View source for Battle of Taranto

{{Short description|1940 British naval victory over Italy in WWII}}
{{About|the 1940 battle|other battles|Battle of Taranto (disambiguation)}}
{{Use British English|date=November 2012}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2019}}
{{Infobox military conflict
 |conflict    = Battle of Taranto
 |image       = The Italian battleship CONTE DI CAVOUR after the attack. Only her funnels and super-structure remain above the water.jpg
 |image_upright  = 1.0
 |caption     = The Italian battleship [[Italian battleship Conte di Cavour|Conte Di Cavour]] with hull largely underwater after being torpedoed during the Taranto raid.
 |partof      = the [[Battle of the Mediterranean]] of [[World War II]]
 |date        = 11–12 November 1940
 |place       = [[Taranto]]
 |coordinates = {{Coord|40|27|4|N|17|12|27|E|type:event_region:IT-75|display=inline,title}}
 |result      = British victory
 |map_type    = Italy
 |map_size    = 200
|map_label    = Taranto
|map_caption  = {{centre|[[Port of Taranto]], in [[Apulia]], [[Southern Italy]] and main Italian naval base}}
 |combatant1  = {{flagcountry|UKGBNI}}
 |combatant2  = {{flagcountry|Fascist Italy (1922-1943)}}
 |commander1  = {{ubl|[[Andrew Cunningham, 1st Viscount Cunningham of Hyndhope|Andrew Cunningham]]|[[Lumley Lyster]]}}
 |commander2  = [[Inigo Campioni]]
 |strength1   = {{ubl|1 [[aircraft carrier]]
                     |2 [[heavy cruiser]]s|2 [[light cruiser]]s|4 [[destroyer]]s|21 [[torpedo bomber]]s}}
 |strength2   = {{ubl|6 [[battleship]]s|7 heavy cruisers|7 light cruisers|13 destroyers}}
 |casualties1 = {{ubl|2 killed|2 captured|2 aircraft destroyed}}
 |casualties2 = {{ubl|59 killed|600 wounded|3 battleships disabled|1 heavy cruiser damaged|2 destroyers damaged|2 [[Fighter aircraft|fighter]]s destroyed}}
 |campaignbox = {{Campaignbox Mediterranean Campaign}}
}}

The '''Battle of Taranto''' took place on the night of 11/12 November 1940 during the [[Second World War]] between British naval forces (Admiral [[Andrew Cunningham, 1st Viscount Cunningham of Hyndhope|Andrew Cunningham]]) and Italian naval forces (Admiral [[Inigo Campioni]]). The [[Royal Navy]] launched the first all-aircraft ship-to-ship naval attack in history, employing 21 [[Fairey Swordfish]] biplane [[torpedo bomber]]s from the [[aircraft carrier]] {{HMS|Illustrious|R87|6}} in the [[Mediterranean Sea]].

The attack struck the battle fleet of the ''[[Regia Marina]]'' at anchor in the harbour of [[Taranto]], using [[aerial torpedo]]es, despite the shallowness of the water. The success of this attack augured the ascendancy of [[naval aviation]] over big-gun [[battleship]]s. According to Cunningham, "Taranto, and the night of 11/12 November 1940, should be remembered forever as having shown once and for all that in the [[Fleet Air Arm]] the Navy has its most devastating weapon".{{sfn|Simpson|2004|p=74}}

==Background==
==={{lang|it|Regia Marina}}===
[[File:Tarantoharb1921.jpg|thumb|Taranto naval base in the 1930s]]
Since long before the [[First World War]], the Italian ''[[Regia Marina]]''{{'}}s First Squadron had been based at [[Taranto]], a port city on Italy's south-east coast. In the inter-war period, the British [[Royal Navy]] developed plans to counter the Italian navy in the event of a war in the Mediterranean. Plans for the capture of the port at Taranto were considered as early as the Italian invasion of [[Ethiopian Empire|Abyssinia]] in 1935.<ref name = "steven">{{cite book | last = Stephen | first = Martin | title = Sea Battles in Close-up: World War 2 |location= Shepperton, Surrey|publisher= Ian Allanm| year = 1988 | pages = 34–38|volume=1|isbn=0-7110-1596-1| editor-last = Grove | editor-first = Eric}}</ref>

After Italy's entry into World War II in 1940, British and Italian forces in North Africa engaged each other in the [[Western Desert Campaign]]. Italian troops based in Libya required a supply line from Italy. British troops, based in Egypt, suffered from much greater supply difficulties. Before Italy entered the war, British [[convoy]]s had travelled across the Mediterranean, from [[Gibraltar]] via [[Malta]] to Egypt. However, the threat from the Italian navy and air force made this very difficult. Instead, British ships steamed around the [[Cape of Good Hope]], up the east coast of Africa, and then through the [[Suez Canal]] to reach [[Alexandria]]. 

Following the concept of a [[fleet in being]], the Italians usually kept their warships in harbour and were unwilling to seek battle with the Royal Navy on their own, also because any ship lost larger than a destroyer could not be replaced. The Italian fleet at Taranto was powerful: six [[battleship]]s (of which one was not yet battleworthy, {{ship|Italian battleship|Andrea Doria||2}} having her crew still in training after her reconstruction), seven [[heavy cruiser]]s, two [[light cruiser]]s and eight [[destroyer]]s. This made the threat of a [[sortie]] against British shipping a serious problem.

===Royal Navy===
[[File:Swordfish (7582559196).jpg|thumb|left|A [[Fairey Swordfish]]]]

During the [[Munich Crisis]] of 1938, [[Dudley Pound|Admiral Sir Dudley Pound]], the commander of the British [[Mediterranean Fleet]], was concerned about the survival of the [[aircraft carrier]] {{HMS|Glorious}} in the face of Italian opposition in the Mediterranean, and ordered his staff to re-examine all plans for attacking Taranto.<ref name= "steven" /> He was advised by [[Lumley Lyster]], the [[Captain (Royal Navy)|captain]] of ''Glorious'', that his [[Fairey Swordfish]] biplane [[torpedo bomber]]s were capable of a night attack. Indeed, the [[Fleet Air Arm]] was then the only [[naval aviation]] arm with such a capability.<ref name= "steven" /> Pound took Lyster's advice and ordered training to begin. Security was kept so tight there were no written records.<ref name="steven"/> Just a month before the war began, Pound advised his replacement, [[Andrew Cunningham, 1st Viscount Cunningham of Hyndhope|Admiral Andrew Cunningham]], to consider the possibility. This came to be known as Operation Judgment.<ref name="tarantoRN">{{cite web |title=Taranto 1940 |publisher=Royal Navy |url=http://www.royalnavy.mod.uk/history/battles/taranto/ |url-status = dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101024184628/http://www.royalnavy.mod.uk/history/battles/taranto/ |archive-date=24 October 2010 }}</ref>

The [[Battle of France|fall of France]] and the consequent loss of the [[French Mediterranean Fleet|French fleet in the Mediterranean]] (even before [[Attack on Mers-el-Kébir|Operation Catapult]]) made redress essential. The older carrier, {{HMS|Eagle|1918|6}}, on Cunningham's strength, was ideal, possessing a very experienced air group comprised entirely of the obsolescent Swordfish aircraft. Three [[Gloster Gladiator|Sea Gladiator]] fighters were added for the operation.<ref name= "steven" /> Firm plans were drawn up after the Italian Army halted at [[Sidi Barrani]], which freed up the British Mediterranean Fleet.<ref name="steven"/>

Operation Judgement was a small part of [[Operation MB8]].<ref name= "steven"/> It was originally scheduled to take place on 21 October 1940, [[Trafalgar Day]], but a fire in an auxiliary fuel tank of one Swordfish led to a delay. {{convert|60|impgal|L|abbr=on}} auxiliary tanks were fitted in the observer's position on torpedo bombers - the observer taking the air gunner's position - to extend the operating range of the aircraft enough to reach Taranto. This minor fire spread into something more serious that destroyed two Swordfish.<ref name="steven"/> ''Eagle'' then suffered a breakdown in her fuel system,<ref name= "steven"/> so was removed from the operation.

When the new carrier {{HMS|Illustrious|87|6}}, based at Alexandria, became available in the Mediterranean, she took on board five Swordfish from ''Eagle'' and launched the strike alone.<ref name = "sturtivant">{{cite book|last=Sturtivant|first=Ray|year=1990|title = British naval aviation: the Fleet Air Arm 1917–1990|location=London | publisher =Arms & Armour Press |pages= 48–50|isbn = 0-85368-938-5}}</ref>

The complete force, commanded by now-Rear Admiral Lyster,<ref name ="steven"/> Flag Officer, Mediterranean Aircraft Carriers, who had originated the plan of attack on Taranto—consisted of ''Illustrious'', the heavy cruisers {{HMS|Berwick|65|6}} and {{HMS|York|90|2}}, the light cruisers {{HMS|Gloucester|62|6}} and {{HMS|Glasgow|C21|2}}, and the destroyers {{HMS |Hyperion|H97|6}}, {{HMS|Ilex|D61|2}}, {{HMS|Hasty|H24|2}} and {{HMS|Havelock|H88|2}}.<ref>'The Aeroplane, Vol. LXXIII No. 1887, 8 August 1947, p. 154</ref> The 24<ref name="steven" /> attack Swordfish came from [[813 Naval Air Squadron|813]], [[815 Naval Air Squadron|815]], [[819 Naval Air Squadron|819]], and [[824 Naval Air Squadron]]s. The small number of attacking warplanes raised concern that ''Judgement'' would only alert and enrage the Italian Navy without achieving any significant results.<ref name="steven" /> ''Illustrious'' also had [[Fairey Fulmar]] [[fighter plane|fighters]] of [[806 Naval Air Squadron]] aboard to provide air cover for the task force, with radar and fighter control systems.<ref>Wragg, David, ''Swordfish'', Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2003, pp. 78–79</ref>

Half of the Swordfish were armed with torpedoes as the primary strike aircraft, with the other half carrying [[aerial bomb]]s and flares to carry out diversions.<ref name="steven"/><ref>These aircraft had an auxiliary fuel tank under the fuselage.</ref> These torpedoes were fitted with Duplex magnetic/contact [[exploder]]s, which were extremely sensitive to rough seas,<ref name="steven"/> as the attacks on the [[Kriegsmarine|German]] battleship {{Ship|German battleship|Bismarck||2}} later showed. There were also worries the torpedoes would bottom out in the harbour after being dropped.<ref name  = "steven" /> The loss rate for the bombers was expected to be fifty per cent.<ref name="steven" />

Several [[reconnaissance]] flights by [[Martin Maryland]]s of 431 General Reconnaissance Flight RAF flying from Malta confirmed the location of the Italian fleet. These flights produced photos on which the [[military intelligence|intelligence]] officer of ''Illustrious'' spotted unexpected [[barrage balloon]]s; the attack plan was changed accordingly.<ref name = "steven"/> To make sure the Italian warships had not sortied, the British also sent over a [[Short Sunderland]] flying boat on the night of 11 November, just as the carrier task force was forming up off the Greek island of [[Cephalonia]], about {{cvt|170|nmi|lk=on|abbr=on}} from Taranto harbour. This reconnaissance flight alerted the Italian forces in southern Italy, but since they were without [[radar]], they could do little but wait for whatever came along. The ''Regia Marina'' could have gone to sea in search of any British naval force, but this was against the naval philosophy of the Italians between January 1940 and September 1943. The complexity of Operation MB8, with its various forces and convoys, succeeded in deceiving the Italians into thinking only normal convoying was under way. This contributed to the success of ''Judgement''.<ref name="steven" />

===Taranto===
[[File:Inigo Campioni.jpg|thumb|upright=.75|{{center|Admiral Inigo Campioni.}}]]

The base of Taranto was defended by 101 anti-aircraft guns and 193 machine guns and was usually protected against low-flying aircraft by barrage balloons, of which only 27 were up on 11 November, as strong winds on 6 November had blown away 60 balloons.<ref name="Smith">{{cite book |last1=Smith |first1=Peter |title=Combat Biplanes of World War II |date=2014 |publisher=Pen & Sword |location=United Kingdom |isbn=978-1783400546 |pages=151}}</ref> Capital ships were also supposed to be protected by anti-torpedo nets, but {{convert|12800|m|ft|abbr=on}} of netting was required for full protection, and only a third of that was rigged before the attack, due to a scheduled gunnery exercise. The nets did not reach the bottom of the harbour, allowing the British torpedoes to clear them by about {{convert|60|cm|ft|abbr=on}}.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Giorgerini |first1=Giorgio |title=La guerra italiana sul mare: la marina tra vittoria e sconfitta: 1940–1943 |trans-title=The Italian War at Sea: The Navy between Victory and Defeat: 1940–1943 |year=2002 |publisher=Mondadori |location=Milano |pages=218–219 |edition=1st Oscar storia. |isbn=978-88-04-50150-3}}</ref>

==Attack==
[[File:Battle of Taranto map-en.svg|thumb|right|Attack directions of the British planes]]
[[File:Italian ship BB LIttorio on November 12, 1940, after Taranto attack (P00090.091).jpg|thumb|{{ship|Italian battleship|Littorio||2}} surrounded by [[Tugboat|salvage tugs]]]]

The first wave of 12 aircraft, led by Lieutenant Commander Kenneth "Hooch" Williamson RN of 815 Squadron, left ''Illustrious'' just before 21:00 hours on 11 November 1940, followed by a second wave of nine about 90 minutes later. Of the second wave, one aircraft turned back as its auxiliary fuel tank detached from the aircraft ensuring the aircraft would not be able to complete the trip, and one launched 20 minutes late, after requiring emergency repairs to damage following a minor taxiing accident, so only eight made it to the target.

The first wave, which consisted of six Swordfish armed with torpedoes, two with flares and four {{convert|250|lb|kg|abbr=on}} bombs, and four with six bombs, was split into two sections when three of the bombers and one torpedo bomber strayed from the main force while flying through thin clouds. The smaller group continued to Taranto independently. The main group approached the harbour at ''Mar Grande'' at 22:58. Sixteen flares were dropped east of the harbour, then the flare dropper and another aircraft made a [[dive bombing]] attack to set fire to oil tanks. The next three aircraft, led by Lieutenant Commander K Williamson RN of 815 Squadron, attacked over San Pietro Island, and struck the battleship {{Ship |Italian battleship|Conte di Cavour||2}} with a torpedo that blasted a {{convert|27|ft|m|abbr=on}} hole in her side below her waterline. Williamson's plane was immediately shot down by the Italian battleship's [[Anti-aircraft warfare|anti-aircraft guns]].<ref name = fabio>{{Citation | trans-title = The Taranto Night | url = http://www.fabiosiciliano.it/htm/verdeguerra/pdf/notte.pdf | title = La Notte di Taranto | language = it | publisher = Fabio Siciliano}}.</ref> The two remaining aircraft in this sub-flight continued, dodging barrage balloons and receiving heavy anti-aircraft fire from the Italian warships and shore batteries, to press home an unsuccessful attack on the battleship ''Andrea Doria''. The next sub-flight of three attacked from a more northerly direction, attacking the battleship {{Ship|Italian battleship|Littorio||2}}, hitting it with two torpedoes and launching one torpedo at the flagship, the battleship {{Ship|Italian battleship|Vittorio Veneto||2}}, which missed. The bomber force, led by Captain O. Patch RM, attacked next. They found the targets difficult to identify, but attacked and hit two cruisers moored at ''Mar Piccolo'' hitting both with a single bomb each from {{convert |1500|ft|m|abbr=on}},<!--height or range?--> followed by another aircraft that straddled four destroyers.<ref name = "sturtivant" />

The second wave of eight aircraft, led by Lieutenant Commander J. D. Hale of 819 Squadron, was now approaching from a northerly direction towards the ''Mar Grande'' harbour, with two of the four bombers also carrying flares, the remaining five carrying torpedoes. Flares were dropped shortly before midnight. Two aircraft aimed their torpedoes at ''Littorio'', one of which hit. One aircraft, despite having been hit twice by anti-aircraft fire, aimed a torpedo at ''Vittorio Veneto'' but the torpedo missed. Another aircraft hit the battleship {{Ship|Italian battleship|Duilio||2}} with a torpedo, blowing a large hole in her hull and flooding both of her forward [[Magazine (artillery)#Naval magazines|magazines]]. The aircraft flown by Lieutenant G. Bayley RN was shot down by antiaircraft fire from the heavy cruiser {{Ship|Italian cruiser|Gorizia||2}}<ref name=fabio/> following the successful attack on ''Littorio'', the only aircraft lost from the second wave. The final aircraft to arrive on the scene 15 minutes behind the others made an unsuccessful [[dive-bombing]] attack on one of the Italian cruisers despite heavy anti-aircraft fire, then safely returned to ''Illustrious'', landing at 02:39.<ref name ="sturtivant" />

Of the two aircraft shot down, the pilot and observer of the first (L4A), Lieutenant Commander K. Williamson, and Lieutenant N. J. 'Blood' Scarlett respectively, were taken prisoner. The pilot and observer of the second aircraft (E4H), Lieutenant G. Bayley and Lieutenant H. Slaughter, were both killed.<ref name = "ANAM">{{cite book|last= Australian Naval Aviation Museum| title = Flying Stations: a story of Australian naval aviation | publisher = Allen & Unwin | year=1998| location=Sydney|page=23|isbn = 1-86448-846-8}}</ref>

The Italian battleships suffered significant damage:

* ''Conte di Cavour'' had a {{convert|12|x|8|m|ft|abbr=on}} hole in the hull, and permission to ground her was withheld until it was too late, so her keel touched the bottom at a greater depth than intended. 27 of the ship's crew were killed and over 100 more wounded. In the end, only her superstructure and main armament remained above water.<ref>{{cite book|editor-last1=Dent|editor-first1=Stephen |editor-last2=Jordan |editor-first2=John |title=Warship 2010|date=2010|publisher=Conway|location=London|isbn=978-1-84486-110-1|pages=81–85|edition=2010}}</ref> She was subsequently raised, partially repaired and transferred to [[Trieste]] for further repairs and upgrades, but a changed situation put these works in low priority. She was still undergoing repairs when Italy surrendered, so she never returned to full service;<ref name= "santoni" />
* ''Duilio'' had only a slightly smaller hole ({{convert|11|x|7|m|ft|abbr=on}}) and was saved by running her aground;<ref name = "santoni" />

[[File:Littorio-11-November-1940.svg|thumb|Damaged ''Littorio'']]

* ''Littorio'' had considerable flooding caused by three torpedo hits. Despite underwater protection (the [[Pugliese torpedo defense system]], standard in all Italian battleships), the damage was extensive, although actual damage to the ship's structures was relatively limited (the machinery was intact). Casualties were 32 crewmen killed and many wounded. She was holed in three places, once on the port side ({{convert|7|×|1.5|m|ftin|abbr=on}}), and twice on the starboard side ({{convert|15|x|10|m|ft|abbr=on}} and {{convert |12|×|9|m|ft| abbr=on}}). She too was saved by running her aground. Despite this, in the morning, the ship's bows were totally submerged.<ref name="santoni"/>

Italian defences fired 13,489 shells from the land batteries, while several thousand were fired from the ships. The anti-aircraft barrage was formidable, having 101 guns and 193 machine guns. There were also 87 balloons, but strong winds caused the loss of 60 of them. Only {{convert|4.2|km|nmi mi|abbr=on}} of anti-torpedo nets were actually fielded around the ships, up to {{convert|10|m|ft|abbr=on}} in-depth, while the need was for {{cvt|12.8|km|nmi+mi|abbr=on}}. There were also 13 [[Acoustic location#Military use|aerophonic]] stations and 22 searchlights (the ships had two searchlights each).<ref name="santoni" /> Denis Boyd, Commanding Officer HMS ''Illustrious'', stated in his after-action report, "It is notable that the enemy did not use the searchlights at all during either of the attacks".{{efn|Boyd's Report was attached to an Intelligence Report filed with the Office of Naval Intelligence by Lt Commander John N Opie, III, USN. Opie's report is found at the National Archives, Record Group 38, A-1-z/22863D.}}

''Littorio'' was repaired with all available resources and was fully operational again within four months, while restoration of the older battleships proceeded at a much slower pace (repairs took seven months for ''Duilio'', and the repairs for ''Conte di Cavour'' were never completed). In all, the Swordfish attack was made with just 20 aircraft. Two Italian aircraft were destroyed on the ground by the bombing, and two unexploded bombs hit the cruiser {{Ship|Italian cruiser|Trento||2}} and the destroyer ''Libeccio''. Near misses damaged the destroyer ''Pessagno''.<ref name="santoni">{{Citation | last = Santoni | first = Alberto | title = L'attacco inglese a Taranto | trans-title = The English attack on Taranto | journal = Rivista Italiana di Difesa | date = November 1990 | pages = 88–95 | language = it }}</ref>

Meanwhile, X-Force cruisers attacked an Italian convoy ([[Battle of the Strait of Otranto (1940)|Battle of the Strait of Otranto]]). This force had three cruisers ({{HMS |Ajax|22|6}}, {{HMS|Orion|85|2}} and {{HMAS|Sydney|D48|6}}) and two {{sclass2|Tribal|destroyer|2||1936}}s ({{HMS |Nubian|F36|6}} and {{HMS|Mohawk|F31|2}}). Just past midnight, they met and destroyed four Italian merchantmen (''Capo Vado'', ''Catalani'', ''Locatelli'' and ''Premuda''), damaging the torpedo-boat {{ship|Italian torpedo boat|Nicola Fabrizi||2}}, while the heavily out-gunned [[auxiliary cruiser]] ''[[Ramb III]]'' fled.<ref name = "santoni" />

Cunningham and Lyster wanted to strike Taranto again the next night with Swordfish (six torpedo-bombers, seven bombers, and two flare-dispensers) – one wag in the pilots' room remarked, "They only asked the [[Charge of the Light Brigade|Light Brigade]] to do it once!"<ref>Newton, Don & A. Cecil Hampshire, ''Taranto'', London, W Kimber, 1959, p 165.</ref> – but bad weather prevented the action.<ref name="santoni" />

==Aftermath==
The Italian fleet lost half of its capital ships in one night; the next day, the ''Regia Marina'' transferred its undamaged ships from Taranto to Naples to protect them from similar attacks,<ref name = "sturtivant" /> until the defences at Taranto (mainly the anti-torpedo nets) were brought up to adequate levels to protect them from further attacks of the same kind (which happened between March and May 1941).<ref>{{cite book|last1=Giorgerini|first1=Giorgio|title=La guerra italiana sul mare : la marina tra vittoria e sconfitta : 1940–1943|date=2002|publisher=Mondadori|location=Milano|isbn=978-8-80-450150-3|page=223|edition=1. ed. Oscar storia.}}</ref> Repairs to ''Littorio'' took about four months, to ''Duilio'' seven months; ''Conte di Cavour'' required extensive salvage work and her repairs were incomplete when Italy surrendered in 1943.{{sfn|Playfair|2004|p=237}} Cunningham wrote after the attack: "The Taranto show has freed up our hands considerably & I hope now to shake these damned [[wikt:Eyetie|Eyeties]] up a bit. I don't think their remaining three battleships will face us and if they do I'm quite prepared to take them on with only two." Indeed, the balance of power had swung to the British Mediterranean Fleet which now enjoyed more operational freedom: when previously forced to operate as one unit to match Italian capital ships, they could now split into two battlegroups; each built around one aircraft carrier and two battleships.{{sfn|O'Hara|2009|p=65}}

<gallery mode="packed" heights="275">
File:Taranto 1940 (4).jpg|Aerial photo of Italian warships moored in ''Mar Grande'' harbour at Taranto. Note the 'Y' jetty.
File:Taranto 1940 (3).JPG|Aftermath of the battle showing an Italian battleship down by the bows and beached (far right)
</gallery>

Nevertheless, Cunningham's estimate that Italians would be unwilling to risk their remaining heavy units was quickly proven wrong. Only five days after Taranto, Campioni sortied with two battleships, six cruisers and 14 destroyers to successfully disrupt [[Operation White|a mission to deliver aircraft to Malta]]. The follow-up to this operation led to the [[Battle of Cape Spartivento]] on 27 November 1940. Two of the three damaged battleships were repaired by mid-1941 and control of the Mediterranean continued to swing back and forth until the [[Italian armistice]] in 1943.

The attack on Taranto was avenged a year later by the Italian navy in its [[Raid on Alexandria (1941)|Raid on Alexandria]], when the Mediterranean fleet of the Royal Navy was attacked using [[midget submarine]]s, severely damaging the battleships {{HMS|Queen Elizabeth|1913|6}} and {{HMS|Valiant|1914|2}}.

However, measured against its primary task of disrupting Axis convoys to Africa, the Taranto attack had very little effect. Italian shipping to Libya increased between October 1940 and January 1941 to an average of 49,435 tons per month, up from the 37,204-ton average of the previous four months.<ref>{{Citation | last = Bragadin | title = Italian Navy in World War II | page = 356}}.</ref> Rather than change the balance of power in the central Mediterranean, British naval authorities had "failed to deliver the true knockout blow that would have changed the context within which the rest of the war in the Mediterranean was fought."<ref>Caravaggio, p. 122.</ref>

Aerial torpedo experts in all modern navies had previously thought that torpedo attacks against ships must be in water at least {{convert|75|ft|m|abbr=on}} deep.<ref>Christopher O'Connor ''Taranto, The Raid, The Observer, The Aftermath'' Dog Ear Publishing, 2010, page 79</ref> Taranto harbour had a depth of only about {{convert |39|ft|m|abbr=on}} but the Royal Navy had developed a new method of preventing torpedoes from diving too deep. A drum was attached beneath the nose of the aircraft, from which a roll of wire led to the nose of the torpedo. As it dropped, the tension from the wire pulled up the nose of the torpedo, producing a belly-flop rather than a nose dive.<ref>{{Citation | last1 = Lowry | first1 = Thomas P | last2 = Wellham | first2 = JWG | title = The Attack on Taranto | publisher = Stackpole | year = 1995 | pages = 38–39}}</ref>

===Influence on Pearl Harbor===
The [[Imperial Japanese Navy]]'s staff carefully studied the Taranto raid during planning for the [[attack on Pearl Harbor]], as both attacks faced similar issues attacking a shallow harbour. Japanese Lieutenant Commander Takeshi Naito, the assistant naval attaché to Berlin, flew to Taranto to investigate the attack firsthand. Naito subsequently had a lengthy conversation with Commander [[Mitsuo Fuchida]] about his observations in October 1941.<ref>Interview with Mitsuo Fuchida, 25 February 1964, Donald M. Goldstein Papers, Archives Service Center, University of Pittsburgh</ref> Fuchida led the Japanese attack on 7 December 1941. A group of IJN officers visited Taranto in May 1941 and had lengthy discussions with their Italian Navy opposite numbers.<ref>{{Citation | last = Fioravanzo | first = Giuseppe | title = The Japanese Military Mission to Italy | journal = USNI Proceedings | date = January 1956 | pages = 24–32}}.</ref> However, the Japanese had been working on shallow-water solutions since early 1939, with various shallow ports as the notional targets, including [[Manila]], [[Singapore]], [[Vladivostok]], and Pearl Harbor.<ref name=Peattie144>{{cite book |last = Peattie |first=Mark R |title=Sunburst: The Rise of Japanese Naval Air Power, 1909–1941 |publisher=Naval Institute Press |page= 144 |year = 2007 | isbn=978-1-59114664-3}}</ref> In the early 1930s, as their [[Type 91 torpedo|Type 91 aerial torpedo]] entered service, the Japanese used a breakaway wooden nose to soften its impact with the water. As early as 1936, they perfected breakaway wooden fins for added aerial stability.<ref name=Peattie144/><ref>Peattie 2007, p. 145.</ref>

The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor was a considerably larger operation than Taranto. All six [[Imperial Japanese Navy in World War II|Imperial Japanese]] [[fleet carrier]]s, each one equipped with an air wing having over twice the number of planes of any British carrier, took part; seven American battleships were sunk or disabled, and several other warships were destroyed or damaged. The U.S. Navy thereafter designed its fleet operations in the [[Pacific War|Pacific Ocean]] around its carriers instead of its [[Standard type battleship|battleships]] as [[capital ship]]s. Battleships were found to be less useful in the expanses of the Pacific than in the confines of the Mediterranean; the older ships were too slow to escort the carriers and were chiefly used as fire support for amphibious operations.<ref>{{cite book |title=Battle at Sea |first=John |last=Keegan |author-link=John Keegan |pages=157–211 |publisher=[[Pimlico (publishing imprint)|Pimlico]] |location=London |date=1993 |isbn=0-7126-5991-9}}</ref>

== See also ==
* [[Battle of Copenhagen (1807)|Bombardment of Copenhagen]]
* [[Battle of Port Arthur]]
* [[Black Sea raid|Samsun–Odessa naval sortie raid]]

==Notes==
{{Notelist}}

==Footnotes==
{{Reflist}}

==References==
* Bragadin, A. (1957). ''Italian Navy in World War II'', 1st ed. Annapolis, Md.: US Naval Institute. {{ISBN|087021327X}}.
* Caravaggio, A. N., Lieutenant Colonel (Summer 2006). "The Attack at Taranto: Tactical Success, Operational Failure". ''Naval War College Review'' Vol. 59, No. 3. pp. 103–127. {{JSTOR|26396747}}.
* Lowry, Thomas P. (2000). ''The Attack on Taranto''. Stackpoole Books paperbacks.
* {{Cite book |last=O'Hara |first=Vincent |year=2009 |title=Struggle for the Middle Sea |location=London |publisher=Conway |isbn=978-184486-102-6}}
* {{Cite book |last1=Playfair |first1=I. S. O. |author-link1=Ian Stanley Ord Playfair |last2=Stitt |first2=G. M. S. |last3=Molony |first3=C. J. C. |last4=Toomer |first4=S. E. |year=2004 |orig-year=1954 |editor-last=Butler |editor-first=J. R. M. |editor-link=James Ramsay Montagu Butler |title=Mediterranean and Middle East: The Early Successes Against Italy (to May 1941) |volume=I |series=History of the Second World War, United Kingdom Military Series |location=Uckfield, UK |publisher=Naval & Military Press |isbn=1-84574-065-3 |ref={{harvid|Playfair|2004}}}}
* Stasi, Carlo (2003). "Otranto e l'Inghilterra (episodi bellici in Puglia e nel Salento)", in ''Note di Storia e Cultura Salentina'', anno XV, pp.&nbsp;127–159. Lecce, Italy: Argo.
* Stasi, Carlo (2018). ''Otranto nel Mondo. Dal "Castello" di Walpole al "Barone" di Voltaire''. Galatina, Italy: Editrice Salentina. {{ISBN|978-88-31964-06-7}},
* {{Cite book |last=Simpson |first=Michael |year=2004 |title=A Life of Admiral of the Fleet Andrew Cunningham: A Twentieth-century Naval Leader |location=London |publisher=Routledge Editions |isbn=978-0-7146-5197-2}}

==Further reading==
* Konstam, Angus (2015). ''Taranto 1940: The Fleet Air Arm's Precursor to Pearl Harbor''. Osprey Campaign Series #288. Osprey Publishing. {{ISBN|978-1-4728-0896-7}}.
* [[Charles Lamb (WWII naval officer)|Lamb, Charles]] (1977). ''To War in a Stringbag''. Cassell and Collier Macmillan. {{ISBN|0-304-29778-X}}.
* [[Thomas P. Lowry|Lowry, Thomas P.]] & Wellham, John W. G. (1995). ''The Attack on Taranto: Blueprint for Pearl Harbor''. Stackpole Books. {{ISBN|0-8117-1726-7}}.
* O'Connor, Christopher Patrick (2010). ''Taranto: The Raid, the Observer, the Aftermath''. Dog Ear Publishing. {{ISBN|978-160844-721-3}}.

==External links==
{{Commons category|Battle of Taranto}}
* [http://digilander.libero.it/planciacomando/WW2/taranto1.htm La notte di Taranto] – Plancia di Commando
* [http://www.navweaps.com/index_oob/OOB_WWII_Mediterranean/OOB_WWII_Taranto.htm Order of battle]
* [http://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/80024832 IWM Interview with John Wellham, who piloted a Swordfish during the battle]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20170808042800/http://dioramas-and-models.com/the%20attack%20on%20taranto%2C%20nov%201949.html Battle of Taranto Diorama]

{{British Empire WWII battles}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Taranto, Battle of}}
[[Category:Naval battles and operations of the European theatre of World War II]]
[[Category:Allied naval victories in the battle of the Mediterranean]]
[[Category:Naval aviation operations and battles]]
[[Category:Naval battles of World War II involving Italy]]
[[Category:Naval battles of World War II involving the United Kingdom|Taranto]]
[[Category:Aerial operations and battles of World War II involving the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Conflicts in 1940]]
[[Category:1940 in Italy]]
[[Category:History of Taranto]]
[[Category:November 1940 in Europe]]