Theodore E. Chandler
Theodore Edson Chandler | |
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Pacific theatre | |
Place of burial & memorials |
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Allegiance | United States |
Service/ | United States Navy |
Years of service | 1915–1945 |
Rank | Rear admiral |
Commands held |
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Battles/wars | |
Awards |
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Spouse(s) | Beatrice Bowen Fairfax Chandler |
Children | Theodora Edson Chandler |
Relations |
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Theodore Edson Chandler (December 26, 1894 – January 7, 1945) was a rear admiral of the United States Navy during World War II, who commanded battleship and cruiser divisions in both the Atlantic and Pacific Fleets. He was killed in action when a Japanese kamikaze aircraft struck his flagship Louisville on January 6, 1945, in Lingayen Gulf, Philippine Islands. He died the next day, January 7, 1945, from severely scorched lungs. He was the last of five US Navy admirals killed in battle during WWII, including: Isaac C. Kidd (1941, Attack on Pearl Harbor); Norman Scott and Daniel J. Callaghan (same day, 1942, Naval Battle of Guadalcanal); and Henry M. Mullinnix (1943, Battle of Makin).[1]
Early life and career
Theodore Edson Chandler was born at
He attended
World War I and interwar years
In May 1918,
Chandler returned home in April 1919. On April 28, 1919, he married Beatrice Bowen Fairfax in Washington, D.C.
On January 2, 1921, he reported for duty at the Naval Postgraduate School at Annapolis, Maryland, and began a 29-month series of ordnance-related studies. On December 26, 1922, Theodora Edson Chandler was born. She was the only child born to Theodore and Beatrice Chandler. On June 1, 1923, he completed training duty and, after a brief leave of absence, reported to Newport News, Virginia, on July 4 for duty in conjunction with the outfitting of the battleship West Virginia. The battleship went into commission on 1 December, and Chandler served in her until 16 January 1925 when he transferred to the battleship Colorado.[3]
In June 1926, newly promoted
On May 30, 1932, Chandler resumed sea duty as gunnery officer on the staff of the Commander Destroyers
.He arrived in Camden, New Jersey, in June 1938 to help fit out the light cruiser Nashville; and he served as her executive officer until July 1940. Next, he returned to Washington, D.C. for a 15-month assignment in the office of the Chief of Naval Operations. Near the end of that tour of duty, he was promoted to captain on July 18, 1941.[3]
World War II
Atlantic campaigns
Chandler relieved Captain P. P. Powell as commanding officer of the light cruiser Omaha on October 15. Shortly over three weeks later, an event occurred that highlighted Chandler's tour in command of the light cruiser.[1]
On the morning of November 6, 1941, Omaha, in company with the destroyer
For most of the next 18 months, Omaha cruised the waters of the
Pacific campaigns
Shortly thereafter, Rear Admiral Chandler was given command of Battleship Division 2 (BatDiv 2) of the
He reported for duty on October 2 in time to command his ships—part of Rear Admiral
On December 8, 1944, Rear Admiral Chandler was shifted to command of CruDiv 4 and flew his flag above
Late in the afternoon of January 5, 1945, a group of sixteen kamikazes swooped in on the force, then about 100 miles (200 km) from Manila Bay. One of the four successful kamikazes crashed into Rear Admiral Chandler's flagship USS Louisville at her number No. 2 main battery 8-inch 55 caliber gun, putting it out of commission, but she continued her bombarding mission and downed several planes.[7] On January 6, 1945, the cruiser suffered more severely during a second attack. At 17:30, another kamikaze plunged into the cruiser's starboard side at the signal bridge, where explosives wrought havoc. Rear Admiral Chandler jumped from the bridge to the signal bridge though horribly burned by gasoline flames, Chandler helped deploy fire hoses alongside enlisted men to stop the flames and then waited his turn for first aid with those same ratings. The admiral, his lungs scorched very severely, was beyond help. He died the next day, January 7, 1945, in spite of the efforts of the medical department.
Chandler was posthumously awarded a Navy Cross (for Lingayen Gulf), a Silver Star (for Surigao Strait) and an Army Distinguished Service Medal (from General Douglas MacArthur)[8] Admiral Chandler was buried at sea, and is listed on the Tablets of the Missing at the Manila Philippines National Cemetery.[3][1]
Namesakes
Two ships in the U.S. Navy have been named after Chandler: the destroyer Theodore E. Chandler (DD-717) in October 1945, and the Kidd-class guided missile destroyer Chandler (DDG-996) in 1983.[3][1]
References
Citations
- ^ a b c d e "H-Gram 040 "One Helluva Day" Lingayen Gulf and the Death of Rear Admiral Theodore E. Chandler, 9 January 2020". Navy Heritage Command Article on Death of Admiral Theodore E. Chandler. US Navy History and Heritage Command. Retrieved 10 May 2021.
- ^ O'Reilly, Bill (2011). Killing Lincoln. pp. 285–286.
- ^ "Chandler II (DDG-996)". Naval History and Heritage Command. U.S. Navy. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
- ^ Army and Navy Register. May 3, 1919. p. 561. Retrieved June 9, 2020 – via Google Books.
- ^ Morison, Samuel, Eliot, The Liberation of the Philippines: Luzon, Mindanao, the Visayas 1944-45, (2001) New York, Castle Books for Little Brown and Company, pg. 39
- ^ Morison, Samuel, Eliot, Liberation of the Philippines, pg. 103
- ^ Details of his death in Morison, Samuel, Eliot, Liberation of the Philippines, pg. 109
Websites
- This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.
- "Theodore E. Chandler". Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. Naval Historica Center, Department of the Navy. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
Books
- O'Reilly, Bill (2011). Killing Lincoln. Henry Holt and Company, New York. ISBN 9780805093070.
- Anon (1946). Man of War: Log of the United States Heavy Cruiser Louisville. Philadelphia: Dunlap Printing Co.
- Morison, Samuel, Eliot, The Liberation of the Philippines: Luzon, Mindanao, the Visayas 1944-45, (2001) New York, Castle Books for Little Brown and Company