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The Scuttling of SMS ''Cormoran'' off
Guam Guam (; ch, Guåhan ) is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States (reckoned from the geographic cent ...
on April 7, 1917 was the result of the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
entry into
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 ...
and the internment of the
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...
merchant raider SMS ''Cormoran''. The incident was the only hostile encounter between United States and German military forces during the
Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...
campaign of the war.


Background

SMS ''Cormoran'' was originally a passenger and cargo ship, named SS ''Ryaezan'' and built by the Germans in 1909 for the Russian merchant fleet. When the war broke out, she was captured off
Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...
by SMS ''Emden'' and transformed into an auxiliary cruiser. ''Cormoran'' was armed with eight 10.5 cm (4.1 in) rapid fire guns from the original SMS ''Cormoran'' and commanded by Captain Adalbert Zuckschwerdt. The number of crew she had on board is unknown. Setting out from Tsingtao on August 10, 1914 for a commerce raiding cruise in the South Pacific, SMS ''Cormoran'' failed to sink any enemy shipping as she spent all of her time avoiding allied warships. Captain Zuckschwerdt pulled into
Apra Harbor Apra Harbor, also called Port Apra, is a deep-water port on the western side of the United States territory of Guam. It is considered one of the best natural ports in the Pacific Ocean. The harbor is bounded by Cabras Island and the Glass Breakwa ...
, Guam on December 14 with the intention of receiving coal from the Americans on the island. The United States was a neutral power at this time so the Germans were refused the proper amount of coal needed to continue their voyage, there was little coal on the island for the Americans and Guamanians themselves. So the German sailors were interned and for about two years they lived among the Americans and Guamanians in friendship until the American entry into World War I.


Scuttling

When war was declared on April 7, 1917, the United States Marines and sailors on Guam were notified and set out from their base. They embarked the old screw
schooner A schooner () is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than the mainmast. A common variant, the topsail schoon ...
USS ''Supply'' with the goal of capturing the auxiliary cruiser, or destroying it. Not wanting to anger the Germans they had lived with for two years and not wanting to expose the Guamanians to needless harm; the Americans resorted to first requesting that the Germans surrender peacefully. In case anything went wrong, the
artillery battery In military organizations, an artillery battery is a unit or multiple systems of artillery, mortar systems, rocket artillery, multiple rocket launchers, surface-to-surface missiles, ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, etc., so grouped to fac ...
of three 7 inch guns on the western face of
Mount Tenjo Mount is often used as part of the name of specific mountains, e.g. Mount Everest. Mount or Mounts may also refer to: Places * Mount, Cornwall, a village in Warleggan parish, England * Mount, Perranzabuloe, a hamlet in Perranzabuloe parish, C ...
was also trained on the vessel. Before Captain Zuckschwerdt could refuse surrender a group of
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 ...
sailors on the deck of USS ''Supply'' noticed that the Germans were preparing to scuttle their vessel instead of surrendering or attempting an escape. The sailors notified the Marines so one of the Americans fired a shot across the German ship's bow with his rifle. The shot was the first to be fired by the United States at the Germans after war had been declared. A similar incident occurred in 1915 at
Fort San Felipe del Morro Castillo San Felipe del Morro, also known as El Morro, is a citadel built between 16th and 18th centuries in San Juan, Puerto Rico.ww ...
in the
Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...
, America's very first shot was fired, at a different German auxiliary cruiser which was also interned in a neutral American port. Despite the warning shot, which alarmed the Germans, the scuttling continued but at a faster pace. The Germans finished setting their explosives and they began to evacuate. The ''Cormoran'' exploded and sank to the bottom of the harbor where she remains today. USS ''Supply'' quickly became a hospital ship when she came to the aid of the German lifeboats. Accounts of the event differ but what is known is that nine Germans were killed while scuttling the ''Cormoran'', either by the explosion which crippled the ship or by the American marines who did not want the ''Cormoran'' sunk. The rest of the German crew were captured by the Americans and the dead were buried on Guam with full military honors. The prisoners were sent to various American forts until finally being released after World War I in 1919. SMS ''Cormoran'' rests 110 feet (34 m) below the water of Apra harbor on her port side. A
Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
ese cargo ship, the ''
Tokai Maru The ''Tokai Maru'' was a Japanese passenger-cargo ship built by the Mitsubishi Heavy Industries shipyard that was sunk in Apra Harbor, Guam, in 1943, during World War II. It had served as a fast ship service between New York City and Japan for ...
'', which was sunk 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 ...
leans up against her screw. Together the ships are one of the few places where a diver can visit a sunken vessel of World War I next to a sunken vessel of World War II. The shipwreck was placed on the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
in 1975 due to its association with the First World War.


See also

*
Fort San Felipe del Morro Castillo San Felipe del Morro, also known as El Morro, is a citadel built between 16th and 18th centuries in San Juan, Puerto Rico.ww ...
* Scuttling of the German fleet in Scapa Flow


References

* * {{April 1917 shipwrecks World War I Conflicts in 1917 20th-century military history of the United States History of Guam Maritime incidents in 1917 Naval history of World War I Naval battles of World War I involving the United States Naval battles of World War I involving Germany April 1917 events 1917 in Guam