Italian destroyer Espero was one of eight Turbine-class destroyers built for the Regia Marina (Royal Italian Navy) during the 1920s. She was named after a westerly wind, Espero, or Ponente, common in summer in the Mediterranean. Completed in 1928, Espero was sent to Shanghai after the Shanghai Incident on 28 January 1932. After encountering heavy seas, she had to stop at Saigon, French Indochina, then stayed in the Far East even after a truce had been negotiated between China and Japan.
After Italy entered World War II on 10 June 1940, Espero was part of the 2nd Destroyer Squadron, based at Taranto. Only seventeen days after Italy's entry into the war, Espero was sunk during the Battle of the Espero Convoy as she covered the convoy's retreat, the first surface engagement between Allied and Italian warships. The ship was the first Italian destroyer to be lost in World War II.
Design and description
The Turbine-class destroyers were enlarged and improved versions of the preceding Sauro class. They had an overall length of 93.2 meters (306ft), a beam of 9.2 meters (30ft 2in) and a mean draft of 3 meters (9ft 10in).[1] They displaced 1,090 metric tons (1,070 long tons) at standard load, and 1,700 metric tons (1,670 long tons) at deep load. Their complement was 12 officers and 167 enlisted men.[2]
The Turbines were powered by two Parsons geared steam turbines, each driving one propeller shaft using steam supplied by three Thornycroft boilers. The turbines were rated at 40,000 shaft horsepower (30,000kW) for a speed of 33 knots (61km/h; 38mph) in service,[3] although Espero reached a speed of 38.4 knots (71.1km/h; 44.2mph) during her sea trials while lightly loaded.[4] They carried enough fuel oil to give them a range of 3,200 nautical miles (5,900km; 3,700mi) at a speed of 14 knots (26km/h; 16mph).[1]
After the Shanghai Incident of January 1932 which led to hostilities between China and Japan, Italy decided to send two warships and the San Marco Battalion to protect their colony in Shanghai. Trento and Espero were selected for the mission. Both vessels departed from Gaeta on 5 February 1932 under command of Admiral Domenico Cavagnari.[6]Trento reached Shanghai on 4 March, while Espero, slowed down by rough weather, had to stop at Saigon before reaching China three days later. After a truce was negotiated between Japan and China, Trento left Shanghai on 14 May 1932 for the return journey to Italy, while Espero stayed behind for a year to complement and strengthen Italian naval squadron in the Far East.[7] In 1934 Espero, along with Ostro, Zeffiro and Borea formed the 4th Destroyer Squadron, part of the 2nd Naval Division.[8]
On 27 June 1940 Espero, commanded by CaptainEnrico Baroni, sailed from Taranto at 22:45 for the first war mission, along with Ostro and Zeffiro. The three vessels were to transport to Tobruk two light anti-aircraft batteries, 120 short tons (110t) of ammunition (450,000 rounds) and 162 members of the Voluntary Militia for National Security.[10]
On 28 June 1940 at 12:10, about 50mi (43nmi; 80km) west of Zakynthos, the convoy was sighted by a British reconnaissance Short Sunderland plane.[11] As they were within striking range of the British 7th Cruiser Squadron, composed of light cruisers Liverpool, Orion, Neptune, Gloucester and Sydney, Admiral John Tovey ordered them to intercept the Italians. The Italian column was sighted by the Allied ships around 18:30, about 100 miles north of Tobruk, and at 18:36 Liverpool opened fire from 22,000yd (20,000m) at the surprised Italian flotilla.[12] At 18:59 Orion also opened fire from 18,000yd (16,000m). The Italian destroyers were theoretically faster than the British cruisers, but due to their age and heavy cargo on board their speed advantage was nullified. In addition, Espero's third boiler turned out to be defective, limiting the destroyer's speed to just 25 knots (46km/h; 29mph).[12] Captain Baroni, therefore, decided to sacrifice his ship in order to cover the escape of Zeffiro and Ostro, and ordered them to disengage and sail for Benghazi at full speed. Espero laid smokescreens and conducted evasive maneuvers, engaging Liverpool's division with guns, and simultaneously firing three torpedoes at Orion.[12]
While Liverpool and Gloucester took on Espero, the other three cruisers tried to get around the smokescreens to attack the fleeing Ostro and Zeffiro, but were ordered to abandon their pursuit and concentrate on Espero instead. Due to zigzagging Espero managed to avoid being hit, but by 19:20 the range between her and Liverpool had shortened to 14,000yd (13,000m). In fact, Italians drew first blood, when an Italian 4.7in (120mm) shell hit Liverpool just 3ft above the waterline, with splinters penetrating the warheads of two torpedoes, but caused little damage otherwise.[13][12] Despite heavy firing, Espero was not hit until 20:00, when her engine rooms were struck bringing the vessel to a stop. The 7th Squadron expended about 5,000 shells, more than 1,600 of main caliber, before the Italian destroyer was sunk, after 130 minutes of fierce fighting. Sydney rescued 47 out of 225 men from the Italian destroyer, and thirty six more escaped on rafts, but only six of them were later found alive by Italian submarine Topazio almost 20 days later.[14] Captain Baroni died aboard his ship, and was posthumously awarded the Medaglia d´oro al valor militare.[14]
Brescia, Maurizio (2012). Mussolini's Navy: A Reference Guide to the Regina Marina 1930–45. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN978-1-59114-544-8.
Fraccaroli, Aldo (1968). Italian Warships of World War II. Shepperton, UK: Ian Allan. ISBN0-7110-0002-6.
Greene, Jack & Massignani, Alessandro (1998). The Naval War in the Mediterranean, 1940–1943. London: Chatham Publishing. ISBN1-86176-057-4.
McMurtrie, Francis E., ed. (1937). Jane's Fighting Ships 1937. London: Sampson Low. OCLC927896922.
O'Hara, Vincent P. (2009). Struggle for the Middle Sea: The Great Navies at War in the Mediterranean Theater, 1940–1945. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN978-1-59114-648-3.
Roberts, John (1980). "Italy". In Chesneau, Roger (ed.). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1922–1946. New York: Mayflower Books. pp.280–317. ISBN0-8317-0303-2.
Rohwer, Jürgen (2005). Chronology of the War at Sea 1939–1945: The Naval History of World War Two (Third Reviseded.). Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN1-59114-119-2.
Whitley, M. J. (1988). Destroyers of World War 2: An International Encyclopedia. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN1-85409-521-8.
The Zara class was a group of four heavy cruisers built for the Italian Regia Marina in the late 1920s and the early 1930s. The class comprised the vessels Zara, Fiume, Gorizia, and Pola, the last of which was completed to a slightly different design. The ships were a substantial improvement over the preceding Trento-class cruisers, incorporating significantly heavier armor protection at the cost of the very high speed of the Trentos. They carried the same main battery of eight 203 mm (8.0 in) guns and had a maximum speed of 32 knots. Among the best-protected heavy cruisers built by any navy in the 1930s, the heavy armor was acquired only by violating the terms of the Washington Naval Treaty, which limited cruiser displacement to 10,000 long tons (10,160 t).
The Trento class was a group of two heavy cruisers built for the Italian Regia Marina in the late 1920s, the first such vessels built for the Italian fleet. The two ships in the class—Trento and Trieste, were named after the redeemed cities of Trento and Trieste annexed from the Austro-Hungarian empire after the victory in World War I. The ships were very lightly armored, with only a 70 mm (2.8 in) thick armored belt, though they possessed a high speed and heavy main battery of eight 203 mm (8 in) guns. Nominally built under the restrictions of the Washington Naval Treaty, the two cruisers nevertheless exceeded the displacement limits imposed by the treaty.
Bartolomeo Colleoni was an Italian Giussano-class light cruiser, that served in the Regia Marina during World War II. She was named after Bartolomeo Colleoni, an Italian military leader of the 15th century.
Trento was the first of two Trento-class cruisers; they were the first heavy cruisers built for the Italian Regia Marina. The ship was laid down in February 1925, launched in October 1927, and was commissioned in April 1929. Trento was very lightly armored, with only a 70 mm (2.8 in) thick armored belt, though she possessed a high speed and heavy main battery of eight 203 mm (8 in) guns. Though nominally built under the restrictions of the Washington Naval Treaty, the two cruisers significantly exceeded the displacement limits imposed by the treaty.
The Turbine-class destroyer was a group of eight destroyers built for the Regia Marina in the 1920s. The ships played a minor role in the Spanish Civil War of 1936–1937, supporting the Nationalists. All the ships of the class were lost during World War II.
The Sauro class were a group of four destroyers built for the Regia Marina in the late 1920s. They were based in the Red Sea Italian colony of Eritrea and all fought in World War II being sunk during the East African Campaign in 1941.
The Battle of the Duisburg Convoy, also known as the Battle of the BETA Convoy, was fought on the night of 8/9 November 1941 between an Italian convoy, its escorts and four British ships. The convoy was named "BETA" by the Italian naval authorities and carried supplies for the Italian Army, civilian colonists and the Afrika Korps in Italian Libya.
The Battle of the Espero Convoy on 28 June 1940, was the first surface engagement between Italian and Allied warships of the Second World War. Three 36 kn Italian destroyers made a run from Taranto for Tobruk in Libya to transport Blackshirt anti-tank units, in case of an armoured attack from Egypt by the British.
Enrico Baroni was an Italian naval officer during World War II.
Ostro was one of eight Turbine-class destroyers built for the Regia Marina during the 1920s. She was named after a southerly wind, Ostro, common in the Mediterranean and Adriatic. The ship played a minor role in the Spanish Civil War of 1936–1937, supporting the Nationalists.
Nembo was one of eight Turbine-class destroyer built for the Regia Marina during the 1920s. Her name means nimbus. The ship played a minor role in the Spanish Civil War of 1936–1937, supporting the Nationalists.
Borea was one of eight Turbine-class destroyers built for the Regia Marina during the late 1920s. She was named after a northerly wind, Borea, bringing frigid, dry air to the Italian peninsula. The ship played a minor role in the Spanish Civil War of 1936–1937, supporting the Nationalists.
Zeffiro was one of eight Turbine-class destroyer built for the Regia Marina during the 1920s. She was named after a westerly wind, Zeffiro, common in summer in the Mediterranean. The ship played a minor role in the Spanish Civil War of 1936–1937, supporting the Nationalists.
Turbine was the lead ship of her class of eight destroyers built for the Regia Marina during the 1920s. Her name means whirlwind.
Euro was one of eight Turbine-class destroyers built for the Regia Marina during the 1920s. She was named after Euro, weak winter easterly wind bringing rain and storms to the Mediterranean.
Aquilone was one of eight Turbine-class destroyers built for the Regia Marina during the late 1920s. She was named after Aquilone, a cold northerly wind.
Nazario Sauro was the lead ship of her class of four destroyers built for the Regia Marina in the 1920s. Completed in 1926, she served in World War II.
Quintino Sella was the lead ship of her class of four destroyers built for the Regia Marina in the 1920s. Completed in 1926, she served in World War II.
Francesco Crispi was one of four Sella-class destroyers built for the Regia Marina in the 1920s. Completed in 1927, she served in World War II.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
Kingdom of Italy 
