Salvatore Pelosi was an 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...

 Naval officer who 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...

.

Pelosi was educated at the Italian Naval academy

Accademia Navale di Livorno

The Italian Naval Academy is a coeducational military university in Leghorn , which is responsible for the technical training of military officers of the Italian Navy.-The Hospital of St. James:...

 in Livorno

Livorno

Livorno , traditionally Leghorn , is a port city on the Tyrrhenian Sea on the western edge of Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Livorno, having a population of approximately 160,000 residents in 2009.- History :...

 and before the war served on the battleship Caio Duilio

Italian battleship Caio Duilio

Caio Duilio was an Italian that served in the Regia Marina during World War I and World War II. She was named after the Roman fleet commander Gaius Duilius. Caio Duilio was laid down on 24 February 1912 and after a year and two months of construction, she was launched on 24 April 1913...

, cruisers and destroyers as well as in the Italian marines in Tientsin

Red Sea

In 1940 Pelosi commanded the Italian submarine Evangelista Torricelli

Brin class submarine

The Brin-class submarines were five Italian submarines that served in the Regia Marina during World War II. All ships were built by Tosi. Two boats were replacements for Archimede-class submarines secretly transferred to the Nationalists during the Spanish Civil War in 1937. The class were...

 which was part of the Red Sea Flotilla

Red Sea Flotilla

The Red Sea Flotilla was a unit of the Italian Royal Navy based in Massawa, Eritrea, when Massawa was part of Italian East Africa...

 based in Massawa, Eritrea. The Toricelli was on patrol in the Gulf of Aden on 23 June 1940 when she was intercepted by a Royal Navy

Royal Navy

The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...

 battle group comprising the destroyers HMS Kandahar, HMS Khartoum, HMS Kingston

HMS Kingston

Five ships of the Royal Navy have borne the name HMS Kingston.* HMS Kingston was a 60-gun fourth rate, launched in 1697, rebuilt in 1719 and 1740 and sold in 1762....

 and the sloop HMS Shoreham

HMS Shoreham

Five ships of the Royal Navy have borne the name HMS Shoreham after the town of Shoreham-by-Sea: was a 32-gun fifth rate launched in 1694. She was rebuilt as a 20-gun sixth rate in 1720, and was sold in 1744...

. The Torricelli was trapped on the surface and unable to dive due to technical problems but fought a gun and torpedo action damaging the British before scuttling herself. A shell from the Italian submarine hit HMS Khartoum which suffered a fire resulting in an ammunition explosion sinking the ship. Pelosi was awarded the Gold Medal of Military Valor

Gold Medal of Military Valor

The Gold Medal of Military Valor is an Italian medal established on 21 May 1793 by King Victor Amadeus III of Sardinia "....per bassi ufficiali e soldati che avevano fatto azioni di segnalato valore in guerra" .The face of the medal displayed the profile of the king, and on its reverse was a flag...

 for this action and spent the rest of the war as a POW.

Post war

After the war Pelosi commaned the destroyer Alfredo Oriani in 1948 and the Italian Naval Mission to Somalia in 1951. he retired in 1969 as a Vice Admiral. A Sauro class submarine

Sauro class submarine

The Nazario Sauro class are submarines operated by the Italian Navy. All boats were built by Fincantieri in Monfalcone. There are three sub groups built in four batches:* Nazario Sauro class :...

the S552 Salvatore Pelosi was named after him.