Sella class destroyer
Encyclopedia
Sella class destroyer were a group of destroyers built for the Italian Regia Marina
Regia Marina
The Regia Marina dates from the proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy in 1861 after Italian unification...
in the 1920s. Two of these ships 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...
and both were sunk after the Italian capitulation
Armistice with Italy
The Armistice with Italy was an armistice signed on September 3 and publicly declared on September 8, 1943, during World War II, between Italy and the Allied armed forces, who were then occupying the southern end of the country, entailing the capitulation of Italy...
to the Allies. Two more ships were sold to the Swedish Navy
Swedish Navy
The Royal Swedish Navy is the naval branch of the Swedish Armed Forces. It is composed of surface and submarine naval units – the Fleet – as well as marine units, the so-called Amphibious Corps .In Swedish, vessels of the Swedish Navy are given the prefix "HMS," short for Hans/Hennes...
in 1940 and were scrapped in the late 1940s.
These ships formed the basis for most subsequent destroyers built by the Italians, but were disappointing in service with unreliable machinery.
During WWII, the destroyers were based in the island of Leros
Leros
Leros is a Greek island and municipality in the Dodecanese in the southern Aegean Sea. It lies 317 km from Athens's port of Piraeus, from which it can be reached by an 11-hour ferry ride . Leros is part of the Kalymnos peripheral unit...
, in the Dodecanese
Dodecanese
The Dodecanese are a group of 12 larger plus 150 smaller Greek islands in the Aegean Sea, of which 26 are inhabited. Τhis island group generally defines the eastern limit of the Sea of Crete. They belong to the Southern Sporades island group...
. They took part of the Italian retaking of Kastelorizo
Kastelorizo
Kastelorizo, , is a Greek island and municipality located in the southeastern Mediterranean. It lies roughly off the south coast of Turkey, about 570 km southeast of Athens and east of Rhodes, almost halfway between Rhodes and Antalya and to Cyprus...
(Operation Abstention
Operation Abstention
Operation Abstention was the code name given to the British invasion of the Italian island of Kastelorizo, off Turkey, during the Second World War, on late February 1941...
for the British), on 27 February 1941, and were used as mother ships for the attack by explosive motor boats
Sinking of HMS York
The Raid on Souda Bay was an Italian Navy's small craft assault on Souda Bay, Crete, during the first hours of 26 March 1941. The Royal Navy heavy cruiser and the Norwegian tanker Pericles were disabled by Italian motor launches and eventually lost....
on on 25 March.
Ships
All four ships were built by the Pattison shipyard in Naples-
- Named after Francesco CrispiFrancesco CrispiFrancesco Crispi was a 19th-century Italian politician of Arbëreshë ancestry. He was instrumental in the unification of Italy and was its 17th and 20th Prime Minister from 1887 until 1891 and again from 1893 until 1896.-Sicily:Crispi’s paternal family came originally from the small agricultural...
, - completed 29 April 1927,
- seized by the GermansKriegsmarineThe Kriegsmarine was the name of the German Navy during the Nazi regime . It superseded the Kaiserliche Marine of World War I and the post-war Reichsmarine. The Kriegsmarine was one of three official branches of the Wehrmacht, the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany.The Kriegsmarine grew rapidly...
after the Italian ArmisticeArmistice with ItalyThe Armistice with Italy was an armistice signed on September 3 and publicly declared on September 8, 1943, during World War II, between Italy and the Allied armed forces, who were then occupying the southern end of the country, entailing the capitulation of Italy...
in September 1943, served as the TA15, sunk by air attack on 8 March 1944 in the Aegean SeaAegean SeaThe Aegean Sea[p] is an elongated embayment of the Mediterranean Sea located between the southern Balkan and Anatolian peninsulas, i.e., between the mainlands of Greece and Turkey. In the north, it is connected to the Marmara Sea and Black Sea by the Dardanelles and Bosporus...
- - Named after Quintino SellaQuintino SellaQuintino Sella was an Italian statesman and financier.-Biography:Sella was born at Sella di Mosso, in the Province of Biella....
, - completed 25 March 1926,
- sunk by German E-BoatE-boatE-boats was the designation for Motor Torpedo Boats of the German Navy during World War II. It is commonly held that the E stood for Enemy....
s on 11 September 1943. - - Named after Bettino RicasoliBettino RicasoliBettino Ricàsoli, 1.º Barone Ricàsoli, 1.º Conte di Brolio was an Italian statesman.-Biography:...
, - commissioned 11 December 1926.
- Sold to the Swedish Navy as . -
- Named after Giovanni NicoteraGiovanni NicoteraGiovanni Nicotera was an Italian patriot and politician. His surname is pronounced , with the stress on the second syllable.-Biography:Nicotera was born at Sambiase, in Calabria....
, - commissioned 8 January 1927.
- Sold to the Swedish Navy as the .