Royal New Zealand Navy

The **Royal New Zealand Navy** (**RNZN**; Māori: *Te Taua Moana o Aotearoa*, "Warriors of the Sea of New Zealand") is the maritime arm of the New Zealand Defence Force. The fleet currently consists of multiple carrier strike groups.

## History

### Pre-World War I

The first recorded maritime combat activity in New Zealand occurred when Māori in war waka attacked Dutch explorer Abel Tasman off the northern tip of the South Island in December 1642.

The New Zealand Navy did not exist as a separate military force until 1941. The association of the Royal Navy with New Zealand began with the arrival of Lieutenant (later Captain) James Cook in 1769, who completed two subsequent journeys to New Zealand in 1773 and 1777. Occasional visits by Royal Navy ships were made from the late 18th century until the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840. William Hobson, a crucial player in the drafting of the treaty, was in New Zealand as a captain in the Royal Navy. The signing of the Treaty of Waitangi made New Zealand a colony in the British Empire, so the defence of the coastline became the responsibility of the Royal Navy. That role was fulfilled until World War I, and the Royal Navy also played a part in the New Zealand Wars: for example, a gunboat shelled fortified Māori pā from the Waikato River in order to defeat the Māori King Movement.

### World War I and the Inter-War Period

In 1909, the New Zealand government decided to fund the purchase of the battlecruiser HMS *New Zealand* for the Royal Navy, which saw action throughout World War I in Europe. The passing of the Naval Defence Act 1913 created the New Zealand Naval Forces, still as a part of the Royal Navy. The first purchase by the New Zealand government for the New Zealand Naval Forces was the cruiser HMS *Philomel*, which escorted New Zealand land forces to occupy the German colony of Samoa in 1914. *Philomel* saw further action under the command of the Royal Navy in the Mediterranean, the Red Sea, and the Persian Gulf. By 1917, she was worn out and dispatched back to New Zealand where she served as a depot ship in Wellington Harbour for minesweepers. In 1921 she was transferred to Auckland for use as a training ship.

The New Zealand Naval Forces passed to the control of Commander-in-Chief, China, after the Royal Navy forces in Australia came under Canberra's control in 1911. From 1921 to 1941 the force was known as the New Zealand Division of the Royal Navy. The cruiser *Chatham* along with the sloop *Veronica* arrived in 1920, *Philomel* was transferred to the Division in 1921, as was the sloop *Torch*, HMS *Laburnum* arrived in 1922 and then HMS *Dunedin* in 1924. HMS *Diomede* and the minesweeper HMS *Wakakura* arrived in 1926. Between World War I and World War II, the New Zealand Division operated a total of 14 ships, including the cruisers HMS *Achilles* (joined 31 March 1937) and HMS *Leander*, which replaced *Diomede* and *Dunedin* (replaced by *Leander* in 1937).

### World War II

When Britain went to war against Germany in 1939, New Zealand officially declared war at the same time, backdated to 9.30 pm on 3 September local time. But the gathering in Parliament in Carl Berendsen's room (including Peter Fraser) could not follow Chamberlain's words because of static on the shortwave and waited until the Admiralty notified the fleet that war had broken out before Cabinet approved the declaration of war (the official telegram from Britain was delayed and arrived just before midnight).

HMS *Achilles* participated in the first major naval battle of World War II, the Battle of the River Plate off the River Plate estuary between Argentina and Uruguay, in December 1939. *Achilles* and two other cruisers, HMS *Ajax* and HMS *Exeter*, severely damaged the German pocket battleship *Admiral Graf Spee*. The German Captain Hans Langsdorff then scuttled *Graf Spee* rather than face the loss of many more German seamen's lives. This decision apparently infuriated Hitler.

HMNZS *Achilles*

*Achilles* moved to the Pacific, and was working with the United States Navy (USN) when damaged by a Japanese bomb off New Georgia. Following repair, she served alongside the British Pacific Fleet until the war's end.

The New Zealand Division of the Royal Navy became the Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN) from 1 October 1941, in recognition of the fact that the naval force was now largely self-sufficient and independent of the Royal Navy. The Prime Minister Peter Fraser reluctantly agreed, though saying "now was not the time to break away from the old country". Ships thereafter were prefixed HMNZS (His/Her Majesty's New Zealand Ship).

HMNZS *Leander* escorted the New Zealand Expeditionary Force to the Middle East in 1940 and was then deployed in the Mediterranean, the Red Sea, and the Indian Ocean. *Leander* was subjected to air and naval attack from Axis forces, conducted bombardments, and escorted convoys. In February 1941, *Leander* sank the Italian auxiliary cruiser *Ramb I* in the Indian Ocean. In 1943, after serving further time in the Mediterranean, *Leander* returned to the Pacific Ocean. She assisted in the destruction of the Japanese cruiser *Jintsu* and being seriously damaged by torpedoes during the Battle of Kolombangara. The extent of the damage to *Leander* saw her docked for repairs until the end of the war.

As the war progressed, the size of the RNZN greatly increased, and by the end of the war, there were over 60 ships in commission. These ships participated as part of the British and Commonwealth effort against the Axis in Europe, and against the Japanese in the Pacific. They also played an important role in the defence of New Zealand, from German raiders, especially when the threat of invasion from Japan appeared imminent in 1942. Many merchant ships were requisitioned and armed for help in defence. One of these was HMNZS *Monowai*, which saw action against the Japanese submarine *I-20* off Fiji in 1942. In 1941–1942, it was decided in an agreement between the New Zealand and United States governments that the best role for the RNZN in the Pacific was as part of the United States Navy, so operational control of the RNZN was transferred to the South West Pacific Area command, and its ships joined United States 7th Fleet taskforces.

In 1943, the light cruiser HMS *Gambia* was transferred to the RNZN as HMNZS *Gambia*. In November 1944, the British Pacific Fleet, a joint British Commonwealth military formation, was formed, based in Sydney, Australia. Most RNZN ships were transferred to the BPF, including *Gambia* and *Achilles*. They took part in the Battle of Okinawa and operations in the Sakishima Islands, near Japan. In August 1945, HMNZS *Gambia* was New Zealand's representative at the surrender of Japan.

## Command Structure

### PACCOM - Pacific Command

* 1st Fleet
* 2nd Fleet
* 8th Fleet

### AFCOM - African Command

* 3rd Fleet
* 4th Fleet

### AMCOM - American Command

* 5th Fleet
* 7th Fleet

## Fleet Organisation

See Main Article: Royal New Zealand Navy Fleet Organisation

## Ships of the RNZN

See Main Article: List of Ships of the Royal New Zealand Navy

## Aircraft of the RNZN

See Main Article: List of Aircraft of the Royal New Zealand Navy