Duel 123 British/commonwealth Cruiser Vs Italian Cruiser Paperback

Description

This illustrated history explores the cruiser forces of the Italian and British Royalnavies, the jack-of-all trades warships of the Mediterranean Naval War.In 1940, when Italy entered World War II, the Royal Navy was badly overstretched, and itsMediterranean Fleet had to face both the Italian Navy and the German and Italian AirForces in a battle for supremacy. Although the British and Italian battle fleets squared offagainst each other, they were both often held in reserve, in case the enemy fleet put tosea. So, it was left to the cruisers to wage their own naval war in the Mediterranean. Thisinvolved a range of missions, from escorting convoys and hunting enemy ones, tofighting for control of the sea around key locations such as the waters off Malta andCrete.This superbly illustrated study, written by renowned naval expert Angus Konstam,compares and contrasts the design, weapon technologies and combat performance ofthe opposing cruiser forces. It also documents several major clashes between British,Commonwealth and Italian cruisers, including spirited actions fought off Cape Spada in1940, a string of actions in the Gulf of Sirte throughout 1941, battles against Axisconvoys in 1941–42, and the Battle of Pantelleria in 1942. Among the subjects of thespecially commissioned colour artworks are HMAS Sydney, HMS Naiad, RM Trento andRM Raimondo Montecuccoli.