Joseph Burnett

Joseph Burnett (26 December 1899 – 19 November 1941) was a Royal Australian Navy (RAN) officer most widely known as the captain of the light cruiser 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 (RN), 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. His sons both pursued naval careers and served in the RAN. Following a successful search for the Sydney and Kormoran that located both wrecks in 2008, controversy surrounding Burnett's command arose again. His younger son, retired Commodore Rory Burnett, has defended him through various public statements.

Early life Burnett was born on 26 December 1899 in Singleton, New South Wales, Australia. He was the second son of Richard Burnett and Emily Burnett (née Adams), and the grandson of William Burnett, a blacksmith from Cornwall who had emigrated to New South Wales in 1859. He attended Singleton Primary School, where he demonstrated both academic and sporting ability.

Burnett missed the sea, and in 1936, he was reunited with HMAS Canberra,

Battle between HMAS Sydney and HSK Kormoran

In November 1941, HMAS Sydney undertook a mission to escort the troopship Zealandia to the Sunda Strait. The Sydney was returning to Fremantle when, at about 4:00 PM on 19 November at a point off the coast between Carnarvon and Geraldton, the crew sighted what appeared to be a merchant ship approximately away and challenged it. The other ship was the Kormoran, a merchant raider disguised as the Dutch freighter Straat Malakka.

According to accounts by Kormoran crew members, Sydney chased and overhauled the raider, while exchanging signals and attempting to verify her identity. The Sydney closed to within 1,000 yards and demanded a password from the Kormoran, at which point the raider opened fire on the Sydney. Survivors' accounts seemed to indicate that the Sydney was not ready for the engagement, and the Australian cruiser was hit several times before returning fire. At this point, the Sydney had caught fire.

The Sydney was better armoured and more heavily armed than the Kormoran, and struck her severely on the funnel and engine room, which caught fire immediately. With both ships critically damaged, the Sydney turned southwards. She disappeared from the view of the Kormoran and sank with all hands on board. Many found it difficult to believe that a converted merchant ship could sink a modern light cruiser, and also found it difficult to believe that a senior officer such as Burnett took his ship within 1,000 metres (1,100 yards) of an unidentified and possibly dangerous vessel during wartime without preparing for action, and with such disastrous results. It was also seen as strange that the bulk of the crew of the Kormoran survived, while there were no known survivors from the Sydney.

In 2008, following the discovery of the wrecks of HMAS Sydney and HSK Kormoran, controversy about Burnett's alleged actions arose again. In particular, one German survivor of the battle had reportedly accused Burnett of 'incompetent' and 'criminal' action—a claim refuted by Rory Burnett, who said: "I don't think he's in any position to make that judgment, but he's entitled to his opinion. My father was a very professional and highly regarded officer."

In August 2009, The Australian reported that the official inquiry led by Terence Cole "found [Burnett] behaved inexplicably, but not negligently, when he brought the warship too close to a German raider."

Legacy Collins, by then a vice admiral, wrote to Burnett's elder son, Patrick, saying: "Joe Burnett was one of our finest officers. An outstanding sport with a good brain—an unusual combination. With these qualifications and, as you so well know, a happy and cheerful disposition it is not surprising that he was one of the most popular of our year."

Burnett's sons, who were aged 13 and 12 when he died, both attended the RANC and went on to careers in the RAN. Patrick reached the rank of commander and Rory reached the rank of commodore.

Burnett is commemorated by the Burnett Memorial Prize for rugby at the RANC.