Regia Marina – 8 destroyers: R.Pilo, G.C.Abba, P.Bronzetti, G.Missori, A.Mosto, I.Nievo, F.Nullo, S.Schiaffino 1914-1944 The Rosolino Pilo class was eight destroyers built at Odero and Pattison Italian Regia Marina before and during the First World War. They were an improved variant of the Indomitos from 1912 and typical of the “tre pipe” series. They were … Read more
Regia Marina – Audace (ii) 1917-1944 Audace is one of the most interesting destroyer of the Regia Marina for its long and original history. In WWI the Regia Marina fielded two destroyers named “Audace”. The first was launched in 1913 as a derivative of the Indomito & Ardito designs with Swiss Zoelly steam turbines for … Read more
Regia Marina – Audace, Animoso 1913-1916 Second entry into our dive in WWI Italian destroyers, the Audace class were different than the previous Indomito & Ardito designs, larger, with two funnels, and improvements in some ways, as the yard wanted to improve on the Ardito class. Unlike the “three pipe” which for the immense majority … Read more
Regia Marina – Six destroyers: Indomito, Impavido, Impetusoso, Insidioso, Intrepido, Irrequieto 1911-1944 Indomito class Destroyers (1912): We start a deep dive into Regia Marina’s destroyers by the Indomito class. Not with the earlier Soldati class (1906), or Ascaro, because the six Indomito were of a new design with forecastle which was followed for all subsequent … Read more
Scouts (cruisers) 1914-1950: Aquila, Sparviero, Nibbio, Falco (eagle, sparrowhawk, kite, falcon). Later Mărăști and Mărașești (1920), Ceuta and Melilla (1937), Lovkij, Legkij (1944). The Aquila class were four flotilla leaders built in Italy during the First World War, requisitioned after they had been order by Romania in 1913, and thus, taking part in the first … Read more
Protected Colonial Cruisers: Campania, Basilcata 1913-1937 The Campania class were two small protected cruisers built for the Regia Marina close to WWI. Campania and Basilicata were the very last built of their kind, before being replaced by far more faster scouts. The Campania class was indeed tailored for overseas colonies, to replace the 1890s Calabria. … Read more
Scouts (Cruisers, then destroyers) Carlo Mirabello, Carlo Alberto Racchia, Augusto Riboty 1916-1951 The Mirabello class were a group of three scout cruisers built for the Regia Marina in WWI. Very active in the Adriatic, they survived it. Carlo Alberto Racchia hit a mine in the Black Sea during the Allied intervention (Russian Civil War) by … Read more
Protected Cruiser, 1913-1937 Libia was an Italian protected cruiser in service by 1913. She had an unusual story. She was protected cruiser built in Italy in the 1900s, laid down in 1907 for the Ottoman Navy originally as “Drama” as a near-repeat of the Hamidiye. Not completed when the Italo-Turkish War broke out in 1911 … Read more
Scouts (Cruisers, then destroyers) Alessandro Poerio, Cesare Rossarol, Gugliemo Pepe 1915-1937 Huesca and Teruel (1937-1957) The Alessandro Poerio class were on paper three scout cruisers (“esploratore”) built before World War I and in 1921 given their small size, the two surviving ships were reclassified as destroyers. They were capable of 30 kts and at least … Read more
Caracciolo class battleships (1917) Italy – Regia Marina: RN Francesco Caracciolo, Marcantonio Colonna, Cristoforo Colombo, Francesco Morosini (1914-1921) The first Italian Fast Battleships The last class of Italian dreadnoughts conceived before the war was the Caracciolo class, started in 1914-15. They were radically new battleships, much faster and heavily armed: They presented the new generation … Read more
