All Guns Blazing — November 2018

1 All Guns Blazing! Newsletter of the Naval Wargames Society No. 289 – NOVEMBER 2018 EDITORIAL One Hundred Years since the end of the Great War. On the 11th November at 6.00am in many countries around the World a lone piper will play, the traditional air played by pipers after a battle, “Battle’s O’er”, in cities and towns, outside churches and cathedrals, in market squares, in valleys and on village greens. In the UK, the day of commemorations will end with the, “Last Post”; being played before 1,000 beacons are lit at sites the length and breadth of the Country. The commemoration is inspired by a comment made by Britain’s Foreign Minister, Sir Edward Grey on 3rd August, 1914. He was looking out of his office window at dusk as gas lights were being lit along London’s Mall. He said to a friend, “The lamps are going out all over Europe; we shall not see them lit again in our lifetime”. The tune, “When the Battle’s Over”, known as, “Battle’s O’er”, was composed by Pipe Major William Robb (1863-1909) of the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders. March no more my soldier laddie, There is peace where there once was war, Sleep in peace my soldier laddie, Sleep in peace, now the battle’s O’er. Somewhere in the world, the sun is over the yardarm. Norman Bell

2 The Boardgame Geek section for David Manley’s “You May Fire When Ready, Gridley” Rules for Pre-Dreadnought Naval wargames 1880 to 1905 includes this Giles Dorrington photo of Hallmark’s 1/6000 Imperial Russian Majesty’s Battleship Pobieda. HMS ENDEAVOUR. Length 97ft 8in, width 29ft 2in, weight 366 tons, armament 10 carriage guns and 12 swivel guns. The hull and decks were made from traditional white oak. Keel and sternpost from elm and the masts from pine and fir. The 28 sails required 18 miles of rope and 750 wooden blocks. The Foremast was 119ft 11in high, the Main mast 127ft 11in and the Mizzen mast 78ft 9in. She was launched in 1764 at Whitby and Captain Cook’s epic voyage of discovery was 1768 to 1771. Sailing to Tahiti to observe the celestial phenomenon of the transit of Venus, the secret mission was to search for the continent then known as, “Terra Australis Incognita”. 21 months after leaving Plymouth, the Endeavour arrived at Botany Bay, 29th April 1770. Following her return to Britain, she was used as a supply ship to and from the Falkland Islands. In 1776, renamed Lord Sandwich 2, she was a troop ship for the British in the An F/A-18F Super Hornet jet flies over the USS Gerald R. Ford

3 American War of Independence. In 1778, August 4th, she was one of twelve ships sunk as block-ships outside Newport. The Rhode Island Marine Archaeology Project believe that they have found the wreck. The hope is that money can be found to raise her from the seabed. If it can be done, those responsible can celebrate in a manner which the Endeavour’s crew would recognise – a big drink. Above taken from an article by Guy Walters in the Daily Mail newspaper. The Invictus Games started on 20th October. Competitors from 18 nations competing in 11 medal sports with events staged across Greater Sydney, including Sydney Olympic Park and on and around Sydney Harbour. The opening ceremony was at the Sydney Opera House. The Invictus Games is an international multi-sport event for wounded, injured, and sick military personnel and veterans. Getting involved in sport provides significant physical and mental health benefits including increasing self-confidence. The UK has for the first time tested an experimental shipborne rolling vertical landing (SRVL) technique at sea using a Lockheed Martin F-35B Lightning. BAE Systems test pilot Peter Wilson performed the manoeuvre while recovering to the Royal Navy aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth. The UK is the only nation currently planning to use the manoeuvre, which will allow jets to land on board the carrier with heavier loads, meaning they won't need to jettison expensive fuel and weapons before landing.

4 Sea Quiz answers below. On November 13, 1942, Washington was deployed, along with the battleship South Dakota and four destroyers, to intercept a Japanese task force steaming toward Henderson Field. The Japanese fleet included Kirishima, one of four Kongo-class battlecruisers. The U.S. Navy force was superior on paper, but the Japanese had considerable skill at night fighting and had better torpedoes. In a confused night action, all four U.S. destroyers were crippled or sunk, and South Dakota managed to wander into the searchlights of the Japanese heavy ships. The Japanese poured fire into South Dakota, leading to severe damage and electrical failures. The Japanese lacked radar, however, and didn’t notice the approach of Washington. Washington subjected Kirishima to a withering, point blank barrage of sixteen- and five-inch shells, reducing it to sinking condition in about ten minutes. The rest of the Japanese force retired shortly afterward. Washington suffered no damage. On the National Geographic Channel, I watched an edition of “Draining the Oceans” the other night, the one about the wrecks in the North Sea from the Battle of Jutland. From my TV book, I knew that NWS Member Nick Jellicoe would be in it but near the end who made an appearance but none other than NWS’s very own David Manley. A small but perfectly formed part. The programme covered the Jutland wrecks, the scuttled German ships in Scapa Flow, their subsequent salvage and the sinking of HMS ROYAL OAK in SEA QUIZ 76. Another mixed bag, and number one really brought out some responses; sometimes I wonder whether the journal was really in the business of stirring nostalgia among the ancient mariners! 1. What was known as ‘The Great Brig’? 2. The last occasion when a RN battleship used her guns in action against enemy targets? 3. What was the first ship to receive an RN wireless transmission? 4. What did U-1407 become at the war’s end? 5. What service came into existence on 1st October 1941? Rob Morgan

5 Scapa in 1939. It finished with the suggestion that it was highly likely that Gunther Prien’s U-Boat was made from salvaged German dreadnought steel. HMS QUEEN ELIZABETH is conducting more than 500 take-offs and touch-downs for F-35 Lightning fighter jets. The flight testing is taking place off the east coast of the United States, the F35s are being put through their paces in a range of weather conditions, as well as carrying out night flying trials. These are expected to take around 11 weeks altogether, during which time the ship has called into New York. SD Model Makers offer museum quality models. https://sdmodelmakers.com/ CHARLESTOWN, Mass. (NNS) -- USS Constitution and its crew headed underway from the ship’s berth in Charlestown, Massachusetts, Oct. 19, in commemoration of the ship's launching 221 years ago on Oct. 21, 1787, and is celebrating the U.S. Navy’s 243rd birthday. USS Constitution, America’s Ship of State, actively defended sea lanes against global threats from 1797- 1855. The world’s oldest commissioned warship afloat, Constitution embodies 221 years of maritime heritage and unwavering service to her country. Now a featured destination on Boston’s Freedom Trail, Constitution and its crew of active-duty Sailors offer community outreach and education about the ship's history and the importance of naval sea power to more than 500,000 visitors each year. Constitution is berthed at Pier 1 in Charlestown Navy Yard. For more information, visit www.history.navy.mil/ussconstitution or www.facebook.com/ussconstitutionofficial.

6 HMS QUEEN ELIZABETH visits the Big Apple.

7 David Manley enjoyed a Trafalgar re-fight. This is an extract from his blog: “Played on the 20th October at the Entoyment shop in Poole using a modified version of Osprey's "Fighting Sail" - quite bloody as more than one 74 went from pristine to shattered in a single broadside”, A (People’s Republic of China) Luyang destroyer approached USS Decatur in an unsafe and unprofessional manoeuvre in the vicinity of Gaven Reef in the South China Sea. The Decatur, “manoeuvred to prevent a collision”.

8 SEA QUIZ ANSWERS…No.76. I frequently get e-mails from members about the contents of these Sea Quizzes, though few recollect the events which seem to have been mulled over in the pages of ‘The Navy’, post-war. Yes, some of the quizzes were very substantial, twenty five or thirty questions was not unusual, but….remarkably, I haven’t come upon a single photographic question yet. Though, to be honest I’ve confined myself to the late 1940’s and the 1950’s, when we had fleets and real carriers, and battleships! 1. The ‘Great Brig’ was HMS Temeraire, an ironclad with an impressive suite of sails, she was launched in 1876. 2. I didn’t know this one, but it was well recalled in the ‘50’s. HMS KING GEORGE V, in company with a number of US battleships, bombarded aircraft factories on the Japanese home island of Honshu. 3. Well, it wasn’t a Battleship but the homely old wooden-wall Defiance, at Devonport in 1896. 4. The U-Boat came into RN service as HMS Meteorite in 1947. 5. The Royal New Zealand Navy. Anyone know how long the U-Boat remained in service? Rob Morgan. SIGNAL PAD! The 2019 Naval Wargames Weekend at Yeovilton organised by Dave Sharp is already taking shape. The option is looking good for the first weekend of October, i.e. October 5th - 6th Details to be finalised obviously, if you have a 2019 diary, pencil it in and have a think about attending or putting on a game or better still a participation game for museum visitors. dave_sharp@talktalk.net (daveunderscoresharp@talktalkdotnet) Clive Essery brought to my attention the fact that Minden Games has launched a new page featuring PDF format releases, including many naval wargames from WW1 and WW2. You can check everything out by visiting http://minden_games.homestead.com/pdf.html , which lists all the titles with descriptions. The PDF format could be an attractive option, particularly for those living outside North America.

9 JOINING THE NAVAL WARGAMES SOCIETY If you have been lent this newsletter and would like to join the Naval Wargames Society, please follow this link to join our Society: www.navalwargamessociety.org. Membership secretary: simonjohnstokes@aol.com NWS Events and Regional Contacts, 2018 NWS Northern Fleet – Falkirk East Central Scotland Kenny Thomson, 12 Craigs Way, Rumford Grange, Rumford, Stirlingshire, FK2 0EU Tel: 01324 714248 e-mail: kenny.thomson@hotmail.com - Website: http://falkirkwargamesclub.org.uk/ Falkirk Wargames Club meets each Monday night at 7pm with a variety of games running each evening. Naval games are popular with 2 or 3 run each month. Campaign games sometimes feature in our monthly weekend sessions. Games tend to be organised week to week making a 3- month forecast here a waste of time. Please get in touch if you’d like to come along.  Popular periods – Modern (Shipwreck), WW1 and 2 (GQ), WW2 Coastal (Action Stations), and Pre-dreadnought (P Dunn’s rules) Devon and the West Country Naval Wargames afternoon/evening/all day on a regular basis. Contact Stuart Barnes Watson to arrange the details. stuart_barnes_watson@hotmail.com 3 Clovelly Apartments, Oxford Park, Ilfracombe, DEVON, EX34 9JS Tel: 01271 866637 Uruguay, SCOW: Southern Cone Orientales Wargamers • Games erupt, inquire to set one off: Bill Owen US telephone is 217-619-0202, Uruguay 099 834 544 WmOwen@aol.com • If Spanish speaking, email & I will get someone who speaks it better. • Soca, Canelones or in Montevideo we can arrange a "Graf Spee 3 Gun Salvo": see her 5.9” gun, anchor & rangefinder salvaged from the ship resting in the harbor, a Real English Tour conducted by British expat staff who were associated with the British Ambassador who won the post-battle diplomacy and subterfuge plus, of course, a GQ3 refight of the battle (fees for features like museum & tour). • Most of the Salvo can even be done during a cruise ship stop in MVD from a Round Cape Horn itinerary between Santiago<->Buenos Aires. • wargamecampaign.wordpress.com THE NAVAL WARGAMES SOCIETY http://www.navalwargamessociety.org (Victorian Division “Cerberus”) Email: nws.victoria.au@gmail.com Membership by $7/year e-Subscription to NWS BATTLEFLEET magazine.