Australia honours 645 sailors lost in the sinking of HMAS Sydney

The sinking of the Sydney with its 645 men Nov. 19, 1941 stunned Australia - it was one of the country's greatest maritime losses - and the government banned all media from reporting the news for 12 days as it scrambled to explain what happened.

The wrecks of the Royal Australian Navy light cruiser and the German ship that sank it were only discovered last March.

On the sea above the wreck site Wednesday, nearly 300 relatives of the lost men threw wreaths, tokens and plaques into the sea from aboard the HMAS Manoora, according to Cmdr. Paul Mandziy, the Manoora's captain.

Navy buglers played "Last Post" as the white navy flag was lowered to half-staff at war memorial sites across the country.

In Western Australia, the remains of an unknown sailor believed to be one of the Sydney crew were reburied with full military honours in the cemetery closest to the location of the battle.

"As the nation united in grief in 1941, it came together today to remember the courage and sacrifice of the men lost with HMAS Sydney II," Warren Snowdon, minister for defence science and personnel, said at the funeral.

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd led a ceremony at the Australian War Memorial in Canberra, the capital, telling guests that Australia is a greater country because of the sacrifice of these men.

"What finally would the warriors of Sydney say to us today, at this the dawn of our Pacific century? I believe they would also say this: Be warriors for peace," Rudd said.

At a ceremony in Sydney, a tearful Janet Cartwright, whose uncle was lost on the ship, lay a wreath at a memorial. "I can remember him quite clearly, and this is such an honour."

At Melbourne's war memorial, Gordon White told reporters of how he left the ship just days before it was sunk to be treated for tonsillitis.

"I think of them every hour of every day," said White, who served on the cruiser from 1938 to 1941.

In November 1941, the Sydney engaged in battle with Germany's HSK Kormoran off the coast of Western Australia. Both vessels sank. All on board the Sydney went down with the ship, with the possible exception of one unknown sailor who washed ashore a few months later. The 317 survivors of the 397 aboard Kormoran gave the only witness accounts of what happened.

A government-funded research team finally located the ship last Marchusing the latest sonar technology at a depth of 2.5 kilometres.

The Kormoran was found 23 kilometres away. Scientists hope video footage of the wreck will provide clues to its final moments, including why there was apparently no organized effort to abandon the ship.