Regina Margherita-class battleship

Regina Margherita
Regina Margherita on speed trials in July 1904
Class overview
NameRegina Margherita
Operators Regia Marina
Preceded byAmmiraglio di Saint Bon class
Succeeded byRegina Elena class
Built1898–1905
In commission1904–1916
Completed2
Lost2
General characteristics (Regina Margherita)
Typepre-dreadnought battleship
Displacement
Length138.65 m (454 ft 11 in)
Beam23.84 m (78 ft 3 in)
Draft8.81 to 9 m (28 ft 11 in to 29 ft 6 in)
Installed power
Propulsion
Speed20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph)
Range10,000 nmi (18,520 km; 11,508 mi) at 10 kn (19 km/h; 12 mph)
Complement812–900
Armament
Armor

The Regina Margherita class was a class of two battleships built for the Italian Regia Marina between 1898 and 1905. The class comprised two ships: Regina Margherita and Benedetto Brin. The ships were designed by the latter's namesake, Benedetto Brin, who died before the ships were completed. They were armed with a main battery of four 12 in (305 mm) guns and could steam at a speed of 20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph).

Both ships saw extensive service with the Italian fleet for the first decade of their careers. They saw action in the Italo-Turkish War of 1911–1912, where they participated in the seizure of Cyrenaica in North Africa and operations in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. They were reduced to training ships by World War I, and both ships were lost with heavy death tolls during the conflict. Benedetto Brin exploded in Brindisi in September 1915, and Regina Margherita struck a mine and sank in December 1916.