''Piero Foscari'' was an Italian merchant ship and then

auxiliary cruiser An armed merchantman is a merchant ship equipped with guns, usually for defensive purposes, either by design or after the fact. In the days of sail, piracy and privateers, many merchantmen would be routinely armed, especially those engaging in lo ...

of the ''

Regia Marina The , ) (RM) or Royal Italian Navy was the navy of the Kingdom of Italy () from 1861 to 1946. In 1946, with the birth of the Italian Republic (''Repubblica Italiana''), the changed its name to '' Marina Militare'' ("Military Navy"). Origin ...

''. Built in 1928 for the ''Società Anonima di Navigazione Adriatica'', it was originally a

motor ship A motor ship or motor vessel is a ship propelled by an internal combustion engine, usually a diesel engine. The names of motor ships are often prefixed with MS, M/S, MV or M/V. Engines for motorships were developed during the 1890s, and by th ...

of 3,423 tons. ''Foscari'' served as a transport ship for the ''Regia Marina'' from 18 to 25 August 1940, and in 1941 was converted into an auxiliary cruiser to act as convoy escort. On 18 December 1942, while travelling from

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

Civitavecchia Civitavecchia (, meaning "ancient town") is a city and major Port, sea port on the Tyrrhenian Sea west-northwest of Rome. Its legal status is a ''comune'' (municipality) of Metropolitan City of Rome Capital, Rome, Lazio. The harbour is formed by ...

, she was damaged by the torpedoes of the British minelaying submarine . After the

Armistice with Italy The Armistice of Cassibile ( Italian: ''Armistizio di Cassibile'') was an armistice that was signed on 3 September 1943 by Italy and the Allies, marking the end of hostilities between Italy and the Allies during World War II. It was made public ...

of 9 September 1943, while en route from

Genoa Genoa ( ; ; ) is a city in and the capital of the Italian region of Liguria, and the sixth-largest city in Italy. As of 2025, 563,947 people live within the city's administrative limits. While its metropolitan city has 818,651 inhabitan ...

to escort the merchant ship ''Valverde'', she was shelled by coastal artillery and attacked by three German

patrol boat A patrol boat (also referred to as a patrol craft, patrol ship, or patrol vessel) is a relatively small naval ship, naval vessel generally designed for Coastal defence and fortification, coastal defence, Border control, border security, or law ...

s and the minelayers ''Pommern'' and ''Brandenburg''. ''Foscari'' took refuge at

Castiglioncello Castiglioncello (formerly ''Castiglione Mondiglio'') is a ''frazione'' of 3800 inhabitants of the ''comune'' of Rosignano Marittimo, in the province of Livorno, Tuscany, Italy. Located in a privileged position from the panoramic point of view, aw ...

, where she was sunk at 17:30 the following day in another attack by German units.

References

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Bibliography

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Piero Foscari Auxiliary cruisers Auxiliary cruisers of the Regia Marina Ships built in Trieste 1928 ships Maritime incidents in September 1943 World War II shipwrecks in the Mediterranean Sea