Emile Dechaineux
Emile Frank Verlaine Dechaineux (born October 3, 1902 in Launceston (Tasmania) , Australia , † October 21, 1944 in the Philippine Sea ) was an Australian naval officer in World War II . He commanded several warships in the Royal Navy and the Royal Australian Navy . Dechaineux was killed in the Battle of Leyte Gulf .
Life
Dechaineux began his military training in 1916 at the Royal Australian Naval Academy HMAS Creswell in the Jervis Bay Territory in New South Wales . He completed his training 3 years later and was promoted to midshipman ( sea cadet ) in 1920 .
In the following years he continued his training with the British Navy and served on various ships as a torpedo officer and air observer. In September 1932 Dechaineux was promoted to Lieutenant Commander (about: Kapitänleutnant). In 1935 he was given command of the torpedo armament of the heavy cruiser HMAS Canberra . The following year he married Mary Harbottle. In 1937 the Australian naval officer returned to Great Britain to attend the Royal Naval College . In June of that year he was promoted to Commander ( frigate captain ).
After the outbreak of the Second World War, Dechaineux served until April 1940 in a minesweeper division of the Royal Navy. During the evacuation of Dunkirk he commanded the British destroyer HMS Vivacious . Then he was given command of HMS Eglinton . He commanded the warship on patrols in the North Sea .
In 1941 the Australian seaman was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross . In the same year he returned to Australia, where he took on a position on the staff in Melbourne .
On December 31, 1942, Emile Dechaineux was promoted to captain ( sea captain ).
In June 1943 he was given command of the destroyer group of Task Force 74, which was set up together with the United States Navy . From his lead ship, the destroyer HMAS Warramunga , Dechaineux commanded operations in the sea areas around Australia and New Guinea . One of the tasks of the destroyer was to support Allied landing companies in Japanese-occupied areas, such as B. the Admiralty Islands .
Dechaineux was given command of the heavy cruiser HMAS Australia on March 9, 1944 . The cruiser was the flagship of Task Force 74 under the command of Vice Admiral John Augustine Collins . The association supported the Allied landings in Hollandia in Dutch New Guinea and on other islands of the Moluccas and New Britain .
During the sea and air battle in the Gulf of Leyte , HMAS Australia became the first victim of a Japanese kamikaze attack on October 21, 1944 . A Japanese plane crashed into the cruiser's bridge. Although the attacker's bombs did not detonate, the bomber's fuel caught fire, causing secondary explosions. A total of 30 Australian sailors died in the attack.
Dechaineux was badly wounded by splinters and died a few hours after the attack. He was buried at sea the following night.
Honors after death
The US government posthumously awarded the Australian sailor the Legion of Merit .
In 1990 the Australian government announced that a newly built Collins-class submarine would bear the name of Emile Dechaineux. The HMAS Dechaineux (SSG 76) was launched in 1998. Dechaineux's widow Mary Purbrick and his son Commodore Peter Dechaineux attended the ceremony.
See also
Web links
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Dechaineux, Emile |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Dechaineux, Emile Frank Verlaine |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Australian naval officer |
| DATE OF BIRTH | October 3, 1902 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Launceston (Tasmania) , Australia |
| DATE OF DEATH | October 21, 1944 |
| Place of death | Philippine Sea , Philippines |