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US battleship KANSAS
US battleship KANSAS

US battleship KANSAS

Datec 1908
Object number00003244
NamePostcard
MediumPaper, inks, light card, silver gelatin emulsion layer
DimensionsOverall: 88 x 140 mm
ClassificationsPosters and postcards
Credit LineANMM Collection Purchased with USA Bicentennial Gift funds
DescriptionUSS KANSAS took part in the American Great White Fleet tour in 1908 and visited 26 countries including Australia. The peace time tour was an expression of American naval strength and world power. It had a visible impact on the development of world political alliances at the time, specifically the growing partnership between America and Australia.HistoryIn December 1907 United States President Theodore Roosevelt sent a US Atlantic Battle Fleet of 16 battleships on a 14 month goodwill cruise around the world. The fleet was a chance for the Navy to practice seamanship and express America's world power. Roosevelt was also concerned about rising Japanese aggression and their expansionist foreign policy. The cruise would be a political and public relations exercise to build domestic support for more naval construction. Led by the flagship, USS CONNECTICUT, the Great White Fleet as it became known, consisted of 16 battleships painted white, as was the practice of all US Navy ships in times of peace. The ships sailed in four divisions of four ships each. Early in the voyage the order of the ships was altered to allow the best-looking vessels to be at the front of the fleet. The cruise incorporated six continents, 26 countries and 32 ports with 614 officers and 13,504 crew. It consumed 435,000 tons of coal, more than any other naval expedition and was the largest fleet to ever accomplish a circumnavigation of the globe. Australia was not originally on the itinerary route of the Great White Fleet, who only decided to visit after receiving a direct invitation from the Prime Minister Alfred Deakin. One quarter of the Australian population, over one million people, saw the Great White Fleet during its three-week visit to Sydney, Melbourne and Albany. Public holidays were declared and enthusiastic crowds flocked to see the ships and parades. Vast arrays of souvenirs were produced for a population caught up in the euphoria. The USS KANSAS was a Connecticut class battleship launched on 12 August 1905. After its shakedown cruise KANSAS took part in the Great White Fleet tour from 1907 to 1909 visiting 26 countries across the world. During its career KANSAS served in waters off France, England, Norway, Italy, Venezuela, Mexico and Haiti. During World War I it operated as a training vessel. It was decommissioned on 16 August 1921 and sold for scrapSignificanceAustralia welcomed the arrival of the United State’s Great White Fleet in 1908 through the production of souvenir items such as this postcard, which demonstrate the excitement the visit generated in the Australian public.