In the 1920s and 1930s, the Italian Regia Marina (Royal Navy) built a series of heavy cruisers as part of a modernization program to use the tonnage allotted to Italy for cruisers by the international naval treaties of the period. A total of seven vessels were built to three designs: two Trento-class cruisers, four Zara-class cruisers, and Bolzano, a modified version of the Trento design. The Regia Marina had initially intended to build six cruisers, which would operate as two three-ship divisions, but Pola of the Zara class was used as the fleet flagship while the Conte di Cavour-class battleships were being rebuilt, so a seventh ship was ordered. The seven ships represented disagreements within the naval high command, with one faction favoring high speed at the expense of armor protection (which resulted in the Trentos and Bolzano) and another that preferred heavier armor in exchange for a reduced top speed (which produced the Zaras). All of the ships were officially built to the limitations imposed by the Washington Naval Treaty, namely a standard displacement of 10,000 long tons (10,160 t) and an armament of 203-millimeter (8 in) main guns, though they all exceeded the displacement limit.
All seven ships saw extensive service in the Mediterranean Sea during World War II, where they repeatedly engaged elements of the British Royal Navy. Italian heavy cruisers took part in the Battles of Calabria, Taranto, Cape Spartivento, Cape Matapan, First and Second Sirte between 1940 and 1943. Three of the Zaras—Zara, Fiume, and Pola—were sunk in a close-range night action with British battleships at the Battle of Cape Matapan in 1941, Trento was torpedoed and sunk by British forces in June 1942, and Bolzano was badly damaged by a British submarine in August 1942, which left her out of action for the rest of the war. United States heavy bombers raided La Maddalena in April 1943, sinking Trieste and badly damaging Gorizia; the latter vessel and Bolzano were later attacked by Italian commandos while Italy was under German occupation in 1944 to prevent the Germans from repairing and reactivating them. They were both raised and scrapped after the war.
Key
Armament
The number and type of the primary armament
Armor
The maximum thickness of the armored belt
Displacement
Ship displacement at full combat load
Propulsion
Number of shafts, type of propulsion system, and top speed/horsepower generated
Service
The dates work began and finished on the ship and its ultimate fate
Laid down
The date the keel assembly commenced
Commissioned
The date the ship was commissioned
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