The 1940 Battle of Calabria

[@TheHistoryGuyChannel]

Play World of Warships here: wo.ws/3NVTxnI Thank you World of Warships for sponsoring this video. During registration use the promo code WARSHIPS to receive a huge starter pack including a bunch of Doubloons, Credits, Premium Account time, and a FREE ship after you complete 15 battles! The promo code is only for new players who register for the first time on the Wargaming portal.

[@liberalsockpuppet4772]

World of Warships is fun. If you like naval history, it's even more fun. When I joined two years ago, the free ship I received was the Warspite--I know right! I finish my 15th battle and WoW gives me Warspite. I lose my freakin mind. Holy #$%! it's the friggin Warspite! The guys I was playing with were like, "Oh yeah, that's the free ship you get. It's supposed to be some kind of famous British ship." I was apoplectic. "You don't know what the Warspite is? It's the most famous British warship from WWII! It's like the Enterprise for the US navy." Yes, they were confused why I was bringing Star Trek into this.

[@iamsuzerain3987]

​@@liberalsockpuppet4772haven't played on PC but love Legends on console and yes...Warspite, the Grand Old Lady!

[@Supahmatt1]

​@@liberalsockpuppet4772too bad they only make non-existent ship designs now, rarely do we see a real one... And tbh I think Louisiana should be a Montana with radar premium ship

[@Supahmatt1]

Would make more sense

[@liberalsockpuppet4772]

Yeah the tier ten and super ships get into hypothetical and might have beens, but the real ones are there too

[@SennaAugustus]

Any part of history documenting the shenanigans of Warspite is a welcome one. More people need to learn about her, from being the first ship to sink a submarine with a plane to being the first to fire on D-Day (officially at least, 3 other ships fired ahead of the official start time of 5.30am). The Mediterranean also saw smaller combats such as the Battle of Cape Passero which was the first major night engagement, or the unnamed engagement between Petard and U-559 north of the Nile delta which saw the capture of the latest Enigma codebooks of the new 4-wheel naval Enigmas which had stymied Bletchley Park for months prior.

[@brunopadovani7347]

Also Warspite (along with Scharnhorst) holds the record for the longest gun hit, something like 13 miles.

[@Absaalookemensch]

During the battle, the Mediterranean Sea sustained heavy damage, being hit hundreds of times by bombs, shells and torpedoes, but was able to recover quickly.

[@yellowjackboots2624]

Those poor little fishes 😢

[@Absaalookemensch]

@@yellowjackboots2624 Two little fishies left in the sea Two little fishies, just Londo and me.

[@kirtliedahl]

HAHAHA I laughed out loud at that one 👍

[@Absaalookemensch]

@@kirtliedahl During pre-invasion preparation, some sailors would mention that, despite days of bombardment by many ships and aircraft, the island they were attacking was not sunk.

[@Pygar2]

@@Absaalookemensch And they swam and they swam right over the dam...

[@michael5265]

Great hear the mention of HMAS Vampire & the 'Scrap iron Flotilla' 🙂👍👍

[@RetiredSailor60]

Good morning History Guy and everyone watching. Have a safe weekend. Stay cool wherever you live... I deployed to the Mediterranean twice; 1995/96 & 2002. Spent 6 months in the Med in support of the Dayton Peace Accords (Bosnia) on USS Whidbey Island LSD 41. Visited Alicante/Rota SP, Sicily, Crete, Bari/Brindisi, and Venice IT, Tunisia, Haifa/Bethlehem and Jerusalem IS. In 2002 on USS Wasp LHD 1, I visited Crete, Marmaris Turkey and Rota SP. Spent 4 months off the coast of Djibouti Africa in search of Osama Bin Laden. Made a short 4 day port visit to Bahrain after 115 days at sea. Transitted the Suez Canal twice, Straits of Hormuz twice, and Red Sea twice. Was in Israel when their Prime Minister, Rabin, was assassinated...

[@mauricedavis2160]

Awesome, thank you for your service Mate!!!🙏👌⚓❣️

[@MrHarvey00]

Thank you for your service!

[@navret1707]

I did 3 deployments and several det’s to Sig. and Rota. The highlight was a 5 day det to Crete and then into Athens. Athens was fantastic. Even more so than Naples and Rome.

[@kobebarka8633]

It’s my Birthday and I couldn’t think of a better way than getting a new episode of History that deserves to be remembered. Thank you for your hard work!

[@tomperkins5657]

Mr. Geiger, I literally remember when you first "got going" on YT. Someone commented on what a great channel this was and more people should subscribe. I believe you responded with "How can i do that?" or something like that. There was a story you shared that took off. I also remember checking your subscriptions a short time later and was blown away with the exponential numbers!! Decades ago I majored in Communication with an emphasis on public speaking. In that regard, sir, you hit it out of the park.Your ability to connect with your audience is awesome. Lastly, I minored in history with an emphasis on colonial history. There are soooo many incredible stories that can come from there - especially the rugged and violent frontier of western Carolina, Kentucky, and Tennessee. Thank you again! What a treat!

[@Eric_Hutton.1980]

Drachinifel has a fine series on Andrew Cunningham.

[@lezferme]

Suggestions for future episodes: History of mortuary science, Texas State Guard, cola wars, presidential pets, 1916 attack on Columbus, New Mexico, and John DeLorean. History that deserves to be remembered.

[@-jeff-]

A battle that deserves to be remembered for both sides being able to claim victory.

[@russwoodward8251]

Very interesting. This was a little remembered battle, as you said. Thank you History Guy (and History Research People)!

[@JosipRadnik1]

5:15 (quote): "the war started sooner than they (the italians) had expected" - Thats a polite way of saying: "the italian leadership went to war without even informing their armed forces beforehand"

[@dayros2023]

Mussolini went to war in a rush as he thought that will the fall of France a peace deal would have been made in short order.

[@timothymulholland7905]

You could do a piece on Brazilian participation in the Italian campaign in WWII

[@DeltaDarbyLiberator]

I believe he already has…

[@michaelgalea5148]

A great episode of the History Guy. My paternal grandfather and my grandma was born in Malta and were there at the start of the 2nd world war.

[@thebrushhawg]

This is such a fantastic format. Focusing on short vids draws in people that may pass on a longer version. I can see that general interest in history will grow as a result. I really appreciate your channel.

[@stuartriefe1740]

Greetings from Connecticut, fellow classmates! I wish we could export some of our rain to States that need it. It’s like Jungle conditions this year… lots of flooding.

[@matthewmarek1467]

Hey History Guy, would a video on the Home Guard of the United Kingdom in the second World War be a topic that interests you? Who were these men? What were they tasked with doing? What service had they already provided in previous wars? Were they merely a morale boosting exercise or valuable auxiliary force that freed up more capable men for service overseas? Thank you!

[@pamelamays4186]

Cool hat, "Commodore" Lance!

[@Guangrui]

My memory is that the engagement between HMS Renown and two German battlecruisers occurred earlier in the year of 1940, during the invasion of Norway, and the warships that exchanged gunfire should be classified as capital ships.

[@TheHistoryGuyChannel]

Yes, that encounter occurred April 9, and may well warrant an episode at some point. But, of course, that was an engagement between the Royal Navy and the Kriegsmarine, not the Regia Marina.

[@tankgirl2074]

You are correct. In that contest, all were capital ships. HMS Renown (15 inch guns) vs KMS Scharnhorst and Gneisenau (11 inch guns) on April 9, 1940, off Lofoten, Norway.

[@MarshOakDojoTimPruitt]

thanks

[@pooryorick831]

Thank You for your wonderful stories. I have always been passionate about history. It started when I saw the movie Tora Tora Tora at age 7 and continues to this day. These vignettes are perfect for those of us with brief attention spans. 🙂

[@mattgeorge90]

Thank you for sharing!

[@nemosis9449]

My dad served on Hms Royal Sovereign during this battle before moving to Hms Warspite a year later.

[@BrunoPalton]

What did he remember of that clash? Was Royal Sovereign under fire?

[@jeffzaun1841]

I like the narrative, his putting the battle in perspective. But when recounting a battle please include maps, maybe consider a diagram showing ship's relative location and direction on the map. . I'm left with little understanding of this battle except that a north-south Italian convoy engaged an east-west (or west-east) British convoy.

[@scottschenk5456]

It was not mentioned, if the Italian ships were of Italian manufacture or German. The Battleships were impressive!

[@Dave_Sisson]

The Italians had built a much bigger and more effective surface fleet than the Germans, that is why the Mediterranean was such a cauldron during the first few years of the war until the British finally gained supremacy. By contrast the Germans only had two battleships and two battlecruisers, so the British with a total of 20 capital ships, plus a bunch of carriers were easily able to deal with them. But, obviously the German submarines were effective.

[@therealanyaku]

This question reflects the grossly over-inflated reputation of Nazi German industry and the correspondingly lowered opinions of the Italians. The Italian ships were first rate, and all other things being equal, a slugging match between the Italian and British battleships would likely not have been a happy day for Cunningham. Fortunately for our side, all other things were not equal.

[@neilbuckley1613]

@@therealanyaku At Calabria the new 15" gunned italian battledhips were absent, The 12.6" on the older Italian ships were pretty lightweight compared to the 15" guns on the British ships. When the Italian ships were modernised much more emphasis was placed on increasing their speed rather than their armour, Consequently I don't think slugging it out would have been a good move on the Italians part.

[@therealanyaku]

@@neilbuckley1613 Falls under the category of other things not being equal. The British couldn't really breath easy until after Taranto and Cape Matapan.

[@dayros2023]

What kind of question is that? All the Italian ships were built in Italy with Italian technology. At the time every powerful country built its own ships.

[@geoffreymowbray6789]

Vic Admiral John Tovey commanded the 4 Royal Navy and 1 Royal Australian Navy (RAN) light cruisers Tovey would later be promoted Admiral commanded the Home Fleet at the time the sinking of the German battleship Bismark. Present the battle beside light cruiser HMAS Sydney the RAN had the old destroyer flotilla leader HMAS Stuart and old destroyers HMAS Vampire and HMAS Voyager,

[@cgross82]

Interesting how Admiral Campioni looks remarkably like Tom Hanks!

[@davearbogast2882]

WOW, nearly forgotten recent history. Thank you again ! BTW, what's the story with the hat?

[@constipatedinsincity4424]

Hey History Guy 🤓and fellow Classmates 👋 Happy Moon Landing Day .May one and all set foot somewhere you've never stepped before!

[@BasicDrumming]

I appreciate you, thank you for making content.

[@comentedonakeyboard]

Disapointment about the Italian Bombers staying out of Picture range is very understandable. Italy made such good looking Planes, after all.

[@rickharold7884]

Hmmmm always interesting thanks!

[@pokiishere-sebastian2126]

Interesting video as per usual. Thanks! 😊

[@constipatedinsincity4424]

Back in the Saddle Again Naturally!

[@TM-ev2tc]

You need to try and get a ride on a Tiger Cruise with the Navy.

[@josephbenson6301]

Suggestions for episodes... defense of the mouth of the Columbia River by Fort Stevens in WW2 and the taking of Vincennes by George Rogers Clark.

[@charleslarrivee2908]

"Be elegant at all times, that is Saint Gloriana's way!"

[@aftershock2222]

Could you please do vids on Robert E. Cornish and Johann Trollmann. Cornish was a 1930’s biologist who conducted animal reanimation experiments. Trollmann was a German Sinti (Romani) boxer who was drafted into the German Army and wounded on the Russian Front. He eventually died in a concentration camp.

[@sarge4455]

Stay hydrated it’s hot af today

[@RailfanDownunder]

You may wish to acquire Mike Carlton's books... 'Scrap Iron Flotilla' - the story of 'Hec' Waller may fascinate you? Also his books 'Flagship' + 'Cruiser' - 'First Kill'

[@larryjohnson7591]

Never even heard of this battle. Thank You for making me a little bit smarter.

[@jessietaylor385]

Much to learn.....

[@garywagner2466]

Quite amusing that “inexperience” was cited as a problem when neither fleet had engaged the other early in the war. Really? Like “modern” companies that expect applicants for junior positions to have years of experience before getting their first job. Only one way to get battle experience. Take part in a battle.

[@neileskew3454]

Nice hat, great for your story of history today

[@DeconvertedMan]

I like that 3d map that looks cool!

[@frankgulla2335]

THG, thank you for a great tale of battle on the "high" seas (it is the Med after all). 🙂

[@model-man7802]

The Italian Navy's worst enemy was the Italian Air Force hence the red a white stripes on the bows of the Italian ships.The repeated bombings caused confrontations back in Italy and even with the stripes ships were still bombed by accident.

[@TheHistoryGuyChannel]

Yes, the decision to paint the stipes came as a result of the battle of Calabria. But, in the Navy's favor, the air force didn't hit anything...

[@Taistelukalkkuna]

IJN and IJA approve this message.

[@dayros2023]

That’s off topic, but the navy and the air force had a lot of rivalry. The air force was more in tune with the fascist government while the navy was staunchly monarchist.

[@MrCarlojensen]

I sure do miss seeing the Coast Guard hat.

[@TheHistoryGuyChannel]

It will cycle through again. Actually, I have several.

[@alancohen5688]

I love World of Warships. I have been playing it over 5 years

[@TheHistoryGuyChannel]

I play under The_History_Guy. My gunnery skills are reminiscent of the battle of Calabria.

[@alancohen5688]

@@TheHistoryGuyChannel I play under the screen name acohen4010, I belong to the Urban Pirates guild.

[@harleylawdude]

I wonder what was the first sea battle utilizing aircraft carriers.

[@TheHistoryGuyChannel]

That is a good question. If we exclude things like ballon carriers and seaplane tenders, by my reckoning the first use of a flat top carrier that could launch and recover planes on deck in a sea battle was HMS Furious at the Second Battle of Narvik, 13 April, 1940.

[@tankgirl2074]

It is likely the Norwegian campaign on April 24, 1940 when both HMS Glorious and HMS Ark Royal were in action with the British fleet.

[@tankgirl2074]

@@TheHistoryGuyChannel true. HMS Furious was part of the Home Fleet but it was April 10, 1940 when she sent 16 Swordfish torpedo bombers (unsuccessfully) to attack German ships at Trondheim, Norway. There were further attacks (using bombs instead of torpedoes) at Narvik on April 12 and 13th.

[@joegordon5117]

The choice to go on the attack, even when principally out to protect convoys, is not surprising, that notion of pressing an attack whenever you can was part of Royal Navy doctrine since the times of Nelson.

[@tedthesailor172]

I quite miss the intro "Hi, I'm the history guy. I have a degree in history and I love history..."

[@leroysmith3479]

I grew up in The State of Franklin, which has an interesting tale.

[@pooryorick831]

Suggestion for a topic if you haven't already covered it. The fate of the French fleet after France fell to Germany. A rather dark bit of history.

[@JeepWrangler1957]

THG please do something on Operation Hercules the never launched invasion of Malta. Not controlling Malta led to the Axis losing the Mediterranean.

[@mrbaab5932]

Tony Bennet (Bennetto) had family from Calabria, Italy 🇮🇹.

[@tonydagostino6158]

You mentioned Calabria and the Gulf of Taranto but neither are labeled on the maps you included in the story. That would've been helpful for viewers not familiar with the geography

[@harleylawdude]

I’ve been to Calabria. It’s the ankle of the boot.

[@wtice4632]

​@@harleylawdudeno its the toes

[@SennaAugustus]

Calabria is the southwestern part sticking out of the main peninsula that's touching Sicily. Taranto is the hole formed by the 2 parts sticking out (the other part Apuilia).

[@tonydagostino6158]

@@wtice4632 Actually it's more than the toe. My family is Calabrian and their village is in the "arch" east of Catanzaro

[@wtice4632]

@@tonydagostino6158my great grandmother is from cosenza

[@geordiedog1749]

The Blue Water strategy for Royal Navy was initially in coordination with the French Navy - but we all know how that turned out.

[@briannicholas2757]

The Italians built beautiful ships that were well equiped and well made. Their sailors and junior officers were very dedicated and competent, contrary to tge common myth. Sadly their higher echelon admirals were, with a few exceptions, utterly terrible their bitter rivalry with tge Italian Royal Air Force severly hampered them. Add to that the terrible quality control of the heavy gun shells for their high quality main armament, they were further hamstrung.

[@geordiedog1749]

The real victor of the battle of Calabria was the side who learned the lessons best.

[@jeffsmith2022]

Mr. Geiger, what type of cap is that directly to the right of the WW l Navy poster?...

[@bigsarge2085]

👍👍

[@rabbi120348]

3:15 -- "ABC" looks a bit like King Charles.

[@jeffbangkok]

Good morning

[@giovannidepetris6335]

The heavy cruiser Trento hit warspite, a fact kept hidden until today, but never mi d.

[@steveshoemaker6347]

All bark and no bite = what another deal.....Thanks to THG🎀 for his EXCELLENT HISTORY VIDEO ....PS I like the Hat 👍 Shoe🇺🇸

[@garlandwilliams7]

I always give The History Guy a thumbs up because he is absolutely the best at history lessons.

[@ashergoney]

Aboard Temperance Wagon, set off since 1970s And Your Angel Of Death Flying Free.. In Falling Leaf Formation.. They Still Won't Get It.. Flame On Im GONE..

[@ashergoney]

Life If As A Game.. Heaven In Heavens Is Also In Parts Heaven And Hell..

[@ashergoney]

But, then Again No One Lives Forever. Played For Win , WIN.. We Bleed Untill Can't Bleed Anymore

[@johnreed1116]

I want to say that you may be interest in the author Alex W. Bealer and his book about “old ways of” about crafts with illustrations.

[@johnreed1116]

The have the books about “the tools that built America”, “old ways of working wood”, and “the art of blacksmithing”. I read the book about blacksmithing and it was great.

[@giovannidepetris6335]

For many the name is battle of punta stilo.

[@stevekohl5351]

@TheHistoryGuyChannel Are you wearing a Napoleanic hat? Do you have the full uniform?

[@stuartharper3968]

The History Guy is always a first class highly professional presentation that others should aspire to follow!!

[@romanbrough]

Why not look up LA Decimal MAS. ? By a very wide margin, the most successful Italian Naval Unit.

[@nathansullivan4433]

To sum up the Battle of Calabria: despite the Warspite’s bite the fight was alright

[@tankgirl2074]

15 inch British guns verses 12 inch Italian. Why wouldn't it be alright.

[@billdurham8477]

A great big what if? would have been Yamato vs Iowa class. On the other hand I sure wouldn't want to be there......

[@bkjeong4302]

Would have been better for the British to rely on their carriers here.

[@constipatedinsincity4424]

Hey History Guy 🤓👋 do you like the band U2?

[@TheHistoryGuyChannel]

Actually I do.

[@constipatedinsincity4424]

@@TheHistoryGuyChannel Did you see 👀 the Sphere built for there upcoming concert here in Las Vegas?

[@bwhog]

You never hear discussions of the Italian navy or air force in WWII history and I think it bears mentioning more often. It was, after all, a key factor in the early Italian victories at the start of the war and the later battles for those islands were vital to the war effort. I will say, though, that if the Italian fleet, being stronger, had charged into the British fleet, they may have been able to decimate it but both commanders chose a conservative strategy.

[@airfrere]

I recall that a recent appointee as U.S. Ambassador to Italy -- I think it was during the term of George W. Bush -- found himself in trouble even before he took up the post because it was reported that he once joked that "all the ships in the new Italian Navy have glass bottoms -- so they can see the old Italian Navy." It seems, however, that the Italians did well enough in this first battle.

[@dayros2023]

A very ignorant remark from that guy, as the Regia Marina actually was still in the fight until the Italian armistice, and most of the Italian capital ships survived the war.

[@garywagner2466]

Did he also mention the Yanks being caught flat-footed by the Japanese at Pearl Harbor?

[@addiewilson1979]

Could you make an episode about boycotting?

[@herbertmilley911]

It would have been better with some maps

[@loficampingguy9664]

It's pretty interesting to see the change in naval warfare from this to Leyte Gulf just four and a half years later. Namely, Surigao Strait. You go from confused actions of whole fleets using outdated equipment and unskilled sailors with no real outcome to a one-sided, well-informed pummeling coming from a battle line of old ships turned into modern killing machines.

[@TCizauskas]

7:14 It must have been an imPOtent battle!

[@merlinwizard1000]

58th, 21 July 2023

[@richardmycroft5336]

Eye Will not listen to any World of Warships tripe. Have you been personally shot at? I have!

[@alexius23]

👩‍🏫🧑‍🏫👨‍🏫🧙🏻‍♂

[@anti-Russia-sigma]

The fight’s history illustrates why its necessary to count casualties to determine fight winners,as its sometimes the only way to determine which side won.

[@garywagner2466]

Not really. Body counts don’t always reflect success or failure, as the Vietnam War aptly illustrates.

[@masterskrain2630]

The Italians made a major mistake by getting the H.M.S. Warspite ticked off!!

[@Eric_Hutton.1980]

On an unrelated note. During the Korean War a North Korean artillery battery made the mistake of making USS Wisconsin mad. The artillery battery hit the Wisconsin with an 155mm shell. Wisconsin responded with a full 9 gun salvo.

[@banedonrunestar5618]

And an escorting ship signaled to Wisconsin “Temper Temper”. :)

[@josephbenson6301]

I couldn't help but think the biggest problem with the Italian Navy was that it was from that peninsula. While perhaps impressive as a merchant marine, nobody there seems to have struck me as particularly good at fighting on the water. My Romans seemed horrible at it for so very long... I can't think of any naval victories on their part. (I feel like, eventually, they became decent at transporting troops with half to all of them dying in the process.). Anyone?

[@davidgrenis638]

SO JUST HOW REALLY USELESS MODERN BATTLESHIPS ALWAYS WERE ALL ABOUT SHOW OF POWER THAT REALLY DIDN'T EXIST DAVID ADAM GRENIS MAPLETON AVENUE BOULDER COLORADO USA

[@TheHistoryGuyChannel]

Well, to be fair, they did show their value in shore bombardment during the Second World War.

[@Revolver1701]

That Italian airplane was ugly.

[@tankgirl2074]

More research was needed for context to the battle. The number of battleships was of little use as all but Warspite were built in the 1910's. No mention of British battle doctrine. No mention of the poor standards of powder / shell manufacture by Italian industry which affected gun accuracy. All 3 British battleships had 15 inch guns. The two Italian battleships had only 12 inch guns. Nor is it mentioned Italian naval design preferred speed over armour for most of their ships. Portraying this as a lopsided contest that was in favour of Italy is just nonsense. You have to look beyond the number of ships, compare their capacity to inflict damage & at what ranges, speed, armour, etc., to better understand naval ships and engagements. Very sloppy work. I expected far better history than what was presented here.

[@lemmdus2119]

Sounds like a grade school girl slap fight…”not the face! Not the face!”. 😆

[@niclasjohansson4333]

If the Italian navy would have been more aggressiv they should have controled the Mediteranian sea.

[@tomhalla426]

The Italians had fuel supply issues.

[@larx4074]

Regia Marina had serious issues with their munitions, inasmuch, each shell had poorly filled propellant, such that each shell had a different range, making it very difficult for the ships range-finders to create an accurate firing solution, so many shells fired, so many misses........ Other than that, their ships were excellent and were more than a match for any navy.......

[@larx4074]

@@tomhalla426 They had plenty of fuel, the RM ships were fuelled for a sea, not an ocean like the British ships.......

[@tomhalla426]

@@larx4074 The Axis in general had severe fuel shortages. Inability to practice was an issue, even with the Germans trying synthetic fuel.

[@tomhalla426]

@@larx4074 According to one source, Drachinifel I think, the munitions supplier to the RM was politically connected, so the navy could not deal with the QA problems.

[@altair458]

England and Italy were both jokes in WW2. Two third world nations.

[@sarge4455]

This would have been like watching two girls fighting 😊

[@monza1002000]

Stupid comment, considering the state the US and Germany were in

[@SuperCatacata]

@@monza1002000 I'll reply to your stupid comment on his stupid comment with my own stupid comment 😎

[@johnforrester9120]

And a free silly hat .? Lol

[@paulflak2823]

I hope you like the money you are getting from World of warships I will NEVER donate to you while you endorse that crap website!!!

[@TheHistoryGuyChannel]

I enjoy the game, and play it quite a lot. I do not endorse products I would not use, But, of course, to each his own.

[@StAndrew65]

​@TheHistoryGuyChannel I'm sure you're getting more money from W.of.W than you would ever get from that whiny guy. Lol

[@garywagner2466]

Oh dearie me! What a loss! A dollar gone.