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  • Bombing of Darwin Remembered

    Today commemorates 66 years since the bombing of Darwin.

    Few people realize that the force of over 180 aircraft that bombed Darwin was basically the same force that had done the same to Pearl Harbour months earlier. the Darwin raid was actually larger, but the absence of large ships meant that it was less costly in human lives. It did cost more civilian lives, and the story below shows that some of those wounds are yet to heal.

    This raid marked the start of an 18 month period where towns & bases in northern Australia were regularly bombed. Broome, Derby, Katherine, Wiepa & Townsville were all bombed. Darwin saw over 60 raids.

    At the time Darwin was bombed Australia had virtually all of its military forced deployed overseas. A string of defeats in Malaya, the fall of Rabaul weeks earlier & Singapore just days before made this seem like the prelude to invasion. A week later the Battle of the Java Sea seemed to break Allied naval power in the region. It was one of our lowest moments.

    At the time the military pushed the government to cover up the scale of these attacks - it feared panic. Subsequent generations of Australians have learned about this raid, but few know about the extent of the bombing that followed. One more little corner of our history that needs the light of day.

    Lest we Forget.


    Darwin remembers WWII bombing

    Tara Ravens

    February 19, 2009 - 12:39PM

    Territorians paused to remember the 1942 bombing of Darwin on Thursday, but for some the commemorations were marred by a Japanese research vessel docked in the harbour.

    At least 243 people were killed and hundreds injured in two Japanese bombing raids on Darwin on February 19, 1942.

    Veterans, survivors, dignitaries and the families of victims gathered to lay wreaths at the Darwin Cenotaph on Thursday, marking the first enemy attack on Australian soil 67 years ago.

    But controversy arose over the presence of the Tokyo University ship Umitaka Maru, docked at Stokes Hill Wharf, just metres from the ceremony.

    "A lot of people are very upset about it being there," said Andrew Burford from the Maritime Union.

    "We are concerned about the elderly people who had relations that were killed in the bombing."

    Mr Burford said he had been inundated with calls from people, outraged that the vessel, which arrived in Darwin on Wednesday to pick up supplies, could be berthed so close to the commemoration ceremony.

    "It should have been put somewhere else in the harbour," he said.

    Terry O'Conner, from the Darwin Port Corporation, admitted there had been "an oversight" because the harbour was juggling a large number of ships.

    "It is unusual to have it on Stokes Hill ... and to have it there on today of all days probably shows a fair degree of insensitivity," he said.

    As part of the commemoration service on the Esplanade, an air raid siren blared under clear blue skies at 9.58am (CST).

    Two F/A-18 Hornets screamed over the cenotaph, while the army used machine guns and howitzers to re-enact anti-aircraft fire.

    An army bugler played the Last Post, and the hundreds of people gathered by the harbour stopped for a minute's silence.

    The Northern Territory was hit by at least 64 air raids during World War II, with the last in November 1943, but none was as deadly as the first two.

    The first 40-minute raid devastated the town, demolished eight ships including the destroyer USS Peary, with the loss of 91 seamen, and destroyed all but one of the war planes in Darwin.

    While official figures put the death toll at less than 300, some veterans estimate as many as 1,500 died.

    "A lot of people suffered losses, and a lot of people saw the horror of war virtually on their doorstep," said Darwin RSL's Peter Mansell.

    "They say Darwin was worse hit than Pearl Harbour, and it needs to be recognised."

    © 2009 AAP
    http://news.theage.com.au/breaking-n...0219-8c0k.html
    Last edited by Bigfella; 19 Feb 09,, 08:56.
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  • #2
    Some More Information

    The Japanese bombing of Darwin and northern Australia

    During the Second World War, the Japanese flew 64 raids on Darwin and 33 raids on other targets in Northern Australia.

    On 19 February 1942, 188 Japanese planes were launched against Darwin, whose harbour was full of Allied ships. It was the largest Japanese attack since Pearl Harbour, 7 December 1941, and followed a reconnaissance flight on 10 February 1942. On that day there were 27 Allied ships in the harbour and approximately 30 aircraft at the Darwin Civil and RAAF airfields.

    The USS Houston convoy departed Darwin on 15 February 1942, followed by a Japanese flying boat which later engaged in an airstrike. The USS Peary returned to Darwin on 19 February after an encounter with a possible Japanese submarine. On 19 February 1942 there were 46 ships packed into Darwin Harbour.

    From the first raid on 19 February 1942 until the last on 12 November 1943, Australia and its allies lost about 900 people, 77 aircraft and several ships. Many military and civilian facilities were destroyed. The Japanese lost about 131 aircraft in total during the attacks.

    At the time, there were many rumours alluding to the Australian Government's suppression of information about the bombings - it was thought that reports of casualties were intentionally diminished to maintain national morale.

    Local sources estimated that between 900 and 1100 people were killed. For many years, government censorship limited coverage of the event to protect public morale in the southern states of Australia.

    What lead to the attacks?

    During the 1930s, Japan invaded and occupied large parts of China. By 1941 Japan also controlled Indochina (a federation of French colonies and protectorates in South East Asia). In December 1941, Japan bombed the Americans at Pearl Harbour and entered the Second World War. Within ten weeks, Japan controlled Hong Kong, Malaya, Singapore and the Australian territory of New Britain (Rabaul).

    Darwin, the largest town in the north of Australia, was a key defensive position against an aggressive Japan. Australia developed Darwin's military ports and airfields, built coastal batteries and anti-aircraft guns and steadily enlarged its garrison of troops. Darwin was seen as a key port for the Allied ships, planes and forces defending the Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia and East Timor).

    At the time many Australians believed that the Japanese planned to invade Australia. Many experts today, however, believe that the Japanese plan was to wipe out as much of Australia's and the Allied Forces air and sea defence in order to gain control of the resource rich countries of South East Asia and establish strong defences against any counter-attacks from the USA, Australia and any European powers in the region.

    Official Evacuation - 16 December 1941 - 15 February 1942

    On 16 December 1941 an official order was issued by the Administrator to evacuate women and children from Darwin. The evacuation was primarily organised by the A.R.P. (Air Raid Precautions) with assistance from Police and Military personnel. Most of the 1066 women and 900 children went by sea, with the first group leaving Darwin on December 19 aboard the Koolinda. The troop carrier Zealandia, USS President Grant, Montoro, and Koolama also evacuated civilians with the last ship sailing on February 15, just before the bombing of Darwin. Others left by plane, road and train.

    Civilians were evacuated on short notice, often less than 24 hours notice, and were allowed little luggage. Ships were hot, overcrowded, and short on food and water supplies. They were continually on the watch for enemy mines and, at night, blacked out to avoid detection.

    The first attacks - 19 February 1942

    The Japanese first attacked Darwin on the morning of 19 February 1942. This was the first time since European settlement that mainland Australia had been attacked by a foreign enemy.

    This first attack (and the one that was to follow later that day) was planned and led by Mitsuo Fuchida, the Japanese commander responsible for the attack on Pearl Harbour. It was the largest Japanese attack since Pearl Harbour.

    The Japanese attacked with around 188 planes that had been launched from Japanese land bases and aircraft carriers in the Timor Sea. The Japanese fighters strafed land targets and shipping. Dive bombers attacked the ships in the harbour, the military and civilian aerodromes and the hospital. The dive bombers were escorted by fighter planes to protect them from Australian and allied planes. Eight ships were sunk and most of the others were damaged by bombs or machine gunfire.

    The only air defences the allies had were ten fighter planes that engaged the Japanese planes. Only one allied fighter survived the first attack, with the Japanese suffering only one or two losses.

    The first attack lasted approximately forty minutes. The land targets included the Post Office, Telegraph Office, Cable Office and the Postmaster's Residence, where postal workers were killed.

    The second attack began an hour after the first ended. Heavy bombers attacked the Royal Australian Air Force Base at Parap and lasted about 25 minutes.

    The two raids killed at least 243 Australians and allies. Almost 400 were wounded. Twenty military aircraft were destroyed, eight ships at anchor in the harbour were sunk and most civil and military facilities in Darwin were destroyed.

    There is debate over the number of Japanese aircraft shot down during the air raid on 19 February 1942 - some sources report that two aircraft were shot down, while others state four aircraft were destroyed.

    Darwin after the first attack

    With much of the town destroyed and hundreds of people killed and wounded, Darwin's remaining population feared that the Japanese were about to invade.

    There was widespread panic and about half of Darwin's remaining civilian population fled. Many servicemen also left their posts and fled in the confusion and panic. Three days after the attack, 278 servicemen were still missing. The majority of women and children had been evacuated previously under government orders during December 1941 and January 1942.

    Order was restored to the town within a few days. The military defences were eventually rebuilt and strengthened.

    Other raids on Darwin and northern Australia

    Although these first two raids were the largest, the Japanese were to undertake many more raids on Darwin and other northern Australian towns over the next 20 months. Two weeks after the Darwin bombing, on 3 March 1942, the Western Australian town of Broome suffered Australia's second-worst air raid. The attack killed seventy people and injured another forty, as well as eight large aircraft and 16 flying boats, 24 aircraft in total.

    Japanese planes also flew several reconnaissance missions over Australia until 1944.

    The other airport base areas in Townsville, Katherine, Wyndham, Derby and Port Hedland were targeted, with loss of military and civilian lives. In late 1942, three raids were made against Townsville, Queensland, as well as Millingimbi, Northern Territory and four raids on the Exmouth Gulf. Nine raids were made on Horn Island.

    In the final Japanese attack, a raid on Darwin on 12 November 1943, there were no casualties and only minor damage was caused around the town. In all, there were 64 air raids on Darwin.
    http://www.cultureandrecreation.gov....darwinbombing/
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    • #3
      *In addition if one thinks about it in the big picture it cost more lives and materials then just those figures. The US had to take Guadalcanal in the Solomons and other islands too in order to help protect Austrailia and the communications link she helped form. Some of the nastiest battles of WWII were fought in that island chain and thousands of US men lost their lives and many ships sunk in order to make sure the Japanese could not fly out of Gualdalcanal and the airstrip they were building known as Henderson field after the Marines took the island after almost 7 months of brutal fighting. Many battles in that island chain.
      Fortitude.....The strength to persist...The courage to endure.

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      • #4
        For anyone but the three people who actually saw the movie, the Darwin air raid is depicted in the Nicole Kidman/Hugh Jackman fantasy film, Australia ...

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        • #5
          I must admit I'd always thought of 'the' Darwin air raid as a single event of little significance. I guess this was a hangover from the desire to downplay it by the Govt.
          In the realm of spirit, seek clarity; in the material world, seek utility.

          Leibniz

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          • #6
            Originally posted by clackers View Post
            For anyone but the three people who actually saw the movie, the Darwin air raid is depicted in the Nicole Kidman/Hugh Jackman fantasy film, Australia ...
            That's actually the first time I had ever heard of the Darwin raid. I didn't see the movie but just the previews piqued my curiosity, because I was not aware that Australia had been bombed during WWII. Short shrift is given to Australia in American history classes unfortunately.

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            • #7
              Originally posted by Herodotus View Post
              That's actually the first time I had ever heard of the Darwin raid. I didn't see the movie but just the previews piqued my curiosity, because I was not aware that Australia had been bombed during WWII. Short shrift is given to Australia in American history classes unfortunately.
              Same goes in return. Untill senior secondary school our history curicculum was completelly Australia centric. It was only in my final years that we studied WW1 (Australias role), the Zulu wars and studied the Weimar republic.
              The best part of repentance is the sin

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              • #8
                Originally posted by Herodotus View Post
                Short shrift is given to Australia in American history classes unfortunately.
                During WW2 Australian troops served with distinction in the Western desert campaign. Giving the Italians a thorough mauling in Libya before Denying Rommel at Tobruk, They also fought on the Greek Island of Crete and defeated French Vichy forces in Syria and Lebanon.
                On their home front they defeated the Japanese on various islands, Borneo, Brunei etc and also in Burma they fought alongside the British and Indian forces.
                After Japanese treatment of prisoners was learned, Not many Ozzies surrendered in the ensuing battles.
                Last edited by Pink; 22 Feb 09,, 02:21.

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                • #9
                  Originally posted by Herodotus View Post
                  That's actually the first time I had ever heard of the Darwin raid. I didn't see the movie but just the previews piqued my curiosity, because I was not aware that Australia had been bombed during WWII. Short shrift is given to Australia in American history classes unfortunately.
                  Nice to hear that the $AU130 mill spent on Australia (including about $AU30 mill of taxpayer's money) wasn't entirely wasted.:))

                  In this particular instance most Australians don't know much more than you Hero (if it makes you feel any better, most Aussies don't know that Japan actually occupied US territory in WW2). Like Pari, most Australians only know about the one air raid on Darwin. A few outside the north might have heard about the raids on Broome & Townsville, but that is about it. The number of raids on Darwin & the other raids in the north are little known. I was as guilty as anyone. Despite my interest in milhistory & Ozhistory it wasn't until a few years ago that I discovered the extent of the raids.

                  Most Australians also know about the midget submarine raid on Sydney harbour - one of the actual submarines was (& perhaps still is) on display outside the Australian War Memorial in Camberra. Some people even know about the shelling of Sydney & Newcastle by submarines. What is less well known is the extent of Japanese submarine activity - including landings in northern Australia (almost certainly more than are confirmed), ship sinkings & recon flights.

                  The link below contains some fascinating reading.

                  http://home.st.net.au/~dunn/japsubs/japsubs.htm

                  I have hived off this bit because it may be of interest to any Melbournians, Tasmanians & Kiwis. One adventurous submarine actually staged reconnicance flights over Melbourne, Hobart, Wellington & Auckland!!! Enterprising buggers!

                  http://home.st.net.au/~dunn/japsubs/i-25.htm
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                  • #10
                    Originally posted by clackers View Post
                    For anyone but the three people who actually saw the movie, the Darwin air raid is depicted in the Nicole Kidman/Hugh Jackman fantasy film, Australia ...
                    Looked like another Pearl Harbour, aka throw in a shitty romance story with bombs for a backstory with some guy that looked like Chuck Norris

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                    • #11
                      Originally posted by Bigfella View Post
                      Nice to hear that the $AU130 mill spent on Australia (including about $AU30 mill of taxpayer's money) wasn't entirely wasted.:))

                      In this particular instance most Australians don't know much more than you Hero (if it makes you feel any better, most Aussies don't know that Japan actually occupied US territory in WW2). Like Pari, most Australians only know about the one air raid on Darwin. A few outside the north might have heard about the raids on Broome & Townsville, but that is about it. The number of raids on Darwin & the other raids in the north are little known. I was as guilty as anyone. Despite my interest in milhistory & Ozhistory it wasn't until a few years ago that I discovered the extent of the raids.

                      Most Australians also know about the midget submarine raid on Sydney harbour - one of the actual submarines was (& perhaps still is) on display outside the Australian War Memorial in Camberra. Some people even know about the shelling of Sydney & Newcastle by submarines. What is less well known is the extent of Japanese submarine activity - including landings in northern Australia (almost certainly more than are confirmed), ship sinkings & recon flights.

                      The link below contains some fascinating reading.

                      http://home.st.net.au/~dunn/japsubs/japsubs.htm

                      I have hived off this bit because it may be of interest to any Melbournians, Tasmanians & Kiwis. One adventurous submarine actually staged reconnicance flights over Melbourne, Hobart, Wellington & Auckland!!! Enterprising buggers!

                      http://home.st.net.au/~dunn/japsubs/i-25.htm
                      Thanks for the info BF. I was tempted to the see the movie but the nearly three hour running time + Baz Luhrmann as director was enough to dissuade me. :) Eventually I will visit your fine country, so I need to read up on it.

                      It was a toss-up between Oz and New Zealand next summer. I was going to go to NZ, and try to squeeze a day or two in Australia, (just going to Sydney to see the Opera House), but if there are military history sites in Australia I may reconsider my travel arrangements. :))

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                      • #12
                        Originally posted by Herodotus View Post
                        Thanks for the info BF. I was tempted to the see the movie but the nearly three hour running time + Baz Luhrmann as director was enough to dissuade me. :) Eventually I will visit your fine country, so I need to read up on it.

                        It was a toss-up between Oz and New Zealand next summer. I was going to go to NZ, and try to squeeze a day or two in Australia, (just going to Sydney to see the Opera House), but if there are military history sites in Australia I may reconsider my travel arrangements. :))
                        Unfortunately Melbourne's better milhistory stuff is not accessible. You could visit the exclusive Melbourne school that was briefly MacArthur's headquarters, but the various bunkers are not. The one at Dight's falls is within walking distance of my house.:)

                        http://home.st.net.au/~dunn/bunkers/dightsfalls.htm

                        Most of the interesting milhistory sites in Australia are pretty remote. Darwin is closer to Jakarta than it is to Canberra. Still, if you find yourself in the Melbourne area drop me a line.:)
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                        • #13
                          Here is another item from the same website about the only German u-boat to operate in Australian waters.

                          http://home.st.net.au/~dunn/subsoz.htm

                          Came across this about a year ago and found it quite interesting as the engagement with Greek tanker was not to far from where I live.

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