Chronology

by

This database contains events in chronological order from June 1940 to October 1943.

DateEvent
6/1/1940Supermarina, the Italian Naval command center is alerted
6/6/1940Italian forces begin mine-laying operations along the Italian cost.
6/10/1940Italy declares war on France and Britain.
6/12/1940The British cruiser H.M.S. Calypso (4,180 t.) is sunk by the Italian submarine Bagnolin under the command of Franco Tosoni-Pittoni 70 miles South of Cape Lithinon, Crete
6/13/1940The Italian Gunboat Berta is sunk in Tobruk.
6/13/1940The Italian submarine Finzi sorties into the Atlantic
6/14/1940H.M.S. Odin is sunk by the Italian destroyers Strale and Baleno 40 miles off Cape San Vito (Taranto)
6/15/1940French forces bombard Genoa, Vado and Savona
6/14/1940German forces enter Paris. Spain occupies Tangier.
6/15/1940The submarine Macallè is sunk in the Red Sea, the first of 90 Italian units to be lost during the conflict and one of ten lost in the month of June along with the Provana, Galileo Galilei, Diamante, Evangelista Torricelli, Galvani, Liuzzi, Argonauta, Uebi Scebeli, Rubino.
6/16/1940The British Submarine H.M.S. Granpus is sunk by torpedo boats near Augusta (Sicily)
6/17/1940The French Submarine Morse is sunk off Sfax.
6/17/1940The Italian submarine Provana is lost with all hands.
6/19/1940The British Submarine H.M.S. Orpheus is sunk by the destroyer Turbine near Tobruk
6/18/1940Hitler and Mussolini meet in Munich
6/22/1940France signs armistice with Germany.
6/23/1940After a strenuous fight against five British units, four destroyers and a sloop, the Italian submarine  Torricelli is sunk in the Gulf of Oden. The British destroyer Khartoum is so badly damaged that it sinks in shallow waters near the island of Perin; it was a total lost.
6/23/1940The Italian submarine Galvani sinks in the Indian Ocean the Indian Sloop Pathan.
6/24/1940France signs armistice with Italy.
6/25/1940At 01:35 AM (European time) France officially surrenders.
6/28/1940During a troops transfer from Taranto to Tobruk the Italian destroyers Espero, Zeffiro and Ostro are intercepted by five British cruisers. During the engagement, the destroyer Espero is sunk by H.M.S. Sidney, while the other two units safely made it to Tobruk. See “The sinking of the Espero”
7/3/1940British attack French fleet at Oran, Algeria.
7/5/1940The Italian destroyer Zeffiro and a merchant ship are sunk in the port of Tobruk by British torpedo bombers from the 813 Squadron of the H.M.S. Eagle.
7/8/1940Germany launches all-out air blitz on England.
7/9/1940Battle of Point Stilo (Action off Calabria)
7/10/1940The destroyer Leone Lancaldo is sunk in Augusta by carrier-based torpedo bombers. The unit will later be rescued and  reentered service in November 1942.
7/11/1940The submarine Marconi torpedoes and sinks the British destroyer Escort en rout to Gibraltar as part of force H.
7/16/1940The British submarine Phoenix is sunk by the torpedo boat Albatros near Augusta.
7/19/1940Battle of Cape Spada
7/20/1940British torpedo bombers Swordfish of the 824 Squadron lauched from the carrier Eagle torpedo and sink the Italian destroyers Nembo and Ostro in the Guld of Bomba.
7/22/1940British torpedo bombers Swordfish launched from the carrier Eagle torpedo and sink the Italian submarine Iride which was supporting a raid by the 10th Light Flotilla against Alexandria. In the same action a support ship was also lost.
7/24/1940The Italian Navy offers to send a large number of submarines to participate in the Battle of the Atlantic under German command.
7/26/1940Germany’s Admiral Karl Doenitz, chief of submarine operations, accepts the Italian offer of transferring Italian submarines to the Atlantic.
8/1/1940The destroyer Vivaldi rams and sinks the British submarine Oswald in the Strait of Messina.
8/12/1940The submarine Malaspina sinks the british tanker British Fame.
8/19/1940Italian troops occupy British Somaliland in East Africa.
8/29/1940Begins “Operation Hats” and M.B.3
9/3/1940United States trades Britain 50 destroyers for Atlantic bases.
9/13/1940Italy begins invasion of Egypt.
9/17/1940Bombardment of Benghazi by the Mediterranean Fleet, including the battleship Valiant and the carrier Illustrious. The Italian destroyer Borea is sunk by torpedo bombers while her twin unit Aquilone is sunk by mines laid by aircraft of the 819 Squadron from H.M.S. Illustrious. During the bombardment of Bardia, the heavy cruiser Kent is severely damaged by an Italian torpedo launcher.
9/22/1940The Italian Torpedo Boat Palestro is sunk in the Strait of Otranto by the British submarine Osiris.
9/27/1940Japan joins the Axis.
9/30/1940During a 10th Light Flotilla mission against Alexandria, the Italian submarine Gondar is detected by a British Sunderland reconnaissance plane of the 230 Squadron and it is sunk by the Australian destroyer Stuart.
10/9/1940Submarine Malspina, the first of 27 Italian submarines arrives at Bordeaux, France.
10/10/1940Germany occupies Romania.
10/11/1940H.M.S. Rainbow was lost to accidental collision with s/s Antonietta Costa in
10/12/1940Night action off Cape Passero
10/13/1940During a night action of the South-East coast of Sicily, the Italian torpedo boats Airone and Ariel are sunk by the British  light cruiser Ajax. The destroyer Artigliere, seriously damaged, is sunk by the heavy cruiser York.
10/15/1940The Italian submarine Toti sinks the British sub Triad after a violent gun duel.
10/21/1940In the Red Sea, a group of Italian destroyers attacks the British convoy BN7. The destroyer Nullo, following a strong reaction from the convoy, is forced to run aground in shallow waters. The follow day, it will be completely destroyed by British planes.
10/28/1940Starting from Albania, Italian forces attack Greece.
11/12/1940As part of operation M.B.8,   British planes cripple the Italian fleet at Taranto.
11/20/1940Hungary joins Axis.
11/22/1940The Italian torpedo boat Cofienza sinks after a collision with the auxiliary patrol vessel Cecchi north of Brindisi.
11/22/1940Greeks defeat the Italian 9th Army.
11/23/1940Romania joins Axis.
11/26/1940The British submarine Regulus is probably lost by aereal attack in the Strait of Otranto, while the Triton is thought to be lost by mine in the same area.
11/27/1940Encounter of Cape Teulada (Battle of Spartivento)
11/30/1940At the end of the month, 26 Italian submarines have entered the Atlantic and established the Italian base of Betasom in Bordeaux. In total, 32 Italian vessels will operate in the Atlantic.
12/5/1940The Italian torpedo boat Calipso sinks 4 miles north of Misurata (Lybia) after hitting a mine laid by the British submarine Rorqual.
12/6/1940Greeks rout Italians from Porto Edda, Albania.
12/10/1940The Italian Navy reorganizes; Admiral Riccardi is the new Fleet Commander.
12/9/1940British strike back at Italians in Egypt. The offensive will end in Febraury 1941 on the El Agheila line.
12/14/1940The Italian submarine Naiade is sunk near Bardia by the British destroyer Hereward and Hyperion.
12/22/1940Tobruk falls.
12/23/1940The Italian torpedo boat Fratelli Cairoli sinks 4 miles north of Misurata (Libya) after hitting a mine laid by the British submarine Rorqual.
1/6/1941Starts operations Excess designed to bring war materiel to the besiege island of Malta and personnel to Alexandria.
1/10/1941During an Italian attack against the Excess convoy, the Italian torpedo boat Vega is sunk in the strait of Sicily by the cruiser Bonaventure and the destroyer Hereward. The British destroyer Gallant hits a mine near Pantelleria; towed to Malta, it will never be repaired, and will be definitely lost during an Axis bombardment in April 1942. Axis aerial attacks seriously damage the British carrier Illustrious. After emergency repairs in Malta, on the 23 of January the ship will reach Alexandria.
1/11/1941During operation Excess, Axis airplanes sink the British cruiser Southampton on its way back to Alexandria. The twin ship Gloucester is damaged, but survives.
1/20/1941British attack Italians in Eritrea.
1/22/1941Australian troops belonging to the Western Desert Force occupy Tobruk.
1/22/1941After a glorious period of service dating back to the Italo-Turkish war of 1911, the old cruiser San Giorgio is scuttle in the harbor of Tobruk.
2/5/1941British drive Italians from the Sudan.
2/9/1941Naval bombardment of Genoa
2/9/1941An English task force including the battleships Renown and Malaya and the aircraft carrier Ark Royal bombards on the city of Genoa. Airplanes from the Ark Royal attack Leghorn and drop mines near La Spezia. An Italian naval group sent to intercept the British does not succeed in establishing contact.
2/13/1941During the Conference of Merano, Italy Admiral Raeder (Germany) and Admiral Riccardi (Italy) agree on terms of naval collaboration in the Mediterranean. The Italian Navy will receive much needed fuel  from the German.
2/25/1941During escort service in support of a Tripoli-bound Italian convoy, the light cruiser Armando Diaz is sunk by the submarine Upright.
2/27/1941The auxiliary Italian cruiser RAMB I is sunk near the Maldives Island by the New Zealander light cruiser Leander while attempting to escape Massawa.
3/1/1941German-occupied Bulgaria joins Axis.
3/21/1941In three weeks, the British are capable of transporting 60,000 troops to Greece.
3/7/1941British win Italian Somaliland.
3/25/1941Yugoslavia joins Axis.
3/25/1941Italian attack at Suda Bay, sinking of the York.
3/26/1941The British heavy cruiser York is seriously damaged by an Italian attack in the Bay of Suda.
3/28/1941Naval battle off Cape Matapan.
3/28/1941An Italian raid in the eastern Mediterranean develops into the battle of Gaudo and evolves into the battle of Matapan. The Italian cruiser Pola is immobilized by an aerial torpedo attack, and the cruiser Fiume and Zara and the destroyers Alfieri and Carducci sent to her rescue are sunk by gunfire from the battleships Warspite, Barham and Valiant and torpedoes from the destroyers Jervis and Nubian. The battleship Vittorio Veneto is hit by a torpedo but reaches port.
3/30/1941United States seizes Axis ships in American ports.
3/31/1941The British cruiser Bonaventure is sunk by the Italian submarine Ambra while in escort service south east of Crete
4/1/1941During an attack against Port Sudan, the Italian destroyer Leone hits an uncharted rock and it it sunk by her crew.
4/8/1941Last action of the Italian Navy in the Red Sea. Destroyers Pantera, Tigre, Leone, Manin, Sauro and Batttisti are sunk. Massawa, the last Italian defence, falls.
4/9/1941Massawua, the last Italian base surrenders.
4/2/1941With the British occupation of Massawa imminent, the remaining Italian destroyers still seaworthy attempt an attack against Port Sudan. British planes sink the Sauro and the Manin.
4/4/1941The remaining Italian destroyers in the Red Sea (Tigre, Pantera and Battisti) are seriously damaged by aerial attacks and coastal batteries while approaching Port Sudan. The three units will sink near the Yemeni coast
4/3/1941British yield Bengasi, Libya, to Axis attack.
4/5/1941Beginning of the Italian operations against Yugoslavia.
4/6/1941Germany attacks Yugoslavia, Greece. British take Addis Ababa, Ethiopian capital.
4/8/1941In Massawa, before being scuttled, MAS 213 torpedoes and seriously damages the British light cruiser Capetown. Four Italian submarines (Archimede, Guglielmotti, Ferraris and Perla) run away and reach the French port of Bordeaux in the Atlantic.
4/9/1941United States occupies Greenland.
4/12/1941British lose Bardia, Libya.
4/16/1941Sinking of the Tarigo Convoy
4/17/1941An Italian convoy transporting troops to Northern Africa, and composed by five merchantmen and escorted by the destroyers Tarigo, Lampo and Baleno is intercepted by the British destroyers Janus, Jervis, Mohawk and Nubian near Kerkennah and attached with the help of the radar. The merchantmen are all sunk along with the destroyers Tarigo and Baleno. The Lampo, seriously damaged is run aground in shallow waters and later recovered. The British destroyer Mohawk is hit by a torpedo from the sinking Tarigo, and it is later scuttled by her crew due to the heavy damage suffered.
4/17/1941Yugoslavia surrenders.
4/18/1941Britain occupies Iraq.
4/19/1941In two distinct operations, the carrier Ark Royal launches 32 Malta-bound fighters.
4/21/1941The British battleships Warspite, Valiant and Barham bombard Tripoli.
4/27/1941During the English evacuation of Greece the destroyer Diamond and Wryneck are attacked and sunk by Germans airplanes near Point Malea, south-east of Greece.
4/30/1941British forces leave Greece.
5/2/1941While returning from an incursion against Italian traffic, The British destroyer Jersey hits a mine and sinks near La Valletta
5/8/1941Units of the Mediterranean Fleet bombard Benghazi.
5/12/1941Operation Tiger is happily concluded. A convoy of five English merchant ships crosses Mediterranean from east to west and brings reinforcements to the troops fighting in the. A merchant ship is sunk, but the others four reach their destination transporting 238 tanks and 43 fighter planes.
5/16/1941Iceland ends Union with Denmark.
5/19/1941British complete occupation of Ethiopia.
5/15/1941Battle for Crete. The British will loose the cruisers Fiji, Gloucester and Calcutta and the destroyers Juno, Greyhound, Kelly, Kashmir, Hereward and Imperial.
5/20/1941German paratroops invade Crete.
5/21/1941The Italian destroyer Mirabello is sunk by mines laid by the British cruiser Abdiel near the western cost of Greece.
5/21/1941The British destroyer Juno is sunk by Germans airplanes southeast of Crete. In the same action the light cruiser Ajax is also hit. Later in the day, the same Ajax with others two cruisers and two destroyers disperses a German convoy of small transports which was bringing reinforcements to Crete. The decisive action of the torpedo boat “Lupo”
5/22/1941Heavy German aerial attacks seriously damage the battleship Warspite and the light cruisers Naiads and Carlisle. Later the destroyer Greyhound and the cruisers Gloucester and Fiji are sunk by aerial attacks.
5/23/1941The destroyers Kashmir and Kelly are sunk berial attacks near Crete.
5/24/1941Battleship Bismarck sinks the British battlecruiser Hood
5/24/1941The British submarine Upholder attacks a Libya-bound Italian convoy and sinks the 18,000-ton passenger ship Conte Rosso.
5/25/1941The sloop Grimsby and a transport ship are sunk north east of Tobruk.
5/26/194110th Light Flotilla Attack against Malta
5/27/1941Failed Italian attempt to attack Malta by the 10th Light Flotilla. A group of insidious weapons, escorted by the torpedo boat Diana and by MAS 451 and 452, are discovered during their approach to Malta; Shore guns and aerial attacks bring about to the destruction of most weapons and the sinking of the two MAS. The Diana makes it to safety.
5/27/1941British fleet and air units sink Bismarck.
6/1/1941British evacuate Crete.
6/8/1941British and Free French invade Syria.
6/14/1941United States freezes German and Italian assets in America.
6/15/1941Meeting between Admiral Doeniz and Perona. End of joint German Italian submarine operations in the Atlantic.
6/22/1941Germany invades Soviet Union. Italy declares war on Soviet Union.
6/26/1941Finland enters war against Soviet Union.
7/7/1941United States occupies Iceland.
7/14/1941Vichy French sign armistice.
9/18/1941During an attack to an Italian convoy directed in Libya, the English submarine Upholder sinks the two 19.500 tons passenger ships Neptunia and Oceania.
9/24/1941Operation Halberd. A British convoy composed of nine transports sets sail from Gibraltar to Malta, under the escort of three battleships, the aircraft carrier Ark Royal, and of five cruisers. The Italian fleet goes out to intercept the convoy but doesn’t succeed in establishing contact. The convoy arrives to Malta on the 28 having lost only a transport for aerial attack. On the 27th, the battleship Nelson is damaged by an Italian torpedo bomber south of Sardinia.
9/27/1941In the United States, the Patrick Henry is launched. This is the first merchant ship of the Liberty class of which around 2600 will be build.
9/30/1941During operation Halberd the British destroyer Gurkha and Legion sink the Italian submarine Adua.
10/9/1941Turkey signs trade treaty with Germany.
10/20/1941The Italian torpedo boats Aldebaran e Altair sink the gulf of Athens on mines layed by the British submarine Rorqual
10/25/1941The British cruiser Latona is sunk north of Bardia by a group of German Stukas (Ju-87), while returning from mine laying mission.
10/31/1941U-boats sink United States destroyer Reuben James off Iceland.
11/9/1941An Italian convoy directed to Northern Africa (convoy ” Duisburg “) and composed by seven merchantmen and escorted by six destroyers, with a group of cruisers in distant coverage, is attached by Force K. With the help of the radar, Force K succeeds in sinking all the merchantmen and the destroyer Fulmine. Later, while rescuing survivors of the shipwrecks, the destroyer Libeccio is torpedoed and sunk by the British submarine Upholder.
11/13/1941The British aircraft carrier Ark Royal, returning from a mission delivering fighters to Malta, is torpedoed by the German submersible U-81, which had recently entered the Mediterranean. The ship will sink later in the day not too far from Gibraltar.
11/25/1941The battleship Barham, during an hunting cruise against Italian traffic bound to North Africa, is struck by three torpedoes launched by the German submersible U-331 and sinks north of Sidi El Barrani.
12/1/1941The Italian destroyer Da Mosto is intercepted and sunk north of Tripoli by the Force K composed of the light cruisers Aurora and Penelope and a destroyer. In these days, Force K is strengthened by two new cruisers, the Ajax and the Neptune, and two destroyers.
12/7/1941Japan attacks the USA. Canada declares war on Japan. Dutch Indies declares war on Japan.
12/8/1941United States, Britain declare war on Japan
12/9/1941China declares war on Japan, Germany, Italy. Thailand surrenders to Japan.
12/11/1941Germany and  Italy declare war on United States. The United States declares war on Germany and Italy.
12/11/1941The English submarine Truant torpedoes and sinks the Italian torpedo boat Alcione near Crete. The same day, the destroyer Farndale sinks near Bardia the submarine Caracciolo, which was engaged in a transport mission.
12/13/1941Cape Bon
12/13/1941The Italian light cruisers Alberico da Barbiano and Alberto di Giussano, assigned to an urgent restocking mission to Northern Africa, are intercepted near Cape Bon by four destroyer (the British Legion, Maori e Sikh e the Dutch Isaac Sweers) and sunk by torpedo and gunfire.
12/14/1941While escorting a Libyan-bound convoy, the battleship Vittorio Veneto is struck by a torpedo launched by the British submarine Urge, but is capable of returning to port. The German submarine U-557 sinks the British cruiser Galatea.
12/17/1941First battle of Sirte
12/18/1941First Battle of the Sirte. An inconclusive clash between an Italian squadron escorting a convoy, and a British force escorting the fast transport Breconshire directed to Malta. The battle consisted into a short exchange of volleys at a great distance without remarkable consequences for the two contenders. The two fleets returned to their respective harbors on the 18, and the Italian convoy succeeded in reaching Libya.
12/18/1941Italian frogmen sink the battleships Valiant and the Queen Elizabeth in Alexandria
12/19/1941Hitler takes personal command of German army.
12/18/1941Italian insidious weapons of the 10th Light Flotilla, transported by the submergible Scirè, penetrate the harbor of Alexandria and mine the battleships Queen Elizabeth and Valiant and an oil tanker. The two battleships are sunk to the bottom: the Valiant will require around six months of work before reentering service, while the Queen Elizabeth will not be ready until the second half of 1943.
12/19/1941Force K, which had left Malta to meet a n incoming British convoy, runs into an Italian minefield. The consequences are deadly; the cruiser light Neptune and the destroyer Kandahar sink. The light cruisers Aurora and Penelope are damaged; the first one more seriously than the second. Force K practically ceased to exist!
1/1/1942Twenty-six nations sign the United Nations Pact.
1/21/1942Axis advances into Cyrenaica.
1/29/1942Axis takes Benghazi, Libya, after 200-mile drive.
2/12/1942The destroyer Maori is sunk in Malta after heavy German aerial attacks.
3/23/1942Second Battle of Sirte
3/24/1942The British attempt to send four merchant ships from Alexandria to Malta; an Italian group goes out in pursuit of the British, but the engagement is not decisive. Nevertheless, the convoy is delayed enough to be later attached by Axis planes which sink all   transports, two at sea and two just after they had entered Malta. Also lost on the British side the destroyer Southwold, sunk on the 24th, and the destroyer Legion sunk on the 26th. along with the submergible P-39.
3/25/1942During the second battle of Sirte, the Italian destroyers Lanciere and Scirocco are sunk by a powerful tempest.
3/23/1942Sinking of the ship Galilea with the loss of almost 1,000 Italian troops.
3/28/1942British Commandos raid U-boat base at St.-Nazaire
4/1/1942The Italian light cruiser Giovanni dalle Bande Nere is torpedoed north of Sicily by the British submarine Urge.
4/1/1942The British submarines P-36 and Pandora are sunk in Malta by heavy bombardments. Other submarines are damaged.
4/1/1942The Greek submarine Glavkos is sunk in Malta by Axis airplanes.
4/4/1942The British destroyer Gallant, already damaged in January 1941 and since in a dry dock in Malta, is completely destroyed by Axis airplanes.
4/5/1942The British destroyer Havock, while escaping Malta, runs aground near Cape Bon and it is later destroyed by an Italian submarine.
4/6/1942The British destroyer Kingston is sunk during an aerial bombardment in Malta.
4/11/1942The British submarine Urge leaves Malta for Alexandria but it never arrives at the Egyptian base.
4/27/1942The U.S.S. Wasp launches 50 Spitfires destine to the defense of Malta. Immediately after landing, most of them are destroyed by heavy Axis bombardments.
5/8/1942Axis open spring offensive in Crimea.
5/8/1942The British submarine Olympus, while escaping Malta, is sunk my a mine near Porto Grande..
5/8/1942The carriers U.S.S. Wasp and H.M.S. Eagle launch 60 Spitfire for Malta.
5/9/1942The British destroyers Jackal, Jervis, Kipling and Lively leave Alexandria in pursuit of a Benghazi-bound convoy. After having been detected by German planes,  Kipling and Lively are sunk north of Sidi-elBarrani, while the Jackal is scuttle by her crew. Only the Jervis will make it back to base.
5/11/1942Mexico declares war on Axis.
5/22/1942The Italian destroyer Emanuele Pessagno, while escorting a Libya-bound convoy, is torpedoed and sunk north-west of Benghazi by the British submarine Turbulent.
6/8/1942The Italian destroyer Antoniotto Usodimare, while escorting a convoy in the Sicilian Channel, is tragically sunk by the Italian submarine Alagi.
6/12/1942An English convoy composed of 11 ships sets sail from Alexandria bound for Malta, escorted by admiral Vian’s naval group (7 cruisers and 17 destroyers), giving life to  operation Vigorous. The intervention of an Italian naval group with two battleships, cruisers and destroyers forces  the convoy to reverse its route with rather consistent losses. The light cruiser destroyer Nestor on the 16th and the destroyer Airedale along with two merchant ships. The light cruisers  Birmingham and Newcastle are also damaged . The Italians loose the heavy cruiser Trento immobilized by a torpedo bomber and later sunk on the 15th by the British submarine Umbra. The battleship Littorio is also damaged by an aerial torpedo, but it reaches port.Hermione is torpedoed and sunk on the 16th by the German submarine  U-205, the destroyer Hasty is sunk on the 15th by the German torpedo-boat  S-55. Also sunk the
6/12/1942Operation Harpoon takes place at the same time that Vigorous is unfolding. Six heavily escorted merchant ships attempt the crossing from Gibraltar to Malta. After the heavy units  had reversed course, the convoy was only protected by the light cruiser Cairo and  five destroyers. The convoy is attached by Axis airplanes and then by an Italian naval group (light cruisers  Montecuccoli and Eugenio di Savoia and five destroyers). Four merchant ships are sunk along with the British destroyer Bedouin and the Polish Kujawiak.
6/14/1942Battle of Mid-June (Operation Harpoon)
6/15/1942Axis forces enter Egypt.
6/1/1942British 8th Army halts Rommel’s drive at El Alamein.
7/9/1942The Italian submarine Perla is captured near Beirut by the British corvette Hyacinth.
7/10/1942During the preparation of an attack of 10th Light Flotilla against   Haifa, the Italian submarine  Scirè is intercepted and sunk by the armed trawler Islay.
8/10/1942Another British attempt to supply Malta gives origin to Operation Pedestal: fourteen merchant ships set sail from Gibraltar with the close escort of 4 light cruisers and twelve destroyers and the distance coverage of three aircraft carriers, two battleships, three cruisers and twelve destroyers. Furthermore, the aircraft carrier Furious will launch 38 Spitfires toward Malta. The Axis attacks are exclusively entrusted to airplanes and light units. The losses for the British are heavy:  the aircraft carrier Eagle  is sunk on the 11th near Algiers by U-73. The cruisers Cairo is sunk by the Italian submarines  Axums and Dessié on the 12th northwest of Cape Bon. The cruiser Manchester is sunk on the 13th by the Italian MS-22 near Cape Bon. The destroyer Foresight is sunk on the 12th by Italian torpedo bombers near the Tunisian coast.; Also sunk are nine of the fourteen merchant ships. The aircraft carrier Indomitable damaged along with the the light cruisers  Nigeria and Kenya, but five merchant ships arrive in Malta with the precious cargo.
8/10/1942The Italian  lost the submarine Cobalto (rammed on the 12th by the destroyer Ithuriel) and Dagabur (rammed by the destroyer Wolverine on the 11th). Also, the submarine Unbroken succeeds in torpedoing and damaging rather seriously the Italian cruisers  Bolzano and Attendolo. The first one will not reenter service.
8/10/1942Brazil declares war on the Axis.
8/11/1942Germany annexes Luxembourg.
8/30/1942U-156 sinks the  16,695-ton British Liner Laconia carrying 1800 Italian prisoners of war. The British had locked the doors in the bulkheads; very few Italians survive.
9/13/1942Operation Agreement. The British attempt the landing of commandos in the area of Tobruk-El Alamein along with a concurrent attack of the Long Range Desert Group, with the support of naval unity from Alexandria. The operation fails with heavy losses: the anti-aircraft cruiser  Coventry and the destroyer Zulu are sunk on the 14th by Axis aerial attacks, while the destroyer Sikh is scuttled the same day after having been seriously damaged  the evening before by  fire from coastal batteries.
9/17/1942Admiral Doenitz orders the rescue of the survivors of the Laconia. The order is revoked after an American Liberator bombs one of the rescuing u-boats.
9/23/1942British open assault against Afrika Korps at El Alamein.
10/23/1942Beginning of the decisive British offensive at El Alamein. The 8th Army (gen. Montgomery) with a superiority in men of two to one, and an even greater one in materials launches the decisive push against the Axis forces. After twelve days of violent fighting and heavy losses from both the parts, the British begin the drive toward Libya and eventually Tunisia.
10/4/1942End of the Battle of El Alamein and beginning of the Axis retreat.
10/8/1942Operation Stoneage: American forces invade Morocco
10/8/1942An Allied convoy from Alexandria, a mixture of four merchant ships with the escort of three cruisers and ten destroyer, succeeds in reaching  Malta. The only damage is suffered by the cruiser Arethusa from an aerial attack. With this operation Malta’s crisis is over.
10/11/1942Germany occupies “unoccupied” France.
10/14/1942Allied troops enter Tunisia.
10/11/1942French scuttle their fleet in Toulon to prevent Axis seizure.
10/14/1942German armored forces enter Tolone with the purpose of capturing the French fleet. The French, warned in time,  succeed in scuttling  the fleet: three battleships, seven cruisers, thirty destroyer, sixteen submarines besides varied small units are destroyed. Despite the Italo-German efforts only a small number of units will be recovered and none will enter service.
10/15/1942The Force Q, based in Bona (Tunisia) and composed of the light cruisers  Aurora, Argonaut and Sirius and  two destroyers attacks an Italian convoy in the Sicilian Channel and sinks all four merchant ships and the destroyer Folgore. On the way back to base, Force Q loses the destroyer Quentin sunk by an Italian torpedo bomber north of Cape Bon.
10/4/1942During an heavy bombardment of Naples by American bombers, the light cruiser Muzio Attendolo is sunk.
12/8/1942Axis forces occupy Biserta and capture French naval units, but despite the efforts only a very few enter service with the Regia Marina or the Kriegsmarine.
12/15/1942After an engagment with the British destroyer Petard and the Greek Vasilla Olga, the Italian submarine Uarsciek is captured and then sunk while in tow.
1/3/1943British insidious weapon’s attack against the port of Palermo. The cruiser Ulpio Traiano (under construction) is sunk.
1/9/1943The Italian destroyer Corsaro sinks North-East of Biserta on a mine laid by the British minelayer Abdiel
1/17/1943The Italian destroyer Bombardiere is torpedoed and sunk by the British submarine United near the Eastern cost of Sicily.
1/31/1943The Italian torpedo boat Prestinari and the corvette Procellaria sink in a minefield laid by the British minelayer Welshman in the Sicilian Channel.
1/31/1943The Italian destroyer Saetta and the torpedo boat Uragano sink in a minefield laid by the British minelayer Abdiel North-east of Biserta.
2/21/1943Battle of Kasserine Pass in Tunisia.
2/21/1943Admiral Doenitz and Riccardi meet Mussolini to coordinate German support for the defense of Tunisia.
3/17/1943The Italian destroyers Ascari and Maloncello sink in the same minefield which, two weeks earlier, had claimed the Ciclone.
4/10/1943An heavy U.S.A.A.F  bombardment on the port of La Maddalena causes the sinking of the cruiser Trieste and serious damages to the Gorizia, which brought to la Spezia, will never reenter service.
4/16/1943British and American forces join in Tunisia.
4/10/1943During a British raid against Italian traffic, the destroyers Paladin and Pakenham attack a convoy. In the ensuing battle, the Italian torpedo boat Cigno is sunk, but the day after the  Pakenham, which had received serious damages, will be scuttle by her crew.
4/4/1943The British destroyers Nubian, Paladin and Petard intercept and sink an Italian merchant ship and the torpedo boat Perseo near Cape Bon.
5/7/1943Allies capture Tunis and Bizerte.
5/12/1943Axis resistance ends in North Africa.
5/7/1943Axis forces in North Africa surrender. After almost three years of struggle, the allied found themselves with over 250,000 prisoners of war.
5/12/1943The Italian submarine  Leonardo da Vinci returning from a successful mission near the South-African coast, is intercepted and sunk by the British destroyer Active and the frigate Ness near the Azores Islands.
5/23/1943The British destroyer Jervis and the Greek Queen Olga sink the Italian torpedo boat Castore and two merchant ships near Cape Spartivento
6/11/1943The Italian island of Pantelleria surrenders to the Allied.
6/12/1943The Italian island of Lampedusa surrenders to the Allied.
6/28/1943A U.S.A.A..F. bombardment on Leghorn sinks the old cruiser Bari.
7/10/1943Operation Husky. 181,000 troops land in Sicily near the Gulf of Gela and south of Siracusa. Coverage is offered by 6 battleships, 2 carriers, 15 cruisers, 128 destroyers and hundreds of other vessels. The Italian fleet does not intervene.
7/12/1943The Italian submarine Bronzo is captured near Siracusa by the British minesweepers Boston, Cromarty, Poole and Seaham
7/15/1943The Italian transport submarine Remo is sunk in the Gulf of Taranto by the British submarine United. Three days later, the twin ship Romolo is sunk by British airplanes near the port of Augusta. Both ships were on their first mission.
7/25/1943Mussolini resigns. Badoglio, the head of the army, is nominated Prime Minister.
7/29/1943Eisenhower broadcasts peace offer to Italy.
7/5/1943British enter Catania in Sicily.
7/9/1943The Italian destroyer  Gioberti is sunk near La Spezia by the British submarine Simoon while escorting an Italian squadron in mission against Palermo.
8/17/1943Americans take Messina. End of the Sicily campaign.
8/19/1943Allied air raid smashes Foggia, German air base in Italy.
8/3/1943Allies invade mainland Italy.
8/3/1943In Cassibile, Sicily the armistice between Italy and the Allied is signed. The announcement will not be made until the 8th.
9/8/1943Italy surrenders. German troops occupy Italy.
9/9/1943The Italian armistice is announced. German troops take control of the Italian peninsula and disarm the Italian Army which was left without orders. The Italian fleet leaves port for Malta and during the transfer the battleship Roma is sunk by German airplanes. Five battleships, eight cruisers, a dozen destroyers and thirty submarines reach Malta. A large number of other vessels is lost or captured.
9/8/1943British take Taranto naval base at tip of southern Italy. American 5th Army invades Italy at Salerno.
9/9/1943Germans occupy Rome assuring “protection” of Vatican.
9/9/1943Amongst the Italian units lost during the armistice can be found: the battleships Cavour, Roma and Impero. The carriers Aquila and Sparviero. The cruisers Gorizia, Bolzano, Taranto, Caio Mario, Cornelio Silla, Giulio Germanico, Ottaviano Augusto, FR-11, FR123, Etna and Vesuvio, 31 destroyers and 41 torpedo boats.
9/9/1943The Germans occupy Rome.
9/10/1943British 8th Army joins American 5th Army at Salerno.
9/1/1943Allies take Naples.
10/13/1943Monarchist Italy declares war on Germany. Beginning of the Italian civil war.