Charles B. McVay III

Charles B. McVay III
McVay talks to war correspondents in Guam about the sinking of his ship in August 1945
Birth name	Charles Butler McVay III
Born	(1898-08-31)August 31, 1898 Ephrata, Pennsylvania,U.S.A.
Died	November 6, 1968(1968-11-06)(aged 70) Litchfield, Connecticut,U.S.A.
Place of burial	Bayou Liberty,Louisiana,U.S.A.
Allegiance	United States of America
Service/ branch	United States Navy
Years of service	1920–1949
Rank	Rear Admiral
Commands	USSIndianapolis(CA-35)
Battles / wars	World War II Battle of Iwo Jima Battle of Okinawa Sinking of the USSIndianapolis
Awards	Silver Star Purple Heart Navy Unit Commendation
Spouse(s)	Elizabeth “Kinau” Wilder ​ ​ (m.1924;div.1936)​ Louise Claytor ​ ​ (m.1936; died 1961)​ Vivian Brown ​ (m.1961)​
Children	Kimo Wilder McVay Charles Butler McVay IV

Charles Butler McVay III(August 31, 1898 – November 6, 1968) was anAmerican navalofficer and the commanding officer of the cruiserUSSIndianapoliswhich was lost in action in 1945, resulting in a significant loss of life. Of all captains in the history of theUnited States Navy,he is the only one subjected tocourt-martialfor losing a ship sunk by an act of war, despite the fact that he was on a top secret mission maintaining radio silence.

The testimony of theJapanese commander who sank his shipalso seemed to exonerate McVay.After years of mental health problems, McVaytook his own lifeaged 70 years. Following years of efforts by some survivors and others to clear his name, McVay was posthumously exonerated by the106th United States CongressandPresidentBill Clintonon October 30, 2000.

Education and career

Charles Butler McVay III was born inEphrata, Pennsylvania,on August 31, 1898, to aNavyfamily.His father,Charles Butler McVay Jr.(1868–1949), commanded the tenderYanktonduring the cruise of theGreat White Fleet(1907–1909), was anadmiralin theUnited States NavyduringWorld War I,and served as Commander-in-Chief of theAsiatic Fleetin the early 1930s.

Charles III was a 1920 graduate of theUnited States Naval AcademyatAnnapolis, Maryland.Before taking command ofIndianapolisin November 1944, McVay was chairman of the Joint Intelligence Committee of theCombined Chiefs of StaffinWashington, D.C.,theAllies' highest intelligence unit. Earlier inWorld War II,he was awarded theSilver Starfor displaying courage under fire.

McVay led the ship through theinvasion of Iwo Jima,then thebombardment of Okinawain the spring of 1945, during whichIndianapolisanti-aircraft guns shot down seven enemy planes before the ship was struck by akamikazeon March 31. The strike inflicted heavy casualties, including eight dead, and penetrated the ship's hull. McVay returned the ship safely toMare IslandinCaliforniafor repairs.

Sinking ofIndianapolis

Later that year,Indianapolisreceived orders to carry parts and nuclear material toTinianto be used in theatomic bombswhich were soon to bedropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.After delivery, the ship was en route to report for further duty offOkinawa.

Early on July 30, 1945,Indianapoliswas attacked by theI-58under CommanderMochitsura Hashimoto.Hashimoto launched six torpedoes and hitIndianapolistwice. The first removed over forty feet of her bow, the second hit the starboard side below the bridge.Indianapolisimmediately took a fifteen degree list, capsized and sank within 12 minutes. Of the crew of 1,195 men, 879 men died, becoming one of the greatest US Navy disasters ever.

Delayed rescue

About 300 of the 1,196 men on board either died in the initial attack or were trapped belowdecks and drowned when compartments were sealed to prevent sinking. The remainder of the crew, about 900 men, abandoned ship. Some were left floating in the water, many without lifeboats, until the rescue of 316 survivors was completed four days (100 hours) later. Because of Navy protocol regarding secret missions, the ship was not reported "overdue". Rescue came only after survivors were spotted by pilot Lieutenant Wilber (Chuck) Gwinn and co-pilot Lieutenant Warren Colwell on a routine patrol flight. Of those who did abandon ship, most casualties were due to injuries sustained aboard the ship, dehydration, exhaustion, drinking salt water and shark attacks.The seas had been moderate, but visibility was not good.Indianapolishad been steaming at 15.7knots(29.1 km/h). When the ship did not reachLeyteon the 31st, as scheduled, no report was made that she was overdue. This omission was officially recorded later as "due to a misunderstanding of theMovement Report System".

Controversy

McVay was wounded but survived, and was among those rescued. He repeatedly asked the Navy why it took four days to rescue his men but never received an answer. The Navy long claimed that SOS messages were never received because the ship was operating under a policy of radio silence; declassified records show that three SOS messages were received separately. None were acted upon because one commander was drunk, another thought it was a Japanese ruse, and the third had given orders not to be disturbed.

After a NavyCourt of Inquiryrecommended that McVay becourt-martialedfor the loss ofIndianapolis,AdmiralChester Nimitzdisagreed and instead issued the captain aletter of reprimand.AdmiralErnest Kingoverturned Nimitz's decision and recommended a court-martial, whichSecretary of the NavyJames Forrestallater convened. McVay was charged with failing to zigzag and failure to order abandon ship in a timely manner. He was convicted on the former. Knowledge of Japanese submarines in the area was withheld from the court and from McVay, prior to sailing. The court sentenced McVay to lose 100 numbers in his temporary rank of Captain and 100 numbers in his permanent rank of Commander. However, in 1946, at the behest of Admiral Nimitz who had becomeChief of Naval Operations,Secretary of the Navy Forrestal remitted McVay's sentence and restored him to duty.

Hashimoto, the Japanese submarine commander, was on record as describing visibility at the time as fair, which is corroborated by the fact that he was able to target and sinkIndianapolisin the first place. He also testified that zigzagging would not have made a difference, as he would have still sunkIndianapolisdue to being in such a good position to do so. American submarine experts testified that "zigzagging" was a technique of negligible value in eluding enemy submarines. Hashimoto also testified to this effect.Despite that testimony, the court held McVay responsible for failing to zigzag.

An additional point of controversy is evidence that the admirals in theUnited States Navyheld some responsibility for placing the ship in harm's way. McVay requested a destroyer escort forIndianapolis,but his request was denied because the priority for destroyers at the time was escorting transports to Okinawa and picking up aircrew downed in B-29 raids on Japan.

Although many ships, including most destroyers, were equipped with submarine detection equipment, theIndianapoliswas not. On July 24, 1945, just six days prior to the sinking ofIndianapolis,the destroyerUnderhillwas attacked and sunk in the area by Japanese submarines, yet McVay was never informed of this event, and several others, in part due to issues of classified intelligence.McVay was warned of the potential presence of Japanese subs, but not of the actual confirmed activity.

Although about 380 ships of the U.S. Navy were lost in combat inWorld War II,McVay was the only captain to becourt-martialedfor the loss of his ship.It was speculated that he had been afall guyfor the Navy.The conviction effectively ended McVay's career as he lost seniority, although the sentence was overturned by Secretary James Forrestal owing to McVay's bravery prior to the sinking, and McVay was finally promoted torear admiralwhen he retired from the navy in 1949, although he apparently never got over his treatment.

In his bookAbandon Ship,author Richard F. Newcomb posits a motive for Admiral King's ordering McVay's court-martial. According to Captain McVay III's father,Admiral Charles B. McVay Jr.,"'King never forgot agrudge".King had been ajunior officerunder the command of McVay's father when King and other officers snuck some women aboard a ship. Admiral McVay had a letter of reprimand placed in King's record for that. "Now," he raged, "King's used [my son] toget backat me. "

Suicide

On November 6, 1968, McVay died by suicide by shooting himself at his home inLitchfield, Connecticut.He used a Colt pistol, an Officer's Model Target 38 Special.It was manufactured in 1906 and was not issued to the US Navy despite what the name could lead some to believe, according to theUSS Indianapolis Legacy Organization.Commonly this pistol has been referred to as McVay'sservice pistol,which it was not. There is another myth, that he was holding in his hand a toy sailor he had received as a boy for a good luck charm.This is also untrue, as police reports obtained by the Legacy Organization do not mention this nor show any other objects in the pictures aside from his pistol.

He was found on his back porch by his gardener.Though a note was not left, McVay was known by those close to him to have suffered from loneliness, particularly after losing his wife to cancer in 1961.McVay also struggled throughout his life from the impact of vitriolic letters and phone calls he periodically received from grief-stricken relatives of dead crewmen who served aboardIndianapolis.

Exoneration

USSIndianapolissurvivors organized, and many spent years attempting to clear their skipper's name. Many people, from McVay's sons Charles McVay IV (1925–2012) andJames “Kimo” Wilder McVay(1927-2001)to authorDan Kurzman,who chronicled theIndianapolisincident inFatal Voyage,to members of Congress, long believed McVay was unfairly convicted. Paul Murphy, president of the USSIndianapolisSurvivors Organization, said: "Captain McVay's court-martial was simply to divert attention from the terrible loss of life caused by procedural mistakes which never alerted anyone that we were missing."

Over fifty years after the incident, a 12-year-old student inPensacola, Florida,Hunter Scott, was instrumental in raising awareness of the miscarriage of justice carried out at the captain's court-martial. As part of a school project for theNational History Dayprogram, the young man interviewed nearly 150 survivors of theIndianapolissinking and reviewed 800 documents. His testimony before the U.S. Congress brought national attention to the situation.

In October 2000, theUnited States Congresspassed a Sense of Congress resolution that McVay's record should reflect that "he is exonerated for the loss of the USSIndianapolis."President Clintonalso signed the resolution.Commander Hashimotodied five days before the exoneration (on 25 October).

In May 2001, Secretary of the NavyGordon R. Englandordered CaptainWilliam Toti,former commanding officer ofUSSIndianapolis(SSN-697),to enter the Sense of Congress resolution into McVay's official Navy personnel record.

Awards and decorations

Silver Star

Bronze Star

Purple Heart

Navy Unit Commendation

Navy Expeditionary Medal

World War I Victory Medal

China Service Medal

American Defense Service Medalwith one bronzeservice star

American Campaign Medal

European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medalwith one bronzeservice star

Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medalwith three bronzeservice stars

World War II Victory Medal

In popular culture

McVay's ship, but not McVay himself, is mentioned in the 1975 blockbuster movieJaws,in which the character ofQuintis portrayed as a survivor of the incident.

In 1978, the events surrounding McVay's court-martial were dramatized inThe Failure to ZigZagby playwright John B. Ferzacca. The 1991 made-for-television movieMission of the Shark: The Saga of the U.S.S. Indianapolisdepicts the ordeal of the men of theIndianapolisduring her last voyage (with McVay portrayed byStacy Keach), as does the 2016 filmUSS Indianapolis: Men of Courage(with McVay portrayed byNicolas Cage). Also in 2016,USS Indianapolis: The Legacywas released. It is an in-depth film where the survivors tell the story of what happened and they speak about the aftermath of the tragic event. In 2019, PBS released a 90-minute documentary titledUSS Indianapolis: The Final Chapter.

See also

• W. Graham Claytor Jr.
• List of U.S. Navy losses in World War II
• United States military veteran suicide

References

• This article incorporates text from thepublic domainDictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.The entry can be foundhere.

External links

• USSIndianapolis– Still at sea
• PhotographsofIndianapolis
• Allied Warships: USSIndianapolis(CA 35), Heavy cruiser of the Portland class
• USSIndianapolisCollection, 1898–1991,collection guide for an "artificially-created" collection of materials regarding the history of the heavy cruiser USSIndianapolis(CA-35) at theIndiana Historical Society.
• Mission of the Shark: The Saga of the U.S.S. IndianapolisatIMDb