Commander Bio:George Dewey (1837-1917) was an admiral of the U.S. Navy (1903). At Naval Academy, he has a reputation as somewhat of a scrapper, but, on the other hand, during the Cival War (1861-1865), he proved himself to be a courageous combat officer whose ships frequently found themselves in the heat of the battle. The following three decades were nothing but routine service, until the war that made the future admiral go down in history began. At the end of 1897, when the conflict between Spain and the United States was about to turn into direct confrontation, Commodore Dewey was assigned to the Asiatic Squadron. He raised his flag on the newly constructed protected cruiser USS Olympia. With his usual energy, Dewey spent several months preparing his ships and their crews for combat actions. On May 1, 1898, the squadron led by USS Olympia entered the Manila Bay, silenced the shore batteries and, in several hours, turned the entire Spanish Pacific fleet into burning wreckage--demonstrating the power of modern quick-firing artillery. Without losing a single man, and with just one battle, Dewey ensured victory in the whole theater of operations and became a national hero. The special rank of Admiral of the Navy, the highest rank in the history of the United States, was established just for him in 1903. |
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