During the struggle for the Mediterranean in World War II, British and
Italian battleships entered combat on three occasions in 1940 and 1941.
In this fully illustrated account of these battles, historian Mark
Stille assesses the technology, crews, doctrine, and combat record of
the capital ships that took part.
During World War II's battle for control of the Mediterranean, both the
British and Italian navies planned to bring their battle fleets into
play. At the center of both of these fleets was a core of battleships
which both sides expected to play a decisive role in the conflict.
On July 9, 1940, the two navies met in the central Mediterranean, as two
Italian battleships faced off against three of their British
counterparts. Christened the Battle of Calabria, the action allowed the
ships to play to their strengths, engaging in a long-range gunnery duel,
the very thing they had been designed for. Though both sides shot well,
the only hit was scored by Warspite on the Italian battleship Giulio
Cesare. The Italians were forced to withdraw, and the action ended up
being indecisive, but it was the largest fleet action fought in the
Mediterranean during the war. As well as this battle, there were other
occasions during the war when both British and Italian battleships were
present and influential, but during which they never engaged each other
directly--the Battle of Spartivento on November 27, 1940, and the Battle
of Cape Matapan on March 28--29, 1941.
Packed with full-color artwork, carefully selected archive photographs,
and expert analysis, this title explores in detail the role played by
British and Italian battleships in these encounters and their influence
in the Mediterranean theater of World War II.
