Soldati-class destroyer

The Soldati class were a group of destroyers built for the Regia Marina during World War II. The ships were named after military professions. There were two batches; twelve ships were built in 1938–1939 and a second batch of seven ships were ordered in 1940, although only five were completed.
Ten ships of the class were lost during the war. Three of the survivors were transferred to the French Navy and two to the Soviet Navy as war reparations, while two served in the Italian post-war navy, the Marina Militare.

Design

In 1936, the Italian Regia Marina placed an order for twelve examples of a new destroyer design, the Soldati class. The design was essentially a repeat of the previous Oriani destroyer design, which was itself a development of the. The design featured an identical main gun armament of four 120 mm/50 calibre guns in two twin turrets, one forward and one aft, while torpedo armament was two triple torpedo tubes. A short (15 calibre) 120 mm gun was mounted on a pedestal between the banks of torpedo tubes for firing starshell, while the anti-aircraft armament consisted of twelve [Breda Model 1931 Machine Gun|] machine guns. Carabiniere was completed with a fifth 120 mm 50 calibre gun replacing the star shell gun. The ships' powerplant, with two geared steam turbines driving two shafts and generating, and with one large funnel, was similar to that in the Oriani class and was sufficient to propel the destroyers to.
Orders for a second batch of seven destroyers were placed in 1940. All except one of these ships were to carry the five main gun armament of Carabiniere.

Construction and modifications

The first batch of ships were laid down in 1937, being completed between 1938 and 1939, with the second batch being laid down in 1940–1941, with five completing in 1942.
Four more of the first batch were modified in 1941–1942 by replacing the star shell gun with a full power 120 mm gun. The anti-aircraft machine guns were gradually replaced by 20 mm cannon, with up to 10–12 being fitted by 1943. Five ships had the aft set of torpedo tubes replaced by two 54 cal. guns, while Fuciliere and Velite also had their star shell guns replaced by a further pair of 37 mm cannon. Fuciliere and Velite were fitted with Italian radar, while Legionario was fitted with a German radar.
The Germans captured Squadrista incomplete in September 1943, and transferred the ship, renamed TA33, to Genoa for completion as a fighter direction ship carrying a long-range Freya radar and German 105 mm and 20 mm guns, but she was sunk by Allied bombing in 1944.
The two destroyers remaining in Italian service after the war were rebuilt as anti-submarine escorts in 1953–1954, with their torpedo tubes removed and the anti-aircraft armament changed to six 40 mm/39 pom-pom guns.

Ships

Batch 1

Ship	Hull letters	Builder	Laid down	Launched	Commissioned	Fate
	AP	CNR, Ancona	2 May 1937	18 September 1938	20 April 1939	Lost after bombing by USAAF aircraft in La Spezia Harbour, 19 April 1943
	AR	O.T.O., Livorno	15 February 1937	12 December 1937	14 November 1938	Lost 13 October 1940, sunk by after being damaged at the Battle of Cape Passero the previous day. The wreck was discovered in 2017.
	AI	O.T.O., Livorno	11 December 1937	31 July 1938	6 May 1939	Sank 24 March 1943 after striking three mines
	AV	O.T.O., Livorno	16 January 1937	19 September 1937	31 August 1937	Torpedoed and sunk by the British submarine on 17 December 1942
	BG	CNR, Palermo	21 April 1937	3 July 1938	1 April 1939	Lost after being bombed in Palermo harbour, 7 January 1943;
	CN	O.T.O., Livorno	21 January 1937	8 August 1937	30 June 1938	Renamed Artigliere, 30 July 1943; survived the war, given to the Soviet Navy as war reparations as Lovky ; retired 1960
	CB	CT, Riva Trigoso	1 February 1937	23 July 1938	20 December 1938	Survived the war and served in the post war Italian Navy, decommissioned, 18 January 1965
	CZ	O.T.O., Livorno	7 October 1937	22 May 1938	4 March 1939	Scuttled at Genoa following Italian Armistice, 9 September 1943; raised by Germans but sunk by air raid, 4 Sep 1944
	FC	CNR, Ancona	2 May 1937	31 July 1938	10 January 1939	Survived the war, given to the Soviet Navy as war reparations, serving as Lyogky ; retired 1960
	GE	O.T.O., Livorno	26 August 1937	27 February 1938	14 December 1938	Sunk by USAAF bombing while in drydock in Palermo, 1 March 1943
	GN	CNR, Palermo	5 April 1937	24 April 1938	1 February 1939	Survived the war and served in the post war Italian Navy; stricken 1 July 1958
	LN	CT, Riva Trigoso	1 February 1937	18 December 1938	25 March 1939	Capsized and sank in heavy storm following Second Battle of Sirte, 23 March 1942