Joseph Burnett

Infobox Military Person
name=Joseph Burnett
lived=26 December, 1899 – death date and age|1941|11|19|1899|12|26


caption=Captain J. Burnett RAN on the bridge of HMAS "Sydney"
placeofbirth = Singleton, New South Wales,
Australia
placeofdeath = at sea, in the Indian Ocean,
west of Carnarvon, Western Australia
nickname=
residence = Australia
nationality = Australian
allegiance=Australia
serviceyears=1917-1941
rank=Captain
branch=Royal Australian Navy & Royal Navy
commands=HMAS "Sydney"
unit=
battles=Battle between HMAS Sydney and HSK Kormoran (1941)
awards=
relations=

Captain Joseph Burnett RAN, (26 December, 1899 – 19 November 1941) was an Australian naval Captain who served with both the Royal Australian Navy and Royal Navy. He fought in both World War I and World War II, but is most famous for having lost his life commanding HMAS "Sydney" in the Battle between HMAS Sydney and HSK Kormoran on 19 November, 1941.

Early life

Joseph Burnett was born at Singleton, New South Wales, on 26 December, 1899. He attended Singleton Primary School. In 1912 he entered the Royal Australian Naval College in Geelong, becoming one of its first entrants as a cadet midshipman on 31 December, 1912.

Naval career

Burnett graduated from the Royal Australian Naval college in 1917 and was immediately sent to England, where he joined the crew of HMAS "Australia" as midshipman. HMAS "Australia" was flagship of 2nd Battle Cruiser Squadron, and it was an excellent posting for Burnett. He served on HMAS "Australia" for the remainder of World War I and reached the rank of sub-lieutenant.

At the conclusion of World War I, HMAS "Australia" sailed for Australia, departing on 24 April, 1919 and arriving on 28 May, however Burnett stayed in England on an attachment to the Royal Navy with whom he served for the next seven years. In January 1920 Burnett was promoted to Lieutenant, and had qualified as a gunnery officer by 1922.

In 1924 Burnett was appointed as the gunnery officer on board HMAS "Adelaide", before marrying Enid Ward and returning briefly to Australia, although still attached to the Royal Navy. After three years in Australia he returned to England and was promoted to Lieutenant Commander. In 1928 he joined the HMAS "Canberra" which he stayed with until 1932, when he attended Naval Staff College at Greenwich until 1933. He was then promoted to Commander and once more returned to Australia where he worked for the Navy Office in Melbourne for two years.

Joseph Burnett missed the sea, and in 1936 he was reunited with HMAS "Canberra", this time as executive officer. In 1937 he returned to England for the last time, serving as excutive officer on board HMS "Royal Oak". Whilst in England he was promoted to Captain and completed the Imperial Defence College course.

On the outbreak of World War II on September 3, 1939 Burnett was recalled to Australia where he was made Assistant Chief of Naval Staff at the Navy Office in Melbourne. By October 1940 he was sent to Singapore as the senior Royal Australian Navy representative at an Allied conference considering the defence of the Asia-Pacific region. At the conference he called for the establishment of the Naval Auxiliary Patrol, which proved extremely successful at patrolling harbour entrances throughout the war.

In May 1941, Burnett received his first direct command, when he was posted to HMAS "Sydney". The ship had already acquired a distinguished war record in the Battle of the Mediterranean. "Sydney"' had just completed a refit and her primary duties at the time were escorting convoys.

Battle between HMAS Sydney and German auxiliary cruiser Kormoran

In November 1941 HMAS "Sydney" undertook a mission to escort the troopship "Zealandia" to Sunda Strait. As "Sydney" was returning to Fremantle, at about 4pm on 19 November, at a point off the coast between Carnarvon and Geraldton, she sighted what appeared to be a merchant ship about Convert|20|km|nmi away and challenged it. The other ship was the merchant raider "Kormoran", disguised as the Dutch freighter "Straat Malakka".

According to accounts by crew members of "Kormoran", "Sydney" chased and overhauled the raider, while exchanging signals and attempting to verify her identity. "Sydney" closed to within 1000 yards and demanded a password from the captain of the "Kormoran", at which point he opened fire on the "Sydney". Survivors accounts seemed to indicate "Sydney" was not ready for the engagement, and was hit several times before returning fire. At this point "Sydney" had caught fire.

However "Sydney" was better armoured and more heavily armed, and eventually opened fire on "Kormoran", hitting her severely on the funnel and engine room which caught fire immediately. With both ships severely damaged, "Sydney" turned southwards, and having disappeared from the view of the "Kormoran", sank with all hands on board. "Kormoran" was too badly damaged to be saved, and was scuttled by her captain.

In Australia, many found it difficult to believe that a converted merchant ship could sink a modern light cruiser. Many also found it difficult to believe that a senior officer like Burnett took his ship within 1,000 metres (1,100 yd) of an unidentified and possibly dangerous vessel during wartime, without preparing for action and with such disastrous results. It was also seen as strange that the bulk of the crew of "Kormoran" survived, while there were no known survivors from "Sydney".

Notes

ee also

*Theodor Detmers

External links

* [http://www.awm.gov.au/people/8004.asp Joseph Burnett at the Australian War memorial]

Persondata
NAME=Burnett, Jospeh
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION=Australian captain
DATE OF BIRTH=birth date|1899|12|26|df=y
PLACE OF BIRTH=Singleton, New South Wales, Australia
DATE OF DEATH=death date|1941|11|19|df=y
PLACE OF DEATH=at sea, in the Indian Ocean, west of Carnarvon, Western Australia