Dutch Navy
Light Cruiser

Dimensions
560.5' | 51.5' | 16.7'

Tons
7,548 tons

Armament
7 x 5.9" Bofors
10 x 40mm AA
8 x .50 cal AA

Captain
E.E.B. Lacomblé

Crew
435

Kevin Denlay 2002

Ship History
Built by Wilton Fijenoord Dock in Rotterdam, in March 1935, and started in October 1936. Named for Dutch Navy officer de Ruyter.

Wartime History
The De Ruyter was the flagship of Admiral Karel Doorman, and carried the flag of the multi-national 'Allied Fleet' or ABDAFLOAT.

Sinking History
During the Battle of the Java Sea, both Hr Ms De Ruyter and Hr Ms Java were sunk minutes apart by 24" torpedoes from Japanese Cruisers Nachi and Haguro around midnight on February 27, 1942. Admiral Doorman, along with 345 of his crew, went down with the ship.

Shipwreck
Discovered on December 1, 2002 by divers from MV Empress and using side-scan sonar and dived to positively identify the shipwreck, upright, although tilted well over to starboard off Bawean Island in the Java Sea. The team also discovered Hr Ms Java.

Expedition member Kevin Denlay reports that although the team's principal objective was to locate HMS Exeter, sunk two days later, they were thrilled to find the two Dutch cruisers instead.

References
Thanks to Kevin Denlay for this information and photographs.

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