AUSTRALIANS AT WAR – WWI AND WWII
A NAVY PERSPECTIVE – THE NAVY STORY
All the topics mentioned below and the questions raised in this document will be covered and answered during the cruise by the commentary and brought to life with photos on the TV’s.
WW I
ROYAL AUSTRALIAN NAVY (RAN)
The entry of the brand new Royal Australian Navy ships into Sydney Harbour in 1913.
Why was the flagship HMAS AUSTRALIA (I) towed off Sydney heads and scuttled?
NEW GUINEA
How the fledging Royal Australian Navy (RAN) was updated with new ships in 1913 and with troops removed the German forces from their colony at Rabual in New Guinea in 1914.
How was our first submarine AE1 with all 35 men lost in New Guinea waters?
How the discovery of AE1 in 2017 brought some closure to the descendants of the 35 crew members.
GALLIPOLI
Why did Churchill decide to attack Turkey and capture Constantinople?
Why did the Royal Navy (RN) fail to breach the Dardanelles. The RN lost three battleships and hundreds of men?
How were the merchant ships converted at Cockatoo Island to carry hundreds of troops and horses?
Why did the British, Indian, French, Australian and New Zealand troops land at Gallipoli?
How were the troops landed at ANZAC Cove?
Why the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) was the first in on 25 th April 2015 and last out in December 2015 at Gallipoli.
Why the RAN submarine AE2 started operations at 0100 on the 25 th April 2015.
How the success of HMAS AE2 in getting through the minefields in the Dardanelles and attacking Turkish ships changed the Gallipoli campaign.
How the RAN Bridging Train built piers and wharves to supply the troops with food, ammunition and more importantly water for the men and horses.
How were tens of thousands of men and tons of equipment evacuated from Gallipoli without a casualty?
How AE2 was found in 1998.
SYDNEY EMDEN BATTLE
Why was EMDEN at the Cocos Islands?
Why did HMAS SYDNEY attack the German ship HSK EMDEN?
Why was it important to sink the EMDEN?
How was the battle fought?
Why was there lots of damage to the EMDEN?
Why was EMDEN run aground?
How was the “first battle – first victory” celebrated by the RAN?
Where was the ammunition for RAN ships kept in Sydney Harbour?
WW I INVENTIONS
Hydrostatic pistol – depth charges.
WW II
IMPORTANT BATTLES AND HEROIC CAPTAINS
Why are our current COLLINS class submarines called HMAS COLLINS, HMAS FARNCOMB, HMAS WALLER, HMAS DECHAINEUX, HMAS SHEEAN and HMAS RANKIN?
Which ship did John Collins command in the Mediterranean that sank an Italian cruiser?
What is the name of the Italian cruiser?
What did John Collins do to save the Italian sailors in the water?
What did Teddy Sheean do on HMAS ARMIDALE to be awarded the Victoria Cross?
What rank was Teddy Sheean?
This VC is the first and only VC for the RAN.
Hector Waller was killed on the bridge of which ship in the battle of Sunda Strait?
Robert Rankin was killed on the bridge of which ship when he was escorting three merchant ships?
Emile Dechaineux was killed on the bridge of which ship during the battle of Savo Island.
CORAL SEA BATTLE
The battle of the Coral Sea is known for two firsts. What are they?
HOSPITAL SHIPS
Despite the Geneva Convention prohibiting an attack on hospital ships how many were sunk in WW II?
What is the name of the Australian hospital ship sunk by a Japanese submarine off Brisbane?
What is the name of the sister ship of TITANIC that was converted to a hospital ship and sunk by a mine?
MERCHANT SHIPS
How many merchant ships were sunk off the NSW coast by Japanese submarines?
What was the survival rate of the merchant seamen during WW II?
SYDNEY II
Which German raider sank HMAS SYDNEY II with the loss of all 645 men in November 1941?
Where did the battle take place?
How many survivors were there from the German raider.
How did a German raider manage to sink the pride of the RAN – HMAS SYDNEY II?
Why is it important to find long lost ships?
Where is there a world class memorial to the men of SYDNEY II.
Has the unknown sailor from SYDNEY II washed up on Christmas Island in 1942 been identified?
SCRAP IRON FLOTILLA
Who assigned this name to the 5 old destroyers given to Australia by the Admiralty?
Which Navy base in Sydney Harbour is named after one of the ships in the scrap iron flotilla?
What important roles did these ships do in the Mediterranean?
Which of these ships were sunk?
WOMEN IN THE NAVY
In what year were women allowed to join the Navy?
What year were they allowed to go to sea?
Who was the first woman to command a Major Fleet Unit?
When were women allowed to crew on submarines?
SHIP BUILDING
Where were the Corvettes built in Sydney Harbour?
What was the name of the first RAN ship built in the Harbour at Cockatoo?
SHIP REPAIR
Where were ships damaged in the Pacific Ocean battles repaired?
THE CAPTAIN COOK GRAVING DOCK
The dock was the second biggest project around the time it was built. What was the biggest?
The dock was designed to be able to dock the largest battleship ( King George V class) and the largest passenger ship (Queen Mary)
The operation of a dock.
The construction of a coffer dam to join Garden Island to Potts Point.
The quarrying of millions of tons of rock at Balls Head to enable Garden Island to be joined to the mainland.
The 24/7 construction project.
The part the flood lights played during the midget submarine attack.
The excellent paintings done by the war artists to record the construction.
BATTLE FOR SYDNEY – THE JAPANESE MIDGET SUBMARINE ATTACK
Why did Japan attack Pearl Harbour?
What happened to the five Japanese midget submarines at Pearl Harbour?
How many torpedoes did a midget submarine carry?
Why did Japan develop submarines that could carry a float plane or a midget submarine?
Why did Japan decide to attack the ships in Sydney Harbour?
What ceremony was held for the midget sub crew before leaving their mother sub?
Which ship in the Harbour was the main target?
What technology and equipment protected the Harbour from submarine and torpedo attack?
How did the Navy get patrol boats for the Harbour?
Why was there no action when the midget subs were detected in the Harbour?
How did one of the midget subs get entangled in the boom net?
Why did the first depth charges not explode?
What happened in Taylors Bay in the early morning?
Why did the first torpedo fired miss the target?
Why did the second torpedo not explode?
Where was the Admiral in charge of the Harbour on this night?
Why was the Manly ferry still running throughout the attack?
When the two submarines were salvaged where were they taken for inspection?
How were the remains of the midget subs used to raise funds for the Navy?
How was the bravery of the Japanese crew recognised?
Were the brave RAN personnel involved in this action awarded medals?
What did the mother submarines do a week after the attack?
Why did the shells fired by the mother subs do little damage in the eastern suburbs?
What did the people involved in the attack do after the war ended?
Why was the release of the official report delayed until after the war?
When was the third midget sub found off the Northern beaches?
Who found it?
Where were the remains of the midget subs put on display?
TORPEDOES
Where were torpedoes manufactured in Sydney Harbour?
Where were the torpedoes fired and tested?
DEGAUSSING A SHIP
A ship has a magnetic signature that needs to be adjusted so the ship does not set off an enemy magnetic mine.
Where was there a degaussing range in Sydney Harbour?
Who funded this equipment?
REFUELING A SHIP
Where are Navy ships refueled in Sydney harbour?
How were the tanks protected during WW II?
WW II INVENTIONS
War accelerates the development of equipment and technology.
The following were developed during WW II.
Radar
Sonar
Hedge Hog
X-Class midget submarine – damaged the TIRPITZ and guided the ships on D DAY.
Code breaking
Higgins boat – essential to the success of D DAY. Thousands were built.
Liberty ships – also essential to the success of D DAY. 270 were built.
Landing Ship Tank – LST. The ability to land 25 tanks to support the troops on D DAY.
Welded construction instead of riveting.
Swimming Sherman tank.
The Naval Historical Society of Australia
