The Mameli-class submarine was one of the first classes of the submarines to be built for the Italian: [[Regia Marina]] (Royal Italian Navy) after the First World War. Some of these boats played a minor role in the Spanish Civil War of 1936–1939 supporting the Spanish Nationalists. Of the four boats built in this class, all but one survived the Second World War.
The Mameli class was one of the Italian: Regia Marina's first classes of submarines to be built after the First World War. They displaced 810LT surfaced and 993LT submerged. The submarines were 64.6m (211.9feet) long, had a beam of 6.51m (21.36feet) and a draft of 4.3m (14.1feet). They had an operational diving depth of 90m (300feet). Their crew numbered 49 officers and enlisted men.[1]
For surface running, the boats were powered by two 15500NaN0 diesel engines, each driving one propeller shaft. When submerged each propeller was driven by a 550hp electric motor. They could reach 15kn on the surface and underwater. On the surface, the Mameli class had a range of 4360nmi at ; submerged, they had a range of 110nmi at .[2]
The boats were armed with six 53.3cm (21inches) torpedo tubes, four in the bow and two in the stern for which they carried a total of 10 torpedoes. They were also armed with a single 102mm deck gun forward of the conning tower for combat on the surface. Their anti-aircraft armament consisted of two single 13.2adj=onNaNadj=on machine guns.[1]
| Ship | Builder | Laid down | Launched | Commissioned | Fate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cantieri navali Tosi di Taranto, Taranto | 27 August 1925 | 19 June 1927 | 19 January 1929 | Sunk by 31 March 1941 | |
| 21 September 1925 | 1 April 1928 | 20 January 1929 | Stricken 1 February 1948 | ||
| 17 August 1925 | 20 January 1929 | ||||
| 25 May 1928 | 20 August 1929 |
Giovanni Da Procida is the only submarine known to have attempted to sink a ship during the Spanish Civil War, albeit unsuccessfully.[7] The Mamelis participated in the Second World War. Three boats survived the war to be discarded in 1948.