Italian Battleship Littorio

Italian Battleship Littorio

Littorio was a Littorio-class battleship that served in the Regia Marina during World War II. She was named after the Lictor ("Littorio" in Italian), in ancient times the bearer of the Roman fasces, which was adopted as the symbol of Italian Fascism.

Littorio and her sister Vittorio Veneto were built in response to the French battleships Dunkerque and Strasbourg. They were Italy's first modern battleships, and the first 35,000 ton capital ships of any nation to be built under the terms of the Washington Naval Treaty. Littorio was the second of the class to be launched, about a month after the Vittorio Veneto, and was commissioned 6 May 1940, 8 days after her sister. Littorio took part in several operational sorties, most of which failed to result in any action, the notable exception being the Second Battle of Sirte, where she damaged several British warships. Littorio was the victim of several Allied aerial attacks throughout her career, the worst of which was the British air raid on the Italian fleet at Taranto on 11 November 1940, which put her out of action until the following March.

Littorio was renamed Italia in July 1943 after the fall of the Fascist government. On 9 September 1943 - the day following the announcement of the Italian armistice - the Italian fleet was attacked by German bombers. During this action, which saw the destruction of her sister Roma, Italia herself was hit by a Fritz X radio-controlled bomb, causing light damage to her bow. As part of the armistice agreement, Italia was interned at Malta, Alexandria, and finally in the Great Bitter Lake in the Suez Canal, where she remained until 1947. Italia was scrapped at La Spezia 1952-54.