Alberto di Giussano

History

Design

The design of the Giussano-class became one of the ultimate expressions of Franco-Italian naval rivalry in the interwar period. After WWI, the abundance of esploratori (scout) ships within the Italian navy formed a major threat to the Marine Nationale, who entirely lacked any warships of this type – the fastest cruisers were the large and slow armored cruisers, and the next available option were the small 800-ton destroyers. Thus, the response to these Italian warships, especially the smaller esploratori leggeri (light scouts) that made up the bulk of the Italian scout forces, was the contre-torpilleur, beginning with the Jaguar-class laid down in 1922. These designs, essentially large destroyers, were faster (35.5 knots) than contemporary destroyers and packed heavier firepower (5x1 130mm). The initial Italian response was the Navigatori-class light scouts, fast and well-armed with a top speed of 38 knots and six modern 120mm guns. However, The Jaguar-class was followed by only larger and more powerful ships (Guépard and Aigle-classes), with even heavier punch as the French shifted from 130mm to 138.6mm guns.

To respond, the Regia Marina decided to pursue a much larger counter, which would be both faster and outgun the contre-torpilleurs. The hull design for these new ships, designated grandi esploratori (large scouts), were enlarged from the Navigatori-class, and used a mixed bracing system of longitudinal and transverse framing. The ships were divided into watertight compartments by 15 bulkheads. Much emphasis was put into making the hulls as light as possible, and in fact on Giussano the hull only amounted to 1,674 metric tons. All told, Giussano weighed 5,070 tons empty, 5,191 tons standard, and 6,954 tons fully loaded.

In order to ensure a high top speed with as little weight as possible, a new, very powerful but lightweight propulsion system was installed. Six Yarrow-Ansaldo boilers were fitted, operating at a pressure of 25 kg/cm^2 and a temperature of 270°C via superheating. These fed a pair of Belluzzo impulse turbines, which produced a combined 95,000 shp, extraordinary power for their era. This was able to propel the ships up to their top speed of 37 knots, faster than any French contre-torpilleur at the time (until the Le Fantasque-class). In order to improve survivability, machinery was in a ‘unit’ layout, with two boilers each being placed in the two forward boiler rooms, followed by the starboard turbine unit, then the aft boiler room with boilers 5 & 6, and finally the port turbine group.

The armament was centered on eight of the new 152mm/53 Modello 1926 cannons, which stressed high ballistic performance (49.6 kg APC was fired at 1,000 m/s), in four twin power-operated turrets. To save weight, the guns were mounted in a common cradle. Although very potent on paper, with a maximum ballistic range out to 25,000 meters, issues with excessive dispersion caused the guns to be scaled back to firing 47.5 kg APC at a lower velocity of 850 m/s. The intended rate of fire of 6 rpm could not be achieved in service, and instead actual rate of fire reached 4 rpm at best. Ammunition stowage was 225 rounds per gun. Fire control was provided by a main and auxiliary director, which were each fitted with a pair of 5-meter stereoscopic rangefinders (upper for ranging, lower for scartometry. Superfiring turrets had 5-meter coincidence units in cupolas. These fed a Regia Marina Type 1 (1st Version) fire control computer, located in the armored citadel between the No.1 & No.2 main battery turrets.

The secondary battery featured a trio of 100mm/47 Modello 1928 dual-purpose twin mounts, which fired 100mm shells at a rate of 8-10 rounds per minute. Fire control was provided via a pair of directors with 3-meter stereoscopic rangefinders, on either side of the foremast. Ammunition stowage was 360 rpg. Light anti-aircraft defense initially consisted of a pair of 40mm/39 Vicker-Terni pom-poms, but in the early 1930s were replaced by four twin 13.2mm Breda heavy machine guns. These, in turn, were reinforced by an equal number of Breda 20mm cannons in a 1938 refit. A pair of twin 533mm torpedo tubes were fitted aft of the 100mm guns.

The armor on the ships was very light; an outer 24mm belt protected the length of the citadel, with an interior 18mm bulkhead behind it placed to absorb splinters. Transverse bulkheads and the main armor deck were 20mm thick, while main battery protection was 23m thick. Conning tower was 40mm thick, and the auxiliary director was armored with 25mm plating.

Overall, these ships appeared well equipped for the task at hand, being fast, well-armed, and though the armor was slight, it was still better than nothing, which is what many contemporaries (such as the Duguay-Trouin-class) had. However, the reality was that the class was significantly less capable than it appeared. The lightweight hull was of insufficient strength, and took damage in storms. Stability was also quite poor, and in rough weather the cruiser could roll from 25 to 30°. Additionally, the main battery was significantly flawed. The mounting of the main guns in common cradles caused interference when the guns fired, increasing dispersion. Dispersion was also negatively impacted by the light weight of the turret (due to the light armor), which exacerbated dispersion in a similar manner to the turrets of British and Japanese heavy cruisers. This was not helped by the excessive velocity of the guns, and the entire situation was only exacerbated by the fragility of the weapon system, which had a high failure rate of up to 10%. Furthermore, the fire control system was still not fully matured yet, and was inferior to the mainstay system that would be used by Italian cruisers. The largest flaw was the inability for the system to account for large amounts of rolling, which proved very important on the Giussano-class, which rolled excessively even in mildly rough seas. Although refits would attempt to correct the issues with hull strength and stability, the improvements could not solve these issues, which hampered operations their entire lives.

Service

Alberto di Giussano, lead ship of her class, was laid down on 29 March 1928, and launched on 27 April 1930. She was completed on 5 February 1931, and commissioned not long after. Before completion, she had run machinery power trials in 1930 at a light displacement (5,812 tons), where she managed to achieve 38.5 knots on 102,088 shp. This was far from the most impressive figure, however. Her sister, Alberico da Barbiano, at 200 tons lighter managed to work up to 123,479 shp for a speed of 42.05 knots. The power trials were able to demonstrate the capabilities of the machinery (an impressive 26% overload), and provided useful speed figures for propaganda and misinformation, but these were not speed trials, which were run after completion and at full loads. Actual top speed, according to the ship’s handbook (Libri matricolari), rated them at 36 knots practical top speed.

The ship, as with all the members of her class, was named after a Condottiero, who according to legend had lead forces of the Lombard League to victory over the Holy Roman Empire at the Battle of Legnano. The ship’s motto, … e vincere bisogna (and win you must), is a verse from Giosuè Carducci’s Canzone di Legnano (“Ecco, io non piango più. Venne il dí nostro, O milanesi, e vincere bisogna”).

For most of her life prior to WWII she served in the 2nd Fleet, with occasional deployments to Libya and the Aegean. On 22 April 1934, in a ceremony at Venice, she received her combat flag, along with her sisters, the pair of Cadorna-class cruisers, and many of the Navigatori. By this point, the Giussano and slightly improved Cadorna-classes had both been re-designated light cruisers (incrociatori leggeri) in order to conform to international treaties. Shortly after, she, da Barbiano, and Luigi Cadorna were assigned to the 4th Squadron. In 1936, with the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War, 4th Division was assigned to operations in the Western Mediterranean, escorting civilian ships to and from Spanish ports. In 1939, 4th Division would be joined by Armando Diaz (sister to Cadorna), and this would be the structure of the division in June 1940 (though now under the 1st Fleet).

Initial wartime tasks consisted of minelaying missions, but real action came soon enough. On 7 July 1940 4th Division set sail as part of a major operation, covering a convoy to Benghazi – this vital convoy carrying 2,200 men, 72 tanks, 237 vehicles, and 16,000 tons of supplies and fuel. While the 2nd Division acted as close escort, the rest of the 1st Fleet was to act as distant cover, with 4th Division being one of its scouting elements. However, the British also had forces at sea – the Mediterranean fleet, with a carrier, three battleships, and five light cruisers - for their own convoy operation. On 9 July, the two forces made contact, beginning the Battle of Punta Stilo (Calabria). As Cadorna and Diaz had already departed, 4th Division was only formed by two cruisers – Giussano and Barbiano (the flagship). Reconnaissance aircraft were catapulted, and soon spotted the British fleet. Not long after, at 15.05, 4th Division spotted the first British cruisers (7th Squadron). The two cruisers increased speed and began heading towards the British line, with 8th Division (Duca degli Abruzzi and Giuseppe Garibaldi) racing to catch up behind them. Initially, the British cruisers moved to disengage, mistaking 4th Division for a pair of battleships, but after the British Admiral ordered 7th Squadron to engage the British cruisers moved back towards their Italian counterparts. At 1520, 8th Division opened fire on the British at extreme range – 21,600 meters. The leading British cruisers, Liverpool and Neptune, returned fire two minutes later, while the latter pair, Orion and Sydney, opened fire on 4th Division as they came into range. The gunnery duel raged, but despite the volume of fire neither side was able to achieve much due to the range, and only one hit was scored, by Garibaldi against Neptune at 15.24 (damaging her catapult and floatplane with shrapnel). However, the cruiser duel did not last undisturbed for long. At 15.25 the British battleship Warspite finally came into range and opened fire against Giussano and Barbiano, forcing them to disengage while making smoke as the battleship tossed ten salvos at them over the course of four and a half minutes. At 15.31 the British cruisers disengaged, and Warspite lobbed six salvos at 8th Division, forcing them away. Having played their role in the action, the cruisers passed back through their own lines, as now their own battleships were coming up to trade fire with the British. They played no further role in the battle.

On 30 July to 1 August 4th Division took part in another convoy mission, this time without action, and from 5 to 6 August laid 105 mines as part of barrier 7 AN, between Pantelleria and Tunisia (and would later cause the constructive loss of the British destroyer Gallant). From 13 to 15 December di Giussano escorted another convoy to Tripoli, but spent most of 1941 inactive. The older scout cruisers of her class were seen as excessively vulnerable and of limited utility, and this were generally kept away from front-line service. It was not until late 1941 that they were brought out again, as the convoy situation to North Africa became dire. After another cruiser, Luigi Cadorna, had considerable success acting as a fast transport in this role, it was decided that Giussano and da Barbiano should be sent on a similar run. The two ships were laden well over 500 tons of fuel each, and departed Palermo for Tripoli at 17.00 on 9 December 1941. However, the departure was spotted by an ASV Wellington, and a British strike force of three cruisers and two destroyers was dispatched. However, Italian naval intelligence, able to easily read British reconnaissance reports at this point in the war, were able to reveal this move and the operation was suspended. It was re-launched on the 12th, and even though Malta-based forces could not be dispatched to deal with it (though ULTRA intelligence was able to inform the British of the Italian efforts), the ill luck of the class struck, as a new threat from the west appeared – the 4th destroyer flotilla, with three British and one Dutch destroyer. Just as the Italian cruisers were passing Cape Bon, the destroyers were spotted. In that moment, the Admiral of 4th Division (Adm. Toscano) ordered da Barbiano, his flagship, to reverse course – Giussano followed. According to a survivor, this was because the Anglo-Dutch destroyers had been spotted – but, due to the presence of so many fuel drums aboard, it was not possible to engage with the aft guns. Thus, Toscano sought to engage with his forward batteries. The decision was fatal – the range was too close to be successful against destroyers, not even 2,000 yards, and as da Barbiano opened fire at 03.24, the first torpedoes impacted her, one catching her abreast the No.1 turret, and another amidships abreast the forward engine room, while another struck in the stern two minutes later, igniting the fuel embarked there. The ship, between these hits and gunfire from the British destroyers, was torn apart before it could effectively respond, and sank in only five minutes.

Alberto di Giussano, further behind the flagship, had more time to react, and managed to get off three salvos with her main battery – but there wasn’t the time, and the range was again too short. A torpedo struck amidships abreast the no.2 boiler room, and the ship was raked by shell and machine gun fire. A strong blaze erupted as the ship took on a 15° list to port. Drifting without power, the crew fought a losing battle against flames and flooding. At 04.22, Giussano broke in two and finally sank.

Alberto di Giussano had seen fairly limited wartime service, especially by the standard of an Italian cruiser. From 10 June 1940 to 13 December 1941, she undertook only 7 wartime missions – three minelaying missions, three convoy escort, and one, fatal, transport mission. She had steamed only 13,241 nautical miles in wartime missions.

Historical Inaccuracies

• Historical high explosive ammunition is missing.
• Historical "Grigio-azzurro chiaro" paint scheme is also missing.