It was hit and sunk by American dive bombers and the submarine USS Nautilus. The most comprehensive and authoritative history site on the Internet. Known for his calm in moments of crisis, Admiral Spruance became one of the U.S. Navy's largest assets in World War II. While both Fletcher and Spruance were rear admirals, Fletcher was senior and nominally in overall command. Web. He commanded the battleship USS Mississippi from April 1938 to December 1939, when he was promoted to rear admiral. When Yorktown was struck at Midway, however, Fletcher transferred his flag to the cruiser Astoria and placed Spruance tactically in charge. The U.S. Navy intercept force centered on the three carriers Enterprise, Hornet, and Yorktown, and their air-attack squadrons. Then followed two years as assistant chief of staff to the commander of naval forces in Europe; a year of study at the Naval War College in Newport, R.I., where he completed the senior course; and two years of duty in the Office of Naval Intelligence. At the end of the Second World War Congress created a limited number of five-star ranks for the Army and the Navy, designated General of the Army and Fleet Admiral. . Japanese submarine I-168 torpedoes and torpedoes a damaged US aircraft carrier and its escorting destroyer. All three were eventually scuttled. Though this gamble paid off, Enterprise air squadrons would pay a heavy price, flying in piece-meal and mostly without fighter escort. President Franklin D. Roosevelt nominated Spruance for promotion to full admiral on February 10, 1944, and he was approved. After serving aboard the battleship Iowa, Spruance went on a world cruise aboard the battleship Minnesota. In January 1945, Spruance resumed command of the fleet and began moving against Iwo Jima. Word of the sacrifice of VT-8 stunned the United States, and Churchill was reported to have wept when he heard about it. 1155 (August 1946): 144-157. Lieutenant Commander Maxwell Leslies VB-3 from Yorktown attacked the carrier Soryu. The fourth was a choice between Halsey and Spruance, and after much deliberation, eventually Halsey was appointed in December 1945. Japanese supporting aircraft carrier in the corresponding Aleutian Islands Invasion. The Japanese carriers were beginning to launch fighters as Torpedo 8 roared down to attack, without fighter cover. [7], Spruance served in Washington until early 1924, when he was ordered to the headquarters, Commander Naval Force in Europe. This saw him win a victory at Battle of the Philippine Sea in June 1944 as part of the Allied "island-hopping" campaign across the Pacific. erful leader. Although some historians and many newsmen have written many words about Admiral Raymond A. Spruance, U.S. Navy and his brilliant career in the Pacific in World War II, the complete story of this reserved and self-effacing man . Admiral William L. Calhoun saw him as a cold-blooded fighting fool. When you moved into Admiral Spruance's command, the printed instructions were up to date, and you did things in accordance with them.[19]. He also commanded Task Force 16 at the Battle of Midway, comprising the carriers Enterprise and Hornet. Just before the planned invasion of Midway island in June 1942, Halsey suddenly became ill with shingles. ), honoris causa degree from Central Philippine University in 1955, an institution of higher learning founded by the American Baptist missionary, William Orison Valentine in 1905. Hiryu class Japanese aircraft carrier that was the flagship of the second detachment of the carrier strike force. It was his job to protect the landing force.[8]. Commanding the battleship for nearly two years, Spruance was aboard when World War II began in Europe. Locating the Japanese carriers as they were rearming and refueling their aircraft, American bombers inflicted massive damage and sank three. On 13 May 1945, Admiral Raymond Spruance put pen to paper and described the second kamikaze attack he experienced at Okinawa. Always calm, always at peace with himself, Spruance had that ability which marks the great captain to make correct estimates and the right decisions in a fluid battle situation. transmitted as a message) to Rear Admirals Frank Jack Fletcher and Raymond Spruance on the eve of the battle of Midway To quote a U S Navy website, "Nimitz clearly . Bombs destroyed the bridge of Kaga and set her ablaze from stem to stern. These raids were critical to moralesetting a new tone of aggressiveness by U.S. commanders while providing invaluable battle experience for the commanders and sailors of the U.S. Yet because of his modest, retiring nature, Spruance was never a popular hero in the manner of Admirals Nimitz, William F. Halsey and Marc A. Mitscher. It was June 4, Admiral Raymond A. Spruance and Admira Fletcher had to engage four Japanese ships in the Battle of Midway. His wife, Margaret Dean (18881985), is buried alongside him, as are Fleet Admiral Chester Nimitz, his longtime friend Admiral Richmond K. Turner, and Admiral Charles A. Lockwood, an arrangement made by all of them while living. Admiral Spruance explained the U.S. victory at Midway in the following way. He was dragged out of his flagship Akagi before it sank against his will. The attack fails to destroy any airfields or major targets. Four years later, President Harry S. Truman appointed him as Ambassador to the Republic of the Philippines. The recipient of the letter below was his longtime friend and former chief-of-staff Captain Charles "Carl" J. Moore. Admiral Spruances last campaigns were the invasions of Iwo Jima and Okinawa, and he was awarded the Navy Cross for extraordinary heroism. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. The US intelligence services could predict the way the Japanese carriers and planes would be approaching the battle. Early in his career he was Richmond Kelly Turner and Harry W. Hill and Marine Generals Holland M. Smith and Julian C. Smith. Then it was back to Pebble Beach. Although there are no options attached we can say the following. Raymond Ames Spruance (July 3, 1886 - December 13, 1969) was a United States Navy admiral during World War II.He commanded U.S. naval forces during one of the most significant naval battles that took place in the Pacific Theatre: the Battle of the Philippine Sea.He also commanded Task Force 16 at the Battle of Midway, comprising the carriers Enterprise and Hornet. From 1952 to 1955 Spruance served as the American ambassador to Philippines. The battle commenced on the morning of June4; the first several waves of U.S. attack aircraft were badly beaten, both near Midway and at sea around the Japanese task force. He graduated from the U.S. After Midway, although the Japanese still held a temporary advantage in vessels and planes, the U.S. Navy and the nation gained confidence and, most critically, time. He enjoyed hot chocolate and would make it for himself every morning. In 1916 he aided in the fitting out of the battleship Pennsylvania and he served on board her from her commissioning in June 1916 until November 1917. Ambassador to the Philippines in 1952-55. Japanese escort carrier that was mainly responsible for launching scouts attached to Combined Fleet main body. Halsey was aggressive and a risk taker. Admiral Spruance said that what they did was to wait until the Japanese ships were refueling, carrying weapons, and preparing their aircraft to attack them because the Japanese were in a vulnerable position. But his service was not yet finished. Raymond Ames Spruance as Ambassador to the Republic of the Philippines Admiral Raymond A. Spruance, Vice Admiral Marc A. Mitscher, Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz and Vice Admiral Willis A. Lee - 1945 During the last year of World War I he was assigned as Assistant Engineer Officer of the New York Naval Shipyard, and carried out temporary duty in London, England and Edinburgh, Scotland. Lieutenant in command of the USS Enterprise air group. [14][15] For his actions at the battle of Midway Rear Admiral Spruance was awarded the Navy Distinguished Service Medal and cited as follows: "For exceptionally meritorious service as Task Force Commander, United States Pacific Fleet. Historian Samuel Eliot Morison believed he was one of the greatest fighting and thinking admirals in American naval history. Admiral Raymond Spruance on the balcony of the U.S. Embassy, Manila, while serving as U.S. Spruance graduated from the U.S. On June 4, Spruance and Fletcher engaged four Japanese carriers at the Battle of Midway. At Midway, dive bombers from the Enterprise crippled sank four larger carriers of the Imperial Japanese Navy. The setback in the Japanese timetable to encircle the Pacific gave the U.S. industrial machine time to crank up war production, and ultimately, to turn the advantage on Japan in the production of ships, planes, guns, and all the other matriel of war. His air group is credited with the sinking of 4 Japanese aircraft carriers during Midway. Naval Academy, graduating in 1906. These plans proved moot when the war came to an abrupt end in early August with the use of the atom bomb. Moving into position near Midway, Spruance's force was later joined by Rear Admiral Frank J. Fletcher's TF 17 which included the carrier USS Yorktown (CV-5). He never did things the same way twice. On April 28, the last day of the invasion, Spruances command was redesignated as the Fifth Fleet. Meanwhile, his search planes found no sign of any American warships. He was appointed as Ambassador to the Philippines by President Harry S. Truman, and served there from 1952 to 1955. However, an invasion was rendered unnecessary when the atomic bomb was used on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945. Having attained the rank of commander, Spruance attended the Senior Course at the Naval War College in July 1926. Notwithstanding their different personalities, Spruance and Halsey were close friends. This was in July 1938, and this time he was the battleships commander. He served as an instructor at the Naval War College from 1935 to 1938. This saw Allied forces move against Okinawa in the Ryukyu Islands. Admiral Yamamoto commanded the combined invasion fleet from aboard his flagship Yamato. Although he broke the back of the Japanese naval air force by sinking three carriers, two oilers and destroying about 600 enemy airplanes (so many that the remaining Japanese carriers were used solely as decoys in the Battle of Leyte Gulf a few months later due to the lack of aircraft and aircrews to fly them) Spruance has been criticized for not being aggressive enough in exploiting his success in the Philippine Sea. Was the site of a naval battle between the United States and Japan in 1942. In the footnote Morison says, Admiral Spruance, in commenting on the first draft of this volume, requested that I delete victor at and substitute who commanded a carrier task force at, butI have let it stand. [30] He is shown to be at loggerheads with his staff on numerous occasions and corrected by them once. In the opening weeks of the conflict, Spruance's cruisers served under Vice Admiral William "Bull" Halsey and took part in raids against the Gilbert and Marshall Islands before striking Wake Island. For his actions at Iwo Jima and Okinawa, Spruance was awarded the Navy Cross. HistoryLearning.com. Hickman, Kennedy. However, his actions were both praised and understood by the main persons ordering and directly involved in the battle. In August 1943 Spruance was placed in command of the Central Pacific Force, which, on April 29, 1944, was redesignated as the Fifth Fleet. Spruance is depicted as the controversial victor of Midway by G. D. Spradlin in the 1988 TV miniseries War and Remembrance. World War II: Admiral Frank Jack Fletcher, World War II: Battle of the Philippine Sea. Spruance was calculating and cautious. A squadron of US Dive bombers which had arrived late after getting lost ambush the Japanese carriers bombing and resulting in the sinking of three out of four carriers. By 1939, at the age of 53, Spruance had spent 18 years at sea. Akagi and Kaga subsequently went down. The surviving carrier, Hiry, gave the Japanese some brief respite by sending strikes that again damaged Yorktown. It was hit multiple times by aircraft from the IJN Hiryu and later torpedoed by a Japanese submarine before sinking. His entry in Whos Who in America was only three lines long (including his full name), and a footnote in Morisons monumental history of the U.S. Navy in World War II testifies to his modesty. In the first months of World War II in the Pacific, Spruance commanded the four heavy cruisers and support ships of Cruiser Division Five from his flagship, the heavy cruiser USSNorthampton. Its commanding officers Admiral Yamaguchi and the ship's captain both stayed aboard their ship. Then, reflect on the education opportunities that God has provided us today. Spruance was about to face the sternest test in his long, distinguished career. After Rome fell, the bishop of Constantinople became the most pow Shortly before his retirement, Spruance received the following Letter of Commendation from the Secretary of the Navy: Your brilliant record of achievement in World War II played a decisive part in our victory in the Pacific. His steady rise, according to Newsweek magazine, has borne the imprint of his personalityunobtrusive but undeviating. That is how the US navy could inflict great damage to the Japanese fleet and aircraft. Traveling to the Pacific, he was in this post when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7 forcing the US to enter the war. Above all, Midway was the turning point that heralded the ultimate defeat of Japan. Spruance was born in Baltimore, Maryland, on July 3, 1886, to Alexander and Annie Hiss Spruance. Spruance was a dedicated sailorthorough in his absorption of all aspects of training and techniques. The following year, they made me executive officer of the transport Agamemnon, bringing troops home from France. For most of the war, Spruance preferred to use the heavy cruiser USSIndianapolis, named for his hometown, as his flagship. For the main Midway assault, the Japanese force consisted of the main battle fleet under Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, composed of three battleships, a light carrier and a destroyer screen; Admiral Chuichi Nagumos combined fleet of two battleships, two heavy cruisers, destroyers and four fleet carriers carrying more than 250 aircraft; and an invasion task force led by Admiral Nobutake Kondo, consisting of a dozen transport ships carrying 5,000 troops, closely supported by four heavy cruisers, two battleships and a light carrier; and a three-cordon submarine force intended to neutralize U.S. countermoves. Then Nagumos force was spotted by torpedo bombers from Hornets squadron VT-8, led by Lt. Cmdr. He was commissioned an ensign in 1908, and during a tour of shore duty he took a postgraduate course in electrical engineering in Schenectady, N.Y. Morison said: Keeping in his mind the picture of widely disparate forces, yet boldly seizing every opening, Raymond A. Spruance emerged from this battle one of the greatest fighting and thinking admirals in American naval history.He was bold and aggressive when the occasion demanded offensive tactics; cautious when pushing his luck too far might have lost the fruits of victory. [17], The Battle of Midway is considered by many to be a turning point of the war in the Pacific, along with the Guadalcanal campaign. It is still the largest warship built to date and survived the battle undamaged as it never came near the battlefield despite Yamamoto's protests. So the US navy had a good idea of what to expect from the Japanese fleet and how to counterattack it. On February 19, American forces landed and opened the Battle of Iwo Jima. The Iwo Jima and Okinawa actions lasted from January to May 1945, and in August the Japanese surrendered. Flagship of Task Force 16 under the command of Raymond Spruance. With the island's fall, Spruance immediately moved forward with Operation Iceberg. Lt. Kabayashi leads Japanese bombers from the Hiryu to attack the USS Yorktown. He was survived by his wife and a daughter, Mrs. Gerald S. Bogart of Newport, R.I. His only son, Navy Captain Edward D. Spruance, who served for 30 years, was killed in a car accident in Marin County, Calif., in May 1969. Official Navy historian Samuel Eliot Morison characterized Spruance's performance as "superb", and he was nicknamed "electric brain" for his calmness even in moments of supreme crisis, a reputation enhanced by his successful tactics. The two admirals presented a contrast in styles as Spruance tended to be quiet and meticulous while Halsey was brash and more impetuous. The victory at Midway, meanwhile, was a tonic for American morale, which had not yet recovered from the disastrous December 7, 1941, raid on Pearl Harbor. How did Paul's education On April 1, Spruance began the Battle of Okinawa. He advanced quickly through the ranks, becoming an admiral in 1944. He was decorated with Order of Leopold and Croix de guerre with Palm by the Government of Belgium for his service for the Allied cause.[26]. The Japanese managed to inflict only superficial damage on three ships. In May 1942, intelligence suggested that the Japanese were planning on assaulting Midway Island. In July 1941, his responsibilities were expanded to include oversight of the Caribbean Sea Frontier. Lieutenant aboard the Hiryu who led and was killed during the first Japanese counterattack after the sinking of 3 Japanese aircraft carriers. He graduated from Shortridge High School and went on to the U.S. At 8:20 a.m., Nagumos observers reported a group of American ships 200 miles away. This was said to be the first time that a four-star admiral took part in a sea action aboard one of the ships engaged. Hickman, Kennedy. On February 26, 1940, Spruance reported as commandant of the 10th Naval District with headquarters at Naval Station Isla Grande in San Juan, Puerto Rico. With their 233 planes and crews at the ready, the three U.S. flattops were stationed well north of Midway, out of sight of enemy reconnaissance planes. Most common sailors were proud to serve under Halsey; most higher-ranking officers preferred to serve under Spruance. Spruance himself directed a task group of battleships, cruisers and destroyers that left the main body to go after Japanese ships that were fleeing Truk, sinking the light cruiser Katori and destroyer Maikaze. Most historians consider Midway the turning point of the Pacific War.[1]. Raymond A. Spruance was born in Baltimore, Maryland, on 3 July 1886. Overseeing the Battle of Tarawa in November 1943, he guided Allied forces as they advanced through the Gilbert Islands. Born on 3 July 1886, Spruance graduated from the US Naval Academy in 1906. Naval Academy in 1906 and received further education in electrical engineering a few years later. Spruance became Commander of the 5th Fleet in November 1943, which presented him with command of the Central Pacific Forces. Fit into his 70s, Spruance spent most of his retirement days wearing old khakis and work shoes and working in his garden and greenhouse; he loved to show them to visitors. Thus the Americans knew the Japanese planned to move toward Midway. But due to a printing error on the executive calendar of nominations, Spruance was officially promoted only to his former rank of vice admiral. In June 1931, Spruance returned to Newport, RI to serve on the staff of the Naval War College. His next assignment was command of the destroyer Aaron Ward, and then USS Perceval. His seagoing career was extensive, including command of five destroyers and the battleship Mississippi. I finally wangled two months at sea, in 1918, before the war was over. 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