Italian battleship Vittorio Veneto
Vittorio Veneto shortly before completion in 1940
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History | |
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Italy | |
Name | Vittorio Veneto |
Namesake | Battle of Vittorio Veneto |
Operator | Regia Marina |
Ordered | 10 June 1934 |
Builder | Cantieri Riuniti dell'Adriatico (C.R.D.A.), Trieste |
Laid down | 28 October 1934 |
Launched | 25 July 1937 |
Sponsored by | Signora Maria Bertuzzi |
Commissioned | 28 April 1940 |
Decommissioned | 1 February 1948 |
Stricken | 1 February 1948 |
Fate | Scrapped at La Spezia 1951–54 |
General characteristics | |
Class and type | Littorio-class battleship |
Displacement |
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Length | 237.76 m (780 ft 1 in) |
Beam | 32.82 m (107 ft 8 in) |
Draft | 9.6 m (31 ft 6 in) |
Installed power |
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Propulsion |
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Speed | 30 kn (35 mph; 56 km/h) |
Range | 3,920 mi (6,310 km; 3,410 nmi) at 20 kn (37 km/h; 23 mph) |
Complement | 1,830 to 1,950 |
Sensors and processing systems | EC 3 ter 'Gufo' Radar[1] |
Armament |
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Armor |
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Aircraft carried | 3 aircraft ( Reggiane Re.2000 ) |
Aviation facilities | 1 stern catapult |
Vittorio Veneto was the second member of the Littorio-class battleship that served in the Italian Regia Marina (Royal Navy) 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 (56 km/h; 35 mph).
Vittorio Veneto saw extensive service during the war. The ship escaped undamaged during the British
Description
Vittorio Veneto was 237.76 meters (780 ft 1 in)
Vittorio Veneto's main armament consisted of nine
The ship was protected by a main
Service history
Construction
Vittorio Veneto was ordered under the 1934 construction program, and was named for the
On 17 October, with the cleaning completed, the dockyard personnel flooded the drydock to conduct stability tests. The new battleship moved to Trieste on 19 October, and her trials began on 23 October. The trials, which also included tests for the ship's weaponry, lasted until March 1940, after which some additional fitting-out work was completed.[9] She was delivered on 28 April, though she was not yet complete. On 1 May, Vittorio Veneto was sent to La Spezia for final fitting-out work, escorted by the destroyers Leone Pancaldo and Emanuele Pessagno. On 6 May, she was loaded with shells for her main battery; the loading work for the main and secondary guns lasted until 20 May. Later that day, she was transferred to Taranto, escorted by the destroyers Ascari and Carabiniere, where she joined the 9th Division of the Italian fleet. The following month, Italy joined the war against Britain and France, though it wasn't until 2 August that Vittorio Veneto and Littorio were formally declared operational.[10][11]
World War II
On 31 August – 2 September 1940, Vittorio Veneto sortied as part of an Italian force of five battleships, ten
On the night of 10–11 November, the British Mediterranean Fleet launched an air raid on the harbor in Taranto. Twenty-one Swordfish torpedo bombers launched from the aircraft carrier HMS Illustrious attacked the Italian fleet in two waves.[18] The Italian base was defended by twenty-one 90 mm anti-aircraft guns and dozens of smaller 37 mm and 20 mm guns, along with twenty-seven barrage balloons. The defenders did not possess radar, however, and so were caught by surprise when the Swordfish arrived. The first wave struck at 20:35, followed by the second about an hour later.[19] Vittorio Veneto was undamaged in the attack, but three other battleships were hit, two of which were severely damaged.[18] The morning after the Taranto raid, Vittorio Veneto led the Italian fleet to Naples. There, she took over the role of fleet flagship, under the command of Admiral Inigo Campioni.[12]
Battle of Cape Spartivento
On 17 November, Vittorio Veneto and Giulio Cesare—the only operational Italian battleships—participated in an attempt to intercept the British Operation White convoy to Malta, though the forces made no contact.[20] On 26 November, the Italian fleet made another attempt to attack a British convoy, Operation Collar, which resulted in the Battle of Cape Spartivento (known as the Battle of Cape Teulada to the Italians). Vittorio Veneto, Giulio Cesare, six cruisers, and fourteen destroyers attempted to catch a convoy steaming to Malta. The British escort included the aircraft carrier Ark Royal, the battleship Ramillies, and the battlecruiser Renown; Italian aerial reconnaissance detected the escorts but exaggerated their strength and Campioni, under orders to not risk his two operational battleships against equal or stronger opponents, broke off the engagement shortly after it began. Vittorio Veneto briefly engaged several British cruisers at the extreme range 27,000 metres (17 miles). Vittorio Veneto fired 19 rounds in seven salvos from long range and slightly damaged the light cruiser Manchester; that was enough for the now outgunned British cruisers, which turned back at the fourth salvo.[21][22] During the engagement, Ark Royal launched torpedo bombers against Vittorio Veneto, but the latter successfully evaded the torpedoes.[12]
Repeated British air attacks on Naples, one of which damaged the cruiser Pola, prompted the high command to move Vittorio Veneto and the rest of the major warships of the fleet to Sardinia on 14 December. They were returned to Naples six days later, however, after the high command concluded that removing the fleet to Sardinia would allow British convoys from Alexandria to reach Malta with relative ease.[23] On the night of 8–9 January 1941, the British launched an air raid with Vickers Wellington bombers on the Italian fleet in Naples, but the aircraft again failed to hit Vittorio Veneto; Giulio Cesare was slightly damaged by several near misses. Both ships were moved to La Spezia the next day, with Vittorio Veneto providing cover for Giulio Cesare. Vittorio Veneto was now the only operational battleship in the fleet.[12][23][24] Giulio Cesare was back in service by early February, as was Andrea Doria. The three battleships, along with eight destroyers, attempted to intercept Force H on 8 February, which was en route to bombard Genoa. The two forces did not encounter each other, and the Italian fleet returned to La Spezia.[12]
Battle of Cape Matapan
Vittorio Veneto returned to Naples on 22 March, and four days later led an attempt to attack British shipping off Greece, in company with eight cruisers and nine destroyers.
During this period of the battle, torpedo bombers from the carrier HMS Formidable arrived on the scene and their attack forced Vittorio Veneto to break off the engagement with the British cruisers to take evasive action. She evaded the torpedoes, but the attack convinced Iachino that the Mediterranean Fleet was at sea, which prompted him to end the operation and return to port. The British launched several air attacks against the Italian fleet in an attempt to slow down Vittorio Veneto, including land-based Blenheim bombers from Greece and Crete. Later in the afternoon Formidable launched a second strike, and at 15:10 one of her Swordfish hit Vittorio Veneto on her port side, aft.[26] The Italian anti-aircraft gunners shot the plane down after it launched its torpedo. The hit sheared off the port side propeller, damaged the shaft, jammed the port rudder, and disabled the aft port pumps. It also caused severe flooding—some 4,000 long tons (4,100 t) of water entered the ship—which gave her a 4–4.5 degree list to port, and forced her to stop for about ten minutes. While she was immobilized, a Blenheim bomber dropped a bomb that landed near her stern; the blast caused further, minor damage to the stern.[27][28]
The damage control parties had great difficulty in controlling and reducing the flooding, as they could use only emergency hand pumps. Some forward and starboard voids were counter-flooded to reduce the list. In the meantime, engine room personnel were able to restart the starboard shafts and steering could be effected with the backup hand-steering gear.[29] After she got back underway, she was able to slowly increase her speed to 20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph) using only her starboard shafts. While the Italian fleet was withdrawing, Formidable launched another air strike of nine Swordfish in an attempt to slow Vittorio Veneto down. But instead of hitting the Italian battleship, they struck the cruiser Pola, leaving her dead in the water. Vittorio Veneto returned to port while two cruisers and several destroyers were detached to protect Pola; all three cruisers and two destroyers were sunk in a furious night action at very close range with the battleships Valiant, Warspite, and Barham.[29] Vittorio Veneto meanwhile reached Taranto on 29 March, where repairs lasted until July.[30] She was not fully operational again until August.[31]
Later operations
Vittorio Veneto and Littorio participated in an unsuccessful sortie to intercept British forces on 22–25 August. The British had intended to mine Livorno and launch an air raid on northern Sardinia, but Italian agents in Spain warned the Regia Marina of the British operation when it departed Gibraltar. The Italian fleet positioned itself too far to the south, however, and aerial reconnaissance failed to locate the British.[32] A month later, Vittorio Veneto led the attack on the Allied convoy in Operation Halberd on 27 September 1941, in company with Littorio, five cruisers, and fourteen destroyers. The British had hoped to lure out the Italian fleet and attack it with a powerful convoy escort centered on the battleships Rodney, Nelson, and Prince of Wales. It too ended without contact with the British fleet; neither side located the other, but Italian torpedo bombers hit Nelson. At 14:00, Iachino cancelled the operation and ordered the fleet to return to port.[33]
On 13 December, she participated in another operation to escort a convoy to North Africa, but the attempt was broken off after a British radio deception effort convinced the Italians that the British fleet was in the area. While returning to port the following day, Vittorio Veneto was torpedoed by the British
On 14 June, Vittorio Veneto participated in the interception of the
Fate
On 12 November, Vittorio Veneto was moved to Naples from Taranto in response to the Allied invasion of North Africa.[35] While en route, the British submarine HMS Umbra unsuccessfully attacked Vittorio Veneto.[38] An American air raid on the harbor on 4 December prompted the Italians to withdraw the fleet to La Spezia, where it remained for the rest of Italy's active participation in the war.[35] On 5 June 1943, Vittorio Veneto was badly damaged by an American air raid on La Spezia; she was hit by two large bombs toward the bow, though only one detonated. That bomb passed through the ship and exploded under the hull, causing serious structural damage. The damage forced her to be transferred to Genoa for repair work, since the dockyard in La Spezia had also been damaged by the attack.[39] On 3 September, Italy signed an armistice with the Allies, ending her active participation in World War II. Six days later, Vittorio Veneto and the rest of the Italian fleet sailed for Malta, where they would be taken into internment for the remainder of the war. While en route, the German Luftwaffe (Air Force) attacked the Italian fleet using Dornier Do 217s armed with Fritz X radio-controlled bombs. Vittorio Veneto was undamaged but Littorio—by now renamed Italia—was hit and damaged and her sister Roma was sunk in the attack.[40][41]
Vittorio Veneto remained in Malta until 14 September, when she and Italia were moved to
Vittorio Veneto had been the most active Italian battleship of the war, having participated in eleven offensive operations.[42] Twelve 90 mm anti-aircraft guns taken from Vittorio Veneto were reused by the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA) as armament of its Žirje Island coastal artillery battery.[43] The battery surrendered without resistance to the Croatian National Guard on 14 September 1991, during the Croatian War of Independence,[44] and played a pivotal role in 16–22 September Battle of Šibenik, helping defend the city of Šibenik against the JNA[43] and bottling up in harbor 34 Yugoslav Navy's patrol boats and minesweepers, one-fourth of the Yugoslav fleet, which were eventually seized by Croatian forces.[45]
Footnotes
- ^ Bagnasco & de Toro, pp. 101–102
- ^ Garzke and Dulin, p. 435
- ^ a b Gardiner & Chesneau, p. 289
- ^ Gardiner & Chesneau, pp. 289–290
- ^ Bagnasco & De Toro, pp. 100–102
- ^ Bagnasco & de Toro, p. 48
- ^ Whitley, p. 171
- ^ Bagnasco & De Toro, pp. 118–119
- ^ Bagnasco & De Toro, pp. 119–120
- ^ Whitley, pp. 169, 172
- ^ Bagnaso & De Toto, p. 123
- ^ a b c d e f g Whitley, p. 172
- ^ Bagnasco & de Toro, pp. 167–169
- ^ Rohwer, p. 38
- ^ Garzke & Dulin, p. 382
- ^ Bagnasco & de Toro, pp. 170–172
- ^ Rohwer, p. 43
- ^ a b Rohwer, p. 47
- ^ Garzke & Dulin, p. 383
- ^ De La Sierra, p. 148
- ^ Garzke & Dulin, pp. 383–384
- ^ Rohwer, p. 50
- ^ a b c Garzke & Dulin, p. 384
- ^ Rohwer, p. 55
- ^ O'Hara, pp. 86–90
- ^ O'Hara, pp. 90–91
- ^ Whitley, pp. 172–174
- ^ Garzke & Dulin, pp. 387–388
- ^ a b Garzke & Dulin, p. 388
- ^ Whitley, p. 174
- ^ Garzke & Dulin, p. 399
- ^ Rohwer, p. 94
- ^ Garzke & Dulin, pp. 389–390
- ^ Garzke & Dulin, p. 390
- ^ a b c d Whitley, p. 175
- ^ Stille, p. 40
- ^ Garzke & Dulin, p. 391
- ^ Rohwer, p. 212
- ^ Garzke & Dulin, p. 393
- ^ Whitley, pp. 175–176
- ^ Garzke and Dulin, p. 407
- ^ Garzke & Dulin, p. 395
- ^ a b Čutura
- ^ Reljanović
- ^ Reljanović (2001)
References
- Bagnasco, Erminio & de Toro, Augusto (2011). The Littorio Class: Italy's Last and Largest Battleships 1937–1948. Barnsley: Seaforth Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84832-105-2.
- Čutura, Dinko (June 2010). "Topovi - branitelji Šibenika" [Guns - defenders of Šibenik]. Hrvatski Vojnik (in Croatian) (297). Ministry of Defence (Croatia). ISSN 1333-9036. Archived from the originalon 2010-07-29.
- de la Sierra, Luis (1976). La Guerra Naval en el Mediterráneo: 1940–1943 [The Naval War in the Mediterranean: 1940–1943] (in Spanish). Barcelona: Juventud. ISBN 978-84-261-0264-5.
- Garzke, William H. & Dulin, Robert O. (1985). Battleships: Axis and Neutral Battleships in World War II. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-0-87021-101-0.
- O'Hara, Vincent P. (2009). Struggle for the Middle Sea: The Great Navies At War In The Mediterranean Theater, 1940–1945. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-1-59114-648-3.
- Reljanović, Marijo (November 2001). "Hrvatska ratna mornarica u obrani Jadrana" [Croatian Navy in defence of the Adriatic]. Hrvatski Vojnik (in Croatian) (77). Ministry of Defence (Croatia). ISSN 1333-9036. Archived from the originalon 2013-10-02.
- Roberts, John (1980). "Italy". In Gardiner, Robert; Chesneau, Roger (eds.). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1922–1946. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. pp. 280–317. ISBN 978-0-85177-146-5.
- ISBN 978-1-59114-119-8.
- Whitley, M.J. (1998). Battleships of World War Two: An International Encyclopedia. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-1-55750-184-4.
External links
- Vittorio Veneto battleships Marina Militare website