Geraldton, WA, Australia

Today we assembled at the HMAS Sydney II memorial overlooking the township and harbour area of Geraldton. Each morning at 10:30 there is a tour hosted by a group of devoted volunteers.

Now I’ve already posted a bit about the HMAS Sydney II as we came upon her history further up the coast. In case you weren’t paying attention here’s a refresher.

Her story is an important part of Australian wartime history and one that we should all know & remember!

HMAS Sydney, named after the Australian city of Sydney, was one of three modified Leander Class light cruisers operated by the Royal Australian Navy in 1934

During the early part of her operational history, Sydney helped enforce sanctions during the Abyssinian crisis, and at the start of World War II was assigned to convoy escort and patrol duties in Australian waters. In May 1940, Sydney joined the British Mediterranean Fleet for an eight-month deployment, during which she sank two Italian warships, participated in multiple shore bombardments, and provided support to the Malta Convoys while receiving minimal damage and no casualties. On her return to Australia in February 1941, Sydney resumed convoy escort and patrol duties in home waters.

On the afternoon of 19 November 1941, Sydney was off the coast of Western Australia, near Carnarvon. Around 15:55, the cruiser spotted a merchant ship on a northbound course. Sydney increased speed and made to intercept and as she closed the gap began to signal the unidentified merchantman which hoisted her callsign. The callsign was that of the Dutch ship Straat Malakka, but she was not on Sydney’s list of ships meant to be in the area

Straat Malakka was the German auxiliary cruiser Kormoran in disguise, and when asked to reveal a callsign the Germans did not know, they responded by de-camouflaging and opened fire. Prompted by the raider’s unveiling, Sydney also fired.

Following the ensuing battle, down by the bows, the cruiser swung hard to port and passed behind Kormoran. By 17:35, Sydney was heading south and losing speed, wreathed in smoke from multiple fires. Her main armament was disabled and her secondary guns were out of effective range.

At some point during the night, Sydney lost buoyancy and sank with all 645 hands lost: the bow was torn off as she submerged and descended almost vertically, while the rest of the hull glided 500 metres forward as she sank, hitting the bottom upright and stern first.

The memorial here in Geraldton is quite symbolic and has been beautifully presented by the City of Geraldton. The permanent memorial includes four major elements: a stele of the same size and shape of the ship’s prow, a granite wall listing the ship’s company, a bronze statue of a woman looking out to sea and waiting in vain for the cruiser to come home, and a dome dubbed the “dome of souls” onto which 645 stainless steel seagulls were welded. In May 2009, the memorial was recognised by the Australian government as being of national significance.

A poignant reminder of Australia’s participation in maritime battle.

The Rest Is Silence.