Zara-class heavy cruisers. What is Zara? interesting facts and quotes

Issue: 04 What to be a destroyer?

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• 22 Destroyer Batum, Russia, 1880
• 23 Destroyer Zieten, Germany, 1876.
• 24 Destroyer No. 1, France, 1876
• 25 Destroyer Jager, Germany, 1883.
• 26 Torpedo ship Zara, Austria-Hungary, 1881.
• 27 The destroyer Vzryv, Russia, 1877.

Built in England by Yarrow.

Displacement total 48.4 tons.

Overall length 30.5 m, width 3.8 m, draft 1.9 m.

The power of a single-shaft steam power plant is about 500 hp, the test speed is 22 knots (in fact, with a full displacement of 15.5 knots).

Armament:

two torpedo tubes.

Renamed No. 251 in 1895.

Excluded from the fleet lists in 1908

Built in England, laid down in 1875.

Displacement total 1152 tons.

Overall length 79.4 m, beam 8.56 m, draft 4.63 m.

The power of the two-room steam power plant is 2000 hp, the speed is 16 knots.

Armament: two underwater torpedo tubes.

In 1899 it was handed over to fish protection, during the First World War - a coastal patrol vessel.

Excluded from the fleet lists in 1921

Built by Claparede, laid down in September 1875.

Displacement normal 95 tons, full 103 tons.

Overall length 38.67 m, beam 4.19 m, draft 2.59 m.

The power of the twin-shaft steam power plant is 800 hp, the speed is 14.37 knots.

Armament:

two underwater torpedo tubes.

In 1883 it was renamed "Izar" and reclassified into an aviso (messenger ship) of the 3rd class.

Excluded from the fleet lists in 1889.

Built in Germany by Weser.

Displacement total 138 tons.

Overall length 34.8 m, width 5.58 m, draft 2.6 m.

The power of the single-shaft steam power plant is 550 hp, the speed is 15 knots.

Armament:

two torpedo tubes, one 37 mm Hotchkiss gun.

Excluded from the fleet in 1889, scrapped in 1900.

It was built at the Naval Arsenal in Pola.

Displacement normal 852 tons, full 930 tons.

Overall length 67.2 m, width 8.2 m, draft 4.1 m.

The power of the twin-shaft steam power plant is about 1000 hp, the actual speed is 11.1 knots.

Armament:

four 90-mm and one bb-mm guns, two 25-mm canisters, three torpedo tubes.

A total of two units were built:

Zara and Spalato.

Both ships were scrapped in 1920.

It was built at the Byrd plant in St. Petersburg.

Displacement normal 134 tons.

Overall length 39.62 m, width 4.87 m, draft 3.05 m.

The power of a single-shaft steam power plant is 800 hp, speed is 13.3 knots.

Armament:

underwater torpedo tube.

Excluded from the lists of the fleet in 1907

The mass construction of destroyers in the late 70s of the XIX century did not at all indicate that there was unanimity in the views of the admirals of all the leading maritime powers. The new class of warships had many critics who believed that the hobby for "frivolous boats" was tantamount to throwing money away. Indeed, the first destroyers had obvious shortcomings; the main ones are negligible seaworthiness and cruising range. It was worth even a small wave to clear up, and the fleets of carriers of self-propelled mines were not able to go to sea. Therefore, shipbuilders did not stop trying, in parallel with the construction of destroyers, to create a more solid and seaworthy combat unit of a similar purpose.

The first ship in the world specially built to carry Whitehead's mines was the English Vesuvius, commissioned in 1874. It was a relatively large ship with a displacement of 245 tons, armed with one bow torpedo tube. It had a very low silhouette without chimneys - smoke was thrown into the atmosphere by fans through openings on the sides of the hull. It was believed that in this way "Vesuvius" could quietly approach the enemy in the fog or twilight at the range of a torpedo shot. However, this looked problematic, since the 350-horsepower compound steam engine allowed the “destroyer ship” to develop a speed of only 9.7 knots. After extensive testing, the Vesuvius was converted into an experimental vessel, which she served as until 1924.

The British built a more perfect ship for Germany. In 1875, the Germans ordered the Thames Iron Works factory to ship the Ziten, a high-speed messenger ship. In July next year it became part of the Kaiser's fleet. The elegant yacht silhouette of this super-destroyer concealed its impressive size. Two steam engines with a total power of 2000 hp provided him with an excellent course of 16 knots for that time. The armament consisted of two underwater 380-mm torpedo tubes installed in the stems and capable of firing strictly along the diametrical plane of the ship in the bow and stern. The possibility of reloading torpedoes was envisaged - there were five of them for each device. At first, there was no artillery at all; later six 50 mm guns appeared. In general, the Ziten turned out to be a very good ship - high-speed and seaworthy, but the admirals considered its size, close to the cruisers of that time, to be excessive, and the cost to be very high. Being the successor to the German so-called "mine steamers" and the prototype of the torpedo gunboats and mine cruisers that soon appeared, the Zieten remained in a single copy. But the Germans' attempt to create a cheaper version of a seaworthy destroyer failed. Built in 1883, the 138-ton Jager, although it showed a more or less acceptable speed (15 knots), its maneuverability and seaworthiness did not hold water. After six years of testing, the ship was expelled from the fleet.

Direct relatives of the Zieten appeared in only one country - Austria-Hungary. There, in 1878, two very similar ships were laid down - "Zara" and "Spalato", officially called "torpedo ships". They were also twin-screw and yacht-like in appearance, but their steam engines were unable to develop their designed power, which is why the expected 14-knot speed was never achieved. The armament of each of them consisted of four 90-mm, one 66-mm cannons, two 25-mm canisters and three torpedo tubes; one bow and two side. In 1887, all the old guns were replaced with five rapid-fire 47-mm, and instead of three torpedo tubes, two surface surface torpedo tubes were installed. Both ships, after repeated upgrades, participated in the First World War, served as guard ships in the security system of naval bases, and the Zara even withstood a mine explosion in June 1917. In 1920 they were sold for scrap to Italy.

In 1882-1883, the Austrians built two more very similar, slightly enlarged (displacement 890/1000 tons) ships - Sebeniko and Lussin. The fate of the latter is very curious. In 1911-1914, it was converted into a yacht, and its steam engines gave way to two MAN diesel engines with a capacity of 900 hp each. each. Since 1916, Lussin has been used as a floating barracks for the crews of German submarines based in Pohl. After the end of the First World War, he went to Italy and served for some time under the name "Sorrento".

If the Austrian "Lussin" already at a very mature age turned into a luxury yacht, then the first seaworthy destroyer Russian fleet underwent a reverse metamorphosis, and right on the slipway. Back in December 1876, the Russian Naval Ministry issued an order to the St. Petersburg plant of Berd for the construction of the Vzryv mine-carrying vessel, which in theory resembled German mine steamers. Initially, it was assumed that its armament would consist of a pole mine mounted on a retractable tubular pole, but then they settled on a more promising weapon - Whitehead's underwater nose apparatus for mines. To speed up the work (or perhaps just find a use for the unfinished hull available), the contractor decided to use an already tested pleasure yacht project. This is how an unusual destroyer appeared, resembling the Cyten and Zara in silhouette, but with more elegant contours, and even having a copper lining of the underwater part of the hull. But spectacular appearance"Explosion", alas, became its only advantage. An attempt to shove mechanisms twice as powerful into the existing project was unsuccessful: during the tests, the ship, instead of the contractual 17-knot speed, was able to develop only 13.3 knots. In addition, the stability of the ship was clearly insufficient, which forced us to limit ourselves to very modest weapons. The latter, by the way, turned out to be ineffective: due to the increased yaw rate, it was extremely difficult to aim a fixed bow torpedo tube at the target. In 1885, four 37-mm Hotchkiss cannons and two apparatus for throwing mines were installed on the Explosion, for which it was necessary to dismantle the conning tower, the wooden decking and the hydraulic rudder drive used for the first time in our fleet. In essence, the "Explosion" was an experimental vessel and until 1907 served for various experiments, and then was scrapped.

An attempt to build a seaworthy destroyer at first failed and the French. They laid down their 100-ton ship, designated No. 1, back in 1875. Its design was distinguished by many original solutions. So, the armament consisted of two torpedo tubes located in the diametrical plane in the bow and stern, and the Whitehead mines were thrown out not by gunpowder and not by compressed air, but by steam pressure. In general, the ship had “every creature in pairs”: two torpedo tubes, two boilers, two steam engines, two chimneys, two two-bladed propellers ... The presence of two separate cellars with a solid supply of torpedoes can be considered as the advantage of a destroyer. But in general, the ship turned out to be clearly unsuccessful: instead of the design 17 nodes, it developed only a little more than 14, and after the tests, the absolutely inoperable torpedo tubes had to be dismantled and replaced ... with one pole mine, since no other reliable weapon was found then. As a result, the destroyer No. 1 was reclassified as the Isar messenger ship, and in 1889 it was scrapped.

So, the attempts of shipbuilders different countries to create a large destroyer for operations on the high seas failed: the first representatives of a new class of ships were either too large and expensive, or generally worthless. There was an opinion that it would not be possible to achieve acceptable speed and seaworthiness at the same time, and one of these qualities would have to be sacrificed. It is strange, but the most obvious solution - simply to increase the destroyer to the size of a more or less seaworthy vessel - did not come immediately. And what is even more surprising is that it did not appear among British, French or German designers, who were considered the undisputed leaders in the development of carriers of torpedo weapons, but in by no means the most technologically advanced Russia.

However, there were good reasons for that. The head of the Russian Naval Ministry, Admiral I.A. Shestakov, bitterly stated that a hundred destroyers built in 1877-1878, which cost the treasury 4 million rubles, "turned out to be completely unjustified for operations in the waters of the Gulf of Finland, which was intended." Therefore, at the end of 1879, it was decided to order a larger destroyer (at that time it was still called a destroyer). The domestic industry could not yet ensure the fast and high-quality execution of the order, and the Maritime Ministry chose the English company Yarrow. In memory of the first successful torpedo attack by Russian boats, the new ship was given the name Batum. The well-known English shipbuilder E. Reid became the developer of the detailed project.

The layout of the "Batum" almost exactly repeated the layout of the serial destroyers of the company "Yarrow". The hull was divided by watertight bulkheads into eight compartments; the thickness of the steel sheathing did not exceed 3.5 mm. The boiler room housed a cylindrical locomotive-type steam boiler "with a capacity of 240 buckets", there were two chimneys. The two-cylinder machine-compound was located in the sixth compartment (from the nose); during the tests, she provided the extremely lightweight (without weapons and supplies) destroyer with a record speed of 22.16 knots! Due to the presence of two rudders - stern and retractable bow - the circulation diameter at full speed was only 5.1 hull lengths, which was considered a good result for a narrow cigar-shaped vessel. To ensure a greater cruising range, Batum was equipped with sailing weapons - three folding masts were installed on the deck, on which, if necessary, slanting sails with a total area of ​​​​500 square meters were raised. ft. The drainage means consisted of six ejectors capable of pumping out about 75 buckets of water per minute. Looking ahead, we note that the design of the Russian destroyer has become a classic for the next decade.

On May 31, 1880, the Batum was launched, and on July 17 it was received by a Russian crew led by Lieutenant I.M. Zatsarenny. Then the destroyer went under its own power - neither more nor less - to the Black Sea! The British were shocked: quite recently, their newspapers expressed delight that the destroyers built for France were able to cross the English Channel. And here - a trip around Europe, through the stormy Bay of Biscay and the five seas. It just seemed incredible. Nevertheless, the risky venture ended successfully. On the way, the Batum entered Fiume, where torpedo tubes were installed on it and the chimneys were slightly lengthened, since at the initial height (1.5 m) they were often flooded with water. On September 21, the destroyer arrived in Nikolaev.

This voyage forced naval specialists to take a fresh look at the emerging strength of the fleet. It became clear to them that the destroyers could handle not only the protection of the approaches to their bases, but also much more serious tasks.

Text: Sergey Balakin

To the question - what is Zara? - everyone will surely answer in their own way. Someone will immediately think of a fashion brand, someone - the stage name of the singer, and a lover of naval history - the name of an Italian heavy cruiser, one of the most powerful and most beautiful in its class.

But few will remember that Zara is the Italian name for the Croatian city of Zadar. By the way, the said cruiser is named after him. At first glance, this fact is perplexing: why would it? I believe that the Italian history of Dalmatian cities (by the way, not so old, but little known) will be of interest to many, especially the participants of the upcoming Ocean Medi Cup-2015 sailing regatta. Since they have to visit the Croatian Zadar - the former Italian Zara - and imagine themselves in the center of the events of a hundred years ago ...

History of Italian Croatia

Historically, many Italians lived on the eastern coast of the Adriatic - after all, these lands for many centuries belonged first to the Roman Empire, then to the Venetian Republic. After the unification of Italy, which ended in the second half of the 19th century, Rome began to consider the territories inhabited by compatriots as a zone of its interests. But the coast of Dalmatia was part of Austria-Hungary, and this fact became the main problem in relations between the two European monarchies. Although both countries entered into a Tripartite Alliance in 1882, which was led by Germany, the contradictions between Rome and Vienna continued to persist and eventually became the cause of a split.

In World War I, Italy initially remained neutral, however, on April 26, 1915, it signed the London Pact, a secret agreement according to which the kingdom left the Triple Alliance, joined the Entente and declared war on Germany and Austria-Hungary. In return, Italy was promised former Austro-Hungarian territories, including Tyrol, Trieste, Istria, northern Dalmatia, and a number of islands in the Adriatic Sea. The content of the London Pact was kept in strict secrecy and was made public only by the Bolsheviks, and immediately after the revolution. For the first time, the full text of the agreement appeared in Soviet Russia on the pages of the Izvestiya newspaper in November 1918.

And a little earlier, in October of the same 1918, a deep economic and political crisis led to the collapse of Austria-Hungary, which was not accidentally called the "patchwork monarchy". A huge power overnight fell apart into "rags", and on November 6, Kaiser Charles I abdicated the throne. Italy tried not to miss its chance. Already on November 4, the invasion of Italian troops into Dalmatia, Istria, Croatian Primorye began. Encountering no resistance, they captured the naval base of Pola (now Pula), the ports of Trieste, Fiume (Rijeka), Zara (Zadar), Sebeniko (Sibenik), Spalato (Split), Kattaro (Kotor) and approached the main city of Slovenia, Ljubljana . Most of the population of coastal cities were ethnic Italians, so the invaders were greeted as liberators. On December 5, Italy proclaimed the creation of a new province of Dalmatia; Admiral Enrico Millo was appointed its governor.

However, England and France were not interested in strengthening Italy. The governments of these two countries believed that the contribution of the Italians to the overall victory over the enemy was too small to satisfy their exorbitant demands. In addition, the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (the future Yugoslavia) formed on the ruins of Austria-Hungary was categorically opposed to the alienation in favor of Italy of lands considered “originally Croatian”. The Entente decided to send its troops to the disputed territories in order to prevent a clash between the Italians and the local Slavic population.

Over the next few years, the center of events was the city of Fiume - the current Rijeka. Already on November 4, 1918, the Italian battleship Emanuele Filiberto enters the harbor of the port, and under the muzzles of its guns, the Italian National Council takes power into its own hands. In London and Paris, such arbitrariness was greeted with irritation, and on November 17 French, British and American troops landed in Fiume. The Union ruling committee becomes the official body of power in the city. Rome, in response, decides to "flex his muscles". Soon, an impressive Italian squadron is gathering in the harbor of Fiume, including the dreadnought "Dante Alighieri", the battleships "Ammiraglio di Sainte-Bone" and "Emanuele Filiberto", armored cruiser"San Marco" and other ships. The confrontation between the former allies in the Entente is growing.

At the Paris Peace Conference, which began in February 1919, serious political battles flared up around Italy's territorial claims. The Italian delegation, in an ultimatum tone, demanded the annexation of the lands promised by the London Pact of 1915. The Yugoslavs strongly objected, while England and France were clearly on their side. US President Woodrow Wilson assumed the role of mediator in the dispute. During a personal meeting with Italian Prime Minister Vittorio Orlando, he called for a compromise and, in particular, to abandon claims on Fiume. The Italians did not agree and left Paris on 26 April in protest. True, after 10 days Orlando returned and again sat down at the negotiating table. However, in the final document - the Treaty of Versailles, signed on June 28, 1919, Rome's claims were only partially satisfied. Italy received the western part of Istria with Trieste, Polu, Gorizia, Zara, the islands of Cres, Losinj and Lastovo. But Fiume and a significant part of Dalmatia retreated Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. The Italians considered the Treaty of Versailles offensive. They felt, in the words of a contemporary, "defeated in the camp of the victors."

"Gabriel the Annunciator"

And then Gabriele d'Annunzio appears on the scene, which should be told in more detail.

Gabriele's real surname is Rapagnetta, but he remained in history under his literary pseudonym Gabriele d'Annunzio, which means Gabriel the Annunciator. But such a humble nickname does not fit well with the character of this bright and extremely controversial personality. In Blagovestnik, a talented poet, writer, don Juan and a life-burner, a politician, a brave warrior, an adventurer, a nationalist, the godfather of Italian fascism, a teacher and mentor of Mussolini, coexisted in an amazing way ... He shocked the audience by drinking wine from the skull of a virgin and wearing boots made of human skin, was excommunicated by the Vatican for his writings, kept a harem of mistresses and arranged sadomasochistic orgies on his estate. At the same time, Nikolai Gumilev dedicates an enthusiastic poem to him, Ida Rubinstein dances for him personally and Enrico Caruso sings ... During the First World War, a well-known throughout Europe poet and writer, who has already exceeded 50, voluntarily puts on a military uniform. On February 10, 1918, as a member of the crew of a torpedo boat, he participates in a brave (albeit essentially unsuccessful) attack on Austrian transports in Bukkari Bay. Then he becomes a fighter pilot, in August of the same year, as part of a group of seven aircraft, he makes a record flight to Vienna and scatters thousands of propaganda leaflets over the capital of Austria-Hungary. After being injured and losing an eye during an emergency landing, Gabriele d'Annunzio fights on the land front, rising to the rank of lieutenant colonel. Perhaps it is difficult to find another example when a person in the course of one military campaign manages to distinguish himself in the battles of all branches of the armed forces - on land, in the sky and at sea ...

So, on September 12, 1919, Gabriele d'Annunzio enters Fiume in a representative Fiat decorated with bouquets of roses. He is followed by a line of cars, which are driven by about two thousand of his supporters. The basis of the squad are veterans of the assault squads "arditi" (arditi - daredevils). After a short confrontation, they are joined by the Italian garrison of the city, led by General Pittaluga, as well as sailors and some of the local residents. Allied troops stationed in the city offer no resistance and allow themselves to be blocked in the barracks. On October 26, d'Annunzio announces the annexation of the city to Italy and thus confronts the government with a fait accompli. But in Rome this news is greeted without enthusiasm. Premier Nitti orders a land and sea blockade of Fiume.

Once in isolation, d'Annunzio assigns himself the title of "comandante" and becomes the dictator of the self-proclaimed city-state. His patrimony repeatedly changes names: the Republic of Fiume, the Italian Regency of Carnaro, the Free State of Fiume ... In fact, it was the first fascist state in history, with all its attributes: mass processions in black shirts, militant slogans, ancient Roman greetings with a raised hand, emotional speeches of the leader before crowd. D'Annunzio extols the greatness of the national spirit and ultimate goal his actions sees the salvation of Italy from the socialists.

The impostor commandante has many supporters, volunteers and deserters from the Italian army flock to him in Fiume - some fly to him on combat aircraft. Now Gabriele d'Annunzio has a full-fledged well-armed army of 11 thousand people. At his disposal are ships and military aircraft. And in October 1919, he received a truly royal gift - the Persia transport, in the holds of which there were 20 batteries of mountain guns, two heavy howitzers, 30 thousand rifles and 10 million rounds of ammunition. All these weapons were intended for the "supreme ruler" of Russia, Kolchak, but the crew of the ship en route from Genoa to Vladivostok rebelled and arbitrarily headed for Fiume. The sailors considered it necessary to support the "fighter for national interests" of Italy, and not to carry valuable cargo to distant Russia to some incomprehensible white movement ...

Comandante d'Annunzio, inspired by the success and support of numerous supporters, is making attempts to expand the territory of an independent republic. In November, he leads an expedition to the city of Zara (Zadar). A landing force of a thousand fighters under his leadership arrives from Fiume on four destroyers and disembarks. The local Italian commander, Vice Admiral Nillo, after negotiations, goes over to the side of d'Annunzio. Upon returning back, the head of the Republic of Fiume announces his long-term plans - the capture of Spalato (Split) and Montenegro. It was not possible to implement these plans (even Zara was soon again under the control of the Italian government), but the nearest territories, including the large island of Vella (Krk), were annexed and included in the "free state".

It should be noted that economically the Republic of Fiume was in a very difficult position. Unemployment reigned in the city, in the conditions of the blockade there were big problems with food. The introduced food cards did not save. And the only way livelihood was banal piracy. Like the Somali pirates of our time, the Fiume "arditi" in motor boats went to sea, overtook cargo ships, most often at night, and landed on deck. Threatening with weapons, they forced the captain to head for Fiume. There the ship was properly gutted and then released. Since there was no money in the self-proclaimed republic, the booty was divided and distributed to soldiers and local residents for free. Here is such a "pirate communism"!

As for Gabriele d'Annunzio himself, he is by no means in poverty - he lives in luxury, arranges noisy feasts, and in his free time from government he invents his own liqueurs and stimulates himself with cocaine. Gradually, the attitude towards him is changing for the worse, not only among the townspeople, but also in his troops. It comes down to armed clashes. The opposition openly calls the Comandante a despot, a tyrant and a madman.

Official Rome was tired of all this, and when, finally, an agreement was reached with Yugoslavia (a treaty in Rapallo), according to which Fiume was proclaimed a free city under Italian protection, the impostor d'Annunzio was presented with an ultimatum: to lay down their arms and leave the city. In response, the expansive Comandante declares war on Italy on December 3, 1920.

On December 24, the cannons began to speak: the battleship Andrea Doria opened fire on the city from 152-mm guns. One of the shells hit the palace, where the Fiume government met. Gabriele d'Annunzio himself was slightly injured. Then the Italian troops, led by General Enrico Coilly, stormed the city. The separatists resisted for several more days, but eventually capitulated. Their commander announced his resignation. 203 defenders laid down their lives in battles with compatriots. And, as it soon became clear, it was completely in vain.

12 curious facts and quotes

1. According to the adopted constitution, the Republic of Fiume was a corporate state, in which all citizens were included in one of ten corporations according to class: workers, managers, sailors, financial officers, etc. Curiously, the last 10th corporation was a "mysterious force of progress and adventure"! It seems that in writing this part of the constitution, its authors - d'Annunzio and the anarcho-syndicalist Alceste de Ambris - overdid it with cocaine ...

2. Under the constitution, citizens were guaranteed free primary education, wages that ensured a decent life; civil rights in full, regardless of gender, race and religion, a living wage for the unemployed. D'Annunzio put forward the slogan: "work without fatigue", which meant that work should not crowd out the joys of life.

3. Music was declared to be the fundamental principle of the organization of the state, therefore concerts, choral singing, carnival processions were considered the most important and integral part of the life of the republic. Each locality should have its own orchestra and choir. In addition, universal compulsory music education was introduced.

4. According to the constitution, the role of the state was reduced to a minimum - in fact, national anarchism was proclaimed. But in the event of a military danger, the head of state - the commandant - received unlimited power.

5. According to contemporaries, of all known rulers, d'Annunzio was the most merciful. He generously handed out rewards, and judged the guilty according to his own "instinct of justice." The most severe punishment was considered expulsion from the city.

6. The poet and adventurer d'Annunzio formed the government of the Republic of Fiume to suit himself. The Belgian internationalist and poet Leon Kochnicki became Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Colonel Mario Sani, also a poet, became Chief of Staff. The silver medalist of the 1908 Olympic Games in fencing, General Sante Chekkerin, was appointed deputy commander in chief (that is, d'Annunzio himself). And the naval forces of the republic were headed by the hero of the First World War, Captain Luigi Rizzo. June 10, 1918 Rizzo, being in the rank of lieutenant and commanding torpedo boat MAS-15, sank the Austro-Hungarian dreadnought Szent Istvan. It was the largest victory in the history of the Italian Navy.

7. Gabriele d'Annunzio's secretary and de facto deputy was his longtime friend, military pilot Guido Keller, nicknamed La Disperata. When food became scarce in Fiume, he flew a plane around the neighborhood, landed and simply stole everything that came to hand. Once Keller stole a large pig, pushed it into the plane, but the frightened animal tore the skin and got stuck under the fuselage. When landing, Keller had to use a poor pig instead of a landing gear.

8. On November 14, 1920, at the height of the Cold War with Rome, Guido Keller made a risky long-range flight in an airplane and carried out a symbolic bombardment of the Italian capital - he scattered red roses over the Vatican and the royal palace, and dropped a chamber pot filled with turnips on the parliament building. Returning back, he lost his course and made an emergency landing in San Marino, and not very successful: the plane crashed into a tree, but Keller himself escaped with scratches and bruises.

9. The national flag of the Republic of Fiume, designed by Gabriele d'Annunzio, is the constellation Ursa Major, ringed with the symbol of eternity - the serpent Ouroboros biting its own tail. The inscription on the flag - "Quis contra nos" - is the second part of the saying "If God is with us, who is against us."

The national flag of the Republic of Fiume - the regency of Carnaro

1. Mussolini, who came to power, spoke about the history of an independent city-state in the following way: “Fiume is the uprising of the great proletarian woman against the new sacred alliance of the world plutocracy.” Under the "great proletarian" Duce meant Italy.
2. Lenin at first also perceived the events in Dalmatia as a struggle between the proletariat and imperialism, and Soviet Russia became the only state that recognized the Republic of Fiume. However, it soon became clear that the ideology d' Annunzio is hostile to the Bolsheviks and de facto diplomatic relations were never established.
3. Vladimir Mayakovsky in the poem "Soviet alphabet" presented the letter F as follows:

The pheasant is beautiful, not an ounce of mind.

Fiume drunkenly took D'Annunzio.

Finita la Fiume/Zara/Pola

With the coming to power of Mussolini, the existence of Fiume as an independent territorial entity ceased to suit the Italian government. In September 1923, a rebellion broke out in Fiume, provoked by local fascists, and Italian troops landed in the city under the pretext of protecting the civilian population. And on January 27, 1924, the Yugoslav delegation in Rome finally signs an agreement according to which Fiume officially departs to Italy, and insignificant surrounding territories are transferred to the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes as compensation (rather, consolation). The League of Nations recognized the partition as legal. And until the end of World War II, the Istrian peninsula and part of the Croatian coast, including the "commune of Zara", were officially considered Italy.

In 1945, the former Italian territories came under the control of the Yugoslav partisans, led by Josip Broz Tito. In 1947 they were annexed to the SFRY. The former Italian cities of Pola, Fiume and Zara are now known as Pula, Rijeka and Zadar. The Italian population, which in some areas constituted the majority, began to leave en masse for their historical homeland. A special situation arose in the city of Trieste, where in May 1945 it almost came to a military clash between the Yugoslav and Anglo-American troops, but that's a completely different story ...

In 1929-1932, 4 heavy cruisers were built in Italy, which can be considered among the best in their class. They were named after the acquired cities: "Zara", "Fiume", "Pola" and "Gorizia". And they all died during World War II. And the first three - in one battle at Cape Matapan on March 28-29, 1941 ...

Oddly enough, but d'Annunzio, who fought with the Italian government, did not suffer any punishment after the surrender. On the contrary, he was enthusiastically received at home and treated kindly in every possible way - especially after Benito Mussolini came to power, with whom the "poet-hero" had been friends since 1919. The former ruler of Fiume was showered with awards, and in 1924 he was granted a princely title. Gabriele d'Annunzio received as a gift a luxurious villa with the pretentious name "Il Vittoriale degli Italiani" ("Victory of the Italians"), located on the shores of Lake Garda in Lombardy. This villa once belonged to a German aristocrat, but was confiscated by the Italian authorities after the start of World War II. D'Annunzio overhauled it and lived here until his death in 1938.

The estate of Gabriele d'Annunzio has been preserved and is now a museum of its owner. In addition to the chic buildings filled with objects of art, there is one exhibit that invariably attracts attention, which I would like to tell you a little more about.

The armored cruiser Puglia was built in 1901. He went to South America Far East, participated in the Italo-Turkish and World War I. And after the fall of Austria-Hungary, the cruiser ensured the occupation of the Dalmatian cities. On it went to sea and Gabriele d'Annunzio. And on July 11, 1920, during the riots in Spalato (Split), the Italian sailors who went ashore were attacked by Croatian rebels. The commander of the Puglia and one sailor were killed.

In March 1923, the old cruiser was expelled from the fleet, and Mussolini gave it to d'Annunzio - his teacher, mentor and, in some way, competitor. The Puglia's hull, along with the bow superstructure, masts and deck guns, was transported to the territory of the Villa "Il Vittoriale degli Italiani" and installed on a hillside above Lake Garda. This unusual object has survived to this day and is one of the naval attractions of Italy.

In the second decade of the 20th century, a depressing situation developed in the fleets of most of the leading maritime powers. Dreadnought fever completely took over the minds of the admirals, while rapidly devastating the budgets of the naval departments. Undoubtedly, battleships remained the main class of warships, the backbone of the fleet, but behind all this, the truth that the fleet must be balanced was somehow forgotten. In the most negative way, this affected the cruisers. Perhaps, by the end of the First World War, only Great Britain and Germany had cruising forces that more or less corresponded to their tasks; in other countries the number modern cruisers at best, it was calculated in units, but most often they were absent altogether.

Italy was among such outsiders. The economic crisis and funding cuts made even the maintenance of ships in service much more difficult, and the inaction of the Italian dreadnoughts during the war led to the appearance of opponents of the construction of battleships in the post-war years. Adherents of the new naval theories believed that the main role in a future war would belong to submarines and aviation. As a result, Italy did not try to use the right granted to it at the end of the Washington Conference (Treaty of Five Powers) to build new battleships with a total displacement of 70 thousand tons.

In general, the results of the conference can be called very successful for Italy. Firstly, she legalized her fifth place in the world hierarchy of military fleets, equaling in total tonnage with France, which until recently was the second maritime power. Taking into account the fact that France had to divide its forces between the Mediterranean and the Atlantic, as well as take care of numerous overseas colonies, the Italian fleet in the Mediterranean became the most numerous. Secondly, the moratorium imposed by the treaty on the construction of new battleships gave a powerful impetus to the development of the cruiser class.

The first Italian "Washington" Trento-class cruisers were built according to the program of 1923-1924. Their concept was based on the idea of ​​delivering a powerful fire strike at the maximum possible range and high speed.

The shortcomings of the ships of the Trento type were so obvious that the designers focused their efforts on creating a "balanced" cruiser, harmoniously combining speed, protection and armament. The following characteristics were included in the design task: side belt thickness - 200 mm, travel speed - 32 knots, armament - eight 203-mm guns. At the same time, it was not possible to meet the "contractual" 10,000 tons.

Rear Admiral Romeo Bernotti, deputy chief of the Naval Staff - by the way, one of the leading Italian naval theorists - generally proposed increasing the displacement to 15,000 tons. According to the admiral, three such ships would easily finish with six ordinary "Washington" cruisers. However, the Italian government could not agree to such a clear violation of international agreements, so the project began to be “squeezed”.

The work was carried out in the Committee for Warship Projects (Comitato progetti navi) under the leadership of engineer-lieutenant general Fabio Mibelli. Taking the Trento type as a basis, the designers abandoned the high-sided smooth-deck hull in favor of a lower one with a relatively short forecastle. This adversely affected seaworthiness, which was not considered critical for the Mediterranean Sea, but it made it possible to save several hundred tons. The composition of the artillery armament remained unchanged, but the torpedo tubes included in the original project were abandoned. The thickness of the belt along the waterline was reduced to 150 mm. Significant savings in weight came from the transition to a new lightweight power plant, developed earlier for scouts of the "Condottieri" type of the first and second series. Unlike its predecessors, the number of shafts has been reduced to two.

The above measures made it possible to significantly reduce the displacement, but still it continued to exceed the contractual values ​​by almost 1500 tons. Then the Italians decided to go for direct falsification: without advertising the design overload, they officially announced the 10,000-ton standard displacement of cruisers. The forgery was opened in a completely unexpected way, when during the Spanish Civil War one of the cruisers was towed to Gibraltar for repairs in the dock. It was then that it became obvious that the actual displacement of the ship was at least a thousand tons higher than the officially declared one.

Shipbuilding program of 1928. The construction of two Zara-class cruisers was authorized. The third ship was built according to the 1929 program; the fourth - according to the program of 1930 - 1931.

Oddly enough, the Zara-class ships were originally listed light cruisers(Incrociatori Leggeri) - these are the features of the Italian national classification of that time (cruisers with 120-mm and 152-mm artillery - "scouts"). The absurdity of such an attribution was so obvious that even during the construction process they were transferred to the category of armored (Incrociatori Corazzato) to distinguish them from comparable, but much more lightly armored Trento-class cruisers. Only in 1930, when Italy signed the London Conference (1930), which established a unified classification of cruisers by artillery caliber, both Trento and Zara were assigned to the heavy subclass (Incrociatori Pesanti).

During the Second World War, Italian heavy cruisers did not achieve noticeable success, but constantly caused great concern to the British. The commander of the British Mediterranean Fleet, Admiral Cunningham, considered the Zara-class ships to be the optimal type of cruiser for the Mediterranean Sea and asked the Admiralty to include in its forces the York-class cruisers with similar performance characteristics. When during the night battle at Cape Matapan it was possible to destroy three Italian heavy cruisers, the British commander was able to breathe a sigh of relief. “Although Vittorio Veneto escaped,” he writes in his memoirs, “we sank Zara, Fiume and Paul ... These three heavy cruisers were well protected against six-inch shells and were a constant threat to our lighter and weaker armored ships.

Zara 1931 /1941 Fiume 1931 /1941 Gorizia 1931 /1945

Since the 1st division, which died at Cape Matapan, was officially disbanded, its only surviving ship was included in the 3rd division. Having completed repairs on May 7, 1941, the Gorizia, which survived the death of sisterships, arrived in Messina the next day with a new commander. Ahead of the cruiser were two years of war, numerous campaigns, collisions with the enemy and combat damage.

On September 9 - 11, British bombers made several raids on Messina, where the 3rd cruiser division was based. Together with other ships, the Gorizia carried out air defense Air Defense base and received no damage.

On the night of November 21, Messina was raided by British bombers, the Gorizia was damaged - more than 200 fragmentation holes were counted in the hull and superstructures of the cruiser. Despite this, on the same day she went to sea under the flag of Rear Admiral Paron to cover another convoy.

On December 13, the main forces of the Italian fleet went to sea to cover the M.41 convoy, and then the M.42 convoy, which left on December 16. On December 17, the inferior squadron of Rear Admiral Wayne was discovered in the Gulf of Sirte, but the battle with it began already at dusk, lasted only 11 minutes and did not give a decisive result. According to the Italians, the Gorizia hit a British destroyer with its main caliber, which is not confirmed by British sources.

On March 22-23, the Italian fleet carried out an operation against the British convoy MW-10. The squadron intercepted the convoy in the Gulf of Sirte, but, although it was opposed by only 5 light cruisers and 17 destroyers of Rear Admiral Vayene, the Italians fought indecisively and, having not achieved success, withdrew. "Gorizia" in this battle spent 226 203-mm and 67 100-mm shells, without achieving hits.

On the night of May 26, during an air raid on Messina, the Gorizia received minor damage to the superstructures from fragments, and the next day it was relocated to Taranto.

On April 10, 1943, Maddalena was attacked by 84 American B-24 Liberator bombers. The cruiser "Trento" and torpedo boats MAS-501, MAS-503 sank in the harbor. "Gorizia" received three direct hits. One bomb pierced the roof of turret #3 and exploded inside, tearing out the aft armor plate. Two other bombs exploded forward on the main deck on the port side, causing severe damage to the superstructures. Several close gaps damaged the side plating, which led to the flooding of a number of compartments, but thanks to a competent struggle for damage, the ship retained stability and seaworthiness.

On April 12-13, Gorizia went to La Spezia for repairs, where on April 19 she received additional damage from fragments of aerial bombs that exploded on a concrete pier, at which she was moored.

On September 9, when the new Italian government signed an armistice with the Western Allies, the Gorizia was still in the dry dock of La Spezia. The next day, German troops entered the city, carrying out the operation "Ahze" ​​("Axis") - the capture of warships of the former ally along the axis. To prevent this, the last commander of the ship, Captain 2nd Rank Carlo Dessi, ordered the kingstones and dock gates to be opened, but the small number of crew on board did not allow this to be done in full. Nevertheless, the Germans got the cruiser in such a deplorable state that the question of including it in the fleet was not even raised. The cruiser was taken out of the dock and anchored in the harbor. At the end of June 1944, units of Italian naval saboteurs who fought on the side of the Allies carried out several successful operations. On June 21, scuba divers on a guided torpedo delivered by the MS-74 torpedo boat, under the cover of the destroyer Grecale, entered the harbor in La Spezia and installed explosive charges on the bottom of the cruiser Bolzano. As a result of the explosion, he sank. On June 26, a similar action was carried out against the Gorizia, although this time it was less successful - the ship was badly damaged, but remained afloat and was subsequently used by the Germans as a blockship.