page_title: Joseph Burnett
section_title: First World War
hierarchical_section_title: Joseph Burnett / First World War
caption_attribution_description: AWM Caption: HMAS Australia passing under the Forth Bridge in Scotland. While serving with the Royal Navy's Grand Fleet from February 1915 until the end of the First World War, she was flagship of the 2nd Battle Cruiser Squadron, which was based nearby at Rosyth. Object Type: Black &amp; white - Glass original half plate negative
context_page_description: Joseph Burnett was a Royal Australian Navy officer most widely known as the captain of the light cruiser HMAS Sydney in the battle between HMAS Sydney and HSK Kormoran on 19 November 1941. He fought in both the First World War and Second World War, serving in the RAN and the Royal Navy, and went down with the Sydney off the coast of Western Australia.
  The loss of the Sydney was significant for two main reasons. First, it represented the loss of one third of all RAN officers and sailors who died during the Second World War in a single engagement—and not far from Australian soil, at that. Second, great mystery surrounded its loss. There had been no Australian survivors, and so it was not clear how or why a warship had been in a position to be sunk by a less well-armed merchant raider. As commander of the Sydney, Burnett bore primary responsibility for the ship and its crew, so he was an obvious target for criticism. Investigations into the ship's sinking have tried to examine his apparent decisions in the period leading up to the battle.
  Regardless of the events of that day, Burnett was viewed as a good man and competent commander by his peers.
context_section_description: Burnett was sent to England, where he served aboard HMAS Australia, the flagship of 2nd Battle Cruiser Squadron. He remained with the ship for the remainder of the First World War, seeing service in the Atlantic Ocean, and reached the rank of sub-lieutenant in October 1918. At the conclusion of the war, HMAS Australia sailed for Australia, departing on 24 April 1919 and arriving on 28 May.
caption: Burnett's first assignment was aboard the battlecruiser HMAS Australia
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