SS Montevideo Maru shipwreck found 81 years after it sank with Australians on-board
Among the Aussie soldiers and civilians entombed by the sinking of the Montevideo Maru in Australia’s worst maritime disaster were the uncle of a former deputy PM and the grandfather of a former minister.
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The mystery surrounding the final resting place of the Japanese transport ship Montevideo Maru has been solved with a search mission locating it more than 4000 metres under water, 81 years later off the coast of the Philippines.
Among the estimated 979 Australian soldiers and civilians who perished when the ship they were on was sunk by an American submarine during World War II included relatives of two notable former Labor politicians.
The ship, torpedoed on July 1, 1942, by the USS Sturgeon, was the worst maritime disaster in Australia’s history.
The US submarine was unaware the Montevideo Maru was carrying prisoners of war and civilians who had been captured in the fall of Rabaul, New Guinea, a few months earlier.
Approximately 1060 military and civilian prisoners from 14 countries were lost. The ship sank with at least 850 Australian service members and 210 civilians.
The Montevideo Maru was discovered off the northwest coast of the Philippines’ Luzon island in the South China Sea, Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles confirmed in a Twitter video he posted on Saturday.
Two of the civilians were descendants of former Labor leader Kim Beazley and former Labor minister Peter Garrett.
Mr Beazley’s uncle Sydney Uwin Beazley, was 32, while Mr Garrett’s grandfather Tom Vernon Garrett was 54 when the ship was struck.
Mr Beazley, who chairs the Council of the Australian War Memorial, praised the discovery of the Montevideo Maru calling it “monumental”.
His Uncle Syd was a resident of Rabaul in New Guinea’s East New Britain province when he went down with the ship.
“Finding the site of Australia’s most devastating loss at sea will help Australia’s collective memory for generations,” Mr Beazley said on Saturday.
“This has solved a World War II mystery and my family’s history.”
Mr Garrett was in his mid-20s when he learned of his grandfather’s fate which inspired the Midnight Oil frontman to write the song In the Valley.
Born in England, Tom Garrett had served in World War I with the 6th Light Horse Regiment and later worked as a planter in the New Guinea plantations which were subjected to brutal massacres.
The youngest civilian to perish was 15-year-old Ivor Gascoigne while many others were aged in the 60s.
No family suffered more from the tragedy than the Turners of NSW. Their three inseparable young sons, Sidney, Dudley and Daryl, enlisted together in Australia’s first commando group, the 1st Independent Company – and perished together in the submarine attack.
Australian Andrea Williams was on board when the wreck was discovered.
Both her grandfather and great uncle died in the tragedy.
She is a founding member of the Rabaul and Montevideo Maru Society, formed in 2009 to represent the interests of descendants.
“Today is an extraordinarily momentous day for all Australians connected with this tragic disaster,” said Ms Williams.
“Having had a grandfather and great-uncle as civilian internees on Montevideo Maru always meant the story was important to me, as it is to so many generations of families whose men perished.
“I could never understand why it was not a more powerful part of our Australian WWII history. Being part of the Silentworld team that has found the wreck, has been both hugely emotional, and also fulfilling.”
The Australian death toll was almost double the number of Aussies killed during the Vietnam War and, significantly, more were lost than in the sinking of the HMAS Sydney (645) in 1941 and the hospital ship Centaur (268) in 1943.
Five years in the making, the expedition was co-ordinated by Silentworld – a Sydney foundation dedicated to maritime archaeology and history – using information collected over 20 years by members of the Montevideo Maru Society.
Australian businessman, maritime history philanthropist and explorer John Mullen led the expedition for Silentworld and engaged specialists working with deep-sea survey company Fugro from The Netherlands with support from Australia’s Department of Defence.
“The discovery of the Montevideo Maru closes a terrible chapter in Australian military and maritime history,” Mr Mullen said.
“Families waited years for news of their missing loved ones, before learning of the tragic outcome of the sinking. Some never fully came to accept that their loved ones were among the victims.
“Today, by finding the vessel, we hope to bring closure to the many families devastated by this terrible disaster.
The wreckage of the Montevideo Maru, sitting at a deeper depth than the Titanic, will not be disturbed. No artefacts or human remains will be removed.
The site will be recorded for research purposes out of respect for all the families of those on-board who were lost.
Chief of the Australian Army Lieutenant General Simon Stuart said finding the wreck has ended 81 years of uncertainty for the loved ones of the lost.
“The Australian soldiers, sailors and aviators who had fought to defend Rabaul had enlisted from across the country to serve, met a terrible fate at sea on the Montevideo Maru,” Lieutenant General Stuart said.
“Today we remember their service, and the loss of all those aboard, including the 20 Japanese guards and crew, the Norwegian sailors and the hundreds of civilians from many nations.”
Details of any commemorative events will be provided at the appropriate time. Descendants of the Montevideo Maru may register their details to be kept informed online through this link.
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