When she went to sea in 1916, he went with her. After his funeral, he was buried at Golden Gate National Cemetery near the grave of his wartime commander, Nimitz. 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. Morison, "Coral Sea, Midway and Submarine Actions: May 1942 August 1942". 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. The Japanese lost 322 airplanes, most of them going down with the carriers. Fewer than two days before launch from Pearl Harbor, Nimitz's commander of the fleet carrier force, Admiral Halsey, was hospitalized with severe shingles;[10] Halsey immediately recommended Admiral Spruance to Nimitz as his replacement with Admiral Fletcher receiving overall command. Fletcher quickly ordered his dive bombers to strike, which fatally damaged the fourth Japanese carrier; it was scuttled the next day. Moving forward in mid-1944, Spruance embarked on a campaign in the Marianas Islands. Spruance became a shadowy sort of legend in the Navy. Only 17 of the islands 4,690 Japanese defenders survived to become prisoners. Spruance graduated from the U.S. The repulse of the Japanese invasion fleet at Midway, and critically the destruction of the Kido Butai, allowed the U.S. to gain parity in the naval air war. catalogued as someone to watch; there was never any possibility that he would be passed over in the lists for promotion. A number of torpedo squadrons from the airfields and carriers launch attacks on the Japanese carriers but score no hits and almost all planes involved were shot down. At 8:20 a.m., Nagumos observers reported a group of American ships 200 miles away. Hickman, Kennedy. Raymond Spruance was born in Baltimore on July 3, 1886, the son of Alexander and Annie Spruance. Japanese fleet in charge of landing army units on Midway. During the joint operations leading to the assault and capture of the important enemy bases, complete integration of Army and Navy units was accomplished under his outstanding leadership, enabling all the forces to perform their closely co-ordinated missions with outstanding success.[24]. The Japanese navy could never accept this catastrophic loss. In fact, Spruance had a knack for getting along with difficult people, including his friend Admiral Kelly Turner, the hotheaded commander of 5th Fleet's amphibious force. Naval Academy in 1906,[5] and received further, hands-on education in electrical engineering a few years later. "Well, pick it up and put it back," was Spruance's measured response.[8]. This saw Allied forces move against Okinawa in the Ryukyu Islands. After the enemys raids on Midway, Admiral Spruance ordered the launching of every possible plane to search for and attack the Japanese carriers. Flagship of Task Force 16 under the command of Raymond Spruance. Japanese aircraft carrier squadron under the command of Chuichi Nagumo in command of aircraft carriers Akagi, Kaga, Soryu, and Hiryu. [25], Spruance was President of the Naval War College from February 1946 until he retired from the Navy in July 1948. 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 . the prospects for its inclusion in doctrine The logical starting point is Admiral Chester Nimitz's famous "letter of instruction" (actually, of course, transmitted . Capturing and occupying Midway was the brainchild-plan of commander-in-chief of the Combined Fleet, Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto. He was fond of symphonic music, and his tastes were generally simple. His tour of sea duty ended in 1921, and he spent the next three years with the Navy Departments Bureau of Engineering and the Doctrine of Aircraft board. . Nagumo ordered his planes rearmed on their return. Midway Island sent a false message stating that its water distillation plant had been damaged and that the base needed fresh water. Spruances naval guns started their bombardment two days later. The Japanese planned to outwit the U.S. forces at Midway. Though this gamble paid off, Enterprise air squadrons would pay a heavy price, flying in piece-meal and mostly without fighter escort. In one incident a distraught officer rushed to report, "Captain, we've just dropped a depth charge over the stern!" C. The Roman Catholic Church developed in Constantinople. Spruance was an active man who thought nothing of walking eight or 10 miles a day. 6 (June 1955): 658-659. While one was at sea, the other would be planning their next operation. It was hit multiple times by aircraft from the IJN Hiryu and later torpedoed by a Japanese submarine before sinking. After six furious minutes, the three carriers were left burning. As Allied forces battled on the island, Spruance's ships defeated Operation Ten-Go on April 7 which saw the Japanese battleship Yamato attempt to break through to the island. Commanding the battleship for nearly two years, Spruance was aboard when World War II began in Europe. The combined American force consisted of three carriers, eight cruisers, 15 destroyers, 12 submarines and 353 aircraft, ranged against a grand total of 200 Japanese vessels and 700 planes. United States airbase targeted by the Japanese in preparation to invade Hawaii. Whether they produced battlefield images of the dead or daguerreotype portraits of common soldiers, []. He was modest and candid about himself. World War II: Admiral Frank Jack Fletcher, World War II: Battle of the Philippine Sea. The Turning Point in the Pacific. The gallant carrier was crippled but nearly succeeded in reaching safety before torpedoes from Japanese submarine I-68 finally sank her three days later. His torpedo bombershaving switched to bombs for the attack on Midwaywere away, and most of his protective fighters were out on patrol. Spruance is depicted as the controversial victor of Midway by G. D. Spradlin in the 1988 TV miniseries War and Remembrance. Landing troops on Saipan on June 15, he defeated Vice Admiral Jisaburo Ozawa at the Battle of the Philippine Sea a few days later. Four days after the invasion, all immediate objectives had been taken, and by February 8, 1944, all organized resistance had ceased. "[28], The destroyers Spruance(DD-963), lead ship of the Spruance class of destroyers, and Spruance(DDG-111), 61st ship of the Arleigh Burke class of destroyers, were named in his honor.[29]. Admiral Raymond Ames Spruance was a key American naval commander who served in the Pacific Theater of World War II. 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. On 13 May 1945, Admiral Raymond Spruance put pen to paper and described the second kamikaze attack he experienced at Okinawa. Known for his calm in moments of crisis, Admiral Spruance became one of the U.S. Navy's largest assets in World War II. 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. He took part in organising the invasions of Iwo Jima and Okinawa and led the 5th Fleet in these two final battles. Before the Battle of the Coral Sea on 7-8 May 1942, the Imperial Navy of Japan had swept aside all of its enemies from the Pacific and Indian oceans. When Midway began on June 4, 1942 the first few waves of U.S. aircraft were greatly outnumbered by Japanese forces. ), 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. Although there are no options attached we can say the following. For that assault, Spruance led the most powerful naval strike force in history. The Battle of Midway was fought June 4-7, 1942, during World War II (1939-1945) and was the turning point of the war in the Pacific. Then U.S. dive bombers from Spruance's Enterprise flew to Nagumo's fleet of four carriers which, fatefully, were without air cover. It was a cool, clear day. He died on 13 December 1969 at the age of 83. >A few days later, Mitscher rejoined Spruance and the Fifth Fleet. When Nimitz named him commander of the disputed Central Pacific Area, this made him responsible for the planning and execution of the attack on the Gilbert Islands in November 1943. He also commanded Task Force 16 at the Battle of Midway, comprising the carriers Enterprise and Hornet. 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. World War II: Fleet Admiral William Halsey Jr. World War II Pacific: The Japanese Advance Stopped, M.S., Information and Library Science, Drexel University, B.A., History and Political Science, Pennsylvania State University. https://www.thoughtco.com/admiral-raymond-spruance-2360511 (accessed March 1, 2023). To the Aleutians, the Japanese dispatched an invasion task force of three transports carrying 2,400 troops, supported by two heavy cruisers, a two-carrier support force and a covering group of four battleships. Spruance did not want to leave troops on the Marianas islands unguarded as he chased Jisaburo Ozawas retreating fleet. Admiral Yamaguchi and the Hiryu's captain decide to stay aboard the ship. Michio Kobayashi He has appeared on The History Channel as a featured expert. Kwajalein was in American hands, but the rest of the Marshalls groupabout 30 islands and more than 800 reefs scattered over hundreds of miles of oceanremained to be dealt with. U.S. losses were low: 25 airplanes and 18 lives. The small Marine Corps garrison scrambled its handful of Grumman F4F-3 Wildcat and Brewster F2A-3 Buffalo fighters, but they were too weak and slow to deter the Japanese. Critical for the defense of Hawaii, the commander of the US Pacific Fleet, Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, intended to dispatch Halsey to block the enemy thrust. United States Admiral in command of naval units on the Pacific Theatre in 1942. On the afternoon of June 4, 24 American dive bombersincluding 10 refugees from Yorktownscored four hits on Hiryu. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. As part of this reorganization, the force became known as the Fifth Fleet when Spruance was in charge and the Third Fleet when Halsey was in command. At Midway, Spruances force inflicted on the Imperial Japanese Navy its worst setback in 350 years. Admiral Raymond A. Spruance, U.S. Navy, April 1955 . He was appointed as Ambassador to the Philippines by President Harry S. Truman, and served there from 1952 to 1955. Things did not look hopeful for Spruance and his force on the eve of Midway. Lieutenant in command of the USS Enterprise air group. Successfully concluding operations, Spruance was promoted to admiral in February. In April, Nimitz divided command of the Central Pacific Force between Spruance and Halsey. Admiral Raymond Spruance served in US Navy during World War Two. Besides his family, he loved the companionship of his pet schnauzer, Peter. From there, he went on to graduate from the U.S. Spruance's rise to fame . Hiryu class Japanese aircraft carrier that was part of the second detachment of the Japanese carrier strike force. On June 14, while Mitscher led a diversionary attack on the Bonin Islands 800 miles to the north, U.S. Marines and infantrymen stormed ashore. President Harry S. Truman appointed him ambassador to the Philippines in January 1952, and he served until March 1955. It was bombed by dive bombers from the Enterprise and as scuttled shortly after Nagumo was forced by his staff to evacuate. Enterprise dive bombers critically damaged two Japanese carriers including Nagumo's flagship Akagi; while the Yorktown air group, launched after Fletcher was confident that all Japanese carriers were accounted for, crippled the Soryu. "Admiral Raymond Spruance". After working to defend neutral American shipping from German U-boats, Spruance received orders to take over Cruiser Division Five in September 1941. For his actions at Iwo Jima and Okinawa, Spruance was awarded the Navy Cross. So the US navy had a good idea of what to expect from the Japanese fleet and how to counterattack it. With Okinawa's fall in June, Spruance rotated back to Pearl Harbor to begin planning the invasion of Japan. Unites States Rear Admiral in command of Task Force 16 on the USS Enterprise. In October 1946 he was awarded the Armys Distinguished Service Medal for his exceptionally meritorious and distinguished services during the capture of the Marshall and Mariana islands. Known as "island hopping," U.S. forces moved from island to island, using each as a base for capturing the next. United States bombers sank three Japanese ships. Just before the planned invasion of Midway island in June 1942, Halsey suddenly became ill with shingles. Launched the planes that were responsible for the sinking of nearly all 4 Japanese Carriers at Midway. 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. Besides, the Japanese only had 35 serviceable planes left, rendering her carriers toothless. Early in his career he was [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. The Americans were gravely outnumbered by the lurking enemy armada. About us| Spruances performance at Midway so impressed Admiral Nimitz that he made him his chief of staff. However, an invasion was rendered unnecessary when the atomic bomb was used on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945. Naval Academy in 1906 and from the Naval War College in 1927 where he taught for a few years. He's one of the finest officers I know of. 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. As the war progressed, Spruance became one of two primary . He enjoyed hot chocolate and would make it for himself every morning. Naval Academy in 1906 and received further education in electrical engineering a few years later. The American losses were Yorktown, destroyer Hammann and 147 planes. For exceptionally meritorious service During the Midway engagement which resulted in the defeat of and heavy losses to the enemy fleet, his seamanship, endurance, and tenacity in handling his task force were of the highest quality., (Citation on Rear Admiral Spruances Navy Distinguished Service Medal, awarded for his conduct at the Battle of Midway). Admiral Spruance commanded with deadly precision, reported an observer. Spruance was born in Baltimore, Maryland, on July 3, 1886, to Alexander and Annie Hiss Spruance. Why was Chester W Nimitz important? Yorktowns planes hit Soryu as she was turning into the wind to launch aircraft. Shortly after the Midway battle, Spruance became chief of staff to Admiral Nimitz, and in September 1942 was appointed as Deputy Commander in Chief of the Pacific Fleet. The Navy, by law, was limited to four Fleet Admirals; three of these appointments were obvious: Ernest King, Chester Nimitz and William Leahy. 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