HMAS Sydney was the pride of the fleet during the Second World War.
A light cruiser and one of Australia’s main combat vessels, on the 19th November 1941, off the coast of Western Australia, the Sydney engaged in a fierce and bloody battle with the German raider Kormoran. Following this action, the cruiser failed to return to port.
An extensive search and rescue carried out, but the warship had disappeared with all 645 men on board. Whilst the battle lasted little more than an hour, this single ship engagement remains Australia’s greatest naval disaster.
More Australian servicemen died in the battle between the German raider Kormoran and the light cruiser HMAS Sydney than perished in the Vietnam War. It was not until 2008 that the wreck was discovered.
The passage of time between the sinking and the discovery led to numerous mystery and conspiracy theories, all of which started replacing the truth.
Now, with an explanation of how those on board lived, fought, and died, this book tells the full story.
Non-fiction, Australian Military History
About The Author
Military historian; public speaker, author of 25 books, and a retired naval officer, Dr Tom Lewis received the Order of Australian Medal (OAM) for services to naval history.
He served in the Iraq War in 2006 as an Intelligence analyst, and also in East Timor. He has worked as a divemaster, high school teacher, and journalist.
Tom is an expert on World War II, especially in the Pacific, but has also written in areas including medieval battle, and the reality of battlefield behaviour.
His latest books are Cyclone Warriors – the Armed Forces in Cyclone Tracy; The Secret Submarine, revealing the RAAF’s sinking of the Japanese I-178 off Sydney in 1943, and Australia’s Coastal War, which brings together all of the submarine, surface, and air attacks around WWII Australia.
The Sinking of HMAS Sydney has just won the 2024 Australian Naval Institute’s Commodore Sam Bateman Book Prize.
