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USS ''Merrimac'' was a United States Navy collier during the Spanish-American War. ''Merrimac'', a steamship, was built by Swan & Hunter shipyard as SS ''Solveig'' in Wallsend, England, in November 1894. She was purchased by the US Navy in April 1898. Rear Admiral William T. Sampson ordered her to be sunk as a blockship at the entrance of Santiago Harbor, Cuba, in an attempt to trap the Spanish fleet in the harbor. On the night of 2–3 June 1898, eight volunteers attempted to execute this mission, but ''Merrimacs steering gear was disabled by the fire of Spanish land-based howitzers. The American steamer was later sunk by the combined gunfire and the torpedoes of the protected cruiser ''Vizcaya'',〔(The Boys of '98, By James Otis )〕 the unprotected cruiser ''Reina Mercedes'', and the destroyer ''Pluton''〔"What Hobson and his own men could not do by means of their own torpedoes, the Spaniards did with theirs, for they launched several from the Mercedes and the Pluton which gave the coup de grace, sinking the Merrimack just off Socapa Point." Wiley, Edwin and Everett Rines, Irving (1915). ''Lectures on the growth and development of the United States, Volume 10''. American Educational Alliance, p. 126〕 without obstructing the harbor entrance. Her crewmen were rescued by the Spanish and made prisoners-of-war.〔Hobson, p. 90〕 After the Battle of Santiago de Cuba destroyed the Spanish fleet a month later, the men were released. All eight were awarded Medals of Honor for their part in the mission.〔Hobson, p. xxiv〕 The eight volunteer crewman of the ''Merrimac'' were: * Lieutenant Richmond P. Hobson * Coxswain Claus K. R. Clausen * Coxswain Osborn W. Deignan * Coxswain John E. Murphy * Chief Master-At-Arms Daniel Montague * Gunner's Mate First Class George Charette * Machinist First Class George F. Phillips * Watertender Francis Kelly File:John E Murphy (MOH).jpg| File:Daniel Montague (MOH).jpg| File:George Frederick Phillips.jpg| ==Notes== 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「USS Merrimac (1894)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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