View source for Regele Ferdinand-class destroyer

{{Short description|Destroyers built in Italy for the Romanian Navy during the 1920s}}
{{good article}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin}}
{{Infobox ship image
|Ship image=RegeleFerdinand1935.jpg
|Ship caption=''Regele Ferdinand'' at sea
}}
{{Infobox ship class overview
|Name=''Regele Ferdinand'' class
|Builders=Pattison, [[Naples]], Italy
|Operators=*{{flagicon image|Naval Ensign of Romania (1922–1947).svg}} [[Romanian Naval Forces|Romanian Navy]]
* {{navy|Soviet Union}}
|Class before={{sclass|Vifor|destroyer|4}}
|Class after=None
|Cost=
|Built range=1927–1930
|In service range=
|In commission range=1930–1961
|Total ships planned=4
|Total ships completed=2
|Total ships cancelled=2
|Total ships scrapped=2
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
|Hide header=
|Header caption=(as built)
|Ship type=[[Destroyer]]
|Ship displacement=*{{convert|1400|LT|t|0}} ([[Displacement (ship)#Standard displacement|standard]])
* {{convert|1850|LT|t}} ([[full load]])
|Ship length={{cvt|101.9|m|ftin}} ([[o/a]])
|Ship beam={{cvt|9.6|m|ftin}}
|Ship draught={{cvt|3.51|m|ftin}}
|Ship propulsion=2 shafts; 2 geared [[steam turbine]]s
|Ship speed={{convert|37|kn|lk=in}}
|Ship range={{convert|3000|nmi|lk=in|abbr=on}} at {{convert|15|kn}} 
|Ship power=*4 [[Thornycroft boiler]]s
* {{convert|52000|shp|kW|lk=in|abbr=on}}
|Ship complement=212
|Ship armament=*5 × single {{cvt|120|mm|1}} guns
* 1 × single {{cvt|76|mm|0}} [[AA gun]]
* 2 × single {{cvt|40|mm|1}} AA guns
* 2 × triple {{cvt|533|mm|0}} [[torpedo tube]]s
* 40 [[depth charge]]s
* 50 [[naval mine|mine]]s
|Ship notes=
}}
|}

The '''''Regele Ferdinand'' class''' was a pair of [[destroyer]]s built in [[Italy]] for the [[Romanian Navy]] during the late 1920s. The [[sister ship]]s were the most modern and powerful warships of the [[Axis powers]] in the [[Black Sea]] during [[World War II]].<ref name=w55/> During the war they participated in the 1941 [[Raid on Constanța]] and the 1944 [[Crimean Offensive#Evacuation of the Crimea|evacuation of the Crimea]], although they spent the vast majority of the war escorting convoys in the Black Sea. The Romanians claimed that they sank two [[submarine]]s during the war, but Soviet records do not confirm their claims. Following [[King Michael's Coup]], where Romania switched sides and joined the [[Allies of World War II|Allies]] in late 1944, the two ships were seized and incorporated into the Soviet [[Black Sea Fleet]]. They were returned to Romania in 1951 and served until 1961 when they were [[ship breaking|scrapped]].

==Background and design==
Following the end of [[World War I]] and the re-purchase of two [[Aquila-class cruiser]]s from Italy, the Romanian Government decided to order several modern destroyers from the Pattison Yard in [[Naples]], Italy, as part of the 1927 Naval Programme. The design was based on the [[Thornycroft type leader|British ''Shakespeare''-class destroyer leaders]], but differed in the arrangement of their propulsion machinery. The guns, however, were imported from [[Sweden]] and the [[Ship gun fire-control system|fire-control system]] were from Germany.<ref>Twardowski, pp. 359, 361</ref> Four destroyers were intended to be ordered, but only two were actually built.<ref name=conway1/>

The ''Regele Ferdinand''-class ships had an [[length overall|overall length]] of {{convert|101.9|m|ftin}}, had a [[beam (nautical)|beam]] of {{convert|9.6|m|ftin}}, and a mean [[draft (hull)|draught]] of {{convert|3.51|m|ftin}}. They displaced {{convert|1400|LT|MT|0|lk=on}} at [[Displacement (ship)#Standard displacement|standard load]] and {{convert|1850|LT|MT}} at [[deep load]]. Their crew numbered 212 officers and sailors.<ref name=w4>Whitley, p. 224</ref> The ships were powered by two [[Parsons Marine Steam Turbine Company|Parsons]] geared [[steam turbine]]s, each driving a single [[propeller]], using steam provided by four [[Thornycroft boiler]]s.<ref name=conway1>Twardowski, p. 361</ref> The turbines were designed to produce {{convert|52000|shp|kW|lk=on}} for a speed of {{convert|37|kn|lk=on}},{{refn|Twardowski says {{cvt|48000|shp}} and a speed of {{convert|35|kn}}.<ref name=conway1/>|group=Note}} although the ''Regele Ferdinand''s reached {{convert|38|kn}} during their [[sea trial]]s.<ref name=w5>Whitley, pp. 224–225</ref> They could carry {{convert|480|LT|t}} of [[fuel oil]]<ref name=conway1/> which gave them a range of {{convert|3000|nmi|lk=on}} at a speed of {{convert|15|kn}}.<ref name=w4/>

The main armament of the ''Regele Ferdinand''-class ships consisted of five 50-[[caliber (artillery)|calibre]] [[Bofors]] {{convert|120|mm|in|adj=on}} guns in single mounts, two [[superfiring]] pairs fore and aft of the [[superstructure]] and one gun aft of the rear [[funnel (ship)|funnel]]. For [[anti-aircraft warfare|anti-aircraft defence]], they were equipped with one Bofors {{convert|76|mm|in|adj=on|0}} [[anti-aircraft gun|anti-aircraft (AA) gun]] between the funnels and a pair of {{convert|40|mm|adj=on}} AA guns. The ships were fitted with two triple mounts for {{convert|21|in|mm|adj=on|order=flip|0}} [[torpedo tube]]s and could carry 50 [[Naval mine|mines]]<ref name=w5/> and 40 [[depth charge]]s.<ref name=a8>Axworthy, p. 348</ref>  They were equipped with a [[Siemens]] fire-control system which included a pair of [[Rangefinding telemeter|rangefinder]]s, one each for the fore and aft guns.<ref  name=w55>Whitley, p. 225</ref>

===Modifications===
The 40-millimetre guns were replaced by two German {{convert|3.7|cm|in|adj=on}} AA guns and a pair of French [[Hotchkiss M1929 machine gun|{{convert|13.2|mm|in|adj=on}} M1929 Hotchkiss machineguns]] were added in 1939. Two Italian depth charge throwers were later installed. During World War II, the 76-millimetre gun was replaced by four {{convert|20|mm|adj=on}} AA guns. In 1943, the two ships were equipped with a German ''S-Gerät'' [[sonar]].<ref name=w55/> The following year, the upper forward 120-millimetre gun was replaced by a [[8.8 cm Flak 18/36/37/41|German {{convert|88|mm|adj=on}} AA gun]].<ref name=a8/> German 88-millimetre guns in Romanian service were themselves modified by being fitted with Romanian-produced barrel liners.<ref name=a9>Axworthy, p. 149</ref>

==Ships==
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders"
|+ Construction data
|-
! scope="col" | Ship
! scope="col" | [[Laid down]]<ref name=w4/>
! scope="col" | [[Ceremonial ship launching|Launched]]<ref name=w4/>
! scope="col" | [[Ship commissioning|Commissioned]]<ref name=w4/>
! scope="col" | Fate<ref name=sq/>
|-
! scope="row" | {{ship|NMS|Regele Ferdinand||2}} (RF)
| June 1927
| 1 December 1928
| rowspan=2 | 7 September 1930
| rowspan=2 | Decommissioned and scrapped, April 1961
|-
! scope="row" | {{ship|NMS|Regina Maria||2}} (RM)
| 1927
| 2 March 1929
|}

==Service history==
The sisters were [[Ship commissioning|commissioned]] into the Romanian Navy when they arrived at [[Constanța]], on 7 September 1930.<ref name=w5/> They were assigned to the Destroyer [[Squadron (naval)|Squadron]],<ref name=sq>{{cite web |publisher=Romanian Naval Forces |url=http://www.navy.ro/despre/organizare/flotila_56/istoric_en.php|title=Historical Overview: The Counter-Torpedo Squadron/Destroyer Squadron |website=www.navy.ro |access-date=2 November 2018}}</ref> which was visited by King [[Carol II of Romania]] and the [[Prime Minister of Romania|Prime Minister]], [[Nicolae Iorga]], on 27 May 1931. ''Regina Maria'' participated in the Coronation [[Fleet review (Commonwealth realms)|Fleet review]] for King [[George VI]] in 1937 at [[Spithead]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.navy.ro/despre/organizare/istoricF221.php|title=Istoric Distrugătorul Regele Ferdinand Asul de cupă al Marinei Regale Române|website=www.navy.ro |publisher=Romanian Naval Forces|language=ro|trans-title=History of the Destroyer Regele Ferdinand: Ace of Hearts of the Royal Romanian Navy|access-date=2 November 2018}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.navy.ro/despre/organizare/istoricF222.php|title=Istoric Distrugătorul Regina Maria Asul de pică al Marinei Regale Române|website=www.navy.ro |publisher=Romanian Naval Forces|language=ro|trans-title=History of the Destroyer Regina Maria: Ace of Spades of the Royal Romanian Navy|access-date=31 October 2018}}</ref>

On 26 June 1941, shortly after the Axis [[Operation Barbarossa|invasion of the Soviet Union (Operation Barbarossa)]], ''Regina Maria'' helped repel a [[Raid on Constanța|Soviet naval attack against the main Romanian port of Constanța]], together with the [[flotilla leader]] ''[[NMS Mărăști|Mărăști]]''. The Romanians were expecting an attack and the accuracy of their fire, reinforced by the heavy guns of the German [[coastal artillery]] [[battery (artillery)|battery]] [[German coastal battery Tirpitz|''Tirpitz'']], caused the Soviet ships to withdraw, losing the destroyer leader {{ship|Soviet destroyer|Moskva||2}} in a Romanian [[minefield]] that had been laid shortly before the start of the war. Her [[sister ship]] {{ship|Soviet destroyer|Kharkov||2}} was lightly damaged by one of the Romanian ships and the [[heavy cruiser]] ''[[Soviet cruiser Voroshilov|Voroshilov]]'' was slightly damaged by a Romanian mine as the Soviets were withdrawing.<ref>Axworthy, p. 331; Hervieux, pp. 70–71; Rohwer, pp. 82–83</ref>

[[File:RegeleFerdinand1930-1944.jpg|thumb|Wartime photo of ''Regele Ferdinand'' in [[splinter camouflage]]]]
Massively outnumbered by the Soviet Black Sea Fleet, the Romanian ships were kept behind the minefields defending Constanța for the next several months, training for the convoy escort mission that would be their primary task for the rest of the war. Beginning on 5 October, the Romanians began laying minefields to defend the route between the [[Bosphorus]] and Constanța; the [[minelayer]]s were protected by the destroyers. After the [[Siege of Odessa (1941)|evacuation of Odessa]] on 16 October, the Romanians began to clear the Soviet mines defending the port and to lay their own minefields protecting the route between Constanța and [[Odessa]]. While escorting a convoy to Odessa on 16–17 December, ''Regele Ferdinand'' [[Battle of Jibrieni|depth-charged and may have sunk]] the {{ship|Soviet submarine|M-59}}.{{refn|Sources disagree about the date of this submarine's loss. Polmar & Noot say 17 December,<ref name=pj6>Polmar & Noot, p. 346</ref> but Rohwer & Monakov attribute her loss to a mine between 28 October and 1 November.<ref name=rm5/>|group=Note}}<ref name=rm5>Rohwer & Monakov, p. 265</ref><ref>Axworthy, pp. 332–336; Hervieux, pp. 75–76; Rohwer, p. 127</ref>

During the winter of 1941–1942, the Romanian destroyers were primarily occupied with escorting convoys between the Bosporus and Constanța, and then, after the ice melted in April 1942, to [[Ochakov]] and Odessa. After the garrison of [[Sevastopol]] surrendered on 4 July, a direct route between the port and Constanța was opened in October and operated year-round. ''Regina Maria'' and ''Regele Ferdinand'' also escorted the minelayers as they laid defensive minefields to protect the convoy routes in 1942–1943. The latter ship claimed to have sunk a submarine, possibly {{ship|Soviet submarine|Shch-207||2}}, on 16 September 1943. Soviet sources, however, do not acknowledge any submarine lost on that day.<ref name=pj6/><ref name=rm5/><ref>Axworthy, pp. 337–340; Hervieux, pp. 76–77, 79–81; Rohwer, pp. 207, 275</ref>

[[File:ReginaMaria1944.tif|thumb|''Regina Maria'' off [[Sevastopol]], 1944]]
Successful Soviet attacks in early 1944 cut the overland connection of the Crimea with the rest of [[Ukraine]] and encircled Axis troops in Sevastopol during April. The Romanians began evacuating the city on 14 April, with their destroyers covering the troop convoys. After the {{GRT|5700|disp=adj}} [[cargo ship]] {{SS|Alba Iulia}} was bombed and set on fire by Soviet aircraft on 18 April, the sisters were dispatched to see if she could be salvaged. They put a [[skeleton crew]] aboard to operate her pumps and to stabilise her before a pair of [[tugboat]]s arrived the next morning to tow her to Constanța. ''Regele Ferdinand'' was badly damaged by Soviet aircraft on 11 May after having loaded Axis troops at Sevastopol; their attacks damaged her fuel system to the extent that she ran out of fuel despite passing oil hand-to-hand in a [[bucket brigade]] and had to be towed a short distance to Constanța. ''Regina Maria'' made two trips to evacuate Axis troops and was part of the last convoy to reach Sevastopol on the night of 11/12 May. ''Regele Ferdinand'' was slightly damaged during a Soviet airstrike on Constanța on 20 August.<ref>Axworthy, pp. 342–343, 345; Hervieux, pp. 82–83, 87; Rohwer, pp. 319, 351</ref>

After the capitulation of Romania to the [[Soviet Union]] in August 1944, the sisters were seized and incorporated into the Black Sea Fleet as ''Likhoy'' (''Лихой'', ex-''Regele Ferdinand'') and ''Letuchiy'' (''Летучий'', ex-''Regina Maria''). They were commissioned into the [[Soviet Navy]] on 20 October 1944.<ref>Rohwer & Monakov, p. 268</ref> The two ships were returned in 1951 and were renamed ''D21'' and ''D22'', respectively, in the [[Romanian Naval Forces|Naval Forces]] of the [[Communist Romania|Romanian People's Republic]]. They served until 1961 when they were discarded and subsequently scrapped.<ref name=sq/>

==Notes==
{{Commons category|Regele Ferdinand class destroyer}}
{{reflist|group=Note}}

==Citations==
{{reflist|30em}}

==Bibliography==
* {{cite book |last1=Axworthy |first1=Mark |title=Third Axis, Fourth Ally: Romanian Armed Forces in the European War, 1941–1945 |date=1995 |publisher=Arms and Armour Press |location=London |isbn=1-85409-267-7}}
* {{Cite book|url=http://militera.lib.ru/enc/berezhnoy_ss01/index.html|title=Трофеи и репарации ВМФ СССР|last=Berezhnoy|first=Sergey |publisher=Sakhapoligrafizdat|year=1994|location=Yakutsk|language=ru|trans-title=Trophies and reparations of the Soviet Navy |oclc=33334505}}
*{{cite book |last1=Budzbon |first1=Przemysław |last2=Radziemski |first2=Jan |last3=Twardowski |first3=Marek |title=Warships of the Soviet Fleets 1939–1945 |date=2022 |publisher=Naval Institute Press |location=Annapolis, Maryland |isbn=978-1-68247-877-6|volume=I: Major Combatants|name-list-style=amp}}
* {{cite book |last1=Hervieux |first1=Pierre |editor1-last=Preston |editor1-first=Antony |title=Warship 2001–2002|chapter=The Romanian Navy at War, 1941–1945 |date=2001 |publisher=Conway Maritime Press |location=London |isbn=0-85177-901-8 |pages=70–88}}
* {{cite book|last1=Polmar|first1=Norman|last2=Noot|first2=Jurrien|title=Submarines of the Russian and Soviet Navies, 1718–1990 |year=1991 |publisher=Naval Institute Press|location=Annapolis, Maryland|isbn=0-87021-570-1|name-list-style=amp}}
* {{Cite book|last=Rohwer|first=Jürgen|title=Chronology of the War at Sea 1939–1945: The Naval History of World War Two|publisher=Naval Institute Press|location=Annapolis, Maryland|year=2005|edition=Third Revised|isbn=1-59114-119-2|author-link=Jürgen Rohwer}}
*{{cite book|last1=Rohwer|first1=Jürgen|last2=Monakov|first2=Mikhail S.|title=Stalin's Ocean-Going Fleet: Soviet Naval Strategy and Shipbuilding Programs 1935–1953|publisher=Frank Cass |location=London |year=2001|isbn=0-7146-4895-7|name-list-style=amp|author-link1=Jürgen Rohwer}}
* {{cite book|title=Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1922–1946|url=https://archive.org/details/conwaysallworlds00ches_314|url-access=limited|editor-last=Chesneau|publisher=Conway Maritime Press|location=Greenwich, UK|year=1980|isbn=0-85177-146-7 |last=Twardowski |first=Marek|pages=[https://archive.org/details/conwaysallworlds00ches_314/page/n368 359]–362|chapter=Romania|editor-first=Roger}}
*{{cite book|last=Whitley|first=M. J.|title=Destroyers of World War Two: An International Encyclopedia |year=2000| publisher=Cassell & Co.|location=London|isbn=1-85409-521-8|author-link=Michael J. Whitley}}

{{Regele Ferdinand-class destroyer}}
{{WWII Soviet ships}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Regele Ferdinand-class destroyer}}
[[Category:Regele Ferdinand-class destroyers| ]]
[[Category:World War II destroyers of Romania]]
[[Category:World War II destroyers of the Soviet Union]]
[[Category:Ships built in Italy]]
[[Category:Italy–Romania relations]]