Second Battle of the Java Sea facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Battle of the Java Sea (II)
Part of the Pacific theatre of World War II
HMS Exeter sinking
Date 1 March 1942 Location Java Sea, Dutch East Indies Result Japanese victory
Belligerents
Japan	United Kingdom  United States
Commanders and leaders
Takeo Takagi Ibo Takahashi	Oliver Gordon
Strength
4 heavy cruisers 5 destroyers 1 light aircraft carrier 2 seaplane tenders	1 heavy cruiser 2 destroyers
Casualties and losses
1 destroyer damaged	800 captured 1 heavy cruiser sunk 2 destroyers sunk

The Second Battle of the Java Sea was the final sea battle of the Netherlands East Indies campaign during World War II. It happened on March 1, 1942. This was just two days after the first Battle of the Java Sea. In this battle, the last Allied warships near Java were defeated. This allowed Japanese forces to take over the Dutch East Indies completely.

Background to the Battle

The British warship HMS Exeter in 1942.

The American warship USS Pope in February 1942.

The British warship HMS Encounter in July 1938.

The American-British-Dutch-Australian Command (ABDACOM) fleet had been beaten. This happened during the first Battle of the Java Sea on February 27, 1942. Many of their ships were scattered or sunk by the Japanese navy.

The light cruiser HMAS Perth and the heavy cruiser USS Houston went back to Tanjung Priok. This was a port near Batavia, the capital of Java. They planned to leave through the Sunda Strait and go to Tjilatjap on the island's south side. They left on the evening of February 28. But that night, they met the Japanese Western Invasion Force in Bantam Bay. Both ships were sunk in the battle of Sunda Strait. The Dutch destroyer HNLMS Evertsen was also destroyed in a separate event.

The heavy cruiser HMS Exeter was badly damaged in the first Java Sea battle. It went to Surabaya in eastern Java. The Dutch destroyer HNLMS Witte de With escorted it. There, HMS Encounter joined them. Encounter had brought survivors from the destroyer HNLMS Kortenaer. Also at Surabaya were four U.S. destroyers. These were from Destroyer Division 58 (DesDiv 58). They had also retreated there after the battle. USS Pope was also there, having been repaired.

On February 28, after dark, DesDiv 58 left for Australia. This group included USS John D. Edwards, John D. Ford, Alden, and Paul Jones. They used Surabaya's shallow eastern channel. Then they left the Java area by going south through the Bali Strait. After a short meeting with Japanese destroyers, they safely reached Fremantle on March 4.

After quick repairs, Exeter also left for more repairs in Ceylon. It departed at dusk on February 28. Encounter and Pope escorted it. Witte de With could not leave because of engine problems. It was later bombed and sunk at Surabaya on March 2.

Exeter was too deep to leave Surabaya's main port through its southern channel. So, it had to use the main north entrance. The plan was to leave the Java Sea through Sunda Strait to the west. This route was thought to be open. On the morning of March 1, the three Allied ships were west-northwest of Bawean island. They were heading west. The ships were moving at 23 kn (26 mph; 43 km/h). This was as fast as Exeter could go.

The Sea Battle Unfolds

At 4:00 AM on March 1, ships were seen to the west. Exeter and its two escorts were not ready for a fight. They changed course to the northwest to avoid contact.

More ships were seen at 7:50 AM, coming from the southwest. Again, the Allied ships had to change course to avoid them.

At 9:35 AM, two heavy cruisers were seen approaching from the south. These were Nachi and Haguro. They were part of the Eastern Invasion Force. They had two destroyers with them: Yamakaze and Kawakaze. This group was led by Admiral Takeo Takagi. The Allied ships had met them two days earlier in the battle of the Java Sea.

Exeter and the destroyers turned northeast and sped up. But soon, more ships were seen coming from the northwest. This was Admiral Ibo Takahashi. He had the heavy cruisers Ashigara and Myōkō. He also had two destroyers: Inazuma and Akebono.

The Japanese cruisers closed in on both sides of the fleeing Allied ships. They started firing at 10:20 AM as they got within range.

Encounter and Pope made smoke to hide themselves. Later, they tried a torpedo attack. Exeter fired back. But at 11:20 AM, Exeter was hit hard in its boiler room. This caused it to lose power and slow down to 4 kn (4.6 mph; 7.4 km/h). As the four Japanese cruisers got closer to Exeter, Encounter and Pope were told to break away. They were ordered to head for a nearby rain squall to try and escape. Exeter was hit by many shells and stopped moving. The destroyer Inazuma came closer for a torpedo attack. It hit Exeter with two torpedoes on its right side. Exeter sank at 11:40 AM. This was about 90 mi (78 nmi; 140 km) northwest of Bawean Island.

The Japanese cruisers had already turned their attention to the fleeing destroyers. However, Encounter bravely went against orders to escape. It had turned back to create a smoke screen to protect the stopped Exeter and help survivors. But it was soon stopped itself by shell hits and caught fire. Lieutenant Commander Eric 'Rattler' Morgan, the destroyer's captain, ordered his ship to be sunk. This was to stop the Japanese from capturing it. It flipped over and sank around 12:10 PM. Pope kept trying to escape and managed to reach the rain squall. It was then lost from sight.

The break was short, though. Shortly after noon, planes from the aircraft carrier Ryūjō spotted Pope. This carrier was covering the Western Invasion Force. Pope was dive-bombed and sank around 1:50 PM.

There were just over 800 survivors in total. The Japanese rescued them and took them as prisoners. Sadly, 190 of these prisoners later died while in captivity.

The Missing Shipwrecks

The wrecks of HMS Exeter and HMS Encounter were found by explorers in February 2007. The explorers had been searching for these wrecks for five years. They were found only a few miles apart, 90 miles (140 km) northwest of Bawean Island. This was about 60 miles (97 km) from where Exeter's captain (Oliver Gordon) thought it had sunk. The wrecks were at a depth of about 60 m (200 ft). The remains of the wreck of USS Pope were found in late 2008.

In November 2016, a diving trip discovered something surprising. The wrecks of HMS Exeter and HMS Encounter were no longer on the ocean floor. The Guardian newspaper later reported that these wrecks, along with part of HMS Electra and the submarine USS Perch, were missing. It is believed they were removed from the seabed. One of the people who first found the wrecks was very surprised by how much had been taken.