The Mahan-class destroyers of the US Navy were 18 destroyers commissioned in 1936 and 1937. Mahan was the lead ship, named for Rear Admiral Alfred T. Mahan, an influential historian and theorist on sea power. These ships featured improvements over previous destroyers, with 12 torpedo tubes, superimposed gun shelters, generators for emergency use, and a new steam propulsion system that was used on many subsequent wartime US destroyers. All 18 ships saw action in World War II, entirely in the Pacific Theater, including during the Guadalcanal Campaign and the battles of the Santa Cruz Islands, Leyte Gulf, and Iwo Jima. Their participation in major and secondary campaigns included the bombardment of beachheads, amphibious landings, task force screening, convoy and patrol duty, and anti-aircraft and submarine warfare. Six ships were lost in combat and two were expended in the postwar Operation Crossroads nuclear tests. The remainder were decommissioned, sold, or scrapped after the war; none remain today. Collectively, the ships received 111 battle stars for their World War II service.
Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahan-class_destroyer
_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:
27 BC:
Gaius Octavianus was given the title Augustus by the Roman Senate when he became the first Roman emperor. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Augustus
1780:
American Revolutionary War: The British Royal Navy gained their first major naval victory over their European enemies in the war when they defeated a Spanish squadron in the Battle of Cape St. Vincent (pictured). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Cape_St._Vincent_(1780)
1862:
The beam of a pumping engine broke at the Hartley Colliery in Northumberland, England, and fell down the shaft trapping the men below, resulting in the deaths of 204 men. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hartley_Colliery_Disaster
1945:
World War II: Adolf Hitler and his staff moved into the Führerbunker, where he would eventually commit suicide. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F%C3%BChrerbunker
1969:
Student Jan Palach set himself on fire in Wenceslas Square in Prague as a protest against the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia the previous year. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jan_Palach
_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:
smurf account: (Internet slang) An alternate account used by a known or experienced user to appear to be someone else. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/smurf_account
___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:
Literature is dialogue; responsiveness. Literature might be described as the history of human responsiveness to what is alive and what is moribund as cultures evolve and interact with one another. --Susan Sontag https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Susan_Sontag
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