Italian ironclad Re d'Italia

Re d'Italia was 99.61 meters (326.8 ft) long overall; she had a beam of 16.76 m (55.0 ft) and an average draft of 6.17 m (20.2 ft). She displaced 5,610 long tons (5,700 t) normally and up to 5,869 long tons (5,963 t) at full load.[1] Her hull was built from green wood.[2] She had a crew of 565. The ship's propulsion system consisted of one single-expansion steam engine that drove a single screw propeller, with steam supplied by four coal-fired, rectangular boilers. Her engine produced a top speed of 10.6 to 10.8 knots (19.6 to 20.0 km/h; 12.2 to 12.4 mph) from 1,812 to 1,845 indicated horsepower (1,351 to 1,376 kW). She could steam for about 1,800 nautical miles (3,300 km; 2,100 mi) at a speed of 10.5 knots (19.4 km/h; 12.1 mph).[1] For long-distance travel, Re d'Italia was fitted with three masts and was barque-rigged.[2]

Re d'Italia was a broadside ironclad, and she was armed with a main battery of six 72-pounder 8 in (203 mm) guns and thirty-two 164 mm (6.5 in) rifled muzzle-loading guns. The ship was equipped with a spur-shaped ram at the bow. The ship's hull was sheathed with wrought iron armor that was 4.75 in (121 mm) thick. Her rudder and propellers, however, were not protected by her armor.[1]

Re d'Italia was built by William H. Webb at his shipyard in New York City. She was laid down on 21 November 1861 and launched on 18 April 1863.[1] The ship arrived in Italy in April 1864 and was commissioned into the Italian fleet on 18 September 1864.[3] Less than two years later, in June 1866, Italy declared war on Austria, as part of the Third Italian War of Independence, which was fought concurrently with the Austro-Prussian War.[4] The Italian fleet commander, Admiral Carlo Pellion di Persano, initially adopted a cautious course of action; he was unwilling to risk battle with the Austrian Navy, despite the fact that the Austrian fleet was much weaker than his own. Persano claimed he was simply waiting on the ironclad ram Affondatore, en route from Britain, but his inaction weakened morale in the fleet, with many of his subordinates openly accusing him of cowardice.[5]

Rear Admiral Wilhelm von Tegetthoff brought the Austrian fleet to Ancona on June 27, in attempt to draw out the Italians. At the time, many of the Italian ships were in disarray; several ships did not have their entire armament, and several others had problems with their engines. Re d'Italia had a fire burning in her coal bunkers. Persano held a council of war aboard the ironclad Principe di Carignano to determine whether he should sortie to engage Tegetthoff, but by that time, the Austrians had withdrawn, making the decision moot. The Minister of the Navy, Agostino Depretis, urged Persano to act and suggested the island of Lissa, to restore Italian confidence after their defeat at the Battle of Custoza the previous month. On 7 July, Persano left Ancona and conducted a sweep into the Adriatic, but encountered no Austrian ships and returned on the 13th.[6]

Battle of Lissa

Main article: Battle of Lissa (1866)

On 16 July, Persano took the Italian fleet out of Ancona, bound for Lissa, where they arrived on the 18th. With them, they brought troop transports carrying 3,000 soldiers; the Italian warships began bombarding the Austrian forts on the island, with the intention of landing the soldiers once the fortresses had been silenced. In response, the Austrian Navy sent the fleet under Tegetthoff to attack the Italian ships.[7] At that time, Re d'Italia was Persano's flagship in the 2nd Division, along with the ironclad San Martino and the coastal defense ship Palestro.[8] After arriving off Lissa on the 18th,[4] Persano sent most of his ships to bombard the town of Vis, but he was unable to effect the landing.[9]

An illustration of Re d'Italia rolling over after having been rammed by Erzherzog Ferdinand Max

The next morning, Persano ordered another attack; four ironclads would force the harbor defenses at Vis while Re d'Italia and the rest of the fleet would attempt to suppress the outer fortifications. This second attack also proved to be a failure, but Persano decided to make a third attempt the next day. Re d'Italia and the bulk of the fleet would again try to disable the outer forts in preparation for the landing.[10] Before the Italians could begin the attack, the dispatch boat Esploratore arrived, bringing news of Tegetthoff's approach. Persano's fleet was in disarray; the three ships of Admiral Giovanni Vacca's 1st Division were three miles to the northeast from Persano's main force, and three other ironclads were further away to the west.[11] Persano immediately ordered his ships to form up with Vacca's, first in line abreast formation, and then in line ahead formation. Re d'Italia was the fourth ship in the Italian line, behind only Vacca's ships.[12]

Shortly before the action began, Persano decided to leave Re d'Italia and transfer to Affondatore, though none of his subordinates on the other ships were aware of the change. They were thus left to fight as individuals without direction. More dangerously, by stopping Re d'Italia, he allowed a significant gap to open up between Vacca's three ships and the rest of the fleet.[13] Tegetthoff took his fleet through the gap between Vacca's and Persano's ships, though he failed to ram any Italian vessels on the first pass. The Austrians then turned back toward Persano's ships, and took Re d'Italia, San Martino, and Palestro under heavy fire. The Austrian ships concentrated their fire on Re d'Italia, paying particular attention to her stern. In their attempts to ram her, one of the Austrian ships destroyed Re d'Italia's rudder, leaving her unmaneuverable.[14]

Re d'Italia's captain, Emilio Faà di Bruno, attempted to escape from the melee, but he could only steer his ship using her engines. Blocked by another Austrian ironclad, Faà di Bruno ordered his ship to reverse course. She was almost stopped when she was rammed by the Austrian flagship, Erzherzog Ferdinand Max. The Austrian ship's ram tore a gaping hole in Re d'Italia's hull. She quickly rolled over to port and sank. Out of her crew, only 166 men were saved; the remaining 400 went down with the ship, including Faà di Bruno.[15][16]

• Gardiner, Robert, ed. (1979). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships: 1860–1905. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-133-5.
• Greene, Jack & Massignani, Alessandro (1998). Ironclads at War: The Origin and Development of the Armored Warship, 1854–1891. Pennsylvania: Da Capo Press. ISBN 0-938289-58-6.
• Silverstone, Paul H. (1984). Directory of the World's Capital Ships. New York: Hippocrene Books. ISBN 0-88254-979-0.
• Sondhaus, Lawrence (1994). The Naval Policy of Austria-Hungary, 1867–1918. West Lafayette: Purdue University Press. ISBN 978-1-55753-034-9.
• Wilson, Herbert Wrigley (1896). Ironclads in Action: A Sketch of Naval Warfare from 1855 to 1895. London: S. Low, Marston and Company. OCLC 1111061.

• 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". Warship International. Vol. 51 no. 4. pp. 323–360. ISSN 0043-0374.