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Antonio Toscano†The naval Battle of Cape Bon took place on December 13, 1941 during the Second World War, between two Italian light cruisers and an Allied destroyer flotilla off Cape Bon, Tunisia. Events 1294 - Saint Celestine V abdicates the papacy after only five months Celestine hoped to return to his previous life Year 1941 ( MCMXLI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (the link will display 1941 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including The Kingdom of Italy ( Italian: Regno d'Italia) was a state forged in 1861 by the unification of Italy under the influence of the Kingdom A light cruiser is a Warship. The term is a shortening of the phrase "light Armoured cruiser " describing a small ship that carried armour in the same way In naval terminology a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance Warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, Convoy Cap Bon (كاب بون also watan el-kibli, Cap Bon is a Peninsula in far northeastern Tunisia. Tunisia (تونس Tūnis officially the Tunisian Republic ( is a country located in North Africa. The loss of the two cruisers was a serious setback for the Regia Marina. The Regia Marina ( Italian Royal Navy) dates from the proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy in 1861 after Italian unification.
Background
The control of the Mediterranean was disputed between the Italian Regia Marina and the British Royal Navy, supported by ships of Empire navies and other allied navies. The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of the British armed services (and is therefore known as the Senior Service) This was critical for the supply of the Italian and German forces in north Africa and for the maintenance of Malta as a British offensive base. Malta, officially the Republic of Malta (Repubblika ta' Malta is a European Microstate, comprising an Archipelago of three islands Without Malta, Britain could not intercept Italian convoys and thus prevent the supply of Axis armies. At times, supply was so serious that warships were used as fast transports by both sides.
When Italy declared war in June 1940, it had one of the largest navies in the world but its strength was limited to the Mediterranean, whereas the British could replace most losses by redeploying ships. This led to caution on behalf of the Italian command and a tendency to avoid battle.
The British had advantages in that they possessed radar and Italian naval codes had been broken. Radar is a system that uses electromagnetic waves to identify the range altitude direction or speed of both moving and fixed objects such as Aircraft, ships
The action
The Italian 4th Cruiser Division, commanded by Contrammiraglio Antonio Toscano and consisting of the two Di Giussano class light cruisers Alberto di Giussano and Alberico da Barbiano and the torpedo boat Cigno, sailed from Palermo bound for Tripoli, carrying an urgent supply of aircraft fuel (nearly 2000 tons) for Libya. Palermo ( Sicilian: Palermu, Greek: Panormus, al-Madinah during Muslim rule is a historic City in Tripolis ( Arabic: طرابلس Ṭarābulus - also طرابلس الغرب Ṭarā-bu-lus al-Gharb Libyan vernacular: Libya ( ليبيا ar-Latn Lībiyā; Libyan vernacular: Lībya; Amazigh:) officially the Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab The fuel was so important that fuel tanks were even put on the decks of the ships.
In the meantime, the British 4th Destroyer flotilla – four destroyers (HMS Sikh, HMS Maori, HMS Legion and the Dutch destroyer Isaac Sweers) commanded by Commander G. HMS Sikh was a Tribal class Destroyer of the Fourth destroyer Flotilla of the Royal Navy. Construction and commissioning HMS Legion was ordered on 31 March 1938 from the yards of Hawthorn Leslie and Company, Newcastle upon Tyne under the Design These ships were larger than the preceding Admiralen class destroyers As those ships were outclassed by contemporary Japanese destroyers H. Stokes – was bound for Malta. Malta, officially the Republic of Malta (Repubblika ta' Malta is a European Microstate, comprising an Archipelago of three islands
The British flotilla was spotted by an Italian aircraft but Regia Marina HQ judged that the British would not be able to reach Cape Bon before the 4th Cruiser Division was passed. However, the British, with intercepted signals from Ultra, ordered their destroyers to intercept the Axis cruisers. ULTra ("Urban Light Transport" is a Personal rapid transit system from Advanced Transport Systems Ltd a company based in Cardiff, Wales.
On December 13 at 03:25 the forces met. Events 1294 - Saint Celestine V abdicates the papacy after only five months Celestine hoped to return to his previous life Arriving from astern in the dark and using radar, the Allies achieved surprise, launching torpedoes and opening fire. Radar is a system that uses electromagnetic waves to identify the range altitude direction or speed of both moving and fixed objects such as Aircraft, ships Both Italian cruisers were sunk – Alberico da Barbiano a towering inferno. The action was over quickly and the British flotilla left. Cigno rescued 500 survivors, while others reached the coast or were later saved by Italian anti-submarine motorboats (MAS). Over 900 men lost their lives, including Admiral Toscano.
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