-106 at 58.28N, 20.43W - Grid AL 2599 1941 - At 0356, the unescorted SS Oropesa was hit in the stern by one torpedo from U-96 SE of Rockall. She was missed by a coup de grâce at 0440 & sank at 0616 after being hit by two coup de grâce at 0503 and 0559 hours. The master, 98 crewmembers, one gunner and six passengers were lost. 109 crewmembers, one gunner and 33 passengers were picked up by rescue tugs HMS Superman & Tenacity along with destroyer HMS Westcott. Survivors landed at Liverpool 1941 - Corvette HMS Fennel commissioned 1941 - Now it is Malta's turn to withstand the full onslaught of the Luftwaffe. The Fuhrer has ordered the "neutralizing" of the island. In successive waves 80 Stukas hit Valetta, causing major damage to port installations and several nearby churches. The casualty figures are said to be high - and soldiers and sailors were called in to unload ships when stevedores refused to work under fire. The Luftwaffe's principal target HMS Illustrious was hit by only one bomb, but more damage was caused to her hull by underwater explosions. HMAS Perth was also damaged in the raid. The Maltese population failed to take adequate shelter in today's raids. Tonight, they are digging deep into Malta's limestone strata, suddenly aware that, despite the defending British aircraft - which shot down five Stukas today - the Luftwaffe will not let up 1941 - President Franklin D. Roosevelt asks the Congress for an immediate appropriation of US$350 million for 200 new merchant ships 1942 - Japanese submarines continue mining the approaches to Darwin, Northern Territory - HIJMS I-122 mines Clarence Strait, I-123 Bundas Strait, & I-124 the waters off Darwin itself 1942 - During a routine search from the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise, a Torpedo Squadron Six (VT-6) TBD Devastator flown by Aviation Chief Machinist's Mate Harold F. Dixon (Naval Aviation Pilot) fails to return to the ship and force-lands at sea about 740 miles NE of Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands, due to fuel starvation. Dixon and his two-man crew have no food and no water but they survive 34 days at sea in a raft 1942 - Six PBY-5 Catalinas of USN Patrol Squadron Twenty Three (VP-23) temporarily based at Canton Island began daily searches of the waters between Canton Island and the Fiji Islands to protect the advance of Task Force 8 as it prepared for its strike against the Marshall and Gilbert Islands. These were the first combat patrols by US aircraft in the South Pacific 1942 - The Admiralty defines its Eastern Fleet as comprising “all British battleships, aircraft carriers, cruisers, minelayers, destroyers and submarines within the limits of the British East Indies and China Stations.” This includes the ship in the Australian-British-Dutch-American (ABDA) area, regarded as a detachment of the Eastern Fleet known as the "Far Eastern Squadron" 1942 - President Franklin D. Roosevelt asks the Secretaries of War, Navy and Interior to study the need for a highway from the Zone of the Interior (ZI), i.e., the continental US, to the Territory of Alaska 1942 - Minesweeper HMAS Geelong commissioned 1942 - ASW trawler HMS Buster commissioned 1942 - Destroyer USS Mullany laid down 1942 - Minesweeping trawler HMS Irvan sunk by German aircraft off Yarmouth UK 1942 - Frigate HMS Swale launched 1942 - Corvette HMS Lotus launched 1942 - Destroyer HMAS Queenborough launched 1942 - At 1115, SS Llangibby Castle in Convoy WS-15 was torpedoed by U-402 north of the Azores. One torpedo hit the stern and blew away the after gun and the rudder, but the propellers remained intact. The ship limped to Horta in the Azores at 9 knots, fighting off attacks by German Fw200 aircraft on the way. The neutral Portugal allowed only 14 days for repairs and on 2 February, the ship had to left with the troops still on board and set course to Gibraltar, assisted by an Admiralty tug and escorted by three British destroyers. On 3 February, the small convoy was followed by several U-boats, but none managed to hit the ship, while HMS Westcott sank U-581. On 8 February, the troopship arrived at Gibraltar in tow of the tug and disembarked the troops 1942 - Tanker SS Toorak sunk by U-86 at 47.54N, 52.11W - Grid BB 63 1943 - U-220, U-281, U-763 launched 1943 - Minesweeper USS Compel launched 1943 - Frigate HMS Duckworth laid down 1943 - U-278, U-736 commissioned 1943 - Destroyer escort USS Thomas laid down 1943 - HMC ML 052, ML 062 & ML 063 paid off & transferred to Free French Navy to be stationed at St Pierre & Miquelon under control of Flag Officer Newfoundland 1943 - Announcement by Iraq of the existence of a state of war between Iraq and Germany, Italy, and Japan 1943 - Submarine USS Greenling, on her fourth patrol, comes upon Kimposan Maru west of Kavieng, New Ireland. In a twilight periscope attack, Greenling unleashes three torpedoes, scoring two hits. The transport sinks in position 02°47'S, 149°10'E. Submarine chaser Ch 17 rescues Kimposan Maru's survivors having unsuccessfully depth-charged Greenling in a counterattack 1943 - Submarine USS Growler, moving through the waters around the Bismarck during her fourth patrol, attacks a Japanese convoy by launching a daylight periscope attack. Growler sinks Chifuku Maru with both torpedoes fired in position 04°00'S, 151°55'E. Growler survives the escort counterattacks 1944 - Steam tanker Vaijan Kutur´e (ex-Nikolaj Janson) sunk by U-20 in Black Sea 1944 - 64 killed when US Liberty ship Sumner I Kimball, in Convoy ON-219, sunk by U-960 at 52.35N, 35.00W - Grid AK 8518 1944 - Submarine HMS Tudor commissioned 1944 - Submarine HMS Affray laid down 1944 - Destroyers USS Ingraham & Moale launched 1944 - Destroyer escort USS John J Van Buren launched 1944 - Minesweeper USS Inflict launched 1944 - Aircraft carrier USS Enterprise conducted an air raid at Hong Kong 1944 - U-544 sunk in the North Atlantic NW of the Azores, in position 40.30N, 37.20W, by depth charges & rockets from Avenger aircraft (VC-13) of escort carrier USS Guadalcanal. 57 dead (all hands lost) 1944 - Tugs HMCS Glenside, Glenbrook, Glenevis & Glendyne ordered 1944 - U-305 lost probably to one of own torpedoes in the approximate position 49N/18W. 51 dead (all hands lost) 1944 - Corvette HMCS Orillia departed Londonderry for refit Liverpool NS 1944 - Frigate HMS Meon departed Glasgow to escort Convoy ON-220 1944 - It was announced that General Eisenhower had arrived in Great Britain and assumed his duties as Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionary Forces 1944 - Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower took command of the Allied Invasion Force in London 1944 - Submarine USS Blackfish, sailing through the Caroline Islands during her seventh patrol, attacks a convoy approximately 275 NM SW of Truk. In the course of the attack, Blackfish fires from all ten torpedo tubes. The sub claims damage from one hit in a four torpedo salvo (the victim is not identified in postwar analysis). From the six fish spread, three find Kaika Maru and sink her in position 04°03'N, 148°41'E 1944 - Submarine USS Redfin, on her first outing, patrols the South China Sea. Firing four torpedoes, she attacks and heavily damages destroyer Amatsukaze with all four torpedoes in a twilight surface attack about 250 miles north of the Spratly Islands, 14°40'N, 113°50'E 1944 - Submarine USS Seahorse, patrolling east of the Marianas during her third patrol, attacks and sinks transport Nikko Maru in a night surface radar attack ESE of the Marianas in position 12°49'N, 150°19'E. Three of four torpedoes fired find their target 1944 - Submarine USS Sturgeon, cruising in the Honshu area on her ninth patrol, heavily damages destroyer Suzutsuki in Bungo Suido in position 32°11'N, 132°22'E. However, Sturgeon fails to press home an attack against the accompanying merchant vessel Azaki Maru 1944 - Submarine USS Swordfish, patrolling south of Honshu on her tenth patrol, hits with all three torpedoes fired in a night periscope attack, Delhi Maru which sinks south of Tokyo Bay in position 34°04'N, 139°56'E 1944 - Submarine USS Whale, on her sixth patrol cruising between the Volcano and the Daito Islands, attacks a Japanese convoy in a twilight periscope attack, firing three torpedoes. Two torpedoes hit and sink Denmark Maru about 400 miles ESE of Okinawa in position 23°09'N, 135°14'E. Nearby USS Seawolf, on her twelfth patrol, conducts a nighttime gun attack and damages Tarushima Maru at approximately 22°45'N, 135°00'E 1945 - U-2358, U-2359, U-2524 commissioned 1945 - Frigate HMS St Brides Bay launched 1945 - Soviet destroyer Dejatelnyj (ex-HMS Churchill) sunk by U-956 1945 - U-248 sunk in the North Atlantic in position 47.43N, 26.37W, by depth charges from destroyer escorts USS Hayter, Otter, Varian & Hubbard. 47 dead (all hands lost) 1946 - HMS Puncher, an Attacker-class escort carrier, (ex-CVE 53 USS Willapa, known as the Bogue Class in the USN), Capt. Roger Edward Shelford Bidwell, RCN, CO, was paid off and returned to the USN at Norfolk, Virginia. Admiral Bidwell went on to become Flag Officer Atlantic, in Halifax. The extreme flexibility of the escort carrier concept was amply demonstrated in the career of this ship. Puncher was built in the US but was commissioned into the RN on 05 Feb 44, under the Lend-Lease Program. RCN personnel manned the ship; the aircrew was British. She could carry between 18 and 24 aircraft. Normally, they were of two types - Fairey ‘Barracuda’ torpedo-bombers from Fleet Air Arm Squadron (FAA) 821, and Grumman F4F 'Wildcat’ fighters from FAA Squadron 881. Puncher displaced 14,170 tons, was 492 feet long (o.a.) and had a maximum speed of 18 knots. She carried 3,400 tons of fuel and could conduct underway replenishment of her escorts. Her total crew size was approximately 1000 officers and men. Capt. Bidwell was her only commanding officer. Puncher was not engaged in the conventional escort carrier role of Protection of Trade. Rather, she operated off the Norwegian coast where she provided air cover for aerial mine laying operations, conducted attacks on enemy shipping, and flew strikes against U-boat bases. Following VE Day, she was employed for several months in deck landing training for new aircrews. In Sep 45, she was converted to a troop transport and was used to bring Canadian soldiers home to Canada from Great Britain. In Jan 46, she left Halifax for Norfolk and was returned to the USN. She was stricken from the USN register on 12 Mar 46 and was sold for scrap a year later. This plan was cancelled and she was resold into merchant service and was converted and renamed Muncaster Castle. She was resold and renamed twice more before being sold for scrap in 1973, in Taiwan 1948 - The list of nominations for appointments and promotions of Coast Guard officers transmitted to Congress by the President on this date represented the first permanent advancements of USCG regular officers since the summer of 1942 http://www.hazegray.org/navhist/canada/postwar/c/crescent.gif 1958 - Destroyers HMCS Crescent, Cayuga, Fraser, Margaree & Skeena departed Esquimalt for Far East 1960 - Destroyer HMCS Qu'Appelle laid down Lauzon PQ 1960 - Tracker aircraft crashed after takeoff from HMCS Bonaventure 1967 - Alan S. Boyd was sworn in as the first secretary of transportation in the USA 1969 - USS Hancock port call Subic Bay 1971 - USS Hancock port call Subic Bay 1979 - Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlevi departed Iran for Egypt; he never returned 1985 - Destroyer HMCS Yukon completed life extension refit Esquimalt BC 1987 - Destroyer HMCS Mackenzie completed life extension refit Esquimalt BC 1988 - Coast Guard units responded to a report of a murder on board the container vessel Boxer Captain Cook. The ship's first officer apparently murdered the captain and threw his body overboard. A boarding party from the cutter Northland, offloaded onto the cutter Cape York, boarded the vessel on the high seas and captured the suspected murderer and collected evidence of the crime 1990 - The USCGC Mellon fires a Harpoon missile, the first cutter to do so 1991 - At weekly briefing, CINCCENTCOM announces new US troop strength at about 425,000 (60,000 USN, 75,000 USMC); 19 countries have deployed ground forces; 14 nations are participating in naval efforts (US, 100 ships [80 combatants]/50 multinational ships); updates numbers of intercepts - 6960; boardings - 832; diversions - 36. Completion of two naval exercises announced; Operation CANDID HAMMER: communication techniques/mine warfare drills in central Arabian Gulf (Participants: USN, Royal Saudi, French, British, Canadian, and Australian naval forces); Operation CAMELOT: personnel and equipment trained in various areas, to include anti-air warfare/vertical replenishment in central Red Sea (Participants: USN, Royal Saudi naval forces) 1991 - At 1900 (EST), White House announced that "the liberation of Kuwait has begun!" The offensive action against Iraq, codenamed Operation Desert STORM, is being carried out under provisions of twelve UN Security Council resolutions and resolutions of both houses of the US Congress. Following President Bush's address to the nation, SECDEF Dick Cheney and CJCS General Colin Powell announce at Pentagon briefing hundreds of US/coalition airstrikes on missile and anti-aircraft targets in Iraq and Kuwait to "destroy Saddam Hussein's offensive military capabilities;" Cheney reports initial attack appears to have gone very, very well; no casualty reports provided 1991 - Operation Desert Storm, liberation of Kuwait from Iraq, begins 1995 - Frigate HMCS Montreal relieved by HMCS Toronto in blockade duties off Yugoslavia 2003 - USNS Denebola & Regulus activated 2004 - Minesweeper SPS Genil decommissioned 2004 - USNS Altair activated 2004 - RRF MV Cape Hudson activated 2004 - USNS Gordon activate to transport materials to Iraq 2005 - HMS Victorious arrived Devonport for first major refit 2005 - Four sailors from a Canadian naval frigate had to be plucked from St. John's harbor Sunday after an equipment malfunction dumped them into the frigid water. The sailors were being lowered from the deck of HMCS Toronto in a skiff as the frigate approached the harbor, when a cable holding the small vessel released prematurely 2005 - At 1730 Humber Coastguard received a MAY DAY call from the 13 meter fishing vessel Aquarius reporting they were taking in water with 3 persons on board approximately 16 miles East of Amble. Aquarius reported that they had been involved in a collision moments earlier with the 56,000-tonne Bahamian tanker Alpha Germania, which was in ballast and on passage to Teesport. Humber Coastguard requested the launch of RNLI Amble Lifeboat and the Rescue Helicopter from RAF Boulmer, which is standing by with Coastguard pumping equipment. A near by fishing vessel called Rejoice attended the scene and has secured a towline to Aquarius, which has lost all steering but is not sinking. Aquarius is now under tow by Rejoice and will return to their homeport of Amble under escort of Amble Lifeboat and to be met by Amble Coastguard Rescue Team once in harbor. The tanker Alpha Germania has been released and is now continuing passage to Teesport. The tanker is reported to be undamaged 2005 - The Coast Guard escorted a 110-foot tug after it lost its steering and began taking on water Sunday, 16 miles west of the mouth of the Queets River, Wash. The tug Dorine Brusco contacted the Coast Guard on VHF Channel 16 at 1141 reporting that they were disabled, adrift and taking on water. A Coast Guard HH-60 Jayhawk helicopter from Air Station Astoria, Ore., and a 47-foot motor lifeboat from Station Quillayute River, Wash., were launched at 1142 to assist. The tug's crew reported they were unable to dewater the vessel, but were able to stabilize it by transferring fuel between tanks. The tug Edward Brusco launched from Grays Harbor, Wash., to take the disabled tug in tow, but it would not arrive for five hours. Due to this delay, and the danger of the prevailing 12-foot seas, the motor lifeboat remained with the disabled tug until it was relieved. The Edward Brusco rendezvoused with the Dorine Brusco and its Coast Guard escort at 1800 and was safely towed to Port Angeles, Wash. Weather conditions during the response were winds of 12 mph and an air and water temperature of about 50 degrees ============================================================= Sources: NOAA, MARAD, Marine Digest, Leo Pettipas, Kommersant, Samuel Loring Morison, Frank Pierce Young, Navy Times, Naval Institute Proceedings, www.uboat.net, Andrew Etherington, John Nicholas, US Naval Historical Center, Ministry of Defense, US Coast Guard, Thomas N. Carlson, Jack Arrowsmith, Allan Snowie, Ken Hansen, Andy Barber, John Weiss, Jack McKillop, Bernard de Neumann, Sympatico Today in History, Washington History Link, Lloyds List, Fairplay, New York Times, I-Newswire and other news sources in the public domain. Additions, submissions and corrections are always welcomed. ============================================================= Copyright 2006 Seawaves Publishing Inc ISSN 1710-6966 104-277 Mountain Highway North Vancouver BC V7J 3T6 Canada Tel: (604) 924-5401 Fax: (604) 924-5403 Subscribe - TDIH_sub@seawaves.com Unsubscribe - TDIH_unsub@seawaves.com Photos courtesy of US Naval Historical Center unless otherwise noted