Vittorio Arminjon or Victor Arminjon (9 October 1830 – 4 February 1897) was an Italian admiral, explorer and writer. Arminjon was born in

Chambéry Chambéry (, , ; Arpitan: ''Chambèri'') is the prefecture of the Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of eastern France. The population of the commune of Chambéry was 58,917 as of 2019, while the population of the Chamb ...

to Senator Mathias Arminjon and Henriette Dupy. He joined the Royal Naval School in

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Regions of Italy, Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of t ...

in 1842 and became an officer in 1847. He served on the

Adriatic Sea 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) ...

(1848-1849) and resigned in 1860 to join the

French Navy The French Navy (french: Marine nationale, lit=National Navy), informally , is the maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the five military service branches of France. It is among the largest and most powerful naval forces in th ...

commanding the ''Zenobia'' and later the ''Asmodeus''. He was made a Knight in the Order of the Legion of Honor. He married Enrichetta Alli-Maccarani, daughter of Marquis Alli Maccarani in 1859. In 1861 he joined back with the

Royal Italian Navy 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 ...

and served as a captain on a Frigate. In 1865 he commanded the frigate ''Regina'' from

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

Montevideo Montevideo () is the capital and largest city of Uruguay. According to the 2011 census, the city proper has a population of 1,319,108 (about one-third of the country's total population) in an area of . Montevideo is situated on the southern ...

and from there the steamship ''Magenta'' on a voyage around the world. The ship also carried the naturalists Prof.

Enrico Hillyer Giglioli Enrico Hillyer Giglioli (13 June 1845 – 16 December 1909) was an Italian zoologist and anthropologist. Giglioli was born in London and first studied there. He obtained a degree in science at the University of Pisa in 1864 and started to teach ...

and Filippo de Filippi who collected and described various zoological specimens including the

Trindade petrel The Trindade petrel (''Pterodroma arminjoniana'') is a species of seabird and a member of the gadfly petrels. The bird is in size, with an wingspan. The petrel has various color morphs: dark and light, as well as intermediates between the two. ...

which was named after Arminjon as ''Pterodroma arminjoniana''. In 1866 he signed trade treaties for Italy with Japan and China. He was made Commander of the Order of Saints Maurice and Lazare in February 1867. He then served as Director of Armaments and was appointed Commander of the Royal Naval School. In 1876 he was promoted Rear Admiral and served on the battleship ''Roma''. He resigned in 1877 and spent his time studying agriculture and experimenting with applied chemistry on his lands in the

Piedmont it, Piemontese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

. In 1882 on the occasion of the fourth centenary of

Christopher Columbus Christopher Columbus * lij, Cristoffa C(or)ombo * es, link=no, Cristóbal Colón * pt, Cristóvão Colombo * ca, Cristòfor (or ) * la, Christophorus Columbus. (; born between 25 August and 31 October 1451, died 20 May 1506) was a ...

' service to

Isabella of Castile Isabella I ( es, Isabel I; 22 April 1451 – 26 November 1504), also called Isabella the Catholic (Spanish: ''la Católica''), was Queen of Castile from 1474 until her death in 1504, as well as Queen consort of Aragon from 1479 until 1504 by ...

, Admiral Arminjon received the Grand'Croix of Spanish Naval Merit from

King Alfonso XII of Spain Alfonso XII (Alfonso Francisco de Asís Fernando Pío Juan María de la Concepción Gregorio Pelayo; 28 November 185725 November 1885), also known as El Pacificador or the Peacemaker, was King of Spain from 29 December 1874 to his death in 1885 ...

References

External links

Biography (in Italian)

[Voyage of the Magenta] (1869)
1830 births 1897 deaths Italian admirals Military personnel from Chambéry {{Italy-mil-bio-stub