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Adriatic campaign of World War II
The Adriatic campaign of World War II was a minor naval campaign fought during World War II between the Greek, Yugoslavian and Italian navies, the Kriegsmarine, and the Mediterranean squadrons of the United Kingdom, France, and the Yugoslav Partisan naval forces. Considered a somewhat insignificant part of the naval warfare in World War II, it nonetheless saw interesting developments, given the specificity of the Dalmatian coastline.
On 7 April 1939, Mussolini's troops occupied Albania, overthrew King Zog, and annexed the country to the Italian Empire. Naval operations in the Adriatic consisted mostly of transport organisation through the ports of Taranto, as well as coastal bombardment in support of the landings on the Albanian coast. The Italian naval forces involved in the invasion of Albania included the battleships Giulio Cesare and Conte di Cavour, three heavy cruisers, three light cruisers, nine destroyers, fourteen torpedo boats, one minelayer, ten auxiliary ships and nine transport ships. The ships were divided into four groups, which carried out landings at Vlorë, Durrës, Sarandë and Shëngjin.
When Italy entered World War II, on 10 June 1940, the Italian Navy's main naval bases in the Adriatic Sea were Venice, Brindisi, and Pola. The northern Adriatic was under the jurisdiction of the Northern Adriatic Autonomous Naval Command, headquartered in Venice and commanded by Vice Admiral Ferdinando of Savoy (replaced by Admiral Emilio Brenta shortly before the armistice with the Allies); the southern Adriatic was under the jurisdiction of the Southern Adriatic Naval Command, headquartered in Brindisi and commanded by Admiral Luigi Spalice. Vice Admiral Vittorio Tur was the naval commander of Albania, with headquarters in Durrës. Naval commands also existed in Pola (home of the Italian Navy's submarine school) and Lussino.
Italian naval forces in the Adriatic, at the outbreak of the war, included the destroyers Carlo Mirabello and Augusto Riboty and the 7th Torpedo Boat Squadron (Angelo Bassini, Nicola Fabrizi, Enrico Cosenz and Giacomo Medici) in Brindisi, the 15th Torpedo Boat Squadron (Palestro, Confienza, San Martino and Solferino) in Venice, the gunboat Ernesto Giovannini in Pola, the 2nd MAS Squadron (four boats) in Pola, the 3rd MAS Squadron (two boats) in Brindisi, and several minelayers (the relatively shallow waters of the Adriatic Sea were particularly favourable for mine warfare). Seven submarines were based in Brindisi: Balilla, Domenico Millelire, Enrico Toti, and Antonio Sciesa (belonging to the 40th Submarine Squadron), Brin (of the 42nd Squadron), Anfitrite (44th Squadron) and Ondina (48th Squadron).
The Greco-Italian War lasted from 28 October 1940 to 30 April 1941 and was part of World War II. Italian forces invaded Greece and made limited gains. At the outbreak of hostilities, the Royal Hellenic Navy was composed of the old cruiser Georgios Averof, 10 destroyers (four old Thiria class, four relatively modern Dardo class and two new Greyhound class), several torpedo boats and six old submarines. Faced with the formidable Regia Marina, its role was primarily limited to patrol and convoy escort duties in the Aegean Sea. This was essential both for the completion of the Army's mobilization and the overall resupply of the country, the convoy routes being threatened by Italian aircraft and submarines operating from the Dodecanese Islands. Nevertheless, the Greek ships also carried out limited offensive operations against Italian shipping in the Strait of Otranto.
On the Italian side, convoy operations between Italy and Albania were under the responsibility of the High Command for Traffic with Albania (Comando Superiore Traffico Albania, Maritrafalba), established in Valona on 5 October 1940 and initially held by Captain Romolo Polacchini. Maritrafalba's forces included two elderly Mirabello-class destroyers, eleven equally old torpedo boats (belonging to the Palestro, Curtatone, Sirtori, Generali and La Masa classes), four more modern Spica-class torpedo boats of the 12th Torpedo Boat Squadron, four auxiliary cruisers and four MAS of the 13th MAS Squadron. The main Italian supply routes were from Brindisi to Valona and from Bari to Durrës.
Greek destroyers carried out three bold but fruitless night-time raids (14–15 November 1940, 15–16 December 1940 and 4–5 January 1941). The main Greek successes came from the submarines, which managed to sink some Italian transports (Greeks also lost a submarine in the process), but the Greek submarine force was too small to be able to seriously hinder the supply lines between Italy and Albania; between 28 October 1940 and 30 April 1941 Italian ships made 3,305 voyages across the Otranto straits, carrying 487,089 military personnel (including 22 field divisions) and 584,392 tons of supplies while losing overall only seven merchant ships and one escort ship. Although the Regia Marina suffered severe losses in capital ships from the British Royal Navy during the Taranto raid, Italian cruisers and destroyers continued to operate covering the convoys between Italy and Albania. Also, on 28 November, an Italian squadron bombarded Corfu, while on 18 December and 4 March, Italian naval units shelled Greek coastal positions in Albania.
The only surface engagement between the Regia Marina and the Royal Navy occurred on the night of 11–12 November 1940, when a British squadron of three light cruisers and two destroyers attacked an Italian return convoy consisting of four merchant ships escorted by the auxiliary cruiser Ramb III and the torpedo boat Nicola Fabrizi, in the Battle of the Strait of Otranto. All four merchants were sunk, and Nicola Fabrizi was heavily damaged. In March 1941, Fairey Swordfish torpedo bombers of the Fleet Air Arm, based in Paramythia, Greece, raided the harbour of Valona multiple times, sinking one merchant ship, one torpedo boat and the hospital ship Po; the Regia Aeronautica then discovered the air base and bombed it, knocking it out for some weeks. In April the air field became operational again and another raid on Valona was carried out, sinking two additional merchant ships; on the same day, however, German forces launched their invasion of Greece, and the base at Paramythia was bombed by the Luftwaffe and permanently destroyed.
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Adriatic campaign of World War II
The Adriatic campaign of World War II was a minor naval campaign fought during World War II between the Greek, Yugoslavian and Italian navies, the Kriegsmarine, and the Mediterranean squadrons of the United Kingdom, France, and the Yugoslav Partisan naval forces. Considered a somewhat insignificant part of the naval warfare in World War II, it nonetheless saw interesting developments, given the specificity of the Dalmatian coastline.
On 7 April 1939, Mussolini's troops occupied Albania, overthrew King Zog, and annexed the country to the Italian Empire. Naval operations in the Adriatic consisted mostly of transport organisation through the ports of Taranto, as well as coastal bombardment in support of the landings on the Albanian coast. The Italian naval forces involved in the invasion of Albania included the battleships Giulio Cesare and Conte di Cavour, three heavy cruisers, three light cruisers, nine destroyers, fourteen torpedo boats, one minelayer, ten auxiliary ships and nine transport ships. The ships were divided into four groups, which carried out landings at Vlorë, Durrës, Sarandë and Shëngjin.
When Italy entered World War II, on 10 June 1940, the Italian Navy's main naval bases in the Adriatic Sea were Venice, Brindisi, and Pola. The northern Adriatic was under the jurisdiction of the Northern Adriatic Autonomous Naval Command, headquartered in Venice and commanded by Vice Admiral Ferdinando of Savoy (replaced by Admiral Emilio Brenta shortly before the armistice with the Allies); the southern Adriatic was under the jurisdiction of the Southern Adriatic Naval Command, headquartered in Brindisi and commanded by Admiral Luigi Spalice. Vice Admiral Vittorio Tur was the naval commander of Albania, with headquarters in Durrës. Naval commands also existed in Pola (home of the Italian Navy's submarine school) and Lussino.
Italian naval forces in the Adriatic, at the outbreak of the war, included the destroyers Carlo Mirabello and Augusto Riboty and the 7th Torpedo Boat Squadron (Angelo Bassini, Nicola Fabrizi, Enrico Cosenz and Giacomo Medici) in Brindisi, the 15th Torpedo Boat Squadron (Palestro, Confienza, San Martino and Solferino) in Venice, the gunboat Ernesto Giovannini in Pola, the 2nd MAS Squadron (four boats) in Pola, the 3rd MAS Squadron (two boats) in Brindisi, and several minelayers (the relatively shallow waters of the Adriatic Sea were particularly favourable for mine warfare). Seven submarines were based in Brindisi: Balilla, Domenico Millelire, Enrico Toti, and Antonio Sciesa (belonging to the 40th Submarine Squadron), Brin (of the 42nd Squadron), Anfitrite (44th Squadron) and Ondina (48th Squadron).
The Greco-Italian War lasted from 28 October 1940 to 30 April 1941 and was part of World War II. Italian forces invaded Greece and made limited gains. At the outbreak of hostilities, the Royal Hellenic Navy was composed of the old cruiser Georgios Averof, 10 destroyers (four old Thiria class, four relatively modern Dardo class and two new Greyhound class), several torpedo boats and six old submarines. Faced with the formidable Regia Marina, its role was primarily limited to patrol and convoy escort duties in the Aegean Sea. This was essential both for the completion of the Army's mobilization and the overall resupply of the country, the convoy routes being threatened by Italian aircraft and submarines operating from the Dodecanese Islands. Nevertheless, the Greek ships also carried out limited offensive operations against Italian shipping in the Strait of Otranto.
On the Italian side, convoy operations between Italy and Albania were under the responsibility of the High Command for Traffic with Albania (Comando Superiore Traffico Albania, Maritrafalba), established in Valona on 5 October 1940 and initially held by Captain Romolo Polacchini. Maritrafalba's forces included two elderly Mirabello-class destroyers, eleven equally old torpedo boats (belonging to the Palestro, Curtatone, Sirtori, Generali and La Masa classes), four more modern Spica-class torpedo boats of the 12th Torpedo Boat Squadron, four auxiliary cruisers and four MAS of the 13th MAS Squadron. The main Italian supply routes were from Brindisi to Valona and from Bari to Durrës.
Greek destroyers carried out three bold but fruitless night-time raids (14–15 November 1940, 15–16 December 1940 and 4–5 January 1941). The main Greek successes came from the submarines, which managed to sink some Italian transports (Greeks also lost a submarine in the process), but the Greek submarine force was too small to be able to seriously hinder the supply lines between Italy and Albania; between 28 October 1940 and 30 April 1941 Italian ships made 3,305 voyages across the Otranto straits, carrying 487,089 military personnel (including 22 field divisions) and 584,392 tons of supplies while losing overall only seven merchant ships and one escort ship. Although the Regia Marina suffered severe losses in capital ships from the British Royal Navy during the Taranto raid, Italian cruisers and destroyers continued to operate covering the convoys between Italy and Albania. Also, on 28 November, an Italian squadron bombarded Corfu, while on 18 December and 4 March, Italian naval units shelled Greek coastal positions in Albania.
The only surface engagement between the Regia Marina and the Royal Navy occurred on the night of 11–12 November 1940, when a British squadron of three light cruisers and two destroyers attacked an Italian return convoy consisting of four merchant ships escorted by the auxiliary cruiser Ramb III and the torpedo boat Nicola Fabrizi, in the Battle of the Strait of Otranto. All four merchants were sunk, and Nicola Fabrizi was heavily damaged. In March 1941, Fairey Swordfish torpedo bombers of the Fleet Air Arm, based in Paramythia, Greece, raided the harbour of Valona multiple times, sinking one merchant ship, one torpedo boat and the hospital ship Po; the Regia Aeronautica then discovered the air base and bombed it, knocking it out for some weeks. In April the air field became operational again and another raid on Valona was carried out, sinking two additional merchant ships; on the same day, however, German forces launched their invasion of Greece, and the base at Paramythia was bombed by the Luftwaffe and permanently destroyed.