The First Battle of Durazzo was a

naval battle Naval warfare is combat in and on the sea, the ocean, or any other battlespace involving a major body of water such as a large lake or wide river. Mankind has fought battles on the sea for more than 3,000 years. Even in the interior of large lan ...

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. It was fought off Durazzo,

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...

at the end of December 1915 and involved the navies of

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

, the United Kingdom,

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

, and France.

Battle

In December 1915, the

Austro-Hungarian Navy The Austro-Hungarian Navy or Imperial and Royal War Navy (german: kaiserliche und königliche Kriegsmarine, in short ''k.u.k. Kriegsmarine'', hu, Császári és Királyi Haditengerészet) was the naval force of Austria-Hungary. Ships of the A ...

sent another

cruiser A cruiser is a type of warship. Modern cruisers are generally the largest ships in a fleet after aircraft carriers and amphibious assault ships, and can usually perform several roles. The term "cruiser", which has been in use for several hu ...

squadron Squadron may refer to: * Squadron (army), a military unit of cavalry, tanks, or equivalent subdivided into troops or tank companies * Squadron (aviation), a military unit that consists of three or four flights with a total of 12 to 24 aircraft, de ...

into the

Adriatic The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) ...

, this time to interfere with the Serbian Campaign. The new light cruiser (nine 4-inch main guns) —accompanied by five s—left Cattaro and headed for Durazzo late on 28 December 1915, with the submarine and two destroyers already off Durazzo on patrol. While on passage, the Austro-Hungarians sighted the French submarine on patrol to the south of Cattaro. The destroyer opened fire before ramming and sinking ''Monge''. Early the next day, the Austrian squadron arrived off Durazzo and opened fire on the town, with ''Helgoland'' sinking a Greek steamer and two

schooner A schooner () is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than the mainmast. A common variant, the topsail schoon ...

s. Then the destroyer ran into a

minefield A land mine is an explosive device concealed under or on the ground and designed to destroy or disable enemy targets, ranging from combatants to vehicles and tanks, as they pass over or near it. Such a device is typically detonated automati ...

and was sunk, then was crippled by another mine. attempted to take ''Triglav'' in tow, but fouled a propeller, and the job was taken over by . The Austrian force now returned slowly north. Allied forces in

Brindisi Brindisi ( , ) ; la, Brundisium; grc, Βρεντέσιον, translit=Brentésion; cms, Brunda), group=pron is a city in the region of Apulia in southern Italy, the capital of the province of Brindisi, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. Histo ...

were alerted to the Austrian force, and the British light cruiser and the Italian scout cruiser , escorted by five French destroyers,

sortie A sortie (from the French word meaning ''exit'' or from Latin root ''surgere'' meaning to "rise up") is a deployment or dispatch of one military unit, be it an aircraft, ship, or troops, from a strongpoint. The term originated in siege warfare. ...

d in an attempt to cut off the Austro-Hungarian ships from their base at Cattaro. These were followed two hours later by the Italian scout cruiser , the British light cruiser and four Italian destroyers. The Austrians also responded and despatched from Cattaro the armoured cruiser ''Kaiser Karl VI'', and the light cruisers ''Novara'' and ''Aspern'', to support the returning survivors of the raid, but they did not see action. Early in the afternoon of 29 December, the forward Allied ships came into action with the Austrian squadron which was still only halfway home. The French destroyers headed for the already crippled Austrian destroyer ''Triglav'' and sank her before attempting to rejoin the British and Italian cruisers. Meanwhile, the Allied cruisers attempted to cut off and deal with ''Helgoland'' and the three remaining destroyers. In a long-range gunnery duel fought throughout the afternoon, ''Helgoland'' skillfully avoided the Allied cruisers and reached Cattaro safely but with the loss of the valuable ''Lika'' and ''Triglav''. ''Tatra'' suffered a damaged engine from several shell hits.

Bibliography

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Durazzo, Battle Of (1915) Naval battles of World War I involving Austria-Hungary Naval battles of World War I involving France Naval battles of World War I involving Italy Naval battles of World War I involving the United Kingdom Mediterranean naval operations of World War I 1915 in Austria-Hungary Durazzo 1915 in France Conflicts in 1915 December 1915 events

Battle

See also

Bibliography