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c h a p t e r s e v e n The Naval Battle for the Philippines The Postscript, 26 October–30 November 1944 Historically, battle, whether on land or at sea, has possessed three terms of reference: it has been fought in line of sight, at very short range, and within the hours of daylight of a single day. When making such a definition, the exceptions that prove the rule immediately and forcefully present themselves. Battles do not unfold with due observation of a twentyfour -hour schedule, and history is littered with battles that have lasted more than a day. There are naval battles that have lasted more than a day, but they have been rare, as indeed has been the naval battle of annihilation. Any casual acquaintance with naval history would note that in the Age of Sail, naval battles between fleets were few, and overwhelming success seldom attended such actions. Trafalgar, for example, is generally considered to be the greatest of British naval victories and its place in history is secure, but at the 1805 battle the French and Spanish fleets together mustered thirty-three line-of-battle ships, of which eighteen were taken, with eleven reaching the safety of Cádiz. The extent of the British victory in this action can be gauged by reference to other great British naval victories. At the Glorious First of June in 1794, which was a running fight that extended over four days, the French lost seven of thirty ships of the line; at the battle of the Saints in 1782, the French lost seven of twenty-nine ships of the line; and at Quiberon Bay in 1759, seven of twenty-one. Battles such as Tsushima, in May 1905, were the exception in that this battle was a battle of annihilation , but, without in any way denigrating the Japanese achievement 218 The Battle of Leyte Gulf off the Donkey’s Ears, one would suggest that Tsushima was not a fleet action. It was a battle between a fleet and a collection of ships, and the overwhelming nature of the Japanese victory reflected this disparity. The historical perspective is important because it serves to illustrate the significance of 25 October, specifically in terms of losses. At day’s end, stretched conveniently to include the sinking of the Nowaki, the Kaigun had lost one fleet and three light carriers, two battleships, four heavy cruisers , one light cruiser, and six destroyers to add to the losses of the previous two days, and this bare statement of losses does not include three cruisers grievously damaged and the destroyers that had been detached to attend to these and the survivors from sunken ships. The extent and significance of these losses may be measured against the total of four carriers, seven battleships, fourteen heavy and seven light cruisers, thirty-one destroyers, and four destroyer escorts with the four formations with which the Japanese gave battle. But when this battle ended is quite another matter. The battle of Leyte Gulf is generally afforded the dates of 23–26 October 1944,1 while the single date of 25 October is generally recognized to be the anniversary of the battle. The claims of this day cannot be diminished in any way. The starting line of 23 October is obvious in terms of the action in the Palawan Passage, but one would suggest the previous day is perhaps more relevant in terms of the deployment that led to this episode and the battle overall. One would suggest that the point of ending should be marked by continuity of losses among the formations that fought the battle. For this latter reason one would suggest that the proper date for the end of this battle is 28 October, when the U.S. destroyer escort Eversole and the Japanese submarine I. 45 were sunk, the former by the latter.2 Losses had been taken by Japanese units over each of the previous three days, but 29 October—when the John A. Johnson became the first American merchantman sunk by a Japanese submarine during 19443 —was the first day in seven when no units from the various formations that had fought the main actions that go under the name of Leyte Gulf were lost. It was also the first day American carrier formations were not involved in action, having withdrawn from the battle area. Thus this account of the naval battle for the Philippines has been afforded the dates of 22–28 October...

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