 Etruria in 1909
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| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Preceded by | Piemonte |
| Succeeded by | Calabria |
| Built | 1888–1901 |
| In commission | 1893–1923 |
| Completed | 6 |
| Lost | 1 |
| Scrapped | 4 |
| Preserved | 1 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Protected cruiser |
| Displacement | |
| Length | 84.8 to 88.25 m (278 ft 3 in to 289 ft 6 in) |
| Beam | 12.03 to 12.73 m (39 ft 6 in to 41 ft 9 in) |
| Draft | 4.67 to 5.45 m (15 ft 4 in to 17 ft 11 in) |
| Installed power |
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| Propulsion | |
| Speed | 17.9 to 20 kn (33.2 to 37.0 km/h; 20.6 to 23.0 mph) |
| Range | 2,100 nmi (3,900 km; 2,400 mi) at 10 kn (19 km/h; 12 mph) |
| Complement | 213–278 |
| Armament |
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| Armor |
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The Regioni class was a group of six protected cruisers built for the Italian Regia Marina (Royal Navy) in the late 1880s through the early 1900s. The class comprised Umbria, Lombardia, Etruria, Liguria, Elba, and Puglia, all of which were named for regions of Italy with the exception of Elba, which was named for the island.[1] The class is sometimes referred as the Umbria class, for the first ship to be laid down. The ships, built by four different shipyards, varied slightly in their size, speed, and armament, but all could steam at about 18 knots (33 km/h; 21 mph) and their main armament consisted of four 15-centimeter (5.9 in) guns and six 12 cm (4.7 in) guns.
The ships served in a variety of roles throughout their careers, including scouts for the main fleet, colonial cruisers, and representatives of Italy at major foreign events. Elba observed the Russo-Japanese War, including the Battle of Chemulpo Bay in 1904, where she picked up Russian survivors. Lombardia was converted into a depot ship for submarines in 1906. Elba and Liguria were equipped with observation balloons in 1907–1908. In 1910, Umbria was sold to Haiti and renamed Consul Gostrück, though she quickly sank under the care of her inexperienced crew. The remaining ships, except for Lombardia, took part in the Italo-Turkish War in 1911–1912, where they provided gunfire support to Italian troops, bombarded Ottoman ports, and instituted a blockade in the Red Sea.
By World War I, most of the ships had been withdrawn to secondary roles, with Elba having been converted into a seaplane tender. Puglia was the only member of the class to take an active role, based out of Durazzo. Etruria was deliberately blown up by the Regia Marina as a deception operation against Austria-Hungary. The remaining ships were broken up for scrap in the early 1920s, though the bow section of Puglia was preserved at the Vittoriale degli italiani museum.