Raimondo Montecuccoli was a
Condottieri class light cruiser serving with the Italian
Regia Marina during
World War II. She survived the war and served in the post-war
Marina Militare until 1964.
Design
Montecuccoli, which gives the name to its own sub-class, was part of the third group of Condottieri class light cruisers. They were larger and better protected than their predecessors. She was built by
Ansaldo,
Genoa, and was named after
Raimondo Montecuccoli, a 17th century Italian general in Austrian service.
Career
Montecuccoli entered service in 1935 and was sent out to the Far-East in 1937 to protect Italian interests during the
Sino-Japanese War, and returned home in November 1938 after being relieved by the . During the war she participated in the
Battle of Punta Stilo and in the successful
Battle of Pantelleria, where her guns disabled the British destroyer and set the large tanker SS
Kentucky on fire.
She was badly damaged by
USAAF bombers in
Naples on 4 December 1942, but having been repaired and just weeks before the armistice, on August 1943, she shelled without consequences a small Allied convoy off
Palermo during the
Allied invasion of Sicily. After the
Armistice she was interned by the Allies and returned to Italy after the war to serve as a training cruiser until 1964.
Remains of Montecuccoli today
Some remains of the ship, along with several artillery pieces and armoured vehicles, are located at the
Sunday City holiday park near
Perugia, Italy. There is...
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