Italian cruiser Muzio Attendolo
Encyclopedia
Muzio Attendolo was a light cruiser
Light cruiser
A light cruiser is a type of small- or medium-sized warship. The term is a shortening of the phrase "light armored cruiser", describing a small ship that carried armor in the same way as an armored cruiser: a protective belt and deck...
of the Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
Regia Marina
Regia Marina
The Regia Marina dates from the proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy in 1861 after Italian unification...
, which fought in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. She was sunk in Naples
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
by bombers of the United States Army Air Forces
United States Army Air Forces
The United States Army Air Forces was the military aviation arm of the United States of America during and immediately after World War II, and the direct predecessor of the United States Air Force....
on 4 December 1942. Although salvaged after the war she was damaged beyond repair and was scrapped.
Design
Muzio Attendolo was part of the Montecuccoli sub-class, which were the third group of Condottieri class light cruisers. They were larger and better protected than their predecessors.She was built by CRDA
Cantieri Riuniti dell' Adriatico
Cantieri Riuniti dell'Adriatico was an Italian manufacturer in the sea and air industry which was active from 1930 to 1966. This shipyard is now owned by Fincantieri....
Trieste
Trieste
Trieste is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is situated towards the end of a narrow strip of land lying between the Adriatic Sea and Italy's border with Slovenia, which lies almost immediately south and east of the city...
and named after Muzio Attendolo, a 14th century ruler of Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
and founder of the Sforza dynasty.
Career
Completed in 1935, this ship served in the Mediterranean. During World War II she served in the following actions:- Battle of Punto StiloBattle of CalabriaThe Battle of Calabria, was a naval battle during the Battle of the Mediterranean in World War II. It was fought between the Italian Royal Navy and the British Royal Navy and the Royal Australian Navy. The battle occurred 30 miles to the east of Punta Stilo, the "toe" of Italy , on 9 July 1940...
- Operation HalberdOperation Halberd-Summary:During World War II, Operation Halberd was a British naval operation in September 1941 to escort a convoy from Gibraltar to Malta....
- First Battle of SirteFirst Battle of SirteThe First Battle of Sirte was fought between the British Royal Navy and the Regia Marina during the Mediterranean campaign of the Second World War. The engagement took place on 17 December 1941, southeast of Malta, in the Gulf of Sirte...
- Operation PedestalOperation PedestalOperation Pedestal was a British operation to get desperately needed supplies to the island of Malta in August 1942, during the Second World War. Malta was the base from which surface ships, submarines and aircraft attacked Axis convoys carrying essential supplies to the Italian and German armies...
during which she was torpedoed by but towed to Messina and Naples. The torpedo hit in the early morning of 13 August. She lost all the hull forward the first turret, but the transversal bulkhead resisted enough to save her from flooding, and the loss of the damaged part lightened the ship herself.
The ship was, actually, swiftly repaired. Apparently, the fore ship was easier to repair than a mid-ship hit. (Cruiser Bolzano, hit in the same attack, was not repaired even 13 months after that action.) Three months later, the cruiser was already repaired and almost ready.
St. Barbara’s Day bombing
Attendolo was at least theoretically in strength with the 7th Naval division, together with two other Condottieri-cruisers, Eugenio di SavoiaItalian cruiser Eugenio di Savoia
Eugenio di Savoia was a Condottieri class light cruiser, which served in the Regia Marina during World War II. She survived the war but was given as a war reparation to the Hellenic Navy in 1947...
and Raimondo Montecuccoli
Italian cruiser Raimondo Montecuccoli
Raimondo Montecuccoli was a Condottieri class light cruiser serving with the Italian Regia Marina during World War II. She survived the war and served in the post-war Marina Militare until 1964.-Design:...
. But the real formidable deterrent was the 1st Squad, with all three s. All this could have been effective with classical naval warfare, but aircraft power soon changed things drastically, as shown in the Taranto
Battle of Taranto
The naval Battle of Taranto took place on the night of 11–12 November 1940 during the Second World War. The Royal Navy launched the first all-aircraft ship-to-ship naval attack in history, flying a small number of obsolescent biplane torpedo bombers from an aircraft carrier in the Mediterranean Sea...
and Naples port attacks (1940-41).
In late December, B-24
B-24 Liberator
The Consolidated B-24 Liberator was an American heavy bomber, designed by Consolidated Aircraft of San Diego, California. It was known within the company as the Model 32, and a small number of early models were sold under the name LB-30, for Land Bomber...
heavy bombers almost undisturbed increased their activity over Naples, the most important naval base, as Taranto had become too dangerous to harbour major ships, but Naples was still in the range of Liberator
B-24 Liberator
The Consolidated B-24 Liberator was an American heavy bomber, designed by Consolidated Aircraft of San Diego, California. It was known within the company as the Model 32, and a small number of early models were sold under the name LB-30, for Land Bomber...
and Wellington
Vickers Wellington
The Vickers Wellington was a British twin-engine, long range medium bomber designed in the mid-1930s at Brooklands in Weybridge, Surrey, by Vickers-Armstrongs' Chief Designer, R. K. Pierson. It was widely used as a night bomber in the early years of the Second World War, before being displaced as a...
bombers.
On 4 December 1942, St. Barbara’s Day
Saint Barbara
Saint Barbara, , Feast Day December 4, known in the Eastern Orthodox Church as the Great Martyr Barbara, was an early Christian saint and martyr....
, 20 USAAF B-24s of 98 and 376 Sqn, based in Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, flew to Naples unnoticed. Confused with a formation of Ju 52
Junkers Ju 52
The Junkers Ju 52 was a German transport aircraft manufactured from 1932 to 1945. It saw both civilian and military service during the 1930s and 1940s. In a civilian role, it flew with over 12 air carriers including Swissair and Deutsche Luft Hansa as an airliner and freight hauler...
s, and flying apparently from Vesuvio, they were already over the port before flak
Anti-aircraft warfare
NATO defines air defence as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action." They include ground and air based weapon systems, associated sensor systems, command and control arrangements and passive measures. It may be to protect naval, ground and air forces...
fire started. This happened at 16.40. B-24s bombed with 500 and 1000 lbs bombs from 6,200 m. They searched for battleships, but these important targets were missed. On the other hand, while battleships were important but also hard to damage or sink, there were other ships less important, but much more vulnerable. Light cruisers were both light armoured and important targets, and the whole 7th Division was heavily struck.
Eugenio di Savoia had a near miss, but the aft
Aft
Aft, in naval terminology, is an adjective or adverb meaning, towards the stern of the ship, when the frame of reference is within the ship. Example: "Able Seaman Smith; lay aft!". Or; "What's happening aft?"...
hull was damaged, 17 killed, 46 wounded, flooding and repair works for estimated 40 days. Montecuccoli was hit by a bomb in the midship, just inside the funnel
Funnel (ship)
A funnel is the smokestack or chimney on a ship used to expel boiler steam and smoke or engine exhaust. They can also be known in as stacks.-Purpose:...
. The funnel was disintegrated, leaving a smoking crater in its place. Internal protection (an armoured grate) worked well enough to almost save the machinery, but the ship had 44 killed and 36 wounded, and needed seven months of works.
Attendolo was hit in the midship by one or possibly two bombs, between tower 3 and tripod. The ship was totally taken out. The B-24 raid lasted until 17:28, and only after one hour first aid arrived. Attendolo had no power and there was damage below the waterline, and fierce fires aft. When the fires were finally extinguished the ship was not yet safe. She could have been saved, but at 21:17 an alarm was launched. It seemed that another raid was ongoing, but this time this was not the case. Suddenly all the ships and boats escaped from the damaged cruiser. The lack of assistance lasted for over one hour, and when the boats returned it was too late. The ship hit the bottom and rolled of almost 180 degrees. It happened at 22:19. At least 188 were killed (the total number is unknown) and 86 wounded. One sailor was killed on Littorio
Italian battleship Littorio
|-External links:...
, and 150 to 250 civilians died as well. Major ships were swiftly moved to La Spezia
La Spezia
La Spezia , at the head of the Gulf of La Spezia in the Liguria region of northern Italy, is the capital city of the province of La Spezia. Located between Genoa and Pisa on the Ligurian Sea, it is one of the main Italian military and commercial harbours and hosts one of Italy's biggest military...
. Attendolo was still repairable with 10 to 12 months estimated, but this never happened. The ship was used as dock with the Allied occupation, and raised and demolished in the post war period. The other two cruisers were repaired with some delays.