Parading the Colors
 

 


28 February 2012: The crew of the USS Blue Ridge (LCC-19) prepare to commemorate the seventieth anniversary of the Battle of the Java Sea. The color guard at left bears the national flags of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the Commonwealth of Australia, the United States of America, the Republic of Indonesia (formerly the Dutch East Indies) and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Sailors and marines of all these countries took part in the Java Sea battle and subsequent actions, during which five Allied cruisers and five destroyers were sunk by the Japanese. The wreath will be consigned to the sea in memory of those who lost their lives in the battle. The Blue Ridge was on passage through the Java Sea on the anniversary date. Remembrance ceremonies were also held in Australia, Britain and the Netherlands.



 BACK to WAR FLAGS Front Page