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Battle of Rennell Island: Setback in the SolomonsWorld War II | 4 comments | Print This Post | Email This Post
A spread of torpedoes churned toward La Vallette. She managed to avoid all but one, which ripped into her forward engine room and sent water gushing into it and the forward fire room. Lieutenant Eli Roth, the ship’s damage control officer, and 20 other men died in the explosion. Subscribe Today
Water Tender Second Class M.W. Tollberg was severely burned and blinded by a spurt of live steam from a damaged pipe. Although in enormous pain, Tollberg still managed to climb topside and reach an oil valve that needed to be closed. Later, he was found by the ship’s medical officer still clutching the oil valve in a heroic attempt to close it. Tollberg died two hours later.
Although damaged, La Vallette eventually steamed out of the battle area under her own power. Another ship rigged a towline and slowly towed the battered destroyer toward safer waters.
Navajo quickly started aligning Chicago’s bow with the direction of the Japanese attack, to make her a smaller target. Just when it seemed that the attack had been successfully repulsed and the remaining Bettys had been driven off, lookouts on Chicago spotted five torpedo wakes heading toward the cruiser. At 1624, while traveling at the agonizingly slow speed of 4 knots, the cruiser suddenly shuddered from the blasts of four successive torpedoes tearing into her starboard side. One torpedo struck forward and showered the bridge and deck with debris, while the others ripped apart the middle of the ship and created a raging inferno belowdecks. The cruiser listed and started to sink.
Captain Davis ordered Navajo to cut the towline and told his crew to abandon ship. Davis said that less than 20 minutes after the first torpedo exploded, the ship rolled slowly over on her starboard side and settled by the stern, with colors flying. Six officers and 56 men went down with the ship. Edwards, Waller, Sands and Navajo picked 1,049 survivors from the water.
As often happened after a naval contest in the Pacific, the Japanese boasted of a huge victory. To divert attention from the catastrophe unfolding on Guadalcanal, where U.S. Marines and naval forces had seized the initiative and sent the Japanese army reeling, the Japanese government claimed her aircraft had sunk one American battleship and three cruisers and damaged others. In fact, the Japanese had registered a minor victory in sinking Chicago, but they had also lost 12 Bettys–as well as one of their top torpedo bomber commanders, Higai. However, because the enemy’s attention had been focused on the ships of Giffen’s task force, the transports were able to land their Marine replacements on Guadalcanal without interference.
Numerous errors of judgment contributed to the loss of Chicago. Admiral Giffen had been so obsessed with keeping his rendezvous that he left his escort carriers behind. He had also been so concerned with the threat from Japanese submarines that his ships steamed in poor formation for defense from an air attack. American fighters lacked any coordinated fighter direction and thus could not mount an effective defense when Chicago was threatened. One historian labeled the mismanaged affair tactical ineptitude of the first order.
Giffen’s superiors, especially Halsey and Admiral Chester Nimitz, the commander in chief of the Pacific Fleet, were irate over the loss of Chicago. Halsey, who had been frantically trying to assemble sufficient forces near Guadalcanal to blunt the Japanese offensive, described the loss of Chicago as a blow at any time, and just now we felt it with special severity. Halsey had succeeded in stopping the enemy, but he knew that he needed every ship, every Marine, every aircraft to maintain momentum. The loss of a cruiser, especially when occasioned by command mistakes, made his task more difficult. Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6Help HistoryNet by bookmarking to
            Tags: 20th - 21st Century, Historical Conflicts, Sea-Air Operations, World War II
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4 Comments to “Battle of Rennell Island: Setback in the Solomons”
Gentlemen,
I enjoyed your articles on History.Net very much and in particular the article on Rennell Island 1943 Battle inasmuch that I was a sailor on the USS La Vallette DD448. I have often wondered where did Admiral Giffen run off to after the Chicago was torpeoded and sunk and we ourselves were badly damaged.
Did he rendezvous with Captain Briscoe’s Catus Striking Force?`
Frank Suffridge
USS La Vallette DD448
12 Aug 1942 – 1 Feb 1946
By Frank Suffridge on Aug 25, 2008 at 1:28 pm
I appreciate your telling of the Battle of Rennell Island and impact on Guadalcanal. From my point of view, if Admiral Griffen had not rendezvous with the supply task force TG (62.8), four fully loaded transports “President Hays, President Adams, President Jackson and Cresent City” and four destroyers of the Catus Striking Force, my fathers Rober Burns, Jr. S/Sgt with the 214th CA(AA) regiment may not have completed their task relieving the 2nd marines and protecting Henderson Field and off course meeting my mother a “WAC” driving an ambulance when my father had a bought of maleria in the states. My father finished OCS went to the ETO and left service as a 1st LT. December 3 1945 and lived to a ripe old age of 89, leaving my mother and myself.
My job now is to relate to my family with the help of your writtings their grandfathers part in WWII.
Bob Burns
By Robert Burns on Jul 20, 2009 at 2:30 pm
I would like to correct an error I made in my earliar comments; I see now that the TF67 under rear admiral Griffen did in fact retreat from the seen after the chicago was dive bombed and sunk, leaving the four destroyers and four transports on their own.
What I would like to know, is what were the names of these four destroyers under TF62.8?
Also looking for conformation which units were on these transports and destroyers that landed on Guadalcanal January 30, 1943?
Great Coverage of the Battle of Rennell Island.
Bob Burns
By Robert A. Burns on Jul 22, 2009 at 8:44 am
On January 30, 1943 the balance of the 214th CA (AA) arrived on Guadalcanal aboard the President Jackson and the President Adams transports two of the four transports screended by the four destroyers already posted under TASK FORCE 62.8 and part of the fleet involved in the Battle of Rennell.
The mission of the 214th CA (AA) was to relieve the 3rd Marines defending Henderson Field on Guadalcanal since initial landing on August 7, 1942. Captain Harry B. Jennings was sent to Guadalcanal on November 26, 1942 to check Marine equipment and to expedite and effect an exchange of information in preparation of sending the rest of the 214th CA (AA).
The first 214th CA (AA) unit consisting of Battery “F”, Captain Wessberg, a small detachment of Medical Corps under the command of Captain Stevenson arrived on January 5, 1943 and took over positions on Flighter Strip #1 on January 9, 1943. Father J.F. O’Connell was attached to this advance unit as Chaplain.
On January 18th the following units and additional officers and enlisted men arrived at Guadalcanal: Battery “E” under the command of Captain Rasbury, Provisional Gun Gaattery #1 under the command of Captain Collins and Major R.A. Alford as Gun Group commander, 1st Lt. William E. Norris as Communications officer, Captain Schmidt with Automatic Weapons, Captains Camp and Ferrell with cadres from Batteries “C”, “D”, “K” and Headquarters.
Colonel John E. Stoddard and Jajor Jack G. Johnson arrived January 19, 1943 to have th plans changed for the entire regiment to come to Guadalcanal. Colonel stoddard returned to New Calendonia to bring remainder of the regiment, arriving January 30, 1943 already mentioned.
The 214th CA (AA) regiment as of January 30, 1943 consisted of 92 Officers, 9 Warrant Officers and 1982 enlisted men; making up three Battallions:
Hq. Hq. Battery, 1st BN, 214th CA(AA) Regiment with Batteries A, B,C,D and First and Second Provisional Batteries, making a total of six Gun Batteries;
Hq. Hq. Battery, 2nd BN, 214th CA (AA) Regiment with Batteries E, F, G and H;
Hq. Hq. Battery, , 3rd BN, 214th CA (AA) Regiment with Batteries I and K.
My father was part of the 2nd BN and may have arrived on January 5, 1943 or January 18, 1943 as an advance unit of NCO’s before assuming the duties of the 3rd marines defending Henderson airfield.
If you have any further information or would like to know more about this period please drop me an e-mail: farne230@yahoo.com.
By ROBERT A. BURNS on Aug 20, 2009 at 8:54 am