Emanuele Filiberto Duca d'Aosta

History: Emanuele Filiberto Duca d'Aosta was an Italian light cruiser of the fourth group of the Condottieri-class, that served in the Regia Marina during World War II. She survived the war, but was ceded as war reparation to the Soviet Navy in 1949. She was finally renamed Kerch and served in the Black Sea Fleet until the 1960s. Contents

Class: The Condottieri class was a sequence of five, different, light cruiser classes of the Regia Marina (Italian Navy), although these classes show a clear line of evolution. They were built before World War II to gain predominance in the Mediterranean Sea. The ships were named after military commanders (condottieri) of Italian history. All ships served in the Mediterranean during World War II. Each class is known after the first ship of the group.

The ships of the first two subclasses (with the exception of Cadorna) were all lost by 1942, primarily to enemy torpedoes (with Colleoni sunk by destroyers at the Battle of Cape Spada after being crippled by HMAS Sydney, da Barbiano and da Giussano suffering a similar fate at the Battle of Cape Bon, and Diaz sunk by a submarine), which led to many authors (including Preston) to question their real value as fighting ships. However, the subsequent vessels fared considerably better with all, except Attendolo (sunk by an Allied bombing in December 1942), surviving the war.

After the end of the war, the Eugenio di Savoia and the Duca d'Aosta were given respectively to the Greek Navy and the Soviet Navy as war reparations; the Cadorna was quickly stricken, the Montecuccoli became a training ship, and the two Abruzzi served on in the Marina Militare until the 1970s, with Garibaldi becoming in 1961 the first European guided missile cruiser.

Nationality: Italy, a European country with a long Mediterranean coastline, has left a powerful mark on Western culture and cuisine. Its capital, Rome, is home to the Vatican as well as landmark art and ancient ruins. Other major cities include Florence, with Renaissance masterpieces such as Michelangelo’s "David" and Brunelleschi's Duomo; Venice, the city of canals; and Milan, Italy’s fashion capital.