Battle of Cape Spada

The Battle of Cape Spada (Battaglia di Capo Spada) was a naval battle between the Royal Navy and the Regia Marina during the Battle of the Mediterranean in the second World War. It took place on 19 July 1940 off Cape Spada, the north-western extremity of Crete.

The action occurred when a Royal Navy squadron patrolling the Aegean encountered two Italian cruisers en route from Tripoli to Leros, an Italian colony in the Dodecanese Islands. The squadron was commanded by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) Captain John Collins aboard the light cruiser HMAS Sydney with the H-class destroyers HMS Havock, Hyperion, Hasty, Hero and the similar I-class destroyer Ilex. The Italian 2ª Divisione Incrociatori (2nd Cruiser Division) Ammiraglio di divisione (Vice-Admiral) Ferdinando Casardi, comprised the fast light cruisers Giovanni delle Bande Nere and Bartolomeo Colleoni.^[1]

When the Italians encountered the British destroyers at about 07:30, Sydney and Havock were 40 nmi (74 km; 46 mi) to the north on a sweep for submarines. The other destroyers led the Italian cruisers on a chase northwards to give Sydney time to come to the rescue. Sydney sighted the Italians at 08:26, opening fire at 08:29, and the Italian cruisers turned away to the south-west. In the chase that followed, Bartolomeo Colleoni was hit several times by Sydney and a shell went through her unarmoured hull; the boilers and guns were disabled at 09:23, leaving her dead in the water.^[2]

The crew of Bartolomeo Colleoni fought on but were unable to manoeuvre or use the main armament; despite the fire from her 100 mm (3.9 in) guns, she was sunk by three torpedoes launched from Ilex and Hyperion at 09:59. Sydney continued to engage Bande Nere. Sydney was hit in the funnel by an Italian shell but hit Bande Nere at least twice, killing eight in the bow and the hangar. Later, Sydney disengaged because she was short of ammunition, Bande Nere returned to Benghazi, shadowed by the battleship HMS Warspite and a screen of destroyers.^[3]

Despite their speed advantage, the Italian cruisers failed to outrun Sydney because they had to steer south-southwest, instead of the most obvious route of escape to the south, to avoid being trapped between their opponents and the Cretan coast. This gave the Australian cruiser the chance to close the range. The light armour of Colleoni and Bande Nere was unable to withstand Sydney's shells. The lack of aerial reconnaissance was another factor contributing to the successful Commonwealth chase.^[4]

• Bartolomeo Colleoni in 1935
• HMAS Sydney in 1936
• The hole in Sydney's forward funnel

Of the crew of Bartolomeo Colleoni there were 555 survivors but 121 men died; the captain, Umberto Novaro, was mortally wounded and died on 23 July.^[5]

The British destroyers were bombed by Italian aircraft after the battle, damaging Havock, whose no. 2 boiler was flooded. A floatplane from Warspite, which was searching for Bande Nere, ditched in the sea and was lost near Tobruk, the crew being taken prisoner by the Italians. British Convoy AN 2 was ordered to sail back to Port Said and remain there until Bande Nere reached Benghazi.^[6]

• Coulthard-Clark, Chris (2001). The Encyclopaedia of Australia's Battles. Sydney: Allen & Unwin. ISBN 1-86508-634-7.
• Greene, J.; Massignani, A. (2002) [1998]. The Naval War in the Mediterranean 1940–1943 (pbk. ed.). Rochester: Chatham. ISBN 978-1-86176-190-3.
• O'Hara, Vincent P. (2009). Struggle for the Middle Sea: The Great Navies at War in the Mediterranean Theater, 1940–1945. Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-1-59114-648-3.
• Rohwer, Jürgen; Hümmelchen, Gerhard (2005) [1972]. Chronology of the War at Sea, 1939–1945: The Naval History of World War Two (3rd rev. ed.). London: Chatham. ISBN 1-86176-257-7.
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• Brown, David (1995) [1990]. Warship Losses of World War Two (2nd rev. ed.). London: Arms and Armour Press. ISBN 1-85409-278-2.
• Playfair, I. S. O.; et al. (1959) [1954]. Butler, J. R. M. (ed.). The Mediterranean and Middle East: The Early Successes Against Italy (to May 1941). History of the Second World War, United Kingdom Military Series. Vol. I (4th impr. ed.). HMSO. OCLC 494123451. Retrieved 28 May 2018.

• Action off Cape Spada
• Scontro di Capo Spada (in Italian)