The Evolution Squadron was a naval squadron of the Brazilian Imperial Fleet composed of the best ships of its time in several characteristics. It was created in 1884 with the purpose of developing new naval tactics inspired by the

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

tactics in the Battle of Lissa where its naval force faced and defeated the much superior Italian fleet.

History

Origins

After the end of the

Paraguayan War The Paraguayan War (, , ), also known as the War of the Triple Alliance (, , ), was a South American war that lasted from 1864 to 1870. It was fought between Paraguay and the Triple Alliance of Argentina, the Empire of Brazil, and Uruguay. It wa ...

, Brazil was concerned with repairing the damage caused to its vessels, refitting them and transforming the Armada into the fourth most powerful navy in the world. From 1870, with the possibility of a conflict with

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

, the Brazilian Empire aimed to further strengthen its Armada. In 1873 it acquired a

gunboat A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies. History Pre-steam ...

and a

corvette A corvette is a small warship. It is traditionally the smallest class of vessel considered to be a proper (or " rated") warship. The warship class above the corvette is that of the frigate, while the class below was historically that of the sloo ...

; a battleship and a monitor in 1874 and soon after two cruisers and another monitor. Cruzador Trajano

In the 1880s, the navy continued its program of strengthening it, with several Brazilian arsenals building dozens of warships. Four torpedo boats were purchased, the Escola Prática de Torpedos was created for enlisted men, and a workshop for the manufacture and repair of torpedoes and electrical appliances was set up at the Arsenal of the Navy in Rio de Janeiro on November 30, 1883. However, the apex of the Imperial Navy occurred with the incorporation of the ocean-going battleships ''Riachuelo'' and ''Aquidabã'' (both equipped with torpedo launchers) in 1884 and 1885, respectively. Obtaining these ships enabled Brazil to remain “among the naval powers of the universe”.

Squadron

The High Command of the Imperial Navy studied the possibility of putting into practice the tactics employed by the

Austrians Austrians (, ) are the citizens and Nationality, nationals of Austria. The English term ''Austrians'' was applied to the population of Archduchy of Austria, Habsburg Austria from the 17th or 18th century. Subsequently, during the 19th century, ...

at the Battle of Lissa in 1866. Even though they were outnumbered (seven battleships and 20 wooden ships with 532 cannons) they managed to impose a defeat on the Italian naval forces (twelve battleships and nineteen wooden ships with 641 cannons). Such tactics demonstrated the domination of the seas by the armored fleets, grouped in squadrons composed of units with a high degree of efficiency in communications and maneuver.

Ships

Torpedo_Boats_for_Brazil_-_The_Engineer_1882-08-04

From 1884 to 1886, the ''Esquadra de Evolções'' was composed of:

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * * * * * {{Authority control Naval units and formations of Imperial Brazil Military units and formations established in 1884 Military units and formations disestablished in 1886