Simpson Harbour is a sheltered

harbour A harbor (American English), harbour (British English; see spelling differences), or haven is a sheltered body of water where ships, boats, and barges can be docked. The term ''harbor'' is often used interchangeably with ''port'', which is a ...

Blanche Bay Blanche Bay is a bay near Rabaul, New Britain, Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu ...

, on the

Gazelle Peninsula The Gazelle Peninsula is a large peninsula in northeastern East New Britain, Papua New Guinea located on the island of New Britain within the Bismarck Archipelago, situated in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. The Rabaul caldera is located on t ...

in the extreme north of

New Britain New Britain ( tpi, Niu Briten) is the largest island in the Bismarck Archipelago, part of the Islands Region of Papua New Guinea. It is separated from New Guinea by a northwest corner of the Solomon Sea (or with an island hop of Umboi the Dam ...

. The harbour is named after Captain Cortland Simpson, who surveyed the bay while in command of in 1872. The former capital city of

Rabaul Rabaul () is a township in the East New Britain province of Papua New Guinea, on the island of New Britain. It lies about 600 kilometres to the east of the island of New Guinea. Rabaul was the provincial capital and most important settlement in ...

is on its shores. The harbour is part of a huge flooded caldera,

Rabaul caldera The Rabaul caldera, or Rabaul Volcano, is a large volcano on the tip of the Gazelle Peninsula in East New Britain, Papua New Guinea, and derives its name from the town of Rabaul inside the caldera. The caldera has many sub-vents, Tavurvur being t ...

. The harbour is ringed by a number of volcanoes.

History

The

Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force The Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force (AN&MEF) was a small volunteer force of approximately 2,000 men, raised in Australia shortly after the outbreak of World War I to seize and destroy German wireless stations in German New Guin ...

captured Rabaul during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

after entering Simpson Harbour. 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 ...

, the

Imperial Japanese The also known as the Japanese Empire or Imperial Japan, was a historical nation-state and great power that existed from the Meiji Restoration in 1868 until the enactment of the post-World War II 1947 constitution and subsequent forma ...

utilised the harbour as a major naval base. Approximately 65 Japanese ships were sunk in the harbour by

Allied An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...

air attacks. The surrender of the Japanese forces of New Guinea, New Britain, and the Solomon Islands took place on 6 September 1945 in a ceremony aboard the

aircraft carrier An aircraft carrier is a warship that serves as a seagoing airbase, equipped with a full-length flight deck and facilities for carrying, arming, deploying, and recovering aircraft. Typically, it is the capital ship of a fleet, as it allows a ...

. Representing the Japanese were General

Hitoshi Imamura was a Japanese general who served in the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II, and was subsequently convicted of war crimes. Early career A native of Sendai city, Miyagi Prefecture, Imamura's father was a judge. Imamura graduated from t ...

, Commander

Eighth Area Army The Eighth Area Army was an area army of the Imperial Japanese Army. The army was formed on 9 November 1942, becoming effective on 26 November at Rabaul as part of the Southern Army. The army was disbanded in September 1945. Commanders *General ...

, and Admiral

Jinichi Kusaka , was an admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II. Fellow Admiral Ryūnosuke Kusaka was his cousin. Biography A native of Ishikawa Prefecture, Kusaka graduated from the 37th class of the Imperial Japanese Navy Academy, ranked 21s ...

, Commander

Southeast Area Fleet The was a fleet of the Imperial Japanese Navy established during World War II. History The Southeast Area Fleet was an operational command of the Imperial Japanese Navy combining the remaining surface elements of the IJN 8th Fleet with the IJ ...

. Image:Aust fleet Rabaul (AWM J03326).jpg, The Australian squadron entering Simpson Harbour, Rabaul, in September 1914 File:RabaulSunkShip.jpg, Sunken Japanese transport ships in Simpson Harbour at Rabaul (1943) File:Japanese cruiser Haguro at Rabaul.jpg, Aircraft of the USAAF attack Japanese ships, 2 November 1943. File:B-25s in New Guinea.jpg, 90th Bomb Squadron during the 2 November 1943 attack on Simpson harbor.

References

External links

Pacific War Wrecks
East New Britain Province {{EastNewBritainProvince-geo-stub

History

See also

References

External links