A little Random History

[Fog_Repair_Ship_Akashi]

Well here are the answers; the explanations are in the spoilers.

1. Correct answer: 11

Spoiler

Many people would assume 5 due to the 5 ‘major’ Wars the US has been in. However the number of times the US has officially declared War through Congress (like it is stated in the Constitution) is 11 times; 1.Great Britain in 1812, 2.Mexico in 1846, 3.Spain in 1898, 4. [Imperial] Germany in 1917, 5.Austria-Hungary in 1917, 6.Japan in 1941, 7.Germany in 1941, 8.Italy in 1941, 9.Bulgaria in 1942, 10.Hungary in 1942 and 11.Rumania in 1942. Since then the US has never declared war through Congress.

2. Correct answer: USS Indiana

Spoiler

While many people would assume the first US battleship was the USS Maine, due to history books often stating the Maine as a battleship. This is an error; the USS Maine was actually designed and ordered as an armored cruiser with the designation ACR-1. The first battleship in the US Navy to be designated as a battleship (BB-1) was the USS Indiana the lead ship of her class of pre-dreadnoughts.

3. Correct answer: HMS Dreadnought

Spoiler

I honestly expected more people to think I was smoking something. But yes, HMS Dreadnought did actually sink a submarine by ramming one in Scotland (SM U-29).  This is the only confirmed sinking of a submarine by a battleship. I say confirmed since as @Edselman pointed out to me the USS New York (BB-34) is believed to have also sunk a submarine due to an underwater collision that occurred on October 14^th 1918. Since this is not confirmed she was not mentioned in the question.

4. Correct answer: HMS Victory

Spoiler

I was a bit of a jerk on this one, however while the USS Constitution is the oldest commissioned warship afloat, HMS Victory is the oldest commissioned warship in the world. The Constitution was built in 1794 but the Victory was built in 1759. Being almost 35 years older, HMS Victory is the oldest commissioned warship in the world.

6. Correct answer: HMS Warspite

Spoiler

This title is actually tied, HMS Warspite made a hit against the Italian battleship Giulio Cesare at a distance of 24 km (26 000 yards or 14.77 miles). This record is in a tie with KMS Scharnhorst who made a hit at the same distance against the aircraft carrier HMS Glorious (thanks for informing me @Doomlock) also tied on this record is the Italian cruiser Raimondo Montecuccoli when she hit the British minesweeper HMS Hebe (thanks for informing me @Phoenix_jz). I didn’t put the three together as I believed that everyone would pick that answer because it had three ships.

7. Correct answer: 1

Spoiler

The definition of enemy fire is that a ship was sunk by the enemy, therefore not scuttled. Most history books omit the fact that the US sunk no aircraft carriers at Midway. I’m not downplaying the sacrifice and incredible feat the US Navy achieved that day but the Kaga, Akagi, Soryu and Hiryu were actually scuttled by the Japanese to prevent them from falling into enemy hands as a war prize. As a result only 1 aircraft carrier was sunk by enemy fire at Midway, the USS Yorktown sunk by I-168 (along with the Sims-class destroyer USS Hammann).

8. Correct answer: 1

Spoiler

The US has lost one carrier to surface fire in WW II, the carrier USS Gambier Bay. The carrier was sunk during the Battle of Leyte Gulf by the Japanese Center Force.  She was caught outside of the smokescreen laid by the destroyers of Taffy 3 and was hit by shellfire and her engines were disabled by the Tone-class cruiser Chikuma, left dead in the water she was pounded by shellfire from several ships (including the Yamato). She capsized and sank becoming the only US carrier lost to enemy surface fire in WW II.

9. Correct answer: ARA General Belgrano

Spoiler

I was surprised by how many people knew this, but yes the ARA General Belgrano is the only ship to have been sunk by a nuclear submarine. Originally she was the Brooklyn-class heavy cruiser USS Phoenix before being sold to Argentina in 1951. She was sunk by the British nuclear submarine HMS Conqueror during the Falklands War (I suggest you look up the documentary series ‘Edge of War’ and the episode ‘Thatcher’s War’ for more information on the conflict and the Belgrano’s story).

10. Correct answer: Wilhelm Gustloff

Spoiler

The Wilhelm Gustloff was a military transport ship that was sunk by a Soviet submarine as she was evacuating refugees from East Prussia when the Red Army advanced on the area. When she sank it is estimated that  9 400 people died, making her not only the deadliest sinking during wartime but the worst one ever beating the Titanic’s toll by well over 7 000 (ironically, well more like tragically, she was used by German propaganda as a stand-in for the Titanic in a German propaganda film).

11. Correct answer: IJN Chokai

Spoiler

I was a jerk with this on as all were sunk with all hands; the largest though is IJN Chokai. The Chokai was sunk during the Battle of Leyte Gulf, during the battle she was hit by a 5 inch shell from the carrier White Plains that detonated the torpedoes on her deck, after she was hit by a bomb that set her on fire and left her dead in the water. She was later scuttled by Japanese destroyers with the handful of survivors were picked up by another Japanese destroyer Fujinami, however two days later the Fujinami was sunk with the loss of all hand including the Chokai survivors. At a displacement of 15 781 tons she is the largest ship lost with all hands in WW II.

12. Correct answer: IJN Hayate

Spoiler

Many people assume that the Kisaragi was the first ship sunk by the US however the first ship was actually the Hayate a Kamikaze-class destroyer. She sank from fire from an American costal battery at Wake Island. The 5 inch gun managed to score two hits to her magazine which detonated, only one sailor survived. The Kisaragi was sunk later that day when some American Wildcat fighters managed to land a bomb on her stern that detonated the depth charges stored there.

13. Correct answer: IJN Ryujo

Spoiler

The Akutan Zero was a Japanese Zero that crashed on the island of Akutan in Alaska. The fighter was used to discover the weaknesses in the Zero and information learned from the Zero were used to help design the F6F Hellcat. The Zero had come from the aircraft carrier Ryujo which was part of the Alaskan deceptive maneuver as part of the Midway operation. More information can be found here.

14. Correct answer: IJN Shinano

Spoiler

Shinano was originally supposed to be the third Yamato-class battleship but the defeat at Midway caused the Japanese government to decide to convert her to an aircraft carrier. In 1944 she was on her way to Kure for final refitting and to be armed with Ohka rocket bombs. However since she was rushed into service she had an inexperienced crew and several serious design flaws, as a result when she was torpedoed by the USS Archer-Fish she quickly sank. At 69 151 tons she is the largest ship ever sunk by submarine.  Rather amusingly when the captain reported to base that he sunk an aircraft carrier it was dismissed by the US Navy because they didn’t think Japan had any carriers in the area so he was credited with sinking a Hiyo-class despite the fact both were sunk/hulked. After the War when they found out about Shinano they gave the captain credit and a Navy Cross.

15. Correct answer: IJN I-19

Spoiler

On September 15 1942 the submarine I-19 managed to sneak past the destroyer screen of Task force 18 which was on the way to reinforce Guadalcanal. She fired a spread of 6 torpedoes, 3 hit the carrier USS Wasp, one hit the destroyer USS O’Brien and on hit the USS North Carolina. The Wasp sank with 193 men aboard; the O’Brien sank enroute to repairs at Pearl Harbor with no loss of life and the North Carolina was so severely damaged she was in dry-dock  for a month (which is why she missed the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal that her sister the Washington is so famous for).

17. Correct answer: USS St. Lo

Spoiler

With this one I was a jerk as 3 of the 4 ships were sunk by Kamikaze attack. However the first on sunk was the USS St. Lo, after the Battle of Leyte Gulf a flight 5 of land-based Zero fighters with their droppable fuel tank replaced with a bomb attacked the aircraft carriers of Taffy 3. One Zero attempted to attack the carrier White Plains but veered off and instead smashed into the flight deck of the St. Lo. While the damage from the plane itself appeared to be minor the bomb the plane was carrying smashed below deck and detonated among the aircraft that were refueling and rearming below after the earlier battle. The aircraft and ammunition cooked off and the St. Lo sank taking 113 men with her. She was the first of several ships sunk or damaged by kamikaze attacks.

18. Correct answer: USS Mannert L. Abele

Spoiler

Again I was a jerk on this as all four ships on this list were damaged by Ohka bombs. However the only one sunk was the Mannert L Abele, an Allen M. Sumner-class destroyer. She had been hit by an earlier kamikaze and was dead in the water, as she was repairing to get underway again the Ohka came in and struck the center of the ship detonating and breaking the ship in two. She quickly sank taking 84 sailors with her (I suggest looking at the documentary ‘Dogfights’ and specifically the special ‘Kamikaze’ it talks about the Abele, St. Lo  and the USS Laffey as well and is actually played on the Laffey at Patriots point).

19. Correct answer: 19 torpedo and 17 bomb hits

Spoiler

Musashi the second ship of the Yamato-class took a true beating before she sank, 19 torpedo hits and 17 bomb hits. This can be attributed to her powerful armor protection and the overzealous way she was attacked. She was attacked from multiple angles so was sinking evenly and even then she was attempting to beach herself and almost succeeded but her engines died, after which she was abandoned before capsizing and sinking having defended herself against attacks from 6 aircraft carriers. Lessons learned from this were used against her sister Yamato just under four months later, the US targeted mainly her port side so she would capsize, that is why she sank with less hits only taking 11 torpedo and 6 bomb hits.

20. Correct answer: 8

Spoiler

Many people guessed 2, probably based on the two most well-known carriers sunk by submarine, IJN Shokaku and Taiho. However the US sunk 8 Japanese carriers during WW II. The ships are; 1.Akitsu Maru by USS Queenfish, 2.Taiho by USS Albacore, 3.Shinano by USS Archer-Fish, 4.Shokaku by USS Cavalla, 5.Chuyu by USS Sailfish, 6.Unryu by USS Redfish, 7.Shinyo by USS Spadefish, and 8.Taiyo by USS Rasher.

@LancerUlysses for getting the most correct with 16/19.

[Doomlock]

I have made my vote.

[knice_destroyer]

Thank you for posting something of substance instead of those annoying memes! PLUS A MILLION MAN!!!!!

[Sock5]

Very fun quiz.  I felt confident on some and had to revert to my educational days of guessing multiple choice exams.

[bat1159man]

I believe the Ohka question needs clarifying - wasn't it the USS Mannert L. Abele and not the Able?

[Fog_Repair_Ship_Akashi]

1 minute ago, knice_destroyer said:

Thank you for posting something of substance instead of those annoying memes! PLUS A MILLION MAN!!!!!

While i wish you weren't so blunt (not that i blame you for being so) i will admit i had overused that gif so i'm pulling back on it. Using some of the more subtle and less annoying gif from @Doomlock's Reaction Gif thread.

[Fog_Repair_Ship_Akashi]

2 minutes ago, bat1159man said:

I believe the Ohka question needs clarifying - wasn't it the USS Mannert L. Abele and not the Able?

Yah spelling derp on my part. nice catch man.

[bat1159man]

25 minutes ago, Fog_Repair_Ship_Akashi said:

EDITED - Sorry as I had copied the wrong post.

[nina_blain_73]

i HAD TO GUESS AT SOME (OK MOST) HOPE I DID OKAY

[Goodwood_Alpha]

Are you quite certain that the four entries for "longest recorded hit" are quite right? I thought for sure it was a fifth vessel that holds that title.

[Fog_Repair_Ship_Akashi]

1 minute ago, Goodwood_Alpha said:

Are you quite certain that the four entries for "longest recorded hit" are quite right? I thought for sure it was a fifth vessel that holds that title.

I'm aware that it is a tie and she will be credited as such on the 6th, i just can't really do it here people would assume the answer was the double one. Do not worry @Doomlock already stated to me about it and she will receive credit.

[Kitsunelegend]

Number 4 is a trick question... Nicely done. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

 

 

 

 

 

Spoiler

All I'll say, is that...being a proud American with a love of American naval history, that question almost caught me out...

 

[TTK_Aegis]

Not giving away the right answer, but the record for longest hit is a tie between <right answer> and Scharnhorst. Based on German after-action reports translated into English, the Scharnhorst hit the Glorious at 26,400 yards vs the <right answer's> 26,000 yard hit. Given the inaccuracies of range finders at the time, it's easier to call it a tie since either number could be plus or minus a couple hundred yards. 

[Fog_Repair_Ship_Akashi]

10 minutes ago, TTK_Aegis said:

Not giving away the right answer, but the record for longest hit is a tie between <right answer> and Scharnhorst. Based on German after-action reports translated into English, the Scharnhorst hit the Glorious at 26,400 yards vs the <right answer's> 26,000 yard hit. Given the inaccuracies of range finders at the time, it's easier to call it a tie since either number could be plus or minus a couple hundred yards. 

Oh i know that she will be credited alongside the correct ship. I was afraid putting the two together people would simply assume it was the right answer. When i reveal the answers she will be credited as such.

[TTK_Aegis]

1 minute ago, Fog_Repair_Ship_Akashi said:

Oh i know that she will be credited alongside the correct ship. I was afraid putting the two together people would simply assume it was the right answer. When i reveal the answers she will be credited as such.

Okay, cool. You're probably right about that. Just wanted to make sure it wasn't overlooked since I don't always see them mentioned as sharing the record! 

[Fog_Repair_Ship_Akashi]

Just now, TTK_Aegis said:

Okay, cool. You're probably right about that. Just wanted to make sure it wasn't overlooked since I don't always see them mentioned as sharing the record! 

Don't worry @Doomlock pointed the fact out.

[SeaRaptor00]

Fun stuff, I entered my guesses (I know I missed at least a half dozen if not more). 

[Morpheous]

Good questions, sure I got a decent amount right, but had to guess on .....

[05Chopp]

22 hours ago, Fog_Repair_Ship_Akashi said:

Answers will be given on October 6th.

This is good stuff...+1

[Admiral_Thrawn_1]

Very nice I am having to think about some of these lol.

[Edselman]

Very nice quiz.

 

Also don't mean to be rude but there may be a problem with question 3. 

[Fog_Repair_Ship_Akashi]

Just now, Edselman said:

Very nice quiz.

 

Also don't mean to be rude but there may be a problem with question 3. 

How so?

[Edselman]

Just now, Fog_Repair_Ship_Akashi said:

How so?

Kinda don't want to spoil it, but there's a BB that sunk a sub that's not on that list. Very interesting story behind it.

[Fog_Repair_Ship_Akashi]

Just now, Edselman said:

Kinda don't want to spoil it, but there's a BB that sunk a sub that's not on that list. Very interesting story behind it.

Mind PMing me about it? Much like with the Scharnhorst i want to give credit when it's required.

[b101uk]

given the vagary of question 6, you could argue its none of them or Scharnhorst, but is in fact inland bombardments from ships at sea of specific targets, some of which were over 30km in WW1