Background: Why I am traveling to Australia.
Updated: Nov 14, 2022
The Sydney - Kormoran Encounter, Nov. 19th, 1941.
In writing this blog and through travel/immersion, I want to trace and explore part of my maternal grandfather’s story and how it links me to Australia, a place I have never been to. Joachim Greter was a Torpedo Officer on the auxiliary cruiser Kormoran, which engaged in a deadly battle with the cruiser HMAS Sydney II off the coast of Western Australia.
On November 19th, 1941, the Kormoran, disguised as the Dutch merchant Straat Malakka, was en route to lay mines off Shark Bay. Around 16:00 they spotted a mast on the horizon, which soon turned out to be that of an Allied ship of the cruiser class, significantly outgunning the Kormoran with its weaponry and small aircraft.
Because there were no survivors from the Sydney, what happened in that fatal encounter had been the source of speculation and conspiracy theories for years. According to the German reports, including my grandfather’s journal, the Sydney approached too closely in trying to figure out Kormoran’s true identity. My grandfather describes the agonizing minutes of people staring at each other through binoculars and the German commander Dettmers stalling through fake signals. He talks about wondering why the Australian ship didn't appear more suspicious. Ultimately, the Sydney demanded the Straat Malakka reveal its secret call sign, which Kormoran officers didn’t know. Now there was no escaping battle, but the Sydney had already approached to about 1500 yards, which gave Kormoran a chance to inflict damage. "Enttarnen! Feuer Frei!" It took about 6 seconds for the Kormoran to reveal its disguise and fire the first salvo, taking out the Sydney’s bridge and command center early in the battle. Shortly after, one of the two torpedoes my grandfather had launched hit below Sydney’s Turret A.
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Sydney managed to inflict enough damage on the Kormoran that it had to be abandoned. Germans counted about 85 casualties, and the survivors managed to stay alive on life rafts and were either picked up by ships or came ashore up to five days after the battle. My grandfather’s raft carrying 57 sailors came ashore at Red Bluff (Quobba Station) some fifty miles north of Carnarvon, WA.
But it was of course the devastating loss of the whole Sydney crew of 645 men that continued to feed the mystery and speculation for years. Did a Japanese submarine play a part? Did the Germans not reveal their true flags before shots were fired? Unfortunately, there were no voices that could recount the Australian’s perspective of that encounter.
Most of these speculations were put to rest in 2008, when the wrecks of both ships were discovered, confirming that the events must have unfolded as reported by the German survivors.
Memory and Writing
I teach English, not History, so I am less concerned with the details of naval warfare than the power of storytelling and creating empathy through language. It’s an eerie feeling to look at those wrecks at the bottom of the ocean: heaps of metal in a place they don’t belong, turrets overgrown with corals. They are memorials to a time of conflict that seems long gone, but writing can serve as a powerful tool to keep alive the memory of those actions and the people who perished. It makes my life appear coincidental. The luck of having some metal projectiles hit a target while others missed. It is humbling to think that I owe my life to the loss of the Sydney. In a way, me traveling to Australia will be an immersive experiment, finding some proximity to those events 81 years ago and perhaps I will be able to articulate my ambivalent connection to this trauma in a clearer way.
More Information About the Battle Between Sydney and Kormoran:
Web:
The Australian War Memorial: https://www. .gov.au/articles/encyclopedia/hmas_sydney
The Western Australian Museum:
Sydney
Wikipedia:
Remembering the Sydney and its Crew:
Books:
Frame, Tom. HMAS Sydney: Australia's Greatest Naval Tragedy. Hachette, 2012.
Olson, Wesley. Bitter Victory: The Death of HMAS Sydney. UWA, 2000.
Winter, Barbara. H.M.A.S. Sydney: Fact, Fantasy, and Fraud. Boolarong, 1984.
Video:
"No Survivors: The Mysterious Loss of HMAS Sydney."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W7F4g6kb9No
The video has moments that completely capture my attention, imagination, and empathy all at once and animate the event. Then to think of this all taking place within the awareness and agency of your grandfather adds such another depth of reality to it. I can well imagine what your explorations are revealing to you and how they will continue to open up your self to yourself in the years ahead.
From the technical perspective (my particular area of interest), your format, narrative, and technical additions are smoothly coordinated and effective. Give yourself high marks on presentation.
Great stuff Richard... I look forward to reading more.