370 



GERMAN-ITALIAN WAR. 



NOTE ' 



ITALIAN VESSELS 

 I AUSTRIAN 



(flag-ship), under command of Commodore Ri- 

 botty ; the second, consisting of the S. Martino, 

 Palestro, Aifondatore, and Re d'ltalia, the last- 

 named of which carried the flag of Persano ; 

 the third, comprising the Ancona, Oastelfidardo, 

 and Principe di Carigno (flag-ship), under com- 

 mand of Vacca. When the three divisions had 

 been formed into battle array, Persano left the 

 Ke d'ltalia and went on board the Affonda- 

 tore, which he withdrew behind the line, thus 

 leaving only nine vessels opposed to the Aus- 

 trians. The encounter of the two fleets began 

 at about nine o'clock in the morning. The 

 Austrian fleet were sailing from north to south 

 in three lines of seven vessels each, the iron- 

 clads constituting the first lines. Of the three 

 divisions of the Italian fleet, Vacca commanded 

 the van, and Eibotty the rear. Tegethoff, no- 

 ticing a gap between the divisions of Vacca and 

 the centre division, dashed into this gap, and 

 bore down with all his iron-clads and three 

 wooden vessels upon the centre division of the 

 Italian fleet, and in particular upon the Ke 

 d'ltalia. This vessel made a most gallant re- 

 sistance, but finally it was sunk. The Palestro 

 (Captain Capellini), which hastened to the aid 

 of the Re d'ltalia, caught fire. Persano sent 



two vessels to save the crew, but the captain 

 refused to leave the vessel, and heroically per- 

 ished with nearly all his men. The division pf 

 Vacca and that of Kibotty, having in the mean 

 while sailed northward, passed the Austrian 

 iron-clads, attacked the wooden vessels of the 

 Austrian s simultaneously from the east and the 

 west, and seriously damaged the flag-ship Kaiser. 

 But before greater injury could be inflicted 

 upon this part of the Austrian fleet, the Aus- 

 trian iron-clads returned to its aid after the de- 

 struction of the Ke d'ltalia and the Palestro. 

 The battle still continued furiously for some 

 time, but without the loss of any other vessel 

 on either side. At about two o'clock the Italian 

 fleet, now headed by the Affondatore, sailed 

 westward, and as the Austrians did not follow, 

 the battle came to an end. The Italians re- 

 turned to Ancona, and the Austrians, on the 

 next day, to Fasana. The loss of the Italians 

 was about 900, all (with the exception of 8 

 killed and 40 wounded) belonging to the Re 

 d'ltalia and the Palestro. The Austrian loss 

 was also considerable, the Kaiser alone hav- 

 ing 22 killed and 82 wounded. The Austrian 

 Government rewarded TegethofF by immediately 

 appointing him admiral. The Italians, both in 



