Gino Birindelli (20 January 1911, in

Pescia Pescia () is an Italian city in the province of Pistoia, Tuscany, central Italy. It is located in a central zone between the cities Lucca and Florence, on the banks of the river of the same name. History Archaeological excavations have suggest ...

– 2 August 2008, in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

) was an Italian admiral and chief of the fleet of the

Italian Navy "Fatherland and Honour" , patron = , colors = , colors_label = , march = ( is the return of soldiers to their barrack, or sailors to their ship after a ...

. After his retirement from the Navy he was elected as a member of the

lower house A lower house is one of two Debate chamber, chambers of a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the upper house. Despite its official position "below" the upper house, in many legislatures worldwide, the lower house has co ...

of Parliament for the neo-fascist

Italian Social Movement The Italian Social Movement ( it, Movimento Sociale Italiano, MSI) was a neo-fascist political party in Italy. A far-right party, it presented itself until the 1990s as the defender of Italian fascism's legacy, and later moved towards national ...

Early life

In 1925 he was admitted to the

Italian Naval Academy The Italian Naval Academy (Italian: ''Accademia Navale'') is a coeducational military university in Livorno, which is responsible for the technical training of military officers of the Italian Navy. History The Hospitals The Hospital of St. Jame ...

and in 1930 he became

sub-lieutenant Sub-lieutenant is usually a junior officer rank, used in armies, navies and air forces. In most armies, sub-lieutenant is the lowest officer rank. However, in Brazil, it is the highest non-commissioned rank, and in Spain, it is the second high ...

of the

Regia Marina The ''Regia Marina'' (; ) was the navy of the Kingdom of Italy (''Regno d'Italia'') from 1861 to 1946. In 1946, with the Italian constitutional referendum, 1946, birth of the Italian Republic (''Repubblica Italiana''), the ''Regia Marina'' ch ...

. Assigned to

submarine A submarine (or sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability. The term is also sometimes used historically or colloquially to refer to remotely op ...

s, he commanded ''Dessie'' and after, ''Rubino''. After the degree in

civil engineering Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including public works such as roads, bridges, canals, dams, airports, sewage ...

from

University of Pisa The University of Pisa ( it, Università di Pisa, UniPi), officially founded in 1343, is one of the oldest universities in Europe. History The Origins The University of Pisa was officially founded in 1343, although various scholars place ...

in 1937, in 1939 he was a trainer for

frogmen A frogman is someone who is trained in scuba diving or swimming underwater in a tactical capacity that includes military, and in some European countries, police work. Such personnel are also known by the more formal names of combat diver, comb ...

commandos and

human torpedo Human torpedoes or manned torpedoes are a type of diver propulsion vehicle on which the diver rides, generally in a seated position behind a fairing. They were used as secret naval weapons in World War II. The basic concept is still in use. ...

es and was sent to the V Flottiglia MAS.

World War II

On 21 October 1940 the submarine departed

La Spezia La Spezia (, or , ; in the local Spezzino dialect) is the capital city of the province of La Spezia and is located at the head of the Gulf of La Spezia in the southern part of the Liguria region of Italy. La Spezia is the second largest city ...

and sailed to

Gibraltar ) , anthem = " God Save the King" , song = " Gibraltar Anthem" , image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg , map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe , map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green , mapsize = , image_map2 = Gib ...

carrying three manned torpedoes and four crews. The Decima MAS frogmen, commanded by Birindelli, entered the harbour, but were unable to attack any ships due to technical problems with the torpedoes and breathing equipment. Only one human torpedo managed to get close to a target, the

battleship A battleship is a large armored warship with a main battery consisting of large caliber guns. It dominated naval warfare in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The term ''battleship'' came into use in the late 1880s to describe a type of ...

. The charge exploded but did not cause significant damage. The two crewmen, Birindelli and Damos Paccagnini, were captured by the British. The other four (including

Teseo Tesei Teseo Tesei (3 January 1909 – 26 July 1941) was an Italian naval officer, who invented the human torpedo (called ''Maiale'', Italian for "pig") used by the '' Regia Marina'' during World War II. Life Teseo Tesei was born in Marina de Ca ...

) managed to reach Spain and returned to Italy. Valuable experience was gained in this operation by the Decima. Gino Birindelli received the '' Medaglia d'Oro al Valor Militare'' (MOVM), his second, Damos Paccagnini received the ''Medaglia d'Argento al Valore Militare'' (MAVM). He remained a prisoner of the

Allies An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...

until he was repatriated in 1944. After his release, he fought with the

Italian Co-belligerent Navy The Italian Co-Belligerent Navy (''Marina Cobelligerante Italiana''), or Navy of the South (''Marina del Sud'') or Royal Navy (''Regia Marina''), was the navy of the Italian royalist forces fighting on the side of the Allies in southern Italy after ...

against the Germans.

After the war

After the war Birindelli was made Commander of Italian marines

Comando Raggruppamento Subacquei e Incursori Teseo Tesei COMSUBIN (''Comando Raggruppamento Subacquei e Incursori "Teseo Tesei"''; Divers and Raiders Group Command "Teseo Tesei") is the Italian Navy's special operations unit. Italy was the first nation to use frogmen and human torpedoes. The Royal It ...

in 1952. In 1956 he was the commander of the

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 ...

. He was promoted to

rear admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star "admiral" rank. It is often regarde ...

in 1959,

admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet, ...

in 1962 and fleet admiral in 1966. In 1969, he became chief of fleet, overseeing all operational units of the Italian Navy. In 1970 he became chief of Mediterranean Command of the

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

Fleet in Malta (he would be dismissed the following year by

Dom Mintoff Dominic Mintoff, ( mt, Duminku Mintoff, ; often called ''il-Perit'', "the Architect"; 6 August 1916 – 20 August 2012) was a Maltese Socialist politician, architect, and civil engineer who was leader of the Labour Party from 1949 to 198 ...

's Labour Party government, which declared him ''persona non grata'' within a day from the new cabinet's swearing-in) and commander in chief NATO naval forces in southern Europe. In 1972

Giorgio Almirante Giorgio Almirante (27 June 1914 – 22 May 1988) was an Italian politician, the founder and leader of neo-fascist Italian Social Movement until his retirement in 1987. Early life Almirante was born at Salsomaggiore Terme, in Emilia Romagna, ...

, leader of the

, added establishment figures such as admiral Birindelli as members. Birindelli was president of the party from 1972-1973. He served in the Italian Parliament between 1972 and 1976, with MSI-DN.

Honour

* : Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic (8 july 1977)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Birindelli, Gino 1911 births 2008 deaths People from Pescia Italian Social Movement politicians National Democracy (Italy) politicians Deputies of Legislature VI of Italy Politicians of Tuscany Italian monarchists Italian admirals Regia Marina personnel of World War II Marina Militare NATO military personnel Recipients of the Gold Medal of Military Valor Knights Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic