The Mediterranean
As the sixteen battleships entered the Mediterranean on January 6, 1909 they were split up into their divisions so that all of the port visits could be accomplished with the remaining time of the cruise.
Admiral Sperry took his First Division north to Italy to provide relief to the earthquake victims.
The Second Division of Admiral Wainwright sailed directly to Marseilles to visit with the French. Wainwright sailed directly to Marseilles with the Georgia and Nebraska arriving on the 15th.
On January 16th the New Jersey and Rhode Island also arrived in Marseilles. Their reception was raucous and enthusiastic with French warships surrounding the Fleet in the harbour.
The Minnesota, Vermont and Kansas arrived at Nice and proved to be a great attraction to the community. W. D. Hunter, the American Consul at Nice, paid an official visit to the squadron on January 12th. The crews were given shore leave and the officers were entertained by many social events.
Rear Admiral Schroeder split his division by sending two ships to the Greece, and two ships to the Turkish cities of Beirut and Smyrna.
During their port visit of Smyrna a series of small earthquakes shook the buildings causing the planned festivities to be cancelled.
Schroeder kept his men aboard for the three days of the quakes. Smyrna was visited by the Virginia and Louisiana from January the 12th to the 25th. On January the 22nd the Missouri and Ohio joined them staying until the 25th when the four ships departed for Gibraltar.
The Third Division, under Admiral Seaton Schroeder, was tasked with sending ships to Piraeus, the Greek port for Athens. Schroeder split his fleet in two and sent the Missouri and Ohio to Athens. With only two ships visiting the port, it has proven to be one of the most difficult stops to find information on the Fleet's visit.
The Third Division was divided further after leaving Port Said sending a single ship the USS Kentucky to Tripoli for two days.
Meanwhile the Fourth Division was assigned to visit the ports of North Africa and the British facilities at Malta.
Three ships visited the British naval base at Malta, the Kearsarge, Illinois, and the Wisconsin from January 14th until the 19th. The photos below show the Wisconsin and Kearsarge which arrived in the harbour on the 14th while the Illinois arrived on the 17th.
Using this arrangement multiple visits were accomplished during a short period and the Fleet kept the planned schedule.
On January 31st the Fleet met in Gibraltar for coaling and preparations for their trans-Atlantic crossing.
Cheers
Sean
