USS Samuel B Roberts Charged Four Japanese Battleships With 5 Inch Guns And Made Them Retreat

Описание: USS Samuel B Roberts Charged Four Japanese Battleships With 5 Inch Guns And Made Them Retreat

October 25th, 1944. The USS Samuel B. Roberts—a 1,350-ton destroyer escort armed with guns designed to shoot down planes—received orders that seemed like a death sentence: charge directly at the Japanese battleship Yamato and her escort fleet to protect American carriers at Leyte Gulf.
Commander Robert W. Copeland didn't hesitate. He pointed his tiny ship at the largest battleship ever built and gave the order that would become legend: "This will be a fight against overwhelming odds from which survival cannot be expected."
What happened next was one of the greatest last stands in naval history. The "Sammy B" charged four Japanese battleships, eight heavy cruisers, and eleven destroyers—firing over 600 rounds from her 5-inch guns and closing to point-blank range to launch torpedoes at the 64,000-ton Yamato.
The audacious attack, combined with desperate smoke screens and the courage of her 224-man crew, convinced Admiral Kurita that he was facing a much larger American fleet. Against all logic and military doctrine, he ordered a full retreat—saving the entire Leyte Gulf invasion.
89 men from the Samuel B. Roberts survived. The ship herself fought for nearly three hours before finally sinking in 24,000 feet of water. She was awarded the Presidential Unit Citation and forever remembered as "the destroyer escort that fought like a battleship."
This is the story of the USS Samuel B. Roberts—the ship that refused to die quietly, and the men who charged into hell with 5-inch guns and won.
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🎖️ BATTLE DETAILS:
• Date: October 25, 1944
• Location: Battle off Samar, Philippines
• American Forces: 6 escort carriers, 7 destroyer escorts
• Japanese Forces: 4 battleships (including Yamato), 8 heavy cruisers, 11 destroyers
• Outcome: Japanese retreat, American victory
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📚 SOURCES & FURTHER READING:
• "Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors" by James D. Hornfischer
• Naval History and Heritage Command archives
• Battle of Leyte Gulf official action reports
• USS Samuel B. Roberts survivor testimonies
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Timestamps: 0:00 - The Horizon Fills With Steel 8:45 - The Guns That Shouldn't Matter
17:20 - Into the Smoke 25:40 - The Ship That Wouldn't Sink 33:15 - The Retreat 40:30 - The Reckoning
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#WWIIHistory #NavalHistory #USSamuelBRoberts #BattleOfLeytGulf #Yamato #NavalWarfare #MilitaryHistory #TrueStory #Courage
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