Frederick Burdett Warder (March 19, 1904 – February 1, 2000) was a highly decorated

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

submarine A submarine (or sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability. The term is also sometimes used historically or colloquially to refer to remotely op ...

officer during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. He was a two time recipient of the Navy Cross for extraordinary heroism in combat, and a four time recipient of the

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements. The decoration is issued to members of the eight ...

for meritorious service. He served from June 1921 to July 1962 and became a

Rear admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star "admiral" rank. It is often regarde ...

(RADM). During World War II, Warder commanded the for over three years, on seven war patrols. In 1942, during the last two days of ''Seawolf''s fourth patrol, having become frustrated with the failures of the Mark 14 torpedo, Warder led ''Seawolf'' to abnormally close range attacks on three

Imperial Japanese Navy The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN; Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ' 'Navy of the Greater Japanese Empire', or ''Nippon Kaigun'', 'Japanese Navy') was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945, when it was dissolved following Japan's surrender ...

(IJN) cruisers, earning him the nickname "Fearless Freddie", in an effort to ensure successful hits with the faulty torpedoes. Warder was awarded his first Navy Cross for the entirety of ''Seawolf''s fourth patrol (February 25 to April 1, 1942). Later, when he learned that all three cruisers were still being encountered, Warder began to meticulously document the problems with the Mark 14. In 1942, during ''Seawolf''s seventh patrol, Warder decided to make a dangerous real-world test, keeping ''Seawolf'' stationary for an abnormally prolonged period during an attack on November 3,in order to send distinct torpedo barrages against a Japanese vessel, proving that the Mark 14 was missing the target while a second shot, with an older Mark 10 torpedo, hit the target. His bravery, and that of the entire crew of ''Seawolf'' (the first submarine to win two

Navy Unit Commendation The Navy Unit Commendation (NUC) is a United States Navy unit award that was established by order of the Secretary of the Navy James Forrestal on 18 December 1944. History Navy and U.S. Marine Corps commands may recommend any Navy or Marine Co ...

s), proved important in fixing a critical problem that had plagued the United States submarine force. Warder would win his second Navy Cross for ''Seawolf''s seventh war patrol (October 7 to December 1, 1942), during which 16,810 tons of Japanese vessels were sunk, part of the total tonnage ''Seawolf'' sunk to become the most successful ''Sargo''-class submarine of World War II. Later, Warder was the commanding officer of the Naval Submarine School at

Naval Submarine Base New London Naval Submarine Base New London is the primary United States Navy East Coast submarine base, also known as the "Home of the Submarine Force." It is located in Groton, Connecticut directly across the Thames River from its namesake city of New Lon ...

, Connecticut.

Early life and education

He graduated from the

United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (US Naval Academy, USNA, or Navy) is a federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as Secretary of the Navy. The Naval Academy ...

in 1925.

References

External links

Arlington National CemeteryFrederick Warder Navy Log
{{DEFAULTSORT:Warder, Frederick B. 1904 births 2000 deaths 20th-century American naval officers Burials at Arlington National Cemetery People from Grafton, West Virginia Recipients of the Legion of Merit Recipients of the Navy Cross (United States) United States Naval Academy alumni United States Navy personnel of World War II United States Navy rear admirals (upper half) United States submarine commanders