Heavy cruiser Zara was an Italian heavy cruiser commissioned into service with the Regia Marina in October 1931. Her first several years in service consisted of training exercises and naval fleet reviews until June 1940, when Italy entered WWII. At this point she was sent on her first of many missions with her sister ships and a small flotilla to patrol and intercept Allied convoys in the Mediterranean. Having survived several small conflicts as well as the Battle of Calabria and then the Battle of Taranto, Zara’s last attempt at intercepting a British convoy ended at the Battle of Cape Matapan, when she, her sister ship Fiume, and two destroyers were demolished at close range by the British fleet while trying to protect the damaged Pola cruiser.
You might also like
