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Italian Torpedo Boat Polluce
The ''Spica''-class was a class of torpedo boats of the (Royal Italian Navy) during World War II. These ships were built as a result of a clause in the Washington Naval Treaty, which stated that ships with a tonnage of less than 600 could be built in unlimited numbers. Thirty-two ships were built between 1934 and 1937, thirty of which entered service with Italy. Called torpedo boats due to their smaller displacement, the ''Spica''-class had armament similar to destroyers (influenced by the ) and were intended for anti-submarine operations but also had to fight aircraft and surface ships. Twenty-three vessels were lost during the war, two had been sold to the Swedish Navy in 1940 and were called destroyers until 1953, and then renamed to corvettes. Design The design work started in 1932 supervised by the general engineer Gustavo Bozzoni. Two prototypes, ''Spica'' and ''Astore'', were completed in 1935 and sold to the Swedish Navy. The hull was long, and displacement was around ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Torpedo Boat
A torpedo boat is a relatively small and fast naval ship designed to carry torpedoes into battle. The first designs were steam-powered craft dedicated to ramming enemy ships with explosive spar torpedoes. Later evolutions launched variants of self-propelled Whitehead torpedoes. These were inshore craft created to counter both the threat of battleships and other slow and heavily armed ships by using speed, agility, and powerful torpedoes, and the overwhelming expense of building a like number of capital ships to counter an enemy. A swarm of expendable torpedo boats attacking en masse could overwhelm a larger ship's ability to fight them off using its large but cumbersome guns. A fleet of torpedo boats could pose a similar threat to an adversary's capital ships, albeit only in the coastal areas to which their small size and limited fuel load restricted them. The introduction of fast torpedo boats in the late 19th century was a serious concern to the era's naval strategists, i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Displacement (ship)
The displacement or displacement tonnage of a ship is its weight. As the term indicates, it is measured indirectly, using Archimedes' principle, by first calculating the volume of water displaced by the ship, then converting that value into weight. Traditionally, various measurement rules have been in use, giving various measures in long tons. Today, tonnes are more commonly used. Ship displacement varies by a vessel's degree of load, from its empty weight as designed (known as "lightweight tonnage") to its maximum load. Numerous specific terms are used to describe varying levels of load and trim, detailed below. Ship displacement should not be confused with measurements of volume or capacity typically used for commercial vessels and measured by tonnage: net tonnage and gross tonnage. Calculation The process of determining a vessel's displacement begins with measuring its draft.George, 2005. p. 5. This is accomplished by means of its "draft marks". A merchant vessel has t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brindisi
Brindisi ( ; ) is a city in the region of Apulia in southern Italy, the capital of the province of Brindisi, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. Historically, the city has played an essential role in trade and culture due to its strategic position on the Italian Peninsula and its natural port on the Adriatic Sea. The city remains a major port for trade with the Balkan Peninsula, Greece and the Middle East. Its industries include agriculture, chemical works, and the generation of electricity. From September 1943 to February 1944, Brindisi was the provisional government seat of the Kingdom of Italy, meaning that the city has been one of the 5 capitals in the history of Italy. Etymology The name comes from the Latin , through the Greek , is a corruption of the Messapic language, Messapian , meaning "head of the deer", and probably referring to the shape of the natural harbour. It is related to Albanian language, Albanian bri, brî - pl. Brini zi (black horn) brirë, brinë ("horn"; " ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Albania
Albania ( ; or ), officially the Republic of Albania (), is a country in Southeast Europe. It is located in the Balkans, on the Adriatic Sea, Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea, and shares land borders with Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, North Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south. With an area of , it has a varied range of climatic, geological, hydrological and morphological conditions. Albania's landscapes range from rugged snow-capped mountains in the Accursed Mountains, Albanian Alps and the Korab, Central Mountain Range, Albania#Skanderbeg Mountains, Skanderbeg, Pindus and Ceraunian Mountains, to fertile lowland plains extending from the Albanian Adriatic Sea Coast, Adriatic and Albanian Ionian Sea Coast, Ionian seacoasts. Tirana is the capital and largest city in the country, followed by Durrës, Vlorë, and Shkodër. Albania was inhabited by several List of Illyrian peoples and tribes, Illyrian tribes, among them the A ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vlorë
Vlorë ( ; ; sq-definite, Vlora) is the List of cities and towns in Albania, third most populous city of Albania and seat of Vlorë County and Vlorë Municipality. Located in southwestern Albania, Vlorë sprawls on the Bay of Vlorë and is surrounded by the foothills of the Ceraunian Mountains along the Albanian Adriatic Sea Coast, Albanian Adriatic and Albanian Ionian Sea Coast, Ionian Sea Coasts. It experiences a Mediterranean climate, which is affected by the Ceraunian Mountains and the proximity to the Mediterranean Sea. The coastal area of Vlorë was one of the Illyrians, Illyrian sites that had experienced pre-urban activity beginning from the 11th–10th centuries BC. The area was Greek colonisation, colonized by Ancient Greece, Ancient Greeks. A large fortified port-town that was inhabited from the 6th century BC to the 2nd century AD is placed, now partially submerged, in Triport, Vlorë, Triport, northwest of present-day Vlorë. Substantial port activity in this site o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Saronic Gulf
The Saronic Gulf ( Greek: Σαρωνικός κόλπος, ''Saronikós kólpos'') or Gulf of Aegina in Greece is formed between the peninsulas of Attica and Argolis and forms part of the Aegean Sea. It defines the eastern side of the isthmus of Corinth, being the eastern terminus of the Corinth Canal, which cuts across the isthmus. The Saronic Islands in the gulf have played a pivotal role in the history of Greece, with the largest, Salamis being the location of a significant naval battle in the Greco-Persian wars. The Megara Gulf makes up the northern end of the Saronic Gulf. The Athens urban area lies on the north coast of the Saronic Gulf. Etymology The origin of the gulf's name comes from the mythological king Saron who drowned at the Psifaei lake (modern Psifta). The Saronic Gulf was a string of six entrances to the Underworld, each guarded by a chthonic enemy in the shape of a thief or bandit. History The Battle of Salamis, fought in 480 BCE in the Saronic Gu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Whaleboat
A whaleboat is a type of open boat that was used for catching whales, or a boat of similar design that retained the name when used for a different purpose. Some whaleboats were used from whaling ships. Other whaleboats would operate from the shore. Later whaleboats usually could operate under sail or oar - American whaling crews in particular obtained better results by making their first approach to a whale under sail, then quickly unstepping the mast and using oars thereafter. Most whaleboats have double-ended, clinker-built hulls of light construction. The hulls were narrow and with sharp ends to achieve the best possible speed for the length of waterline. Length was between 27 and 31 feet. Beam was just over a fifth of the length. Typically they were propelled by five oars when rowed, and stepped a single removable mast when under sail. A rudder was used when under sail and a steering oar when the boat was rowed. The latter provided the manoeuvrability needed when closing ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Battle Of Cape Passero (1940)
The Action off Cape Passero, was a naval engagement in the Second World War between the Royal Navy, British light cruiser , three torpedo boats and seven destroyers of the Italian , in the central Mediterranean, to the south-east of Sicily, on the night of 11/12 October 1940. In Operation MB 6, the Mediterranean Fleet covered Convoy MF 3 from Alexandria to Malta and Convoy MF 4 from Malta to Alexandria. had prepared the Strait of Sicily Device () with torpedo boats, MAS (motorboat), MAS (, torpedo-armed motorboats), minefields and submarines against ships trying to pass the Sicilian Narrows at night. The was implemented on the night of 11/12 October and ships were sent to the east of Malta in case the British returned to Alexandria. Three torpedo boats and four destroyers attacked the cruiser ''Ajax'' which suffered minor damage. Two torpedo boats were sunk and several torpedo boats and destroyers were damaged. The next morning, , a damaged destroyer, was sunk by . was dis ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sestri Ponente
Sestri Ponente is an industrial suburb of Genoa in northwest Italy. It is part of the Medio Ponente ''municipio'' of Genoa. Geography It is situated on the Ligurian Sea four miles to the west of the city, between Pegli and Cornigliano. Its population is currently about 50,000, but in the 1970s it was as high as 80,000. History The name is derived from the Latin ''Sextum'', a small village that was likely founded in the second century A.D., where stones were assembled for the Roman road that left from Genoa. No physical records exist about the population of Sestri before the fifteenth century. Around 1911, the town had iron-works saw-mills, shipbuilding yards and tanneries and factories for macaroni, matches and tobacco. Economy The links to the transport sector continue to this day; Sestri Ponente is home to Genoa Cristoforo Colombo Airport. Another major source of employment are the shipyards, part of the Fincantieri Fincantieri S.p.A. () is an Italian shipbuilding co ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Italian Ansaldo Company
Ansaldo was one of Italy's oldest and most important engineering companies, existing for 140 years from 1853 to 1993. History 19th century foundation The company was founded in 1853 as Gio. Ansaldo & C. S.A.S. by renowned players in the Genoese business world, such as Giovanni Ansaldo, Raffaele Rubattino, Giacomo Filippo Penco and Carlo Bombrini. Until the end of the 19th century, the company focused on manufacturing and repairing railway components, quickly becoming a 10,000-worker company with seven factories, and starting to expand into sectors such as shipbuilding and mechanical works in general. 20th century expansion and dissolution In 1904, Ansaldo was bought by Ferdinando Maria Perrone who, along with his sons Mario and Pio, bound the name of the Perrone family to the history of the company. Over the next twenty years, he aimed at making Ansaldo fully independent both in the ironworks and weapon-making areas, thanks to strong vertical integration. The on ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Marina Militare
The Italian Navy (; abbreviated as MM) is one of the four branches of Italian Armed Forces and was formed in 1946 from what remained of the '' Regia Marina'' (Royal Navy) after World War II. , the Italian Navy had a strength of 30,923 active personnel, with approximately 184 vessels in service, including minor auxiliary vessels. It is considered a multiregional and a blue-water navy. History Before and during World War II The '' Regia Marina'' was formed on 17 March 1861, after the proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy. The Italian Navy assumed its present name after the Italian monarchy was abolished following a popular referendum held on 2 June 1946. After World War II At the end of its five years involvement in World War II, Italy was a devastated nation. After the end of hostilities, the ''Regia Marina'' – which at the beginning of the war was the fourth largest navy in the world, with a mix of modernised and new battleships – started a long and complex rebuilding pr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Destroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, maneuverable, long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy, or carrier battle group and defend them against a wide range of general threats. They were conceived in 1885 by Fernando Villaamil for the Spanish NavySmith, Charles Edgar: ''A short history of naval and marine engineering.'' Babcock & Wilcox, ltd. at the University Press, 1937, page 263 as a defense against torpedo boats, and by the time of the Russo-Japanese War in 1904, these "torpedo boat destroyers" (TBDs) were "large, swift, and powerfully armed torpedo boats designed to destroy other torpedo boats". Although the term "destroyer" had been used interchangeably with "TBD" and "torpedo boat destroyer" by navies since 1892, the term "torpedo boat destroyer" had been generally shortened to simply "destroyer" by nearly all navies by the First World War. Before World War II, destroyers were light vessels with little endurance for unatte ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
