History | |
---|---|
Kingdom of Italy | |
Name | Intrepido |
Namesake | "Intrepid" |
Builder | Cantiere Pattison , Naples, Kingdom of Italy |
Laid down | 1 June 1910 |
Launched | 7 August 1912 |
Commissioned | 6 February 1913 |
Motto | Intrepido maxime ardua ("Arduous undertakings befit the intrepid") (motto of Gabriele D'Annunzio) |
Fate | Sunk 4 December 1915 |
General characteristics | |
Type | Destroyer |
Displacement | 672–770 metric tons (741–849 short tons) |
Length | |
Beam | 24 ft (7.3 m) |
Draft | 7 ft 11 in (2.41 m) |
Propulsion |
|
Speed |
|
Endurance |
|
Complement | 4–5 officers, 65–74 enlisted men |
Armament | As built:
After refit:
|
Intrepido (English: "Intrepid" ) was an Italian Indomito-class destroyer. Commissioned into service in the Italian Regia Marina (Royal Navy) in 1913, she served in World War I, playing an active role in the Adriatic campaign until she was sunk in 1915.
Intrepido was laid down at the Cantiere Pattison (English: Pattison Shipyard ) in Naples, Italy, on 1 June 1910. She was launched on 7 August 1912 and commissioned on 6 February 1913.
Intrepido was assigned to the 3rd Destroyer Squadron. After shakedown and training, she took part in various cruises in the Eastern and Western Mediterranean Sea during 1913. [2] She was transferred to the 2nd Destroyer Squadron in 1914 and during that year engaged in minesweeping operations, searching for stray mines in the southern Adriatic Sea. [2]
World War I broke out in 1914, and the Kingdom of Italy entered the war on the side of the Allies with its declaration of war on Austria-Hungary on 23 May 1915. At the time, Intrepido, under the command of Capitano di corvetta (Corvette Captain) De Grenet, [3] and the destroyers Indomito, Impavido, Impetuoso, Insidioso, and Irrequieto made up the 2nd Destroyer Squadron. The squadron, under the command of Capitano de fregata (Frigate Captain) P. Orsini, was based at Taranto, although although either Impetuoso or Indomito or both were visiting La Spezia that day. [3]
On 5 June 1915, Intrepido escorted the British Royal Navy light cruiser HMS Dublin as Dublin bombarded Donzella on the coast of Dalmatia. [2] On 9 June 1915, Intrepido, Impetuoso, Indomito, Insidioso, Irrequieto, the protected cruiser Quarto, and the destroyers Animoso, Ardente, Ardito, and Audace escorted the armored cruisers Giuseppe Garibaldi and Vettor Pisani as they participated in a bombardment of the lighthouses at the Cape of Rodon and Shëngjin (known to the Italians as San Giovanni di Medua) on the coast of the Principality of Albania. [2]
In the early hours of 17 July 1915 Intrepido, Animoso, Irrequieto, and Quarto bombarded the radiotelegraph station and other Austro-Hungarian military installations on Šipan (known to the Italians as Giuppana), an island off the coast of Dalmatia. [4] The bombardment, as well as another one carried out by the 5th Naval Division, was interrupted when the armored cruiser Vettor Pisani of the 5th Naval Division sighted an Austro-Hungarian submarine at 04:25. [4] After the Italian ships began their return voyage to Italy, the Austro-Hungarian submarine U-4 attacked at 04:40 and torpedoed Giuseppe Garibaldi, [4] which sank within minutes. Intrepido took part in the rescue effort, which saved 525 men out of the 578 on board Giuseppe Garibaldi. [2] [4]
A few hours after an Austro-Hungarian Navy force subjected the Palagruža (known to the Italians as the Pelagosa) archipelago in the Adriatic Sea to a heavy bombardment during the night of 16–17 August 1915, Intrepido, Impavido, Quarto, Animoso, and Ardito, which were on a cruise in the Adriatic Sea north of the line Brindisi–Cattaro, interrupted their operations to respond. They reached Palagruža at around 10:00 on 17 August 1915. [4]
On 3 December 1915 Intrepido — now under the command of Capitano di corvetta (Corvette Captain) Leva — along with Impetuoso , Indomito, Insidioso, and Irrequieto got underway from Brindisi to escort one of the first supply convoys for Italian troops in Albania. As the convoy — composed of the troop transports Re Umberto and Valparaiso, carrying a total of 1,800 men and 150 draft animals — approached Shëngjin on the coast of Albania, Re Umberto, with 765 men on board, hit a mine laid by the Imperial German Navy submarine UC-14 , broke in two, and sank in 15 minutes. Rescuers saved 712 men, of whom Intrepido rescued about a hundred. [2] [4] [5]
After disembarking the survivors at Vlorë (known to the Italians as Valona) in Albania, Intrepido got back underway to carry out an anti-submarine patrol. At 14:00 on 4 December 1915, while returning from her patrol, Intrepido struck a mine south of the Karaburun Peninsula on the coast of Albania. The explosion blew off her bow and tore apart her forward superstructure, killing one officer and three enlisted men and wounding others, including Leva, who suffered serious injuries. [4] [5] Intrepido′s crew beached her near Point Linguetta to prevent her from sinking, but she was deemed unsalvageable. She was stripped of her guns, torpedo tubes, and other useful equipment and abandoned. [5] A few days later her wreck sank in deeper water. [5]
Intrepido′s wreck was identified on the seabed near Point Linguetta in April 2007. It is partially destroyed, with debris scattered over an area of approximately 32 square metres (38 sq yd). [2]
The Regia Marina (RM) or Royal Italian Navy was the navy of the Kingdom of Italy from 1861 to 1946. In 1946, with the birth of the Italian Republic, the Regia Marina changed its name to Marina Militare.
The Ciclone class were a group of torpedo boats or destroyer escorts built for the Italian Navy which fought in the Second World War. They were modified, slightly heavier, versions of the previous Orsa class, with improved stability and heavier anti-submarine armament. These ships were built as part of the Italian war mobilization programme and completed in 1942–43.
The First Battle of Durazzo was a naval battle of World War I. It was fought off Durazzo, Albania at the end of December 1915 and involved the navies of Austria-Hungary, the United Kingdom, Italy, and France.
The Adriatic Campaign of World War I was a naval campaign fought between the Central Powers and the Mediterranean squadrons of Great Britain, France, the Kingdom of Italy, Australia, and the United States.
Léon Gambetta was the lead ship of her class of three armored cruisers built for the French Navy in the first decade of the 20th century. Armed with four 194-millimeter (7.6 in) guns, the ships were much larger and more powerfully armed than their predecessors. Completed in 1905, she was initially assigned to the Northern Squadron where she served as a flagship. The ship was transferred to the Mediterranean Squadron in 1910 and remained there for the rest of her career.
The Indomito class was a class of destroyers of the Italian Royal Navy before and during World War I. Eight were built, six of which at Naples by Societa Pattison, between 1910 and 1913. They were the first large Italian destroyers and the first fitted with steam turbines. The class is sometimes also called the I class. Two of the class were sunk during World War I, but the four surviving ships remained in service until 1937–38. One of the class, Insidioso, was reinstated during World War II and served in the Règia Marina and the German Kriegsmarine before being sunk by U.S. aircraft in late 1944.
The Battle of the Strait of Otranto of 1917 was the result of an Austro-Hungarian raid during the Adriatic Campaign of World War I on the Otranto Barrage, an Allied naval blockade of the Strait of Otranto. The battle took place on 15 May 1917, and was the largest surface action in the Adriatic Sea during World War I. The Otranto Barrage was a fixed barrier, composed of lightly armed naval drifters with anti-submarine nets coupled with minefields and supported by Allied naval patrols.
Quarto was a unique protected cruiser built by the Italian Regia Marina in the 1910s. Her keel was laid in November 1909, she was launched in August 1911, and was completed in March 1913. She was the first Italian cruiser to be equipped with steam turbines, which gave her a top speed of 28 knots. Her high speed was a requirement for the role in which she was designed to serve: a scout for the main Italian fleet.
Bisson was the name ship of her class of destroyers built for the French Navy during the 1910s, entering service in 1913. She served in the Mediterranean Sea during the First World War, sinking the Austro-Hungarian submarine U-3 on 6 July 1915 and took part in the Battle of Durazzo in December 1915 and the Battle of the Strait of Otranto in May 1917. She was stricken in 1933 and scrapped in 1939.
Insidioso was an Italian Indomito-class destroyer. Commissioned into service in the Italian Regia Marina in 1914, she served in World War I, playing an active role in the Adriatic campaign and seeing action in the Battle of the Strait of Otranto in 1917. Reclassified as a torpedo boat in 1929, she was stricken in 1938. Reinstated in 1941, she was captured by Nazi German forces in 1943 during World War II. She then served in the German Kriegsmarine as TA21 until she was sunk in 1944.
Ardito was the lead ship of the Italian Ardito-class destroyers. Commissioned into service in the Italian Regia Marina in 1913, she served in World War I, playing an active role in the Adriatic campaign. Reclassified as a torpedo boat in 1929, she was discarded in 1931.
Ardente was the second and final unit of the Italian Ardito-class destroyers. Commissioned into service in the Italian Regia Marina in 1913, she served in World War I, playing an active role in the Adriatic campaign. Reclassified as a torpedo boat in 1929, she was discarded in 1937.
Impavido was an Italian Indomito-class destroyer. Commissioned into service in the Italian Regia Marina in 1913, she served in World War I, playing an active role in the Adriatic campaign and seeing action in the Battle of the Strait of Otranto. Reclassified as a torpedo boat in 1929, she was stricken in 1937.
Impetuoso was an Italian Indomito-class destroyer. Commissioned into service in the Italian Regia Marina in 1914, she served in World War I, playing an active role in the Adriatic campaign until she was sunk in 1916.
Irrequieto was an Italian Indomito-class destroyer. Commissioned into service in the Italian Regia Marina in 1913, she served in World War I, playing an active role in the Adriatic campaign. Reclassified as a torpedo boat in 1929, she was stricken in 1937.
Indomito was an Italian Indomito-class destroyer. Commissioned into service in the Italian Regia Marina in 1913, she served in World War I, playing an active role in the Adriatic campaign and seeing action in the Battle of the Strait of Otranto in 1917. Reclassified as a torpedo boat in 1929, she was stricken in 1937 and subsequently scrapped.
Ostro ("Ostro") was an Italian Lampo-class destroyer. Commissioned into service in the Italian Regia Marina in 1901, she served in the Italo-Turkish War and World War I. She was stricken in 1920.
Strale ("Javelin") was an Italian Lampo-class destroyer. Commissioned into service in the Italian Regia Marina in 1901, she served in the Italo-Turkish War and World War I. She was stricken in 1924.
Borea ("Boreas") was an Italian Nembo-class destroyer. Commissioned into service in the Italian Regia Marina in 1903, she served in the Italo-Turkish War and World War I, playing an active role in the Adriatic campaign until she was sunk in 1917 during the Battle of the Strait of Otranto.
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