Carlo Fecia di Cossato

Carlo Fecia di Cossato (25 September 1908 – 27 August 1944) was an officer in the Regia Marina (Italian Royal Navy), in command of submarines and torpedo boats during World War II. He was credited with the confirmed sinking of 23 enemy ships (16 Allied ships before the Armistice of Cassibile, with the submarine , and 7 German vessels after the armistice, with the torpedo boat ). Giorgio Giorgerini, ''Uomini sul fondo. Storia del sommergibilismo italiano dalle origini a oggi'', Mondadori, . He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross and of the Gold Medal of Military Valor, the highest decoration of the Italian Armed Forces.TracesOfWar.com
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Fecia di Cossato was born in Rome, Italy, on 25 September 1908. He graduated from the Naval Academy in Livorno in 1928 and assumed his duties as officer at the Italian Naval Detachment in China. In the early 1930s, he was an officer on two submarines and his service included the participation in the Spanish Civil War.

At the beginning of World War II, Fecia di Cossato was the commander of submarine ''Ciro Menotti'' based in Messina; after some months he was transferred to Bordeaux and given command of the submarine '' Tazzoli''. This submarine operated in the Atlantic Ocean, sinking 18 ships with a total tonnage of 96,553 tons; 16 of these ships, for a total tonnage of 86,545 GRT, were sunk under Fecia di Cossato's command.Italian navy website
In February 1943, at the end of the mission near Brazil he was transferred to Italy, where he was given command of a squadron of torpedo boats.

After the Allies' Armistice with Italy, he fought with bravery against German shipping near Bastia, sinking seven enemy vessels. Fecia di Cossato was displeased with the events of late 1943 and early 1944, and committed suicide in Naples on 27 August 1944.

Early life and career

Fecia di Cossato was born in Rome in 1908 from a family of the Piedmontese nobility. In his youth, he attended the Royal Military College of Moncalieri and then the Italian Naval Academy in Livorno, where he graduated in 1928 as an Ensign.Carlo Fecia di Cossato.
/ref> Immediately after graduation, he was assigned on the submarine ''Bausan''.

In 1929, after promotion to Sub-Lieutenant, Fecia di Cossato was assigned to the Italian Naval Detachment in Beijing and sent to China on the scout cruiser ''Libia''. He returned to Italy in 1933, was promoted to Lieutenant and was assigned on the light cruiser ''Bari'', stationed in Massawa during the Second Italo-Ethiopian War. He then participated in two special missions on submarines during the Spanish Civil War.
In 1939 Fecia di Cossato attended the Italian Navy Submarine School in Pola, after which he was promoted to Lieutenant Commander and given command of a submarine.

At the outbreak of World War II

When Italy entered World War II, Fecia di Cossato was the commanding officer of the submarine ''Ciro Menotti'', based in Messina as part of the 33rd Submarine Squadron. In this role he participated in several missions in the Mediterranean Sea. In the autumn of 1940 he was transferred to the BETASOM submarine base, in occupied France, where he started his participation in the Battle of the Atlantic as executive officer of the submarine ''Enrico Tazzoli'', whose commanding officer was Lieutenant Commander Vittore Raccanelli.

In command of ''Enrico Tazzoli''

On 5 April 1941 Fecia di Cossato was given command of ''Tazzoli'', with Lieutenant Gianfranco Gazzana-Priaroggia as executive officer. Fecia di Cossato and Gazzana Priaroggia (who was later given command of the submarines and ) were to become Italy's most successful submariners in World War II.Giorgio Giorgerini, ''Uomini sul fondo. Storia del sommergibilismo italiano dalle origini a oggi'', pp. 192-439-449-470-490-497-498-514-515-518-528-551-554.

Early sinkings

On April 7, 1941 ''Tazzoli'' left Bordeaux for its first mission under Fecia di Cossato. After reaching a patrol area off the coast of West Africa, on April 12 the submarine attacked two British cruisers with torpedoes, but no hits were obtained.Orazio Ferrara, "''Carlo Fecia di Cossato''", on ''Eserciti nella storia'' n° 64, September–October 2011, page 39. On April 15, ''Tazzoli'' sank the British steamer ''Aurillac'' (4,733 GRT) with torpedoes and gunfire.Giorgio Giorgerini, ''Uomini sul fondo. Storia del sommergibilismo italiano dalle origini a oggi'', p. 490. On May 7, ''Tazzoli'' sank the Norwegian steamer ''Fernlane'' (4,310 GRT) and two days later the Norwegian tanker ''Alfred Olsen'' (8,817 GRT). The latter required two days of pursuit, all remaining torpedoes and a hundred artillery rounds, forcing Tazzoli to return to base after sinking it. On the way back, ''Tazzoli'' was attacked by an enemy plane, but the reaction of its machine guns damaged the plane and forced it to fly away.

On May 25, ''Tazzoli'' reached Bordeaux, where Fecia di Cossato was awarded a Silver Medal of Military Valor. On July 15, 1941, Fecia di Cossato sailed for a new mission during which, on August 12, he destroyed the grounded wreck of the British steamer ''Sangara'' (5,449 GRT, already damaged by a previous attack by the German submarine ''U-69'') and on August 19 he sank the Norwegian tanker ''Sildra'' (7,313 GRT) about fifty miles off Freetown. He returned to base on September 11 and was awarded a Bronze Medal of Military Valor and an Iron Cross Second Class.

Rescue of the Atlantis and Python survivors

In December 1941 Tazzoli left Bordeaux to take part in the rescue of 400 survivors from the German commerce raider ''Atlantis'' and the German supply ship ''Python'', that had been sunk off the Cape Verde islands. German U-boats had rescued the survivors from the sea, but did not have enough space to adequately house them, therefore the German command requested the intervention of the larger Italian submarines. ''Tazzoli'' and three other Betasom submarines (''Torelli'', ''Calvi'' and ''Finzi'') thus sailed from Bordeaux after disembarking nonessential personnel and loading substantial supplies of food and water. At the rendez-vous with the German U-boats, ''Tazzoli'' took onboard about 70 survivors, including ''Atlantis''' executive officer Ulrich Mohr.

On Christmas Eve ''Tazzoli'', sailing on the surface, was attacked by an enemy plane and forced to crash dive. On the following day, the submarine reached Saint-Nazaire, where the survivors were landed.Orazio Ferrara, "''Carlo Fecia di Cossato''", on ''Eserciti nella storia'' n° 64, September/October 2011, p. 42 For his part in the rescue of the survivors from the two German ships, Grand Admiral Karl Dönitz awarded Fecia di Cossato the Iron Cross First Class.

In American waters

On 11 February 1942, after the United States’ entry into the war, ''Tazzoli'' under Fecia di Cossato left for a new mission, off the coasts of America. On 6 March the submarine sank the Dutch steamer ''Astrea'' (1,406 GRT), and on the following day the Norwegian motorship ''Torsbergfjord'' (3,156 GRT). On 9 March ''Tazzoli'' sank the Uruguayan steamer ''Montevideo'' (5,785 GRT), on 11 March the Panama-flagged steamer ''Cygnet'' (3,628 GRT), on 13 March the British steamer ''Daytonian'' (6,434 GRT) and two days later the British tanker ''Athelqueen'' (8,780 GRT). In the fight against the latter, ''Tazzoli'' suffered some damage, following which Fecia di Cossato decided to return to base, where he arrived on 31 March. Following this mission Fecia di Cossato was awarded another Silver Medal of Military Valor by the Italian authorities and an Iron Cross Second Class with Sword by the German authorities.

On 18 June 1942 Fecia di Cossato sailed with ''Tazzoli'' for a new mission in the Caribbean. On 2 August he attacked and sank the Greek merchant ''Castor'' (1,830 GRT), and four days later he sank the Norwegian tanker ''Havsten'' (6,161 GRT), allowing her crew to abandon ship and be rescued by a nearby Argentinian ship, before sinking her. On 5 September, ''Tazzoli'' returned to base; for this mission Fecia di Cossato received a Bronze Medal of Military Valor.

On 14 November 1942 Fecia Di Cossato sailed for his last mission on ''Tazzoli''. On 12 December the submarine sank the British steamer ''Empire Hawk'' (5,032 GRT) and the Dutch merchant ''Ombilin'' (5,658 GRT); on 21 December the British steamer ''Queen City'' (4,814 GRT) became ''Tazzoli'''s next victim, followed on Christmas by the American motorship ''Dona Aurora'' (5,011 GRT). During the return voyage, the submarine was attacked by a British four-engined plane, that was shot down by ''Tazzoli'''s machine gunners. On 2 February 1943, ''Tazzoli'' ended her patrol in Bordeaux. On 19 March 1943, Fecia di Cossato was awarded a Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross by the German authorities, for his successes in the Atlantic.

Ships sunk

In command of ''Aliseo''

In February 1943 Fecia di Cossato left the command of ''Tazzoli'', was promoted to Commander and was then given command of the brand new ''Ciclone''-class torpedo boat and of the 3rd Torpedo Boat Squadron.Giorgio Giorgerini, ''Uomini sul fondo. Storia del sommergibilismo italiano dalle origini a oggi'', p. 672-673. He assumed command of ''Aliseo'' on 17 April 1943.Aliseo
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/ref> In May 1943 Fecia di Cossato learned that ''Tazzoli'', having been converted into a transport submarine, had disappeared with all hands after sailing towards the Far East; the loss of his old crew deeply affected him.

On 22 July 1943 ''Aliseo'' left Pozzuoli together with the German torpedo boat ''TA11'' and two submarine chaser, escorting the steamers ''Adernò'' and ''Colleville'' towards Civitavecchia.Lunasub
In the morning of 23 July, the convoy was attacked by Allied aircraft; one of the attacking planes was shot down, while one of the Axis escorting planes was damaged and forced to ditch. ''Aliseo'' was strafed, and suffered minor damage to her deck and rudder. Fecia di Cossato ordered the convoy to go on, then ''Aliseo'' took the ditched plane in tow and towed it towards the coast, while the damage to the rudder was repaired; ''Aliseo'' rejoined the convoy at 17:30. Around 19:30, the convoy was attacked by the submarine HMS ''Torbay'', that torpedoed ''Adernò'', sinking her. ''Aliseo'' launched a motorboat to pick up the survivors, then hunted the attacking submarine for several hours, but without result.

Following other escort missions in the Tyrrhenian Sea, Fecia di Cossato was awarded another Bronze Medal of Military Valor by the Italian authorities, and a War Merit Cross by the German authorities.

The Armistice and the battle of Bastia

When the armistice between Italy and the Allied forces was announced, on the evening of 8 September 1943, ''Aliseo'' was moored in the harbour of Bastia, in Italian-occupied Corsica. The harbour was packed with several vessels, both Italian and German; besides ''Aliseo'', these included her sistership , the Italian merchant ships ''Sassari'' and ''Humanitas'', and a small German flotilla which included the submarine chasers ''UJ 2203'' (former French survey vessel ''Austral'') and ''UJ 2219'' (former Belgian yacht ''Insuma'') and five Marinefährprahme (''F 366'', ''F 387'', ''F 459'', ''F 612'' and ''F 623'').9 settembre 1943: l’impresa dell’Aliseo
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The local Italian and German commanders soon reached a "gentlemen’s agreement" according to which the German forces would be allowed to safely retreat to mainland Italy. Meanwhile, however, the German forces secretly prepared to launch a surprise attack on the Italian ships moored inside the harbour, planning to capture them. The attack started at 23:45 on 8 September, when two groups of German soldiers, after hearing a whistle (the signal to attack), stormed ''Ardito''; the torpedo boat was heavily damaged (70 of her 180 crew were killed) and captured, and the merchant ships ''Sassari'' and ''Humanitas'' also fell into German hands.

''Aliseo'' had just left the harbour when the German attack began.

Shortly after dawn on 9 September, a combat group of the Tenth Bersaglieri Group (''10° Raggruppamento Celere Bersaglieri'') staged a counterattack which led to the recapture of the port, as well as of ''Ardito'', ''Sassari'' and ''Humanitas''; the German flotilla was ordered to leave the harbour, but the ships were immediately fired upon by the Italian coastal batteries, which damaged ''UJ 2203'' and some of the MFPs.

''Aliseo'', under the command of Fecia di Cossato, was then ordered by the port commander to attack and destroy the German units. Shortly after 7:00 the flotilla, proceeding in a column led by ''UJ 2203'', opened fire on ''Aliseo'', which returned fire at 7:06, from a distance of ; at 7:30 ''Aliseo'' was hit by an 88 mm shell in the engine room and temporarily left dead in the water, but the damage was quickly repaired and the torpedo boat closed in and engaged her adversaries in succession, destroying them one after the other. At 8:20 ''UJ 2203'', after suffering several hits, blew up; ten minutes later ''UJ 2219'' was also destroyed when her magazines exploded. Between 8:30 and 8:35 ''Aliseo'' also sank ''F 366'', ''F 459'' and ''F 623''; the corvette ''Cormorano'' intervened during the final phase of the battle and, together with ''Aliseo'', forced ''F 387'' and ''F 612'' to run aground, after which they were abandoned and destroyed.

''Aliseo'' picked up 25 German survivors, then proceeded towards Portoferraio, as ordered, together with the damaged ''Ardito''. Elba Island had become the collection point for Italian torpedo boats, corvettes and minor ships escaping from harbours on the northern Tyrrhenian coast; ''Aliseo'' and ''Ardito'' reached Portoferrario at 17:58 on 9 September. In the morning of 11 September, ''Aliseo'' left Portoferraio along with six other torpedo boats (including sisterships , , and ) and some corvettes and smaller vessels, heading for Allied-controlled Palermo, where the group arrived at 10:00 on 12 September.Joseph Caruana, ''Interludio a Malta'', on ''Storia Militare'' n. 204 – September 2010

The ships remained in the roads till 18 September, when they entered the harbor in order to receive water and food supplies; on 20 September they left Palermo and reached Malta, where ''Aliseo'' delivered part of the foodstuff she had been given to the Italian warships that had arrived there in the previous days. On 5 October 1943, ''Aliseo'' left Malta and returned to Italy.

For both his achievements in the Battle of the Atlantic and his victorious action off Bastia, Fecia di Cossato was awarded a Gold Medal of Military Valor.

Co-belligerence, insubordination, and death

Based in Taranto, ''Aliseo'' carried out numerous escort missions during the co-belligerence between Italy and the Allies, always under Fecia di Cossato's command. In June 1944, the new government chaired by Ivanoe Bonomi refused to swear loyalty to the king; on 22 June Fecia di Cossato, a staunch monarchist, refused in turn to swear loyalty to the new government, which he considered illegitimate. On the same day, Fecia di Cossato was relieved of command, charged with insubordination and imprisoned. His huge popularity, however, led to immediate unrest among the crews of his and other ships, who refused to put to sea and demanded that he be freed and reinstated in his role. Shortly thereafter, Fecia di Cossato was released from prison, but he was given a mandatory three months' leave.

With the armistice and the following events, Fecia di Cossato had seen the ideals that had guided him throughout his life – the Fatherland, the monarchy, the Regia Marina – crumble around him. He perceived the events of 8 September 1943 as a "shameful surrender" for the Royal Italian Navy, which, he felt, had produced no positive effects for Italy; the country was now divided and occupied by opposing foreign armies, and the armistice and the change of sides would become a stain on Italy's honour and reputation for a long time ("We have been unworthily betrayed and we discovered to have committed an ignominius act without any result"). Fecia di Cossato felt that his personal honour was stained by the surrender; furthermore, he was worried by the rumors that, despite their participation in the co-belligerence against the Germans, the surviving ships of the Italian Navy would still be handed over to the Allies at the end of the war. He was also haunted by the loss of his old crew on ''Tazzoli''; on the letter he wrote before committing suicide, he also wrote "For months, all I've done is thinking about my crew, who rest honourably at the bottom of the sea. I think that my place is with them". Since his family lived in German-occupied Northern Italy, out of his reach, he had to live in a friend's house in Naples. On 21 August 1944, as his mandatory leave was nearing its end, Fecia di Cossato wrote a last letter to his mother, where he explained the reasons for his extreme gesture; on 27 August 1944 he committed suicide by shooting himself in his friend's house in Naples.''La lettera di addio alla madre''
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He is buried in Bologna.

Commemoration

A Sauro-class submarine, commissioned in 1980 and decommissioned in 2005, was named after him.

References

Citations

Bibliography

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Fecia di Cossato, Carlo
1908 births
1944 deaths
Military personnel from Rome
Regia Marina personnel of World War II
Italian military personnel of the Spanish Civil War
Italian monarchists
Italian nobility
Recipients of the Gold Medal of Military Valor
Recipients of the Silver Medal of Military Valor
Recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross
Italian military personnel who committed suicide
Suicides by firearm in Italy
Submarine commanders
Italian military personnel killed in World War II