The 83rd anniversary of the Japanese attack on Sydney Harbour during World War II has been remembered.
In a service held last Friday morning (06 June) at the Defence of Sydney Monument at North Head, Manly, the stealth assault on Sydney Harbour by Japanese midget submarines on the night of 31 May 1942 was commemorated.
The attack led to the deaths of 21 sailors from the torpedo sinking of the HMAS Kuttabul, a converted ferry used to billet troops who were sleeping aboard at the time of the explosion.
The commemoration to mark the attack on Sydney was jointly coordinated by the Australia Remembers Northern Beaches and North Shore Committee and the office of Manly MP James Griffin. The outdoor service was well attended by children from local schools, serving military personnel, veterans and dignitaries including political leaders and Her Excellency the Honourable Margaret Beazley AC KC Governor of NSW (image below).
This year also marks the 30th anniversary of the unveiling of the Defence of Sydney Monument at North Head, which was established in 1995 to perpetuate the memory of those who served in World War II and to educate future generations about the city’s wartime legacy.
Her Excellency described the attack as sobering, for people to realise the war had reached Sydney.
“I want you to think of the young people, some only a few years older than our school students who are here today. Many of them were fighting in the European theatre of war, and some had gone as far south as to the Mediterranean and to North Africa.
“They, in many ways, weren’t fighting our war. They were fighting Britain’s war. They were away from home, terrible and lonely and challenging as that was, but it was essentially Britain’s war,” said Her Excellency.
“Singapore fell to the Japanese on the 15th of February, 1942. Darwin was bombed four days later on the 19th of February, 1942. By the end of March 1942, Japanese troops had captured many areas to the north of Australia, including in places we now know as Indonesia East Timor or Timor Leste and Papua New Guinea.
“This war was getting closer and closer, and people feared that an invasion of Australia was imminent but few anticipated the reality was so close to here,” said Her Excellency.
Her Excellency recounted the events of the stealth assault, including two nights prior, a Japanese reconnaissance plane taking off from the deck of the ‘mothership’ submarine to scout for targets in Sydney Harbour, spotting the American warship USS Chicago along with four destroyers and a hospital ship.
“The afternoon of the 31st of May, five submarines that had been hovering to the northeast had moved within 11km of the harbour. At 4.30pm, they released the three midget submarines about which we know so much, whose mission was to sink the USS Chicago and the other large ships in the harbour.
“The first submarine entered the harbour at 8.00pm, it became entangled in part of the submarine netting. It was spotted 15 minutes later by a maritime services board watchman, 52-year-old Jimmy Cargill, who was out in the harbour in a rowboat,” said Her Excellency.
“A couple of hours later, the second submarine snuck through the open hole in the net, literally sitting underneath a Manly ferry that was going through at the time. It headed towards Garden Island and then manoeuvred into position.
“It fired both its torpedoes, whistling past the USS Chicago. One torpedo ran ashore on Garden Island, fortunately it didn’t explode.
“The other one passed under the USS Chicago, then under a Dutch submarine that was in the harbour before striking the seawall. It was that torpedo that exploded.
“It damaged the Dutch submarine and it sank HMAS Kuttabul. The Kuttabul was actually an old ferry that had been taken over in the war effort to accommodate Australian and allied naval personnel, and 21 sailors died in that sinking,” said Her Excellency.
Following Her Excellency was a moving oration by Queenwood student Chloe Jearapunpong, which recalled the life of one of the heroes of the night, Royal Australian Navy Bandsman Melville ‘Skinny’ Neilson Cumming who was on board the HMAS Kuttabul when it exploded. Despite being injured, he repeatedly dived into the wreckage and saved the lives of at least three men.
Her Excellency then led a solemn procession to lay wreaths, including the Consul Generals’ of the United States, Japan and the United Kingdom.
Political leaders also laid wreaths, including Warringah MP Zali Steggall OAM, Manly MP James Griffin, Wakehurst MP Michael Regan, Pittwater MP Jacqui Scruby, North Shore MP Felicity Wilson, and NSW Shadow Minister for Veterans Robyn Preston.
Local Government representatives also attended from Mosman, North Sydney and Northern Beaches councils, including Mayor Sue Heins and Deputy Mayor Ruth Robins with Councillors Vincent De Luca OAM, Joeline Hackman and Sarah Grattan.
The Defence of Sydney Commemoration is an annual event held at the Defence of Sydney Monument, located at North Fort Road, Memorial Walk, Manly.
The service is coordinated by the Australia Remembers Northern Beaches and North Shore Committee, with support from RSL NSW, Australian Defence Force (notably HMAS Penguin), the Sydney Harbour Federation Trust, local schools and community organisations. Committee Patron James Griffin MP (image above) and his electorate office at Manly play a central role in the planning and delivery of the event.
Last years’ service saw former Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia Sir Peter Cosgrove AK CVO MC (Retd) give a remarkable speech on the risks Australia faces today through its lack of preparedness.
Images: Northern Beaches Advocate
What did you miss this week?
Get the week's news delivered free to your inbox every Saturday. Subscribe to our free email newsletter.
