Italian battleship Regina Margherita
Regina Margherita on speed trials in July 1904 | |
| History | |
|---|---|
| Italy | |
| Name | Regina Margherita |
| Namesake | Margherita of Savoy |
| Builder | Arsenale di La Spezia |
| Laid down | 20 November 1898 |
| Launched | 30 May 1901 |
| Completed | 14 April 1904 |
| Fate | Sunk by mines 11 December 1916 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Regina Margherita-class pre-dreadnought battleship |
| Displacement | |
| Length | 138.65 m (454 ft 11 in) |
| Beam | 23.84 m (78 ft 3 in) |
| Draft | 9 m (29 ft 6 in) |
| Installed power |
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| Propulsion | |
| Speed | 20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph) |
| Range | 10,000 nmi (18,520 km; 11,508 mi) at 10 kn (19 km/h; 12 mph) |
| Complement | 812/900 |
| Armament |
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| Armor |
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Regina Margherita was the lead ship of her class of pre-dreadnought battleships built for the Italian Regia Marina between 1898 and 1904. She was armed with a main battery of four 305 mm (12 in) guns and had a top speed of 20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph). She had one sister ship, Benedetto Brin.
After entering service, Regina Margherita was assigned to the Mediterranean Squadron of the Italian fleet. In her early years in service, she took part in routine training exercises. The ship saw action in the Italo-Turkish War of 1911–1912, bombarding Ottoman positions. By the outbreak of World War I in 1914, Regina Margherita had been reduced to a training ship. She struck two naval mines on the night of 11–12 December 1916 while steaming off Valona. She sank with heavy loss of life: 675 men were killed, and only 270 survived.