Italian Destroyer Audace (1913)

''Audace'' was the lead ship of the s of the Italian ''Regia Marina'' ("Royal Navy"). Commissioned in 1914, she served during World War I, participating in the Adriatic campaign and operating as a convoy escort until she sank after a collision in 1916.

Design

The ships of the ''Audace'' class were long at the waterline and long overall, with a beam of and a draft of . They displaced standard and up to at full load. They had a crew of four to five officers and 65 to 74 enlisted men. The ships were powered by two Zoelly steam turbines, with steam provided by four White-Forster water-tube boilers. The engines were rated to produce for a top speed of , though in service they reached as high as with . At a more economical speed of , the ships could cruise for .

The ship carried an armament that consisted of a single gun and four guns, along with two torpedo tubes. The 120 mm gun was placed on the forecastle and two of the 76 mm guns were mounted abreast of the funnels, with the remaining pair at the stern. The torpedo tubes were in single mounts, both on the centerline.

The design of the ''Audace''-class ships was based on that of the preceding . During operations, the ''Audace'' class revealed somewhat disappointing characteristics.

Construction and commissioning

''Audace'' was laid down at the ''Cantiere navale fratelli Orlando'' ("Orlandi Brothers Shipyard") in Leghorn (Livorno) in May 1912 and was launched on 4 May 1913. She was commissioned in March 1914.

Service history

1915–1916

World War I broke out in 1914, and the Kingdom of Italy entered the war on the side of the Allies with its declaration of war on Austria-Hungary on 23 May 1915. At the time, ''Audace'', under the command of ''Capitano di corvetta'' (Corvette Captain) Cantu, and the destroyers , , , and made up the 1st Destroyer Squadron, based at Brindisi, with the squadron under the command of ''Capitano di corvetta'' (Corvette Captain) Caccia. On 24 May ''Audace'', ''Animoso'', and ''Ardito'' carried out an anti-submarine patrol in the Gulf of Drin off the coast of the Principality of Albania and subsequently off Cattaro, a major base of the Austro-Hungarian Navy. On 9 June 1915, ''Audace'', ''Animoso'', ''Ardente'', ''Ardito'', the destroyers , , , , and , and the protected cruiser escorted the armored cruisers and as they bombarded the lighthouses at the Cape of Rodon and Shëngjin (known to the Italians as San Giovanni di Medua) on the coast of Albania.

On 11 July 1915 ''Audace'', ''Ardito'', ''Animoso'', and ''Ardente'' escorted ''Quarto'' to the Palagruža (known to the Italians as the Pelagosa) archipelago in the Adriatic Sea, where they landed the vanguard of an occupation force. The auxiliary cruiser , the protected cruiser , the destroyer , and the torpedo boats , , , , , and also took part in the operation, which went smoothly: Two Austro-Hungarian signalmen, who first hid from and then surrendered to the Italians, made up the archipelago's entire garrison.

On 13 June 1916 ''Audace'', under the command of ''Capitano di fregata'' (Frigate Captain) Piazza, and the destroyers , , and provided escort and support to the motor torpedo boats and ''MAS 7'', which, after the coastal torpedo boats and towed them to a starting position, penetrated the harbor at Austro-Hungarian-occupied Shëngjin. The incursion was unsuccessful: ''MAS 5'' and ''MAS 7'' found no ships moored in the harbor. ''MAS 5'' and ''MAS 7'' withdrew under Austro-Hungarian artillery fire without suffering any damage. On the night of while ''Audace'', ''Insidioso'', ''Marsala'', and the destroyers and operated in distant support, ''Antonio Mosto'', ''Pilade Bronzetti'', ''Rosolino Pilo'', and the destroyer escorted the coastal torpedo boats and as ''34 PN'' and ''36 PN'' towed ''MAS 5'' and ''MAS 7'' to a point off Durrës (known to the Italians as Durazzo) in Albania. ''MAS 5'' and ''MAS 7'' then dropped their tow cables and raided the harbor at Durrës. The attack resulted in serious damage to the 1,111- gross register ton steamship .

Loss

On the night of ''Audace'' was escorting the steamer from Taranto, Italy, to Thessaloniki, Greece, when she collided with ''Brasile''. She sank in the Ionian Sea off Capo Colonna, Italy, in the predawn hours of 30 August 1916.

Wreck

''Audace''′s wreck was found in 2007 at a depth of between . It was largely intact, with its bow oriented toward the south.Servizio Relitto Nave Audace - Betasom - XI Gruppo Sommergibili Atlantici
(in Italian).

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Audace (1913)
Audace-class destroyers (1913)
1913 ships
Ships built in Livorno
World War I destroyers of Italy
Maritime incidents in 1916
Ships sunk in collisions
World War I shipwrecks in the Mediterranean Sea