Italian ironclad Roma
 Roma at anchor in September 1870
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
 Kingdom of Italy | |
| Name | Roma |
| Namesake | Rome |
| Laid down | February 1863 |
| Launched | 18 December 1865 |
| Completed | May 1869 |
| Stricken | 1895 |
| Fate | Scrapped, 1896 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | Roma-class ironclad warship |
| Displacement |
|
| Length | 79.67 m (261 ft 5 in) |
| Beam | 17.33 m (56 ft 10 in) |
| Draft | 7.57 m (24 ft 10 in) |
| Installed power |
|
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed | 13 knots (24 km/h; 15 mph) |
| Range | 1,940 nmi (3,590 km) at 10 kn (19 km/h; 12 mph) |
| Complement | 549–551 |
| Armament |
|
| Armor | Belt armor: 150 mm (5.9 in) |
Roma was an
Design
Roma was 79.67 meters (261 ft 5 in)
Roma was a
Service history
The
By October 1871, Roma had been assigned to La Spezia. There, she was joined by the ironclads Regina Maria Pia, San Martino, Castelfidardo, and Affondatore.[6] In 1873, the ship was assigned to the 1st Division of the main Italian fleet unit, the Permanent Squadron, where she served as the flagship of Admiral Enrico Di Brocchetti. The other vessels of the division were the ironclads Ancona and Conte Verde. Together with the ships of the 2nd Division, the entire squadron cruised in the Mediterranean that year.[7] In August, Roma, San Martino and the paddle steamer Plebiscito visited Barcelona, Spain. where they met a number of other foreign warships, including the French ironclad Jeanne d'Arc, the British ironclad HMS Pallas and corvette Rapid, and the United States frigate USS Wabash. By 21 October, Roma had moved to Alicante, Spain.[8]
In 1874–1875, the ship's armament was revised to eleven 10-inch guns.[1] In November 1880, Roma and the ironclad Palestro took part in a naval demonstration off Ragusa in an attempt to force the Ottoman Empire to comply with the terms of the Treaty of Berlin and turn over the town of Ulcinj to Montenegro.[9] In early November 1881, Roma was moored in Naples when a severe storm tore the ship from her anchors. The heavy winds drove her into the ironclad Principe Amedeo, but neither ship was damaged in the collision.[10]
During the annual fleet maneuvers held in 1885, Roma served in the 2nd Division of the "Western Squadron"; she was joined by the ironclad Affondatore and five torpedo boats. The "Western Squadron" attacked the defending "Eastern Squadron", simulating a Franco-Italian conflict, with operations conducted off Sardinia.[11] The ship had her guns replaced again in 1886, this time with eleven 220 mm (8.7 in) guns.[1] In 1890, Roma was removed from front-line service and tasked with the defense of La Spezia; while there, she served as the flagship of the local defense forces. While serving as a guard ship, her armament was reduced to five 8-inch guns.[1][12] The ship was stricken on 5 May 1895 and thereafter used as an ammunition depot ship based in La Spezia. The ship was accidentally set on fire by a lightning strike on 28 July 1896; her crew scuttled the ship to prevent her from being burned completely. Roma was refloated the following month and then broken up for scrap immediately thereafter.[1]
Notes
- ^ a b c d e f g Fraccaroli, p. 339.
- ^ Sondhaus, pp. 43–46.
- ^ Ordovini, Petronio, & Sullivan, p. 348.
- ^ Sondhaus, pp. 49–50.
- ^ Fraccaroli, p. 336.
- ^ Dupont, pp. 424–425.
- ^ Armingen, p. 318.
- ^ Bewegungen, pp. 16, 18.
- ^ London News, p. 278.
- ^ "Stray Foreign Facts" (PDF). The New York Times. 23 November 1881.
- ^ Brassey, p. 141.
- ^ Marshall, p. 245.
References
- von Armingen, Friedrich Geitler, ed. (21 May 1873). "Ausland" [Overseas]. Neue Militär-Zeitung [New Military Newspaper] (in German) (41). Vienna: 318. OCLC 224831739.
- "Bewegungen S. M. Kriegsschiffe vom 1. September 1873 bis 31. August 1874" [Movements of S. M. Warships from 1 September 1873 to 31 August 1874]. Jahrbuch der Kais. Kön. Kriegsmarine [Yearbook of the Imperial and Royal Navy]. Pola: Verlag der Redaction: 15–26. 1874.
- Brassey, Thomas, ed. (1886). "Evolutions of the Italian Navy, 1885". The Naval Annual. Portsmouth: J. Griffin & Co. OCLC 896741963.
- Dupont, Paul, ed. (1872). "Notes sur La Marine Et Les Ports Militaires de L'Italie" [Notes on the Navy and Military Ports of Italy]. La Revue Maritime et Coloniale [The Naval and Colonial Review] (in French). XXXII. Paris: Imprimerie Administrative de Paul Dupont: 415–430.
- Fraccaroli, Aldo (1979). "Italy". In Gardiner, Robert (ed.). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905. London: Conway Maritime Press. pp. 334–359. ISBN 978-0-85177-133-5.
- Marshall, Chris, ed. (1995). The Encyclopedia of Ships: The History and Specifications of Over 1200 Ships. Enderby: Blitz Editions. ISBN 1-85605-288-5.
- Ordovini, Aldo F.; Petronio, Fulvio & Sullivan, David M. (December 2014). "Capital Ships of the Royal Italian Navy, 1860–1918: Part I: The Formidabile, Principe di Carignano, Re d'Italia, Regina Maria Pia, Affondatore, Roma and Principe Amedeo Classes". ISSN 0043-0374.
- Sondhaus, Lawrence (1994). The Naval Policy of Austria-Hungary, 1867–1918. West Lafayette: Purdue University Press. ISBN 978-1-55753-034-9.
- "The Naval Demonstration in the Adriatic". The Illustrated London News. London: George C. Leighton. 18 September 1880. p. 278.
External links
- Roma Marina Militare website (in Italian)
