In the summer of 1940, an Italian flotilla embarked on a grand
expedition across the treacherous waters of the Mediterranean Sea. Their mission:
to equip their compatriots stationed in Libya.
As the sun began to set, two torpedo boats set out
to rendezvous with the flotilla outside the Messina harbor.
There, they joined forces with the escort fleet from Taranto and formed a mighty armada.
The escort fleet was nothing short of awe-inspiring,
consisting of several destroyers, torpedo boats, heavy cruisers, light cruisers, and battleships.
Coincidentally, the Allies were engaged in a similar undertaking.
With their forces stirring in the ancient city of Alexandria, they readied themselves to embark on
a vital mission to Malta with vital supplies and specialist reinforcements. The convoy was composed
of an array of ships, from those carrying civilians to those laden with fleet stores.
And so, some 30 miles east of Punta Stillo,
the convoy of the Italian Royal Navy would cross paths with the British Royal Navy…
Power Games
In the early days of Italy's involvement in World War 2, the Italian forces in Libya were
not well-equipped. If the Italian military was to take any initiative in the offensive,
they would have to bring their forces up to fighting condition.
As a result, the Italian fleet was forced to launch large supply convoys. On July 6,
1940, a convoy of four merchant ships departed from Naples, apparently setting a course toward
Tripoli in an attempt to fool the Allies. Yet, the fleet was bound for Benghazi. That evening,
another two torpedo boats incoming from Catania and a freighter met the convoy off Messina.
In total, the convoy carried 2,190 troops, 72 M11 tanks, and 232 various vehicles.
Furthermore, they were transporting at least 10,445 tons of supplies and 5,720 tons of fuel.
At the helm of the escort force was Admiral Inigo Campioni. His fleet was divided into three groups:
the first group, directly responsible for the protection of the cargo ships,
consisted of four destroyers and six torpedo boats; the second group,
six heavy cruisers and four destroyers, which would sail 35 miles to the east; finally,
the main battle group comprised two battleships, eight light cruisers, and 16 destroyers.
Nevertheless, unbeknownst to the Italians,
their Allied counterpart was also involved in a similar undertaking.
Crossed Paths
Sailing from Alexandria to Malta, the opposing vessels under Admiral
Andrew Cunningham would deliver supplies and a limited number of specialist reinforcements.
Likewise, two convoys were arranged to take fleet stores and civilians from Malta to Alexandria.
Simultaneously, two groups of merchantmen set sail: a fast convoy at 13 knots and a
slow one at 9 knots. To offer protection were three groups of ships. Force A included five
cruisers and a destroyer; Force B, the battleship Warspite and five destroyers;
Force C, the main battle group, had battleships Royal Sovereign and Malaya,
the aircraft carrier Eagle, and eleven destroyers. However, one of the destroyers,
Imperial, had to return to Alexandria due to a malfunction in the early hours of July 8.
That afternoon, two Italian Cant Z.506 seaplanes from Tobruck caught sight of
the British fleet on the Libyan border with Egypt. For the following four hours,
the seaplanes would shadow the British, but no hostilities were exchanged.
In the meantime, Campioni prepared his forces for action. The Admiral ordered his fleet to defend
the convoy by turning eastward; however, the Italian Supreme Command was reluctant to put its
warships at risk as the dark approached. So they explicitly directed the fleet to avoid contact.
But the Italians would then struggle with technical problems, incapacitating three
destroyers and two light cruisers. Hence, the faulty ships, escorted by a handful of
working destroyers, had to be detached to Sicily. To make up for the losses,
an additional destroyer group from Taranto joined the convoy, limiting the destroyer fleet to 16.
The fighting was about to break out.
Blindsided
The Italian Regia Aeronautica launched a series of attacks on the British fleet from 10:00am to
6:40pm, involving 72 bombers from the mainland. Given that the Italian bombers operated in
formations at high altitudes, after dropping scores of bombs, they only scored one hit.
The hit on HMS Gloucester caused serious damage to the bridge. It resulted in the
loss of the captain, six officers, eleven ratings, and several others wounded.
The ship's forward fire control and steering equipment were destroyed. Still,
she would not flee and remained in the battle, though commanded from the emergency station.
At 3:10pm, Cunningham's fleet turned towards Taranto to cut off the Italians' return route.
As dusk approached, Cunningham changed course and slowed the fleet's speed,
taking precautions to avoid enemy air reconnaissance.
Yet, they kept their fleet in the Italians' way to the Gulf of Taranto.
Past noon, the Italian Supreme Command was absolutely clueless regarding the whereabouts
of the British fleet. Therefore, Caprioni was compelled to have his
fleet scramble about the sea southeast of Cape Spartivento in search of the enemy.
Not long after, the Admiral received reports of the British' position. He launched six
Ro.43 floatplanes from his cruisers and finally spotted the British warships:
unexpectedly, they were 30 miles closer than anticipated.
Under the sun, the two fleets faced each other from a distance of 90 miles;
the first large naval engagement of the war was set to unfold.
Toe To Toe
True to their reputation, the mighty British possessed the advantage of firepower. Yet,
the Italians boasted unparalleled speed.
And so, Cunningham, determined to gain a better firing range,
led his charge with Warspite, leaving behind the relatively slower Royal Sovereign and Malaya.
Meanwhile, British Swordfish torpedo aircraft launched by Eagle were deployed,
aiming to strike the Italian heavy cruisers, but entirely missed their mark.
In parallel, the Italian Supreme Command ordered
Campioni to attack one of the enemy ships facing him. In fact,
Campioni's fleet was luring the Allied fleet closer and closer to an Italian airbase.
Later that afternoon, once the Allied cruiser group had formed in front of Warspite,
with the main Italian force looming 13 miles away,
both fleets opened fire. Still, from that distance, the Italians proved to have a
better range-finding system and began rapidly closing the gap while engaging.
On their part, the Allies had better gun-laying, so the two forces remained evenly matched.
As the distance between the fleets dwindled, Italian fire became dangerously close to the
Allied cruisers. In a fierce exchange, the Italian cruiser Giuseppe Garibaldi hit HMS
Neptune, forcing Vice-Admiral John Tovey to disengage. By 3:30pm, the firing ceased.
But the battle was far from over. Twenty minutes later, daring and bold, Campioni
decided to challenge Warspite. With the battleship Giulio Cesare leading the charge, the battleship
Conte di Cavour waited patiently for Malaya and Royal Sovereign to fall within engagement range.
Crossed Signals
Warspite stood tall and proud amidst the chaos as the two enemy battleships,
Conte di Cavour and Giulio Cesare, challenged her. With her guns trained upon her foes,
she split her fire between the two, unaware that Conte di Cavour was a decoy.
As the engagement raged on, Cesare's shot missed her intended target but
instead struck Warspite's escorting destroyers, dealing minor damage.
Undeterred, Malaya fired her own rounds from a distance to confuse the Italians.
Then, Italian heavy cruisers joined the fray against Warspite, soon followed by
Allied cruisers entering the scene. In an instant, the Italian ships retreated.
Suddenly, Warspite fired her massive 381-millimeter rounds from 15 miles
away and struck Cesare's rear deck with devastating force. The resulting
explosion of stored ammunition marked one of the longest-range naval artillery hits in history.
With Cesare crippled, Conte di Cavour had to take over while the Italian cruisers
continued to engage their counterparts. Fiume opened fire on Liverpool, and five
other heavy cruisers soon joined in the fight. Neptune scored at least three hits on Bolzano.
With the fight escalating, both sides attempted several torpedo runs, but to no avail.
Seeing no choice, the Italians generated smoke and retreated
to Messina, with their battleships offering cover in their withdrawal.
However, the battle was not over. A further 126 Italian aircraft
appeared on the horizon and raided the Allied ships, damaging Warspite, Malaya, and Eagle.
And in a misunderstanding of directions,
the Italian Air Force erroneously attacked their own ships, which were nonetheless unharmed.
With both sides withdrawing by 4:50pm, the battle ended.
Moral Ascendancy
As the battle between the Italian and Allied fleets came to an end, both sides began to
head back home. The Italians were able to claim a sort of victory as their cargo ships had already
passed by the action and were able to sail safely to Libya. Meanwhile, the Allied ships, accompanied
by their escort, reached Alexandria. Even though the battle was inconclusive, the Allied
forces insisted that the Royal Navy had achieved "moral ascendancy" over their Italian opponents.
However, other sources disputed these claims, pointing out that the
attitudes of the two commanders were quite different immediately after the battle.
For one, the Italian commander believed that even though they had only been able to use
two old refurbished battleships, the battle had given every man, from senior officers to seamen,
the impression that they could hold their own against the British Fleet on equal terms.
On the other side, the Allied commander was dismayed by the performance of his two older
units, arguing their lack of speed had allowed the Italians to dictate the course of the action.
Making matters worse, their guns had been out-ranged,
not only by those of the Italian battleships but also by those of the heavy cruisers.
Even though both parties claimed victory, with both Italian and Allied cargo ships
reaching their destinations unscathed, the true outcome was evident: a strategic draw.
We're thrilled to have you with us for Dark Seas and hope you enjoyed the
tales of bravery and adventure in this documentary. If you want to see more,
subscribe and show your support with a like. And if you're hungry for more military content
and epic battles, check out the rest of our Dark Documentaries channels. Thank you for watching!