Yugoslav destroyer Ljubljana

Ljubljana
Љубљана
two naval ships side by side alongside a dock with mountains in the background
Ljubljana's sister ship Beograd (right) and the flotilla leader Dubrovnik (left) in the Bay of Kotor after being captured by Italy
History
Kingdom of Yugoslavia
NameLjubljana
NamesakeLjubljana
Laid down1936
Launched28 June 1938
CommissionedNovember 1939
Out of service17 April 1941
FateCaptured by Italy
Italy
NameLubiana
Acquired17 April 1941
In service1 November 1941
FateStranded and wrecked off the Tunisian coast on 1 April 1943
General characteristics
Class and typeBeograd-class destroyer
Displacement
Length98 m (321 ft 6 in) oa
Beam9.45 m (31 ft)
Draught3.18 m (10 ft 5 in)
Installed power
Propulsion
Speed38 knots (70 km/h; 44 mph)
Complement145
Armament

Ljubljana (Serbo-Croatian pronunciation: [ˌlubliˈɑnə]) was the third and last Beograd-class destroyer built for the Royal Yugoslav Navy (Serbo-Croatian Latin: Kraljevska mornarica; Serbo-Croatian Cyrillic: Краљевска морнарица; КМ) in the late 1930s, and designed to operate as part of a division led by the flotilla leader Dubrovnik. She entered KM service in November 1939, was armed with a main battery of four Škoda 120 mm (4.7 in) guns in superfiring single mounts – two forward and two aft of the superstructure – and she had a practical top speed of 35 knots (65 km/h; 40 mph).

In 1940, Ljubljana ran aground on a reef off the Yugoslav port of Šibenik and sank due to the serious damage caused to her hull. After considerable effort she was refloated and then towed to the naval arsenal at Tivat in the Bay of Kotor for repairs. This incident resulted in her gaining a reputation as an "unlucky ship" with Yugoslav sailors. Yugoslavia entered World War II when the German-led Axis powers invaded in April 1941, and Ljubljana – still under repair – was captured by the Italians. After repairs and refitting, including replacement of her anti-aircraft armament, she saw service from November 1942 with the Royal Italian Navy under the name Lubiana, mainly as a convoy escort on routes between Italy and Greece and Italy and Tunisia. She was lost on 1 April 1943, when a navigational error was made in poor visibility off the Tunisian coast. She was stranded and then abandoned due to heavy seas, and was declared a total loss.