ISBN # 978-1-250-04191-3
“FOR CREW And COUNTRY” The Inspirational True Story of Bravery and Sacrifice Aboard the USS Samuel B. Roberts. By John Wukovits. Foreword by Captain Paul X. Rinn, USN, (Ret.). Captain Rinn was the Commanding Officer of the USS Samuel B. Roberts (FFG-58). The most dramatic naval battle of the Pacific War and the incredible sacrifice of the destroyer escort USS Samuel B. Roberts (DE-413). On October 25, 1944, the Samuel B. Roberts, along with the other twelve vessels comprising its unit (Taffy 3), stood between Japan’s largest battleship force ever sent to sea and General Douglas MacArthur’s transports inside Leyte Gulf. Faced with the surprise appearance of more than twenty Japanese battleships, cruisers, and destroyers, including the massive Yamato, at 70,000 tons the most potent battlewagon in the world, the small 1,200-ton Samuel B. Roberts turned immediately into action with six other American warships. Captain Copeland marked the occasion with one of the most poignant addresses ever given to men on the edge of battle: “Men,” he said over the intercom, “we are about to go into a fight against overwhelming odds from which survival cannot be expected.” The ship steered straight at the enemy in a near-suicidal attempt to deflect the more potent foe, allowing the small aircraft carriers (CVE’s) to escape, and buy time for MacArthur’s forces. Of 563 destroyers constructed during World War II, the Samuel B. Roberts was the only one sunk, going down with guns blazing in a duel reminiscent of Davy Crockett’s Alamo defenders. The small destroyer sank in 30 minutes with a loss of 90 men. The men who survived faced a horrifying three-day nightmare in the sea, where they battled a lack of food and water, scorching sun and numbing nighttime cold, and nature’s most feared adversary―sharks. This naval battle would go down as history’s greatest sea clash, the Battle of Samar―the dramatic climax of the Battle of Leyte Gulf. New Softbound book, 349 pages, 63 black and white photos, 3 diagrams, 9 maps, appendix, USS Samuel B. Roberts crew roster and an index.
New Book, just $8.99
Other books of interest:
The Battle Of Leyte Gulf – Edwin P. Hoyt
The Battle Of Leyte Gulf – By Thomas J. Cutler
The Battle For Leyte Gulf – By C. Van Woodward
Leyte Gulf: The Death Of The Princeton
The Last Stand Of The Tin Can Sailors
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The Battle To Save The Houston
Destroyer Escorts of World War Two
