Italian destroyer Espero (1904)

Espero in 1905 in her original two-funnel configuration.
History
Kingdom of Italy
Name	Espero
Namesake	Hesperus, the personification of the "evening star" (the planet Venus) in Greek mythology
Builder	Cantiere Pattison, Naples, Kingdom of Italy
Launched	9 July 1904
Completed	1 April 1905
Commissioned	April 1905
Stricken	January 1921
Reinstated	16 January 1921
Renamed	Turbine 16 January 1921
Reclassified	Torpedo boat July 1921
Stricken	April 1923
Fate	Scrapped
General characteristics
Type	Destroyer
Displacement	325 long tons (330 t) normal 380 long tons (390 t) full load
Length	63.39 m (208 ft 0 in) pp 64.00 m (210 ft 0 in) oa
Beam	5.94 m (19 ft 6 in)
Draught	2.29 m (7 ft 6 in)
Propulsion	2 × vertical triple-expansion steam engines 3× Thornycroft boilers 5,000 ihp (3,728 kW)
Speed	30 knots (56 km/h; 35 mph)
Complement	55
Armament	As built: 5 × QF 6 pounder Nordenfelt 57 mm/43 guns 3 × 356 mm (14 in) torpedo tubes 1 × 356 mm (14 in) bow torpedo tube 1912: 4 × Cannon 76/40 (3 in) Model 1916 guns 4 x 450 mm (17.7 in) torpedo tubes 1921: 3 × Cannon 76/40 (3 in) Model 1916 guns 4 x 450 mm (17.7 in) torpedo tubes 1 x Colt Browning 65mm/80 machine gun

Espero ("Hesperus") was an Italian Nembo-class destroyer. Commissioned into service in the Italian Regia Marina (Royal Navy) in 1905, she served in World War I, playing an active role in the Adriatic campaign. In the aftermath of the Impresa di Fiume of 1919, she played a role in the defense of the Free State of Fiume against Italy in 1920. Renamed Turbine and reclassified as a torpedo boat in 1921, she was stricken in 1923.