Bode and Savo

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Peter H
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Bode and Savo

#1

Post by Peter H » 17 Aug 2007, 15:49

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Savo_Island

A formal United States Navy board of inquiry, known as the Hepburn Investigation, subsequently prepared a report of the battle. The board interviewed most of the major Allied officers involved over several months, beginning in December 1942.[79] The report recommended official censure for only one officer: Captain Howard D. Bode. The report stopped short of recommending formal action against other Allied officers, including Admirals Fletcher, Turner, McCain, and Crutchley, and Captain Riefkohl. The careers of Turner, Crutchley, and McCain do not appear to have been affected by the defeat or the mistakes they made in contributing to it. Riefkohl, however, never commanded ships again. Captain Bode, upon learning that the report was going to be especially critical of his actions, shot himself in his quarters at Balboa, Panama Canal Zone, on April 19, 1943, and died the next day.[80] Crutchley was gazetted with the Legion of Merit (Chief Commander) in September 1944

Has anyone got details on Bode's career?A photo?

Heinrich George
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Re: Bode and Savo

#2

Post by Heinrich George » 21 Aug 2007, 23:41

Has anyone got details on Bode's career?A photo?
Howard Bode graduated from Annapolis in 1911 where he stood 181st in a class of 193. He was known as "Ping" Bode, after a well-known major league baseball player (who spelled his name Bodie). He saw considerable service in naval intelligence, both in Europe and at ONI headquarters, prior to taking command of the battleship Oklahoma. Unfortunately, what must have seemed a plum assignment led instead to events that seemed always to find Bode in the wrong place at the wrong time.

On December 7, 1941 he was ashore when the Oklahoma was torpedoed and capsized at Pearl Harbor. Suddenly without a ship he was given command of the heavy cruiser Chicago. On the night of May 31, 1942 he was again ashore when his ship was attacked by midget submarines in Sydney harbor:

http://ahoy.tk-jk.net/macslog/JapaneseM ... inesA.html

Finally, on August 9, 1942 he steamed away from the action at Savo, having failed to sound an alarm.

Although villified by historians, there were those who defended him, though acknowledging he was "an unreasonable martinet" (scroll down):

http://www.time.com/time/magazine/artic ... -3,00.html

A book called "The Bode Testament" speculates on what would have happened had his suicide attempt failed:

http://www.microworks.net/PACIFIC/libra ... tament.htm


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Peter H
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Joined: 30 Dec 2002, 14:18
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#3

Post by Peter H » 22 Aug 2007, 04:26

Thanks,an interesting character.

Regards
Peter

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