|
Before Federation in 1901 five of the six separate colonies maintained their own naval forces for defence. The colonial navies were supported by the ships of the Royal Navy's Australian Station which was established in 1859. The separate colonies maintained control over their respective navies until 1 March 1901, when the Commonwealth Naval Forces was created. ==New South Wales== New South Wales Naval Brigade At the time of the Boxer Rebellion, naval brigades from New South Wales, Victoria, and South Australia, were part of the British contingent in the field force under General Alfred Gaselee, in the Gaselee Expedition, a successful relief by a multinational military force that in 1900 marched to Beijing and protect the diplomatic legations and foreign nationals in the city from attacks. The New South Wales Naval Brigade included 25 men from the New South Wales Marine Corps. (This unit was completely unrelated, except for its name, to the New South Wales Marine Corps, which accompanied the First Fleet and served between 1788 and 1791.) New South Wales Naval Artillery Volunteers During the early nineteenth century the New South Wales Government began construction of naval fortifications in Sydney Harbour. However, security was generally lax. In November 1839 the was able to slip into Sydney Harbour un-noticed under the cover of darkness, much to the surprise of Sydney-siders the following morning.〔Dean Boyce, 'The Wolves are at the door: Sydney's century of invasion fears', 2011, p. 39.〕 As Sydney was the major base for the Royal Navy in Australia, the New South Wales Government had no incentive to create their own naval force. This sense of security ended with the outbreak of the Crimean War and in 1854 the government asked for tenders for the construction of a gunboat to assist in the defence of Sydney. The vessel was named and was the first naval vessel completed by an Australian colonial government. Although modified from an existing boat,〔The Maitland & Hunter River General Advertiser, 11 August 1855〕 ''Spitfire'' was nevertheless the first warship to be constructed in Australia. ''Spitfire'' remained in service with the New South Wales colonial navy until 1859 when she was given to Queensland. After the construction of ''Spitfire'' (launched 4 April 1855) the New South Wales Government took no further steps in developing a naval force until a naval brigade of 120 men was formed in 1863. There was strong support for the naval brigade and in 1864 it consisted of five companies, four in Sydney and one in Newcastle, with an overall strength of 200 men. The naval brigade headquarters was established at Fort Macquarie, where the Sydney Opera House today stands. Since ''Spitfire'' was sold to Queensland in 1859, the naval brigade had no ships of their own. This problem was not rectified until the late 1870s, when the government ordered the construction of two second class torpedo boats, ''Avernus'' and ''Acheron''; these vessels were constructed in Sydney. In 1882, was acquired from the Royal Navy. HMS ''Wolverine'' was paid off in 1893 and the total number of vessels used by the Navy decreased over time as any perceived threat diminished. The naval brigade continued to grow, however, and reached a total strength of 614 men at Federation. ==Queensland== Queensland Maritime Defence Force One of the many outcomes of the Jervois-Scratchley reports was the formation of the Queensland Maritime Defence Force in 1883. Its purpose was to assist in the defence of Queensland's extensive coastline. To equip the new force the colonial government purchased two gunboats and a torpedo boat whilst port facilities and headquarters were established at Kangaroo Point, Brisbane. The gunboats ''Paluma'' and ''Gayundah'' were ordered from the shipyards of Armstrong, Mitchell and Company and featured a shallow draft capable of operating in the many bays and estuaries along the coast. Gayundah served as a training ship and conducted the first ship to shore radio transmissions in Australia whilst Paluma was lent to the Royal Navy to carry out survey work on the Great Barrier Reef and along the Australian east coast. The torpedo boat ''Mosquito'' was ordered from Thornycroft of Chiswick. Mosquito was never commissioned but simply placed into service when required. From this beginning further vessels were acquired to give Queensland the second largest fleet in the colonies behind Victoria. Five government hopper barges were modified to act as Auxiliary Gunboats. These ships were built by Walkers in Maryborough and at 450 tons they appear to have been the largest warships built in the Australian colonies before federation. The ships had already been ordered for the Queensland Department of Harbours and Rivers when the decision was taken to convert them to also serve a military purpose. This resulted in the fitting of a 5-inch gun and the relocation of the boilers below the waterline. The torpedo launch ''Midge'', mining tender ''Miner'' and patrol vessel ''Otter'' made up the rest of the Queensland vessels. The Queensland Government also established naval brigades in the major ports along the Queensland coast. The depression of the 1890s ruled out any further thoughts of expansion and greatly curtailed operations. Most of the vessels were placed in reserve only to be reactivated for annual training at Easter. Despite this, most went on to have long careers in both naval and private hands past World War II. The wrecks of many can still be seen around Moreton Bay today. The Queensland Maritime Defence Force was not without controversy and difficulties. In October 1888, after a disagreement with the Queensland Government over conditions of service, Captain Henry Townley Wright R.N. commanding officer of ''Gayundah'', was ordered to hand over to his second-in-command, Francis Pringle Taylor.〔 〕 Wright's response was to place his subordinate under arrest. He then coaled and provisioned the ship and threatened to sail her to Sydney. The Queensland Government ordered a police squad to relieve Captain Wright of his command. During the incident Captain Wright enquired from his gunner as to the best line of fire for his guns to hit Parliament House. The situation was eventually resolved. Of interest is the fact that, as Captain Wright had insisted, although ''Gayundah'' was the property of the Queensland government, it had, by Admiralty Warrant been accepted into Royal Navy service and thus as her captain he was only answerable to Rear-Admiral Fairfax the commander-in-chief of the Australian Station. The 1893 Brisbane flood ripped ''Paluma'' from her moorings and left her well above the high-water mark in the nearby Brisbane Botanic Gardens. Fortunately as locals considered how to return one of the colony's most powerful and most expensive assets to the Brisbane River another major flood just two weeks later refloated the gunboat and she was pulled clear. Whilst these incidents may have been a source of mirth for those in the southern colonies it is important to note that Queensland officers went on to provide the backbone of the Commonwealth Naval Forces. In 1904, when a permanent Naval Board was established, it was Captain Creswell of Queensland and previously South Australia who was appointed as the Director of the Commonwealth Naval Forces and First Naval Member. At this time, 49% of the new force's officers had served with the Queensland Maritime Defence Force. The Queensland Marine Defence Force was the only Australian colonial navy not to be involved in a foreign conflict. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Colonial navies of Australia」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|