Giulio Cesare was one of three Conte di Cavour-class dreadnought battleships built for the Royal Italian Navy in the 1910s. Completed in 1914, she was little used and saw no combat during the First World War. The ship supported operations during the Corfu Incident in 1923 and spent much of the rest of the decade in reserve. She was rebuilt between 1933 and 1937 with more powerful guns, additional armor and considerably more speed than before.
The Battle of Taranto took place on the night of 11–12 November 1940 during the Second World War between British naval forces, under Admiral Andrew Cunningham, and Italian naval forces, under Admiral Inigo Campioni. The Royal Navy launched the first all-aircraft ship-to-ship naval attack in history, employing 21 Fairey Swordfish biplane torpedo bombers from the aircraft carrier HMS Illustrious in the Mediterranean Sea.
Giuseppe Garibaldi is an Italian aircraft carrier, the first through deck aviation ship ever built for the Italian Navy, and the first Italian ship built to operate fixed-wing aircraft. She is equipped with short take-off and vertical landing aircraft (STOVL) aircraft and helicopters. Giuseppe Garibaldi was involved in combat air operations off Somalia, Kosovo, Afghanistan and Libya.
A seaplane tender is a boat or ship that supports the operation of seaplanes. Some of these vessels, known as seaplane carriers, could not only carry seaplanes but also provided all the facilities needed for their operation; these ships are regarded by some as the first aircraft carriers and appeared just before the First World War.
The Regia Marina 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.
Vittorio Veneto was the second member of the Littorio-class battleship that served in the Italian Regia Marina during World War II. The ship's keel was laid down in October 1934, launched in July 1937, and readied for service with the Italian fleet by August 1940. She was named after the Italian victory at Vittorio Veneto during World War I, and she had three sister ships: Littorio, Roma, and Impero, though only Littorio and Roma were completed during the war. She was armed with a main battery of nine 381-millimeter (15.0 in) guns in three triple turrets, and could steam at a speed of 30 knots.
Aquila was an Italian aircraft carrier converted from the trans-Atlantic passenger liner SS Roma. During World War II, Work on Aquila began in late 1941 at the Ansaldo shipyard in Genoa and continued for the next two years. With the signing of the Italian armistice on 8 September 1943, however, all work was halted and the vessel remained unfinished. Aquila was eventually scrapped in 1952.
Duilio was an Italian Andrea Doria-class battleship that served in the Regia Marina during World War I and World War II. She was named after the Roman fleet commander Gaius Duilius. Duilio was laid down in February 1912, launched in April 1913, and completed in May 1916. She was initially armed with a main battery of thirteen 305 mm (12.0 in) guns, but a major reconstruction in the late 1930s replaced these with ten 320 mm (13 in) guns. Duilio saw no action during World War I owing to the inactivity of the Austro-Hungarian fleet during the conflict. She cruised the Mediterranean in the 1920s and was involved in the Corfu incident in 1923.
Gorizia was the third member of the Zara class of heavy cruisers to be built for the Italian Regia Marina in the 1930s. Named for the town of Gorizia, the ship was laid down at the OTO Livorno shipyard in March 1930, was launched in December that year and was commissioned into the fleet in December 1931. Armed with a main battery of eight 8-inch (200 mm) guns, she was nominally within the 10,000-long-ton (10,000 t) limit imposed by the Washington Naval Treaty, though in reality she significantly exceeded this figure.
Bolzano was a unique heavy cruiser, sometimes considered to be a member of the Trento class, built for the Italian Regia Marina in the early 1930s, the last vessel of the type to be built by Italy. A modified version of the earlier Trento class, she had a heavier displacement, slightly shorter length, a newer model of 203-millimeter (8.0 in) gun, and a more powerful propulsion system, among other differences influenced by the Zara class that had followed the Trentos. Bolzano was built by the Gio. Ansaldo & C. between her keel laying in June 1930 and her commissioning in August 1933.
Muzio Attendolo was a Condottieri-class light cruiser of the Italian Regia Marina which fought in World War II. She was sunk in Naples by bombers of the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) on 4 December 1942. Although salvaged after the war, she was damaged beyond repair and was scrapped.
USS St. George (AV-16) was a Kenneth Whiting-class seaplane tender in the United States Navy.
The IMAM Ro.43 was an Italian reconnaissance single float seaplane, serving in the Regia Marina between 1935 and 1943.
Giuseppe Garibaldi was an Italian Duca degli Abruzzi-class light cruiser, that served in the Regia Marina during World War II. After the war she was retained by the Marina Militare and upgraded. She was built by CRDA, in Stabilimento Tecnico Triestino shipyard Trieste and named after the Italian general Giuseppe Garibaldi.
Roma, named after two previous ships and the city of Rome, was the third Littorio-class battleship of Italy's Regia Marina. The construction of both Roma and her sister ship Impero was due to rising tensions around the world and the navy's fear that only two Littorios, even in company with older pre-First World War battleships, would not be enough to counter the British and French Mediterranean Fleets. As Roma was laid down almost four years after the first two ships of the class, some small improvements were made to the design, including additional freeboard added to the bow.
Pola was a Zara-class heavy cruiser of the Italian Regia Marina, named after the Italian city of Pola. She was built in the Odero Terni Orlando shipyard in Livorno in the early 1930s and entered service in 1932. She was the fourth and last ship in the class, which also included Zara, Fiume, and Gorizia. Compared to her sisters, Pola was built as a flagship with a larger conning tower to accommodate an admiral's staff. Like her sisters, she was armed with a battery of eight 203-millimeter (8.0 in) guns and was capable of a top speed of 32 knots.
Fiume was a Zara-class heavy cruiser of the Italian Regia Marina, named after the Italian city of Fiume, she was the second of four ships in the class, and was built between April 1929 and November 1931. Armed with a main battery of eight 8-inch (200 mm) guns, she was nominally within the 10,000-long-ton (10,000 t) limit imposed by the Washington Naval Treaty, though in reality she significantly exceeded this figure.
Elba was a protected cruiser of the Italian Regia Marina. She was the fifth of six Regioni-class ships, all of which were named for regions of Italy, with the exception of Elba, which was named for the island. Elba was built by the Regio Cantieri di Castellammare di Stabia; her keel was laid in September 1890, she was launched in August 1893, and she was commissioned in February 1896. The ship was equipped with a main armament of four 15 cm (5.9 in) and six 12 cm (4.7 in) guns, and she could steam at a speed of nearly 18 knots.
Europa was a seaplane carrier of the Italian Regia Marina. Originally laid down as the merchant ship Manila, she was renamed Salacia in 1898, and then sold to German and then Italian shipping companies in 1911 and 1913, respectively. She became Quarto in 1913, and in February 1915 she was purchased by the Italian fleet, renamed Europa, and converted into a seaplane carrier with a capacity of eight seaplanes. She served as a seaplane base in Valona during World War I and supported the Allied response during the Battle of the Strait of Otranto in 1917. She was quickly sold for scrap in 1920 after the war ended.
Italy
