Yugoslav destroyer Ljubljana

Ljubljana
two naval ships side by side alongside a dock with mountains in the background
Ljubljana's sister ship Beograd (right) and the flotilla leader Dubrovnik (left) in the Bay of Kotor after being captured by Italy
History
Kingdom of Yugoslavia
NameLjubljana
NamesakeLjubljana
Laid down1936
Launched28 June 1938
CommissionedNovember 1939
Out of service17 April 1941
FateCaptured by Italy
Italy
NameLubiana
Acquired17 April 1941
In service1 November 1941
FateSunk or stranded off the Tunisian coast on 1 April 1943
General characteristics
Class and typeBeograd-class destroyer
Displacement
Length98 m (321 ft 6 in) oa
Beam9.45 m (31 ft)
Draught3.18 m (10 ft 5 in)
Installed power
Propulsion
Speed38 knots (70 km/h; 44 mph)
Complement145
Armament

Ljubljana (Serbo-Croatian pronunciation: [/ ˌlu bliˈɑ nə]) was the third and last Beograd-class destroyer built for the Royal Yugoslav Navy (KM) in the late 1930s. She was designed to operate as part of a division led by the flotilla leader Dubrovnik. Ljubljana entered service in November 1939, was armed with a main battery of four Škoda 120 mm (4.7 in) guns in superfiring single mounts – two forward and two aft of the superstructure – and she had a top speed of 35 knots (65 km/h; 40 mph).

In 1940, Ljubljana ran aground on a reef off the Yugoslav port of Šibenik, where, badly damaged, she was taken for repairs. Yugoslavia entered World War II when the German-led Axis powers invaded in April 1941, and Ljubljana—still under repair—was captured by the Royal Italian Navy. After repairs were completed, she saw active service in the Royal Italian Navy under the name Lubiana, mainly as a convoy escort on routes between Italy and North Africa. She was lost on 1 April 1943, sources differing as to whether she was sunk by British aircraft, or stranded off the Tunisian coast and declared a total loss.

Background

In the early 1930s, the Royal Yugoslav Navy (Serbo-Croatian: Kraljevska mornarica; Serbo-Croatian Cyrillic: Краљевска морнарица; КМ) pursued the flotilla leader concept, which involved building large destroyers similar to the World War I Royal Navy V and W-class destroyers. In the interwar French Navy, flotilla leaders were intended to operate as half-flotillas of three ships, or with one flotilla leader operating alongside several smaller destroyers. The KM decided to build three such flotilla leaders—ships that could reach high speeds and would have long endurance. The endurance requirement reflected Yugoslav plans to deploy the flotilla leaders to the central Mediterranean, where they would be able to operate alongside French and British warships. This resulted in the construction of the destroyer Dubrovnik in 1930–1931. Soon after she was ordered, the onset of the Great Depression and attendant economic pressures meant that only one ship of the planned half-flotilla was ever built.

British diplomatic staff reported that although three large destroyers were not going to be built, the intent that Dubrovnik might operate with several smaller destroyers persisted. In 1934, the KM decided to acquire three smaller destroyers to operate in a division led by Dubrovnik, leading to the building of the Beograd class.

Description and construction

The Beograd–class ships were built to a design based on a modified version of the French Bourrasque class, and the third and last ship of the class, Ljubljana, was built by Jadranska brodogradilišta at Split, Yugoslavia, under French supervision. This shipyard was jointly owned by Yarrow and Chantiers de la Loire. The Beograd class had an improved hull shape from the Bourrasque class, especially aft where the depth charge racks under the main deck were dispensed with. Their silhouette was also lower and more modern than the Bourrasque class, with two funnels of the same height rather than three of differing heights. The lower sections of the funnels were inside the superstructure in the midsection of the ship aft of the forecastle, which also housed the boiler room access and some offices. The officers' accommodation was aft under the quarterdeck and in the deckhouse, and the accommodation for the petty officers and sailors was forward. Overall, the class were fast but lightly built and top heavy, and had limited range.

Ljubljana had an overall length of 98 m (321 ft 6 in), a beam of 9.45 m (31 ft), and a normal draught of 3.18 m (10 ft 5 in). Her standard displacement was 1,210 tonnes (1,190 long tons), and she displaced 1,655 tonnes (1,629 long tons) at full load. Ljubljana's crew consisted of 145 personnel, including both officers and enlisted men.

The ship was powered by a pair of Parsons steam turbines driving two propellers, using steam generated by three oil-fired Yarrow water-tube boilers which were arranged with a single boiler in the forward boiler room and two boilers in the aft boiler room. Her turbines were installed in two engine rooms one behind the other aft of the boiler rooms, with the forward turbine driving the starboard shaft and the aft turbine driving the port shaft. Total power was rated at 40,000–44,000 shaft horsepower (30,000–33,000 kW) and Ljubljana was designed to reach a top speed of 38 knots (70 km/h; 44 mph), although her sister Yugoslav destroyer Beograd achieved 39 kn (72 km/h; 45 mph) during her trials. Ljubljana was only able to reach a practical top speed of 35 knots (65 km/h; 40 mph) in service. She carried 120 tonnes (120 long tons) of fuel oil, in nine bunkers located on either side of the boiler rooms and in the double bottom directly below the bridge. The bunker oil in the double bottom adversely affected her trim. Her range in 1941 while in Italian service was 1,200 nautical miles (2,200 km; 1,400 mi) and 16 kn (30 km/h; 18 mph).

Ljubljana's main armament consisted of four Škoda 120 mm (4.7 in) L/46 guns in single superfiring mounts, two forward of the superstructure and two aft, protected by gun shields. A total of 2,400 shells were carried for the main guns. Her fire-control system was provided by the Dutch firm Hazemeyer, with the forward firing director with a 4 m (13 ft) rangefinder on the bridge, and the 3 m (9.8 ft) aft director mounted on the aft deckhouse. Her secondary armament was originally intended to be four Škoda 47 mm (1.9 in) anti-aircraft guns in two twin mounts, but due to delays in the development of the new guns, Bofors 40 mm (1.6 in) L/60 guns were installed instead. A total of 10,000 rounds were carried for these guns. The mounts were located on either side of the aft shelter deck. Two Zbrojovka Brno Model 60 15 mm (0.59 in) machine guns were installed in single mounts on the bridge wings. The ship was also equipped with two triple-mount 550 mm (21.7 in) torpedo tubes. The ship was fitted with a searchlight, and could also carry 30 naval mines, delivered from mine rails aft. Ljubljana was also fitted with two depth charge racks aft.

Ljubljana was laid down in 1936, launched on 28 June 1938, completed on 23 September 1939, and was commissioned into the KM in November 1939.

Career

Yugoslav service

Soon after commissioning, Ljubljana participated in an anti-submarine warfare exercise in the passages between the large islands of Mljet and Korčula off the Dalmatian coast on 23 January 1940. During the exercise, Ljubljana's crew noticed that she was veering to starboard – a steering machinery malfunction was suspected – and the secondary steering system was engaged. The exercise included both her sister ships, and the following day the division sailed towards Šibenik for a port visit to familiarise the population with the new destroyers. The ships were ordered to sail to Šibenik through the narrow St. Anthony Channel, but due to the strong northerly wind blowing, their commanding officers requested that they be permitted to anchor outside the channel until the wind dropped. This request was denied, as the public were waiting for their arrival, along with the commander-in-chief of the KM, Kontraadmiral Marijan Polić. As she passed through the narrowest point in the channel near the harbour entrance about 17:05, Ljubljana's stern swung to starboard and struck underwater rocks on the eastern side of the channel. The starboard hull and the starboard shaft were damaged, and the damage to the latter resulted in eccentric rotation of the starboard propeller which tore into and breached the hull near the steering machinery. Both turbines were put out of action, as the forward trubine driving the starboard shaft had to be disengaged, and the engine room of the aft turbine was flooded. Without power, Ljubljana's momentum carried her forward into the eastern part of Šibenik harbour where she came to a stop. The extent of the damage was initially underestimated, and both anchors were dropped. This action prevented her being towed to safety by two tugs that quickly responded, and they were only able to save the crew. One member of the crew died, a sailor who drowned in the aft engine room. About 18:15 Ljubljana capsized and sank. She came to rest upside down at a relatively shallow depth on the bottom of the harbour, inclined to port on a 120 degree angle. The resulting naval court of inquiry led to the early retirement of almost the entire staff of the Yugoslav fleet headquarters.

No salvage companies in Yugoslavia had the equipment and expertise to raise Ljubljana, so the Tripkovich firm from Trieste was engaged for the task. The director of the company, Gottfried Freiherr von Banfield – the most successful Austro-Hungarian naval pilot of World War I – was known to many former Austro-Hungarian naval personnel then serving in the KM. Banfield arrived in Šibenik with the 247 t (243 long tons) tug Gladiator four days after she sank. His team was joined by the KM tug Jaki and Italian tugs Audax and Cyclops, with the KM salvage vessel Spasilac acting as salvage headquarters. It was hoped that the salvage could be completed within two weeks, but the winter sea and weather conditions made it very difficult. During one attempt, hydraulic cylinders borrowed from the Regia Marina (Royal Italian Navy) came free when the tow cable parted, and floated away to be collected by the Yugoslav destroyer Dubrovnik. On the night of 29 February/1 March, the Italian ocean liner SS Leonardo da Vinci accidentally struck the submerged Ljubljana, further damaging her rudder and propellers. Ljubljana's hull was sealed, and on 10 May she was brought onto an even keel, resting on a bed of 80,000 sandbags. Eight days later, the first attempt to raise her failed after she rose only one metre before the cables parted. She was finally raised on 10 July in the presence of Banfield and the new KM commander-in-chief, Kontraadmiral Julijan Luterotti. Ljubljana was then towed to Tivat in the Bay of Kotor for repairs.

Italian service

In April 1941, Yugoslavia was invaded by the Axis powers, and Ljubljana was captured at Šibenik by the Royal Italian Navy (Italian: Regia Marina) on 17 April, where she was still undergoing repairs. The ship was towed to the Bay of Kotor and then to Rijeka for refitting and repair. Her searchlight was replaced with a single mount 37 mm (1.5 in) gun, and her aft director was also removed. Ljubljana's original 40 mm guns were also removed and five single 20 mm (0.79 in) L/65 Breda Model 35 guns were added to her armament. Her funnel tops were also cut to a more raked angle.

The ship was commissioned into the Royal Italian Navy under the name Lubiana in October, or November 1942. She served as an escort during 1942–1943, operating on the Tunisian supply route from the beginning of 1943. From 9 February to 22 March 1943, Lubiana participated in a series of troop transport convoys for the German and Italian armies in North Africa. The ship was then involved in escorting another series of convoys to Tunisia commencing on 27 March. Naval history sources vary regarding Lubiana's exact fate. According to Roger Chesneau, she was sunk off the Tunisian coast by British aircraft on 1 April 1943, but Maurizio Brescia states the ship was stranded off the Cap Bon Peninsula on the Tunisian coast on the same day and declared a total loss. David K. Brown records that she was stranded in bad weather about 04:00 on 1 April approximately 1.6 kilometres (1 mi) east of Ras El Ahmar while entering the Gulf of Tunis, and was abandoned after being damaged by heavy seas.


This page was last updated at 2023-10-24 05:55 UTC. Update now. View original page.

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