Battle of Cape Matapan
Off Cape Matapan, south-west Peloponnese, Greece
What happened
A British and Australian fleet under Admiral Sir Andrew Cunningham fought an Italian fleet under Admiral Angelo Iachino. Codebreakers at Bletchley Park read secret Italian messages and warned that the Italian fleet was at sea. Aircraft torpedoes slowed the Italian battleship Vittorio Veneto and disabled the cruiser Pola. That night, British ships used radar to find the stranded Italian ships, which had no radar and did not expect a night battle, and sank three cruisers and two destroyers.
Why it matters
Why it matters: A historian called it 'Italy's greatest defeat at sea'. The Italian admiral later blamed the loss on poor cooperation between aircraft and ships, and on Italy's night-fighting methods.
What came next
The Italian fleet did not return to the eastern Mediterranean until two months later, during the fall of Crete. The British rescued over 1,000 Italian sailors after the battle.
Did you know?
To fool spies, Cunningham was seen at a golf club in Alexandria and slipped aboard his flagship after dark, while a party was advertised on board that was never meant to happen.
Timeline
- 11 November 1940Cunningham's aircraft attack the Italian fleet at Taranto.
- 27 March 1941The Italian fleet is spotted at sea.
- 28-29 March 1941The Battle of Cape Matapan.
- May 1941The Battle of Crete.