By John Jeremy The work of patrolling the seas to the north of Australia has become a major task for the RAN and the Australian Border Force. It is easy ...
Occasional papers
Occasional Paper 151: The Christmas Books
By Geoff Barnes This story first appeared in ‘All Hands’, the quarterly volunteers’ journal at the Australian National Maritime Museum. Our thanks to the ANMM Volunteers for allowing us to ...
Occasional Paper 152: HMAS Rushcutter
On 1 August 1940, the Naval Depot (sited in Rushcutters Bay Park, Sydney) was commissioned as HMAS Rushcutter. This former Royal Australian Navy (RAN) base has an illustrious past. It ...
Occasional Paper 153: County Class ships of the Royal Navy: A photographic review
By Conrad Waters The following feature was first published in the Ships Monthly magazine and subsequently by the Heritage Machines website on 19th October 2022. The Royal Navy’s series of ...
Occasional Paper 150: Palm Island – World War Connections
By David Michael As experience continues to demonstrate, major conflict and wars not only affect those living in the immediate area of operations but regionally and often globally. These conflicts ...
Occasional Paper 149: Nor West Capture
By Steve Chaplin, former RAN Leading Seaman Weapons Mechanic (LSWM) What could be more calming and restful, other than relaxing and taking in the serene ice blue, flat calm waters ...
Occasional Paper 148: Nautical School Ship Sobraon and Bernard Kieran – one of the great early Australian swimmers
By Lorraine Fildes HMAS Tingira was commissioned on 25 April 1912 to provide early naval training for young recruits to the Navy. The Tingira was originally called the Sobraon and ...
Occasional Paper 146: Early Naval Training
On Wednesday, 1 October 1913 the Sydney Mail newspaper featured the following detailed report on early naval recruiting and training. Just three days later, on 4 October, Sydney Harbour would ...
Occasional Paper 144: HMAS Nizam – Typhoon 1945
First published in the December 1994 edition of the Naval Historical Review On 12 September, 1945, HMAS Nizam, a fleet destroyer of the 7th Destroyer Flotilla, sailed from Tokyo Bay, ...
Occasional Paper 143: HMAS Adelaide: The Final Years in Neutral Bay
By John C. Jeremy, AM Vice President NHSA The archives of the Royal Sydney Yacht Squadron are extensive and contain a priceless collection of material relating to sailing and the ...
Occasional Paper 145: The Royal Australian Navy’s Involvement in the Burma Campaign and the part played by HMAS Norman
By Lorraine Fildes The Burma Campaign was a series of battles fought in the British colony of Burma. The campaign was waged against the Japanese in Burma, eastern India and ...
Occasional Paper 142: Spectacle Island – Historical Viewpoints
Janice Haworth contacted the Naval Historical Society about family photos relating to Spectacle Island early in the 20th century, Circa 1905 to 1919. These photos led to more interesting research ...
Occasional Paper 141 : The tradition of Colours and Sunset
This short account of the May 1942 Battle of the Coral Sea focuses on the strategically significant outcomes of the battle and how they related to the future of World War 2 and Australians in particular. ...
Occasional Paper 140 : The Factors that Led to the Formation of the RAN in 1911
This short account of the May 1942 Battle of the Coral Sea focuses on the strategically significant outcomes of the battle and how they related to the future of World War 2 and Australians in particular. ...
Occasional Paper 139 : Robert John Dowey
This short account of the May 1942 Battle of the Coral Sea focuses on the strategically significant outcomes of the battle and how they related to the future of World War 2 and Australians in particular. ...
Occasional Paper 138 : The mystery sword of the Japanese midget submarines
This short account of the May 1942 Battle of the Coral Sea focuses on the strategically significant outcomes of the battle and how they related to the future of World War 2 and Australians in particular. ...
Occasional Paper 137: Battle of the Coral Sea (4–8 May 1942)
This short account of the May 1942 Battle of the Coral Sea focuses on the strategically significant outcomes of the battle and how they related to the future of World War 2 and Australians in particular. ...
Occasional Paper 136: Gun Battle on the Han
In this personal account by Lieutenant Commander Roberts RAN who was Executive Officer of HMAS Murchison during the Korean War, he describes gun battles fought against North Korean ground forces during Murchison’s patrols of the Han River between July 1951 and January 1952. ...
Occasional Paper 135: Was Heihachiro Tōgō Japan’s Horatio Nelson?
In this paper Richard Broinowski makes an interesting comparison between Admiral Lord Nelson and Japan’s Heihachiro Tōgō born in 1847 to a samurai family and hero of the battle of Tsushima Strait during which the fledgling Japanese Navy achieved a Trafalgar like victory over the Russian Fleet. ...
Occasional Paper 133: Operation C – The Indian Ocean showdown between British and Japanese naval might, 4 – 9 April 1942.
By Angus Britts Wednesday 8 April 1942 was a day of ignominy for the greatest naval power the modern world had thus far known. Since 30 March the Royal Navy’s ...
Occasional Paper 134: A Long Salty Voyage Home – The Delivery of Victoria’s First Torpedo Boat H.M.V.S. Childers
By Ross Gillett When the Victorian Government’s first-class torpedo boat HMVS Childers had moved safely out of Portsmouth on 3 February 1884, the 26-year-old commander, Lieutenant Martyn Jerram, went down ...
Occasional Paper 131: Destroyer doomed from the start – the rewritten story of USS Peary’s final combat action in Darwin 1942
Discovery of propellers from the ship explains why Peary was the only warship of several vessels to be sunk By Dr Tom Lewis[1] This paper was previously published in The ...
Occasional Paper 132: The First Admiral: Admiral Sir G. Francis Hyde, KCB, CVO, CBE
By Lieutenant Commander A.W. Grazebrook First published in the June 1974 edition of the Naval Historical Review. The majority of the more senior retired officers of the Royal Australian Navy ...
Occasional Paper 129: Service on the Fleet Commander’s Staff, 1964: A Personal Reflection
By John Ingram The following personal reflection by Commander John Ingram OAM RAN RTD describes his experience and observations of the fateful collision between HMA Ships Melbourne and Voyager on ...
Occasional Paper 127: Commitment, Persistence and Science; Behind the Search for HMAS Sydney II
By Commodore Bob Trotter OAM RAN & FIEAust (Retd)© Bob Trotter is an engineer and submarine specialist. He retired from the RAN in 1998 and after a period with ...