Soldati-class destroyer

Destroyer Artigliere
Class overview
Name:	Soldati class
Operators:	Regia Marina  Marina Militare  French Navy  Soviet Navy
Preceded by:	Oriani class
Succeeded by:	Comandanti Medaglie d'Oro class (planned) Impetuoso class (actual)
Built:	1938–1943
In commission:	1939–1965
Completed:	19
Lost:	10
General characteristics (1st series, As built)
Type:	Destroyer
Displacement:	1,620 long tons (1,650 t) standard 2,550 long tons (2,590 t) full load
Length:	106.7 m (350 ft 1 in) overall 101.6 m (333 ft 4 in) pp
Beam:	10.15 m (33 ft 4 in)
Draught:	3.15 m (10 ft 4 in)
Installed power:	48,000 shp (35,800 kW)
Propulsion:	2 shaft Belluzzo or Parsons type turbines 3 Yarrow type boilers
Speed:	38 knots (70 km/h; 44 mph)
Range:	2,200 nmi (4,100 km) at 20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph)
Complement:	206
Armament:	4 × 120 mm (4.7 in)/50 calibre guns (2×2) 1 × 120 mm (4.7 in) 15 calibre starshell gun 12 × 13.2 mm machine guns 6 × 533 mm (21 in) torpedo tubes ) 48 mines

The Soldati class (also known as Camicia Nera class, meaning Blackshirt) were a group of destroyers built for the Italian Navy during World War II. The ships were named after military professions (Artigliere, for example, meaning "artilleryman"). There were two batches; twelve ships were built in 1938–39, and a second batch of seven ships were ordered in 1942, although only five were completed.

Ten ships of the class were lost during the war. Three of the survivors were transferred to the French Navy and two to the Soviet Navy as war reparations, while two served in the Italian post-war navy, the Marina Militare.

In 1936, the Italian Regia Marina placed an order for twelve examples of a new destroyer design, the Soldati class. The design was essentially a repeat of the previous Oriani destroyer design, which was itself a development of the Maestrale class. The design featured an identical main gun armament of four 120 mm/50 calibre guns in two twin turrets, one forward and one aft, while torpedo armament was two triple 21 inches (530 mm) torpedo tubes. A short (15 calibre) 120 mm gun was mounted on a pedestal between the banks of torpedo tubes for firing starshell, while the anti-aircraft armament consisted of twelve 13.2 mm machine guns. A single ship (Carabiniere) was completed with a fifth 120 mm 50 calibre gun replacing the starshell gun. The ships' powerplant, with two geared steam turbines driving two shafts and generating 48,000 shaft horsepower (36,000 kW), and with one large funnel, was similar to that in the Oriani class and was sufficient to propel the destroyers to 38 knots (70 km/h; 44 mph).

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