Italian Heavy Cruiser Gorizia
The Italian Heavy Cruiser Gorizia was a member of the Zara class of Heavy Cruisers and was completed on December 23, 1931. The Gorizia had a main armament of eight 8-inch guns in four double turrets and a secondary armament of sixteen 3.9 inch guns. The Gorizia carried two aircraft and had a complement of approximately 841 officers and crew. The Gorizia with her three sister ships (Zara, Pola and Fiume) were involved in what is known as the Battle of Cape Matapan in March 1941 and was the result of the Italian Supermarina planning an offensive sweep into the eastern Mediterranean with battleships and cruisers. During this battle the Gorizia was the only member of her class to escape a British attack without being sunk. The Gorizia was abandoned after suffering heavy damage in an April 1943 American air attack and was sunk by an Italian/British special forces attack on June 26, 1944 at LaSpezia after having been previously captured by the Germans.
