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USS Leutze (DD-481)
Encyclopedia
USS Leutze (DD-481) was a Fletcher-class
destroyer
in the United States Navy
during World War II
. She was named for Admiral
Eugene H. C. Leutze
(1847–1931).
Leutze was laid down 3 June 1941 by Puget Sound Navy Yard, Bremerton, Washington
; launched
29 October 1942; sponsored by Miss Caroline Rowcliffe, granddaughter of Rear Adm. E. H. C. Leutze, daughter of Rear Adm. Gilbert Jonathan Rowcliff
; and commissioned
4 March 1944, Commander B. A. Robbins, Jr., in command.
and Eniwetok during June and July 1944. On 2 August she departed Seattle for the war zone a sleek new destroyer and returned 1 year and 1 day later a battered veteran about to be scrapped. In this short interval she had played a part in five invasions and a major naval battle before a kamikaze
ended her fighting days.
After departing Seattle, Washington, the destroyer rehearsed in the Hawaii
an and Solomon Islands
for the invasion of the Palaus. Arriving off Peleliu
12 September (D-Day
-3), Leutze bombarded enemy positions ashore and suffered her first casualty when shrapnel from an enemy shell sprayed the ship. Withdrawn on the 24th, she joined Task Group 77.2 (TG 77.2) at Manus Island
, Admiralties, for the invasion of the strategically important Philippines
.
Action off Leyte began 18 October with little serious opposition to the preinvasion bombardment but rose to a crescendo climax with the Battle of Leyte Gulf
24 and 25 October. Leutze, first firing on an enemy plane two days earlier, suffered 11 casualties on the morning of the 24th when hit during an enemy bombing and strafing run. That night in Surigao Strait
s with Rear Adm. Jesse B. Oldendorf
’s 7th Fleet support ships, she attacked with torpedo
es the ships of Japan
’s Southern Force under Adm. Shoji Nishimura. During this phase of the last major battle between surface ships, Nishimura lost two battleship
s and three destroyers in a vain attempt to force his way through the Straits and attack the American invasion fleet. Thereafter with its surface fleet decimated, Japan again resorted to airstrikes. Although Leutze emerged unscratched, on a single day 1 November, four sister ships of her screen were crashed by suicide planes.
After a period of tender overhaul, she steamed out of Kossol Roads
1 January 1945 for the invasion of Lingayen Gulf
, Luzon
, Philippines. En route the ship received ice cream for all hands for returning a sailor fallen overboard from Makin Island
(CVE-93). She arrived in Lingayen Gulf
6 January for fire support. While supporting this operation, Leutze 7 January sank a Japanese patrol vessel and 9 January a small suicide boat loaded with explosives.
Careful preparations were made for the next assault. Iwo Jima
, desired as an airfield site, was selected as the target. Practicing with underwater demolition team
s at Ulithi
and conducting exercises until beyond Saipan
, Leutze arrived Iwo Jima 16 February. Despite intensive previous bombing and shelling, enemy fire was heavy.
While protecting Navy frogmen on the 17th, she took, a shell on the after part of the forward stack. Remaining until the completion of her mission, she then transferred her seriously wounded commanding officer and three other injured and resumed station. Ordered back to Ulithi the next day for repairs, she returned to Iwo Jima early in March but only for 4 days, as much of this fleet was now needed for Operation Iceberg
, the conquest of Okinawa.
This last big amphibious operation of the war, unlike Iwo Jima, took place within range of Japanese land-based planes. While escorting battleship New York
(BB-34) for the preinvasion shelling of 27 March, Leutze made two depth charge
runs which apparently sank a midget submarine
. On a second voyage with Mobile
(CL-63) and Oakland
(CL-95), she arrived Okinawa 3 April. This was 2 days after D-Day but in time for the first of the Japanese operations “Ten Go”, the massed kamikaze attacks.
(DD-586). The fourth plane to hit this ship skidded across the deck and exploded its bomb against Leutze’s port quarter. The kamikaze almost severed her fantail and left seven crew members missing, one dead, and 30 wounded. Lt. Leon Grabowsky, Leutze’s acting commanding officer, received the Navy Cross
for his part in aiding Newcomb, and in the fighting of his own ship.
Recalling her firefighting parties from Newcomb, she maneuvered clear, brought her flooding under control and was towed to Kerama Retto
anchorage for emergency repairs. Departing 10 July via Guam
and Pearl Harbor, she reached Hunters Point Drydocks, San Francisco, 3 August. Following the end of the war, her repairs were halted. Leutze decommissioned 6 December 1945, was struck from the Navy Register
3 January 1946, and ultimately purchased for scrap by Thomas Harris, Barber, New Jersey
, 17 June 1947.
Fletcher class destroyer
The Fletcher class were a class of destroyers built by the United States during World War II. The class was designed in 1939 as a result of dissatisfaction with the earlier destroyer leader types...
destroyer
Destroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...
in the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. She was named for Admiral
Admiral
Admiral is the rank, or part of the name of the ranks, of the highest naval officers. It is usually considered a full admiral and above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet . It is usually abbreviated to "Adm" or "ADM"...
Eugene H. C. Leutze
Eugene H. C. Leutze
Eugene Henry Cozzens Leutze was an admiral of the United States Navy.-Biography:He was born on November 16, 1847 to Emanuel Leutze in Düsseldorf, Prussia...
(1847–1931).
Leutze was laid down 3 June 1941 by Puget Sound Navy Yard, Bremerton, Washington
Bremerton, Washington
Bremerton is a city in Kitsap County, Washington, United States. The population was 38,790 at the 2011 State Estimate, making it the largest city on the Olympic Peninsula. Bremerton is home to Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and the Bremerton Annex of Naval Base Kitsap...
; launched
Ship naming and launching
The ceremonies involved in naming and launching naval ships are based in traditions thousands of years old.-Methods of launch:There are three principal methods of conveying a new ship from building site to water, only two of which are called "launching." The oldest, most familiar, and most widely...
29 October 1942; sponsored by Miss Caroline Rowcliffe, granddaughter of Rear Adm. E. H. C. Leutze, daughter of Rear Adm. Gilbert Jonathan Rowcliff
Gilbert Jonathan Rowcliff
Rear Admiral Gilbert Jonathan Rowcliff was an officer of the United States Navy during the First World War and the Second World War. After early service in the Far East he specialised in gunnery, serving in that capacity on many US Navy capital ships...
; and commissioned
Ship commissioning
Ship commissioning is the act or ceremony of placing a ship in active service, and may be regarded as a particular application of the general concepts and practices of project commissioning. The term is most commonly applied to the placing of a warship in active duty with its country's military...
4 March 1944, Commander B. A. Robbins, Jr., in command.
History
Leutze completed the necessary performance trials and continued the training of her crew on escort missions to Pearl HarborPearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor, known to Hawaiians as Puuloa, is a lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. Much of the harbor and surrounding lands is a United States Navy deep-water naval base. It is also the headquarters of the U.S. Pacific Fleet...
and Eniwetok during June and July 1944. On 2 August she departed Seattle for the war zone a sleek new destroyer and returned 1 year and 1 day later a battered veteran about to be scrapped. In this short interval she had played a part in five invasions and a major naval battle before a kamikaze
Kamikaze
The were suicide attacks by military aviators from the Empire of Japan against Allied naval vessels in the closing stages of the Pacific campaign of World War II, designed to destroy as many warships as possible....
ended her fighting days.
After departing Seattle, Washington, the destroyer rehearsed in the Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
an and Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands is a sovereign state in Oceania, east of Papua New Guinea, consisting of nearly one thousand islands. It covers a land mass of . The capital, Honiara, is located on the island of Guadalcanal...
for the invasion of the Palaus. Arriving off Peleliu
Peleliu
Peleliu is an island in the island nation of Palau. Peleliu forms, along with two small islands to its northeast, one of the sixteen states of Palau. It is located northeast of Angaur and southwest of Koror....
12 September (D-Day
D-Day
D-Day is a term often used in military parlance to denote the day on which a combat attack or operation is to be initiated. "D-Day" often represents a variable, designating the day upon which some significant event will occur or has occurred; see Military designation of days and hours for similar...
-3), Leutze bombarded enemy positions ashore and suffered her first casualty when shrapnel from an enemy shell sprayed the ship. Withdrawn on the 24th, she joined Task Group 77.2 (TG 77.2) at Manus Island
Manus Island
Manus Island is part of Manus Province in northern Papua New Guinea and is the largest island of the Admiralty Islands. It is the fifth largest island in Papua New Guinea with an area of 2,100 km², measuring around 100 km × 30 km. According to the 2000 census, Manus Island had a...
, Admiralties, for the invasion of the strategically important Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
.
Action off Leyte began 18 October with little serious opposition to the preinvasion bombardment but rose to a crescendo climax with the Battle of Leyte Gulf
Battle of Leyte Gulf
The Battle of Leyte Gulf, also called the "Battles for Leyte Gulf", and formerly known as the "Second Battle of the Philippine Sea", is generally considered to be the largest naval battle of World War II and, by some criteria, possibly the largest naval battle in history.It was fought in waters...
24 and 25 October. Leutze, first firing on an enemy plane two days earlier, suffered 11 casualties on the morning of the 24th when hit during an enemy bombing and strafing run. That night in Surigao Strait
Surigao Strait
Surigao Strait is a body of water in the Philippines located between the islands of Mindanao and Leyte. This strait connects the Bohol Sea with Leyte Gulf and is regularly crossed by ferries that transport goods and people between Visayas and Mindanao...
s with Rear Adm. Jesse B. Oldendorf
Jesse B. Oldendorf
Jesse Bartlett "Oley" Oldendorf was an admiral in the United States Navy, famous for defeating a Japanese force in the Battle of Leyte Gulf during World War II...
’s 7th Fleet support ships, she attacked with torpedo
Torpedo
The modern torpedo is a self-propelled missile weapon with an explosive warhead, launched above or below the water surface, propelled underwater towards a target, and designed to detonate either on contact with it or in proximity to it.The term torpedo was originally employed for...
es the ships of Japan
Imperial Japanese Navy
The Imperial Japanese Navy was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1869 until 1947, when it was dissolved following Japan's constitutional renunciation of the use of force as a means of settling international disputes...
’s Southern Force under Adm. Shoji Nishimura. During this phase of the last major battle between surface ships, Nishimura lost two battleship
Battleship
A battleship is a large armored warship with a main battery consisting of heavy caliber guns. Battleships were larger, better armed and armored than cruisers and destroyers. As the largest armed ships in a fleet, battleships were used to attain command of the sea and represented the apex of a...
s and three destroyers in a vain attempt to force his way through the Straits and attack the American invasion fleet. Thereafter with its surface fleet decimated, Japan again resorted to airstrikes. Although Leutze emerged unscratched, on a single day 1 November, four sister ships of her screen were crashed by suicide planes.
After a period of tender overhaul, she steamed out of Kossol Roads
Kossol Roads
Kossol Roads, Palau is a large body of reef-enclosed water north of Babeldaob. During World War II, it was used by the United States Navy as the location of a floating resupply and repair base....
1 January 1945 for the invasion of Lingayen Gulf
Battle of Luzon
The Battle of Luzon was a land battle fought as part of the Pacific Theater of Operations of World War II by the Allied forces of the U.S., its colony The Philippines, and Mexico against forces of the Empire of Japan. The battle resulted in a U.S. and Filipino victory...
, Luzon
Luzon
Luzon is the largest island in the Philippines. It is located in the northernmost region of the archipelago, and is also the name for one of the three primary island groups in the country centered on the Island of Luzon...
, Philippines. En route the ship received ice cream for all hands for returning a sailor fallen overboard from Makin Island
USS Makin Island (CVE-93)
USS Makin Island was an Casablanca class escort carrier of the United States Navy. Named for the 1942 Makin raid, she was laid down on 12 January 1944 by Kaiser Shipbuilding Company, Vancouver, Washington; launched 5 April 1944; sponsored by Mrs. B. B. Nichol; and commissioned at Astoria, Oregon,...
(CVE-93). She arrived in Lingayen Gulf
Lingayen Gulf
The Lingayen Gulf is an extension of the South China Sea on Luzon in the Philippines stretching . It is framed by the provinces of Pangasinan and La Union and sits between the Zambales Mountains and the Cordillera Central...
6 January for fire support. While supporting this operation, Leutze 7 January sank a Japanese patrol vessel and 9 January a small suicide boat loaded with explosives.
Careful preparations were made for the next assault. Iwo Jima
Iwo Jima
Iwo Jima, officially , is an island of the Japanese Volcano Islands chain, which lie south of the Ogasawara Islands and together with them form the Ogasawara Archipelago. The island is located south of mainland Tokyo and administered as part of Ogasawara, one of eight villages of Tokyo...
, desired as an airfield site, was selected as the target. Practicing with underwater demolition team
Underwater Demolition Team
The Underwater Demolition Teams were an elite special-purpose force established by the United States Navy during World War II. They also served during the Korean War and the Vietnam War...
s at Ulithi
Ulithi
Ulithi is an atoll in the Caroline Islands of the western Pacific Ocean, about 191 km east of Yap. It consists of 40 islets totalling , surrounding a lagoon about long and up to wide—at one of the largest in the world. It is administered by the state of Yap in the Federated States of...
and conducting exercises until beyond Saipan
Saipan
Saipan is the largest island of the United States Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands , a chain of 15 tropical islands belonging to the Marianas archipelago in the western Pacific Ocean with a total area of . The 2000 census population was 62,392...
, Leutze arrived Iwo Jima 16 February. Despite intensive previous bombing and shelling, enemy fire was heavy.
While protecting Navy frogmen on the 17th, she took, a shell on the after part of the forward stack. Remaining until the completion of her mission, she then transferred her seriously wounded commanding officer and three other injured and resumed station. Ordered back to Ulithi the next day for repairs, she returned to Iwo Jima early in March but only for 4 days, as much of this fleet was now needed for Operation Iceberg
Battle of Okinawa
The Battle of Okinawa, codenamed Operation Iceberg, was fought on the Ryukyu Islands of Okinawa and was the largest amphibious assault in the Pacific War of World War II. The 82-day-long battle lasted from early April until mid-June 1945...
, the conquest of Okinawa.
This last big amphibious operation of the war, unlike Iwo Jima, took place within range of Japanese land-based planes. While escorting battleship New York
USS New York (BB-34)
USS New York was a United States Navy battleship, the lead ship of her class of two . She was the fifth ship to carry her name....
(BB-34) for the preinvasion shelling of 27 March, Leutze made two depth charge
Depth charge
A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare weapon intended to destroy or cripple a target submarine by the shock of exploding near it. Most use explosives and a fuze set to go off at a preselected depth in the ocean. Depth charges can be dropped by either surface ships, patrol aircraft, or from...
runs which apparently sank a midget submarine
Midget submarine
A midget submarine is any submarine under 150 tons, typically operated by a crew of one or two but sometimes up to 6 or 8, with little or no on-board living accommodation...
. On a second voyage with Mobile
USS Mobile (CL-63)
USS Mobile was Cleveland-class light cruiser of the United States Navy. She was the third ship named for Mobile, Alabama.She was laid down on 14 April 1941 by Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Co., Newport News, Virginia; launched on 15 May 1942; sponsored by Mrs. Harry T. Hartwell; and...
(CL-63) and Oakland
USS Oakland (CL-95)
USS Oakland , was a modified Atlanta-class light cruiser, the first of a group of four sometimes referred to as the "Oakland class". She was laid down by Bethlehem Steel Co., San Francisco, California on 15 July 1941; launched on 23 October 1942; sponsored by Dr. Aurelia H. Reinhardt; and...
(CL-95), she arrived Okinawa 3 April. This was 2 days after D-Day but in time for the first of the Japanese operations “Ten Go”, the massed kamikaze attacks.
Fate
Of the first wave of attacking aircraft to filter through the outer screen on 6 April, she splashed two and later knocked down a third. Disregarding the danger, she proceeded alongside to assist the thrice-hit and burning NewcombUSS Newcomb (DD-586)
USS Newcomb was a Fletcher-class destroyer in the United States Navy during World War II. She was the only ship named for Commodore Frank H. Newcomb of the United States Revenue Cutter Service, Congressional Gold Medal recipient from the Spanish-American War.Newcomb was laid down 19 March 1943 by...
(DD-586). The fourth plane to hit this ship skidded across the deck and exploded its bomb against Leutze’s port quarter. The kamikaze almost severed her fantail and left seven crew members missing, one dead, and 30 wounded. Lt. Leon Grabowsky, Leutze’s acting commanding officer, received the Navy Cross
Navy Cross
The Navy Cross is the highest decoration that may be bestowed by the Department of the Navy and the second highest decoration given for valor. It is normally only awarded to members of the United States Navy, United States Marine Corps and United States Coast Guard, but can be awarded to all...
for his part in aiding Newcomb, and in the fighting of his own ship.
Recalling her firefighting parties from Newcomb, she maneuvered clear, brought her flooding under control and was towed to Kerama Retto
Kerama Retto
The are a group of 22 islands located southwest of Okinawa Island in Japan. Four of the islands are inhabited:,., and. The islands are within Shimajiri District. The Kerama-shotō coral reef is a Ramsar Site....
anchorage for emergency repairs. Departing 10 July via Guam
Guam
Guam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is one of five U.S. territories with an established civilian government. Guam is listed as one of 16 Non-Self-Governing Territories by the Special Committee on Decolonization of the United...
and Pearl Harbor, she reached Hunters Point Drydocks, San Francisco, 3 August. Following the end of the war, her repairs were halted. Leutze decommissioned 6 December 1945, was struck from the Navy Register
Naval Vessel Register
The Naval Vessel Register is the official inventory of ships and service craft in custody of or titled by the United States Navy. It contains information on ships and service craft that make up the official inventory of the Navy from the time a vessel is authorized through its life cycle and...
3 January 1946, and ultimately purchased for scrap by Thomas Harris, Barber, New Jersey
Barber, New Jersey
Barber was a community in Middlesex County, New Jersey. It was active during World War II in building and decommissioning ships for the U.S. Navy. One of the primary ship builders during World War II was the New Jersey Shipbuilding Company. The town also housed the American Smelting and Refining...
, 17 June 1947.
External links
- USS Leutze website at http://www.fat.org
- navsource.org: USS Leutze
- hazegray.org: USS Leutze
- War History of USS Leutze (DD-481) - review of book by Walter J. Fillmore, Leutzes Combat Information Officer during World War II