The British Adriatic Squadron, or simply the Adriatic Squadron and later known as the British Adriatic Force, was a

military formation Military organization or military organisation is the structuring of the armed forces of a state so as to offer such military capability as a national defense policy may require. In some countries paramilitary forces are included in a natio ...

of the

Mediterranean Fleet The British Mediterranean Fleet, also known as the Mediterranean Station, was a formation of the Royal Navy. The Fleet was one of the most prestigious commands in the navy for the majority of its history, defending the vital sea link between t ...

during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

based at

Taranto Taranto (, also ; ; nap, label=Tarantino dialect, Tarantino, Tarde; Latin: Tarentum; Old Italian: ''Tarento''; Ancient Greek: Τάρᾱς) is a coastal city in Apulia, Southern Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Taranto, serving as an ...

from 1915–19.

History

In May 1915 Italy entered the war aligning itself with allied powers against the

Central Powers The Central Powers, also known as the Central Empires,german: Mittelmächte; hu, Központi hatalmak; tr, İttifak Devletleri / ; bg, Централни сили, translit=Tsentralni sili was one of the two main coalitions that fought in ...

, becoming involved in the

Adriatic Campaign of World War I The Adriatic Campaign of World War I was a naval campaign fought between the Central Powers and the Mediterranean squadrons of Great Britain, France, the Kingdom of Italy, Australia and the United States. Characteristics First World War naval a ...

. But due to a lack of coordination with the French Naval Command by the Italians, the British decided to enforce an allied agreement by establishing a British Adriatic Squadron to be based at Taranto. Between July and September 1917 the

was reorganised following coordination between other allied powers. Britain's scope of geographic responsibility to include new sub commands would encompass the

Adriatic Sea The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) ...

Aegean Sea The Aegean Sea ; tr, Ege Denizi (Greek: Αιγαίο Πέλαγος: "Egéo Pélagos", Turkish: "Ege Denizi" or "Adalar Denizi") is an elongated embayment of the Mediterranean Sea between Europe and Asia. It is located between the Balkans an ...

, Coast of Egypt, Gibraltar and the waters around

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

. Following command changes in August 1917 the squadron was downgraded and renamed the British Adriatic Force.

Commanders

Post holders included:

References

External links

DreadnoughtProject.org page on the formation

Sources

* Halpern, Paul G. (2004). The Battle of the Otranto Straits: Controlling the Gateway to the Adriatic in World War I. Bloomington, Indiana USA: Indiana University Press. . * Harley, Simon; Lovell, Tony (2015). "Adriatic Squadron (Royal Navy) - The Dreadnought Project". www.dreadnoughtproject.org. Harley and Lovell. * Marder, Arthur J. (2014). "2:Offensive in the Adriatic". From the Dreadnought to Scapa Flow lectronic resource(revised ed.). Barnsley, England: Seaforth Publishing. . * Sondhaus, Lawrence (2014). The Great War at Sea: A Naval History of the First World War. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press. . * Watson, Dr Graham (2015). "Royal Navy Organisation and Ship Deployment, World War One 1914-1918:THE MEDITERRANEAN". www.naval-history.net. Gordon Smith. {{Named squadrons of the Royal Navy, state=collapsed Royal Navy squadrons Military units and formations established in 1915 Military units and formations disestablished in 1919