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147-695: By 1417, the local militia had already established a permanent watch post on the tip of the Sciberras Peninsula. In 1488, the Aragonese built a watchtower on Saint Elmo Point, and it was dedicated to Erasmus of Formia , better known as Saint Elmo. In 1533, the Order of Saint John reinforced the tower due to its strategic location. In 1551, an Ottoman raid occurred in which the Turkish fleet sailed into Marsamxett Harbour unopposed. Due to this, it

294-463: A Maiale (pig), was designed by Tesei and Toschi in 1935 and 1936. By late 1939 about eleven were ready and in July 1940 the production version, Series 100, began to arrive. In 1941 the improved Series 200 became ready for use. The standard 533 mm (21.0 in) torpedo with double propellers was changed to one larger propeller in a cowling; seats for a two-man crew were installed, with shields housing

441-464: A 13.2 mm (0.52 in) heavy machine-gun (replaced in 1941 with a Breda 20 mm cannon). The MAS could move at 44 kn (81 km/h; 51 mph) and had a range of 348–864 nmi (645–1,600 km). The Decima MAS MTMs got past a net barrage and rendezvoused near an islet in the mouth of Souda Bay, the MTM pilots using oars to move quietly. The commander called the boats together and resumed

588-551: A Mediterranean empire which included the Balearic Islands , Sicily , Corsica , Sardinia , Malta , Southern Italy (from 1442), and parts of Greece (until 1388). The component realms of the Crown were not united politically except at the level of the king, who ruled over each autonomous polity according to its own laws, raising funds under each tax structure, dealing separately with each Corts or Cortes , particularly

735-541: A boom from the inner side of St Elmo to the tip of the Ricasoli-side breakwater. St Elmo had six twin QF 6-pounder guns manned by the 3rd Coastal Battery, Royal Malta Artillery (RMA, battery commander Colonel Henry Ferro) and Ricasoli had three 6-pounders manned by the 1st Coastal Battery RMA. The guns had been emplaced on the bastion walls, about 60 ft (18 m) above sea level. There were many searchlights and

882-519: A centralised government. They were more an economic part of the Crown of Aragon than a political one. The fact that the King was keen on settling new kingdoms instead of merely expanding the existing kingdoms was a part of a power struggle that pitted the interests of the king against those of the existing nobility . This process was also under way in most of the European states that successfully effected

1029-406: A few hours and came across MAS-452, which he boarded only to find the bodies of eight Italian sailors. He waved the flag to attract the attention of the rescue launch but this had backfired. MAS-452 was towed to Malta by Jade and a drifting MTM was towed in, perhaps that piloted by Zaniboni. Tesei might have fallen behind, pressed on and been killed by Carabelli's MTM explosion. It might be that

1176-528: A foolhardy act of bravado. Thus, the nobility of Toulouse, Foix and other vassals of the Crown of Aragon were defeated. The conflict concluded with the Treaty of Meaux-Paris in 1229, in which the Crown of Aragon agreed to renounce its rights over the south of Occitania with the integration of these territories into the dominions of the King of France . King James I (13th century) returned to an era of expansion to

1323-521: A height of 3 ft 9 in (1.14 m) to fit inside the deck cylinders of submarines. The MTR carried the same explosive charge but were never used in this manner. The MT Siluranti (MTS, torpedo motorboat), was a small boat carrying one or two modified 450 mm (18 in) torpedoes, the MTS being more manoeuvrable than the usual Motoscafo armato silurante . The first MTS, of early 1941, could reach 28 kn (52 km/h; 32 mph) with

1470-470: A larger collection. Since the mid-20th century, Fort Saint Elmo has also housed Malta's police academy. Other parts of the fort are used for In Guardia and Alarme military reenactments. While the fort was being restored, some archaeological excavations were made and various elements of the original pre-1565 fort were uncovered. This was an important find because little of the original fort exists, mainly because Laparelli rebuilt it in 1566 and it underwent

1617-890: A legislative body, known as the Cortes in the Kingdom of Aragon (the Courts of Aragon ) or Corts in the Principality of Catalonia (the Catalan Courts ) and the Kingdom of Valencia (the Valencian Courts ). A Diputación del General or Diputació del General was established in each, becoming known as a Generalidad in Aragon and Generalitat in Catalonia and Valencia. From the 15th century onwards, every realm of

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1764-485: A lot of renovation between the 17th and 19th centuries. In November 2015 the fort was used as a media centre for the Valletta Summit on Migration . Foreign journalists stated that it was possibly "the most stunning venue which ever hosted an EU summit". The original star fort , sometimes known as Upper St. Elmo to distinguish it from the rest of the fort, consists of two demi-bastions, two flanks and two faces,

1911-502: A machine-gun post had been built on the rocks under Ricasoli, manned by troops of the 1st Battalion, Cheshire Regiment . The entrance had been divided into zones for each 6-pounder; targets in other zones were not to be engaged unless the gun had an empty zone. The guns were a recent addition and had been intended to have a fire control director but the ship bringing it had been sunk, leaving the guns were under local control. The 6-pounders fired special anti-flash ammunition, to avoid blinding

2058-519: A parade ground, barracks and a large cavalier . The fort included a ravelin in 1565, but this was demolished during the fort's reconstruction after the siege. The Main Entrance of Fort St.Elmo is known as the "Victoria Gate" and it is located at the bottom right corner of the fort. A gate known as the Porta del Soccorso serves as the main entrance to Upper St. Elmo. The 15th-century Chapel of St Anne

2205-513: A peninsula on which lies the city of Valetta. Marsamxett Harbour , to the north, housed the submarine base. Grand Harbour , to the south, the main harbour, had the main naval base and the commercial harbour. The entrance to Grand Harbour in 1941 was protected by Fort Saint Elmo at the end of the Valetta peninsula and by Fort Ricasoli at the eastern side of the entrance, with a breakwater jutting from each side. The gap between St Elmo and Ricasoli

2352-559: A plans office and a weapons section. The surface assault boats and the training school (Lieutenant-Commander Giorgio Giobbe) were split from the human torpedoes and other underwater weapons (Lieutenant-Commander Junio Valerio Borghese) , the captain of the Italian submarine  Scirè . Decima MAS remained at La Spezia and an advanced base was set up in Augusta, Sicily . The Siluro lenta corsa (SLC, slow speed torpedo), known as

2499-451: A range of 85 nmi (158 km). The Decima MAS was assisted by Regia Marina MAS boats, which by June 1940 had fifty Class 500 MAS and another 25 in 1941 in four versions. The Class 500 was 61 ft (18.7 m) long and a 15 ft (4.7 m) beam, with a displacement of 21.7–28.9 long tons; 24.3–32.4 short tons (22–29.4 t). The MAS had a crew of 9 to 13 men, two 18 in (450 mm) torpedoes, 6–10 depth charges and

2646-560: A research department (the Sezione Armi Speciali (Special Weapons Section) from 1939. The detachment had a few officers at HQ, seven at a confidential base at Bocca di Serchio for human torpedo and frogman training and another six officers to pilot the assault motorboats, of which seven had been built, plus eleven human torpedoes. On 24 February 1940, the 1st MAS Flotilla and the Special Weapons Section

2793-566: A single state, the Kingdom of Spain , as it moved towards an absolutist centralized government under the new Bourbon dynasty. Some of the nationalist movements in Spain consider the former kingdoms of the Crown of Aragon to be the foundation of their nations, the Catalan nationalist movement being the most prominent. Spanish nationalism , on the other hand, tends to place more importance on

2940-569: A small 2-man MTS command/navigational boat and an MTL loaded with the two Maiali . Diana towed the MTL and carried the MTM and the MTS with MAS-451 and MAS-452 close by. The weather was perfect, with a slight north-westerly breeze and a calm sea. Moccagatta was in command in MAS-452 and Giobbe commanded the MTM and directed the attack from the MTS. At 23:00 hours on 25 July, at Point C 17 nmi (32 km) north of Valletta, Diana stopped, launched

3087-592: A small indeterminate echo, which faded away as the strong echo moved out of range. The gun crews and searchlight personnel were stood-down but had to stay close by their equipment. The men slept in the gun emplacements, guns loaded and the searchlights were also held at 30-second readiness, directed to create an illuminated area in front of the harbour entrance. The guns at Fort St Elmo and Fort Ricasoli remained ready for action and at 02:45 an Italian aircraft flew north-west to south-east over Malta and bombed over 3 mi (4.8 km) from Valletta. Shortly after 03:00 hours

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3234-417: A time as possible, he did not accelerate to full power. About 160 ft (50 m) short of the net he jumped and the boat hit the net with insufficient impact to break off the bow, which got trapped in the net. Carabelli set his fuze to impact and did not jump, his MTM exploding on impact, setting off the charge in the other MTM and killing Carabelli, at about 04:48 hours. The blast of the double explosion on

3381-470: A timer. The maiale crews and the Gamma frogmen wore Belloni rubberised suits, with a closed-circuit re-breathing apparatus to avoid bubbles. The Gamma frogmen carried explosive charges, five 9.9 lb (4.5 kg) cimici (bedbugs) or two 26 lb (12 kg) bauletti , (little trunks) and attached them to a ship's hull, with a timed detonation. Maiali and SLCs needed transport close to

3528-467: Is located within the fort's walls close to this gate, and the 18th-century Church of St Anne is found within the parade ground. After the fortifications of Valletta were built, Vendôme Bastion was constructed in 1614 linking the French Curtain to Fort St. Elmo. The bastion contains an echaugette, and it was eventually converted into a magazine, and later an armoury. The bastion is now part of

3675-480: The Regia Aeronautica at 01:45 did not appear and just after 02:00 on 26 July Decima MAS reached Point B, 4.3 nmi (8 km) north of Valletta, not the planned arrival at 01:34. The MAS stopped and the eight MTM, led by Giobbe in the MTS, sailed southwards towards Valletta, in line-ahead at 5 kn (9.3 km/h; 5.8 mph), the maximum speed of the MTL, which reduced the wakes and noise of

3822-496: The maiale had drifted eastwards during the delay, considerably lengthening the journey beyond 04:30. Costa, having taken no notice of the order to retire, took his damaged maiale quietly and erratically towards Marsamxett Harbour. The MTL was standing by, waiting to rescue the crews and carry them to the MAS. The large diversionary air-raid was carried out at 04:13 by two aircraft, far earlier than scheduled, serving only to rouse

3969-582: The Catholic Monarchs who began the Inquisition , were contrary to the more plural development that preceded in the Crown of Aragon. The previous religious background was described as "longstanding tradition of Mudejarism , the royal sanctioning and protection of subject Muslim populations within Christian realms." Aesthetic Mudéjar architecture of Aragon has been observed as demonstrating

4116-471: The DCECH . The crown was made up of the following territories (which are nowadays parts of the modern countries of Spain, France, Italy, Greece, Malta , and Andorra ). Sort by "Earliest annexion" to see the states in the chronological order they were joined to the crown. Battle of Grand Harbour 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 The Raid on Grand Harbour ( Operazione MALTA-2 ),

4263-671: The House of Barcelona succeeded in extending its influence to the area that is now south of France through strong family ties, in the areas of the County of Provence , County of Toulouse and County of Foix . The rebellion of the Cathars or Albigensians, who rejected the authority and teachings of the Catholic Church , led to the loss of these possessions in southern France. Pope Innocent III called upon Philip II of France to suppress

4410-630: The Kingdom of Aragon as the Aragonese noblemen had intended since even before the creation of the Crown of Aragon. The Kingdom of Valencia became the third member of the Crown together with Aragon and the Principality of Catalonia . The Kingdom of Majorca had an independent status with its own kings until 1349. In 1282, the Sicilians rose up against the second dynasty of the Angevins on

4557-568: The Mediterranean Lingua Franca as a language. Although its official classification is that of a pidgin, some scholars adamantly oppose that classification and believe it would be better viewed as an interlanguage of Italian. Linguist Steven Dworkin hypothesized that Catalan was the point of entry for Mediterranean Lingua Franca terms into Spain, arguably the source of several Italian and Arabic loanwords in Spanish, citing

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4704-555: The National War Museum . The Carafa Enceinte, which was built starting from 1687, encloses the original fort as well as Vendôme Bastion. It consists of the following bastions and curtain walls: Some barrack blocks are located in the area between Upper St. Elmo and the Carafa Enceinte. Notes Crown of Aragon The Crown of Aragon ( UK : / ˈ ær ə ɡ ən / , US : /- ɡ ɒ n / )

4851-518: The Pyrenees and arrived at Muret where they were joined by Raymond of Foix and Raymond of Toulouse's forces, in September 1213 to confront Montfort's army. The Battle of Muret began on 12 September 1213. The Catalan, Aragonese and Occitan forces were disorganised and disintegrated under the assault of Montfort's squadrons. Peter himself was caught in the thick of fighting, and died as a result of

4998-559: The Reconquista by granting different grades of self-government either to cities or territories, instead of placing the new territories under the direct rule of nobility. In 1410, King Martin I died without living descendants or heirs. As a result, on the Compromise of Caspe , representatives from each Iberian state of the Crown, the kingdoms of Aragon, Valencia and the Principality of Catalonia, chose Ferdinand of Antequera from

5145-799: The Second Italo-Ethiopian War 1935–1936. In 1935 and early 1936, Captain Teseo Tesei and Captain Elios Toschi tested a human torpedo in La Spezia on the Tyrrhenian Sea and resumed testing in May. The Ethiopian defeat in 1936 ended the tests but work on assault boats continued. On 28 September 1938, Supermarina ordered the I Flottiglia MAS (1st Torpedo Motorboat Flotilla), based at La Spezia, to establish

5292-699: The Sicilian Vespers and massacred the garrison soldiers throughout the island. Peter III responded to their call, and landed in Trapani to an enthusiastic welcome five months later. This caused Pope Martin IV to excommunicate the king, place Sicily under interdiction, and offer the kingdom of Aragon to a son of Philip III of France . When Peter III refused to impose the Charters of Aragon in Valencia,

5439-666: The St Elmo Bridge trying to enter the harbour, before being driven off by fire from the coastal defences. The Decima MAS group was killed outside the harbour by the British harbour defences during the raid, swam ashore to be taken prisoner or were killed attempting the return journey; it was the worst defeat suffered by Decima MAS in the war. Many of the two MAS-boat ( Motoscafo armato silurante , torpedo-armed motorboat) crews and surviving Decima MAS men were killed when British Hurricane fighter aircraft attacked

5586-576: The expulsion of the Moriscos (1609). It was unable to prevent the separation of Sicily and Naples due to the establishment of the Council of Italy, the loss of Roussillon in 1659 after the Reapers' War in the Principality of Catalonia , the loss of Minorca and its Italian domains in 1707–1716, and the imposition of French language on Roussillon (1700) and Castilian as the language of government in all

5733-523: The treaty of Cazorla . The Kingdom of Majorca , including the Balearic Islands, and the counties of Cerdanya and Roussillon-Vallespir and the city of Montpellier , was held independently from 1276 to 1279 by James II of Majorca and as a vassal of the Crown of Aragon after that date until 1349, becoming a full member of the Crown of Aragon from 1349. Valencia was finally made a new kingdom with its own institutions and not an extension of

5880-402: The "bold Italian plan had entirely and literally misfired: not only had they rendered...the entrance completely impassable but their approach had been detected and monitored by radar"; he called the attack an abject failure. In 2009, Vincent O'Hara called the attack a fiasco because the collapsing of the bridge created an obstacle greater than the torpedo nets used to close the channel. None of

6027-414: The 19 Decima MAS personnel escaped; 10 were killed and nine were captured. Of the 26 MAS crew, six were killed, nine were captured, and 11 escaped to Italy where one later died of wounds. One Regia Aeronautica pilot was killed. All the MTM, maiali and two Saetta s were lost, only the MTS returning to Sicily. The British lost one Hurricane fighter and captured MAS-452, which was towed in by

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6174-633: The Albigensians—the Albigensian Crusade , which led to bringing Occitania firmly under the control of the King of France, and the Capetian dynasty from northern France. Peter II of Aragon returned from the Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa in autumn 1212 to find that Simon de Montfort, 5th Earl of Leicester , had conquered Toulouse , exiling Count Raymond VI of Toulouse , who was Peter's brother-in-law and vassal. Peter's army crossed

6321-539: The Aragonese Kingdom of Sardinia finally extended throughout the island. The subduing of Sardinia having taken a century, Corsica , which had never been wrested from the Genoese, was dropped from the formal title of the Kingdom. Through the marriage of Peter IV to Maria of Sicily (1381), the Kingdom of Sicily , as well as the duchies of Athens and Neopatria , were finally implemented more firmly into

6468-469: The Aragonese Military) but the title of King of Aragon was reserved for Ramiro II and Berenguer's future sons. Raymond Berenguer IV, the first ruler of the united dynasty, called himself Count of Barcelona and "Prince of Aragon". Alfonso II inherited two realms and with them, two different expansion processes. The House of Jiménez looked south in a battle against Castile for the control of

6615-573: The Aragonese frontier with Castile. This action should be seen as result of the aforementioned priority given over the Occitan and Catalan dominions of the Crown of Aragon. From the ninth century, the dukes of Aquitaine , the kings of Navarre , the counts of Foix , the counts of Toulouse and the counts of Barcelona were rivals in their attempts at controlling the various counties of the Hispanic Marches and pays of Occitania . And

6762-517: The Aragonese nobility demanded. Like his father, he gave priority to the expansion and consolidation of the House of Barcelona 's influence in Occitania. Alfonso II signed the treaties of Cazorla , a multilateral treaty between Navarre , Aragon , León , Portugal, and Castile to redefine the frontiers and zones of expansion of each kingdom. Alfonso II assured Valencia by renouncing the Aragonese rights of annexing Murcia in exchange for securing

6909-435: The Aragonese out. The war between Arborea and Aragon was fought on and off for more than 100 years; this situation lasted until 1409, when the army of Arborea suffered a heavy defeat by the Aragonese army in the Battle of Sanluri ; the capital Oristano was lost in 1410. After some years during which Arborean rulers failed to organise a successful resurgence, they sold their remaining rights for 100,000 gold florins, and by 1420

7056-499: The British, when a musketry parapet was built. In 1855, the polverista at Vendome Bastion was converted into an armoury, and some small arms from the Palace Armoury were transferred there. In the 1870s, more works were done on Abercrombie's Bastion. In 1917, the first heart operation to be performed on a soldier was done at St Elmo. In the interwar period gun emplacements were built to house new twin 6-pounder QF guns. The fort

7203-456: The British. In 1957, the British naval official historian, Stephen Roskill , wrote that the harbour defences were alert and that the attacking force was destroyed, having achieved nothing. In the same year, Marcantonio Bragadin wrote that the raid was the worst and most costly defeat of the special assault units in the war but that "defeat though it was, it must certainly be considered a glorious one". In 2002, Greene and Massignani wrote that

7350-510: The Carafa Enceinte. These are known as Pinto Stores and they and the surrounding area form what is known as Lower Saint Elmo. On 8 September 1775, Fort Saint Elmo was captured by 13 rebel priests along with Saint James Cavalier in what became known as the Revolt of the Priests . The Order's flag was lowered and a banner of Saint Paul was raised instead. The Order managed to recapture St Elmo so

7497-618: The Castilian dynasty of Trastámara as king of the Crown of Aragon as Ferdinand I of Aragon . Later, his grandson King Ferdinand II of Aragon recovered the northern Catalan counties—Roussillon and Cerdagne—which had been lost to France as well as the Kingdom of Navarre , which had recently joined the Crown of Aragon but had been lost after internal dynastic disputes. In 1469, Ferdinand married Infanta Isabella of Castile , half-sister of King Henry IV of Castile , who became Queen of Castile and León after Henry's death in 1474. Their marriage

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7644-587: The Cheshires one but only two MTM had been sunk. The plan was for the MTM pilots to steer north and regroup if the harbour could not be entered. In the fire, smoke and water splashes, four pilots managed to steer northwards into the dark, benefiting from a light sea mist. Bosio had run a short distance under fire and escaped. Marchisio, following, received more fire, was wounded and his MTM damaged. The MTMs, piloted by Follieri and Pedrini were destroyed and both pilots wounded but they managed to swim ashore. Zaniboni,

7791-824: The Crown of Aragon also controlled Montpellier , Provence , Corsica , and the twin Duchy of Athens and Neopatras in Latin Greece . In the Late Middle Ages, the southward territorial expansion of the Aragonese Crown in the Iberian Peninsula stopped in Murcia, which eventually consolidated as a realm of the Crown of Castile , the Kingdom of Murcia . Subsequently, the Aragonese Crown focused on

7938-425: The Crown of Aragon as being more like a confederacy than a centralised kingdom. The Crown of Aragon originated in 1137, when the Kingdom of Aragon and the County of Barcelona (along with the County of Provence , Girona , Cerdanya , Osona and other territories) merged by dynastic union upon the marriage of Petronilla of Aragon and Raymond Berenguer IV of Barcelona ; their individual titles combined in

8085-561: The Crown of Aragon is the familiar coat of the Counts of Barcelona and Kings of Aragon . The Pennon was used exclusively by the monarchs of the Crown and was expressive of their sovereignty. James III of Majorca , vassal of the Crown of Aragon, used a coat of arms with four bars, as seen on the Leges palatinae miniatures. As separate states united to the Crown under the aeque principaliter principle, Aragon, Catalonia and Valencia each had

8232-460: The Crown of Aragon was Barcelona , followed by Valencia . Finally, Palma ( Majorca ) was an additional important city and seaport. The Crown of Aragon eventually included the Kingdom of Aragon , the Principality of Catalonia (until the late 12th century the County of Barcelona and others), the Kingdom of Valencia , the Kingdom of Majorca , the Kingdom of Sicily , Malta , the Kingdom of Naples and Kingdom of Sardinia . For brief periods

8379-445: The Crown was granted its own court of justice in the form of Royal Audience , resulting from the division of the Royal Court and the establishment of the Council of Aragon in its place. After the dynastic union with Castile and the establishment of the monarchs in that realm, the king began to be permanently represented in the realms of the Crown of Aragon by viceroys , one for each state, including Mallorca and Sardinia. The house of

8526-434: The Crown was the Cathedral of the Savior of Zaragoza from Peter II (12th century). The General Courts of the Crown (the simultaneous meeting of the Courts of Catalonia, Aragon and Valencia) used to gather at Monzón (13th to 16th centuries), the remaining meetings took place at Fraga , Zaragoza , Calatayud and Tarazona . The councillor headquarters were located at Barcelona (13th to 16th centuries) and Naples during

8673-423: The Crown. The Greek possessions were permanently lost to Nerio I Acciaioli in 1388 and Sicily was dissociated in the hands of Martin I from 1395 to 1409, but the Kingdom of Naples was added finally in 1442 by the conquest led by Alfonso V . The King's possessions outside of the Iberian Peninsula and Balearic Islands were ruled by proxy through local elites as petty kingdoms , rather than subjected directly to

8820-460: The Hurricanes towards the MTL, which attacked, wounded Paratore and sank the MTL. A civilian RASC launch went out and rescued the nine survivors of MAS-541 and Paratore. As the launch approached MAS-452, someone waved the Italian flag and the launch was ordered back to Grand Harbour. Around noon, a Swordfish floatplane landed near MAS-452 and found Pilot Officer Denis Winton, from the shot down Hurricane. Winton had paddled his dinghy towards Malta for

8967-630: The Italian submarine  Ametista began tests as a maiale transport. The maximum depth of submersion was only 98 ft (30 m); Italian submarine  Iride was converted in July 1940 but was sunk on 21 August. Italian submarine  Gondar was sunk on 30 September, even though the three maiali cylinders could be flooded, allowing the boat to reach a depth of 295 ft (90 m). The first Motoscafo turismo (MT, known as barchini , little boats ) were built in late 1938, six MT being delivered in early 1939. An improved version MT Modificato (MTM) tested in November 1940,

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9114-425: The Italians reached Point A, about 0.62 mi (1 km) off the St Elmo headland. The MTS and the eight MTM stopped there and the MTL moved another 660 ft (200 m) closer to Fort St Elmo. The maiali were launched but this took a long time and the Italians found that the maiale for Marsaxxlox Harbour was down by the stern, probably because of the earlier collision between the MTL and MAS-451. Tesei,

9261-442: The Kingdom of Aragon, the Principality of Catalonia , the Kingdom of Majorca , and the Kingdom of Valencia . The larger Crown of Aragon must not be confused with one of its constituent parts, the Kingdom of Aragon, from which it takes its name. In 1479, a new dynastic union of the Crown of Aragon with the Crown of Castile by the Catholic Monarchs , joining what contemporaries referred to as "the Spains", led to what would become

9408-403: The MAS at Point B. Bosio stopped his MTM about 4,900 ft (1,500 m), north-west of Fort St Elmo, to rally the MTMs but only Zaniboni appeared. They saw a stopped boat and moved towards it, only to find that it was a buoy. A searchlight from the Sliema Batteries came to rest on the two MTM, the Fort San Rocco gunners immediately opened fire and the MTM pilots got quickly out of the way into

9555-406: The MAS being beyond the 5,500 yd (5,000 m)-range of the gun. The shell fell short, ricocheted off the surface of the sea and hit MAS-452 in the wheelhouse. The captain, Parodi, his helmsman, Moccagatta, Giobbe, Falcomata (surgeon), Montanari (pilot of the scuttled MTM), Constantini and Zocchi (MTS crew), were killed. The eleven survivors, fearing that MAS-452 was about to founder, got into

9702-433: The MAS-boats on the morning of 26 July, along with two Macchi C.200 Saetta (Lightning) fighter escorts shot down in dogfights. A Hurricane was shot down and the pilot rescued from MAS-452, which was recovered and used as a tender by the British. The interest of the Regia Marina in small boat warfare and other mezzi insidiosi , stealth and deceit, lay dormant between 1918 and the diplomatic crisis with Britain over

9849-422: The MTS and the MTM, which took about an hour; an MTM was damaged. At midnight Diana turned northwards for Sicily, to await the MAS off Cape Passero . The MAS escorted the MTM, MAS-451 towing the MTL; hardly had the tow begun when the tow rope fouled the propeller of MAS-451 and the boats collided; one of the maiali might have been damaged but not noticed at the time. Trying to free the propeller of MAS-451

9996-517: The MTS, sped towards Sicily and rendezvoused with Diana , which was waiting for the returning boats off Cape Passero. MAS-451 was en route to Sicily with ten Saetta s of 7° Gruppo overhead. At 05:50, the Hurricanes arrived and a dogfight began. Two Saetta s were shot down, one pilot, Avellina De Mattia, was rescued but Ruggero Gallina was killed. Another Hurricane formation flew north and at about 06:20, attacked MAS-451, about 36 nmi (67 km; 41 mi) north-east of Malta. A Hurricane

10143-483: The Mediterranean for hundreds of years, with thalassocratic power to setting rules over the entire sea, (as documented, for instance, in the Llibre del Consolat del Mar or Book of the Consulate of the Sea , written in Catalan , is one of the oldest compilations of maritime laws in the world). However, the different territories were only connected through the person of the monarch. A modern historian, Juan de Contreras y Lopez de Ayala, marquis of Lozoya , described

10290-445: The Mediterranean, governing as far afield as Greece and the Barbary Coast , whereas Portugal, which completed its southward expansion in 1249, would focus on the Atlantic Ocean. Mercenaries from the territories in the Crown, known as Almogavars participated in the creation of this Mediterranean empire, and later found employment in countries all across southern Europe. The Crown of Aragon has been considered an empire which ruled in

10437-415: The South, by conquering and incorporating Majorca , Ibiza , and a good share of the Kingdom of Valencia into the Crown. With the Treaty of Corbeil (1258) , which was based upon the principle of natural frontiers, the Capetians were recognised as heirs of the Carolingian dynasty , and the Capetian king Louis IX renounced any historical claim of feudal overlordship over Catalonia. The general principle

10584-689: The Spanish composite monarchy under Habsburg monarchs . The Aragonese Crown continued to exist until it was abolished by the Nueva Planta decrees issued by King Philip V in 1707–1716 as a consequence of the defeat of Archduke Charles (as Charles III of Aragon) in the War of the Spanish Succession . Formally, the political centre of the Crown of Aragon was Zaragoza , where kings were crowned at La Seo Cathedral . The 'de facto' capital and leading cultural, administrative and economic centre of

10731-450: The advance towards the third net barrage, about 3 nmi (5.6 km; 3.5 mi) away. The commander, Faggioni, briefed the pilots; two were to attack the heavy crusier York , about 1,600 ft (500 m) away; Faggioni and another MTM pilot waited in reserve in case the attack failed. Soon after 05:00, as dawn was breaking, the first two MTMs moved to about 980 ft (300 m) from York , waited for another fifteen minutes for

10878-414: The afternoon of 27 June with five MAS towing nine MTM; a MTS and a MTM were towed by MAS-452. Two MTM each were towed by MAS-451, -509, -556 and -562. Rough seas swamped an MTM and the force turned back. Another attempt with eight MTM was made on 29/30 June. MAS-452 towed the MTS and the other MAS towed two MTM apiece. The weather was too rough and a damaged MTM was sent back to Augusta, towed by its MAS,

11025-449: The air to finish off the Italian boats but headed north when Italian aircraft were reported approaching from Sicily. One fighter strafed MAS-452 as she approached Malta and eight fighters attacked Bosio and Zaniboni in their MTM with machine guns and cannon-fire near the buoy. Both pilots raced their MTM in irregular circles but Bosio was soon wounded and his boat stopped. Zaniboni fell or jumped from his MTM, which continued to circle until it

11172-462: The arrival of reinforcements from Spain. After the siege, Grandmaster Jean Parisot de Valette decided to build a new city on the peninsula. Construction started in 1566, and Francesco Laparelli was sent by the Pope to design the fortifications. The ruined Fort Saint Elmo was rebuilt and integrated within the city walls. The fort was modified a number of times in the 17th century. The Vendôme Bastion

11319-399: The attack became known as a 'glorious failure' in Italian writing. The British Ultra code-breakers gave a warning of the attack, the approach of Diana was revealed by radar and mechanical failures blighted the mission. The destruction of the bridge blocked the harbour more effectively than the nets and the British destroyed or captured the MTM and a MAS. In 2003, Richard Woodman wrote that

11466-486: The boat engines. The Italian force had been detected by radar several hours earlier; a temperature inversion , which makes radar waves curve over the horizon, had extended the radar range from Malta. At 22:30 hours on 25 July, 502 RAF Radar station, at Fort Madliena, detected a strong echo 39 nmi (72 km) to the north-east, the defences were alerted and gun crews closed up. The echo faded at 23:00 and around midnight it moved northwards towards Sicily, leaving behind

11613-446: The bridge collapsed. The bridge was never restored, and it was only in 2012 that a new one was built in its place with a similar but different design. Parts of the fort were severely damaged during the war and some scars of the bombing can still be seen to this day. The Royal Malta Artillery left the fort on 26 March 1972, ending its long military history. Parts of the fort subsequently fell in disuse. The World Monuments Fund placed

11760-415: The controls. The SLC weighed 1.3–1.4 long tons (1.3–1.4 t) and was 22–24 ft (6.7–7.3 m) long. The 1.6 hp (1.2 kW) electric motor moved the maiale at 2–3 nmi (3.7–5.6 km; 2.3–3.5 mi) at a maximum depth of 50 ft (15 m). At the target the crew detached a 6 ft (1.8 m)-long warhead with 510 to 570 lb (230 to 260 kg) of explosive, detonated by

11907-409: The darkness. Bosio told Zaniboni that the entrance was blocked and he was going to find something to attack outside the harbour. He offered fuel to Zaniboni to get him back to Sicily but Zaniboni decided to stay. Capriotti stopped his MTM about 800 m (870 yd) north of Fort St Elmo, found no other MTM and decided to penetrate the harbour by himself. Capriotti steered slowly through the mist to

12054-414: The defenders. The eight MTM clustered around the MTS, 0.54 nmi (1 km) offshore, waiting in the morning mist for the explosion signalling that the way was clear as the current pushed the MTM eastwards, too subtly for the pilots to notice. At 04:12 Giobbe moved 0.27 nmi (500 m) closer to the shore, moving so slowly that it took eight minutes. At 04:30, the MTM pilots were still waiting for

12201-708: The dispute between the Anjevins and the Aragonese over Sicily, Pope Boniface VIII created ex novo a Kingdom of Sardinia and Corsica and entrusted it as a fief to the Aragonese King James II , ignoring already existing, indigenous states. In 1324, James II finally started to seize the Pisan territories in the former states of Cagliari and Gallura . In 1347 Aragon made war on the Genoese Doria and Malaspina houses, which controlled most of

12348-467: The explosion and Giobbe told Frassetto to destroy the net, with Carabelli to back him up in case of problems. The two boats headed southwards to reach the St Elmo headland but the pilots were surprised to find themselves off Fort Ricasoli, well to the east. They turned and motored slowly to the north-west and were ready to attack just after 04:45. Frassetto aimed at the net but to retain surprise for as long

12495-437: The explosion, being surprised that it seemed off to the right and not ahead, because of the current. Bosio was followed by Marchisio, Follieri, Pedrini, Zaniboni and Capriotti in line astern. The first five boats were to attack moored shipping and Capriotti was to intercept any harbour protection launches that tried to intervene. The MTM raced to the south-west which, due to the current was further than planned. The water outside

12642-406: The fifth MTM and Capriotti the sixth, were near the edge of the illuminated area when the firing started and escaped into the dark, Capriotti under machine-fire from the Cheshires. Giobbe, waiting in the MTS, realised that disaster was upon them and waited for surviving MTMs but none appeared. Not long after 05:00, dawn having broken, Giobbe ordered the MTL to withdraw and he went at full speed towards

12789-638: The first to use it were the Genoese and Venetian trading colonies in the eastern Mediterranean after the year 1000. As the use of Lingua Franca spread in the Mediterranean, dialectal fragmentation emerged, the main difference being more use of Italian and Provençal vocabulary in the Middle East, while Ibero-Romance lexical material dominated in the Maghreb. After France became the dominant power in

12936-490: The fort on its 2008 Watch List of the 100 Most Endangered Sites in the world because of its significant deterioration due to factors such as lack of maintenance and security, natural aging, and exposure to the elements. Since 2009 major restoration works began, and as of 2014 the restoration of Upper Saint Elmo and the Carafa enceinte was nearly complete. Restoration work was completed in 2015. Lower Saint Elmo has been cleaned from

13083-548: The forts, those on Fort Tigné and the Cheshire machine-gunners opened fire. Capriotti took rapid evasive action and with shells exploding all around, jumped overboard, just before his MTM was hit and exploded. Marchisio's stationary MTM was also destroyed, all in under a minute. Capriotti swam over to Marchisio, who was semi-conscious, prevented from drowning only by his lifebelt and got him ashore. Shortly after 05:30, thirty Hurricanes of 126 Squadron and 185 Squadron took to

13230-473: The gun-layers at night but concealing the flash produced huge clouds of smoke. Reconnaissances were conducted off Valletta during the nights of 25/26 and 27/28 May, with encouraging results, the MAS had approached within 4 nmi (7.4 km; 4.6 mi) of Valletta, with the Malta coast defences apparently quiescent. Supermarina postponed an attack on 30 May and Decima MAS was ordered to wait until

13377-452: The guns of St Elmo inadvertently, the shell from "G" gun exploding the charge on the maiale . A breathing mask with human remains was found in the water next morning. Costa missed the entrance to Marsamxett Harbour and got lost off the north-west coast until 08:00, when his maiale broke down for good. Costa and Baria swam ashore about 3 mi (4.8 km) north-west of Valletta and surrendered, their maiale being salvaged later by

13524-410: The harbour entrance was suddenly lit with searchlight beams. After a few seconds a bright white bow-wave of a small fast-moving boat entered lit area to its north-east. A second bow-wave followed and then others until six boats in line-ahead could be seen heading towards the St Elmo bridge. Every gun that could be brought to bear, three of the six 6-pounders on Fort St. Elmo, the three on fort Ricasoli and

13671-406: The history of the Crown of Aragon remains a politically loaded topic in modern Spain, especially when it comes to asserting the level of independence enjoyed by constituents of the Crown, like the Principality of Catalonia, which is sometimes used to justify the level of autonomy (or independence) that should be enjoyed by contemporary Catalonia and other territories. The origin of Coat of arms of

13818-487: The influence of Andalusian and Arab culture in Aragon proper. Gothic architecture was also developed. The Mediterranean Lingua Franca was a mixed language used widely for commerce and diplomacy and was also current among slaves of the bagnio , Barbary pirates and European renegades in precolonial Algiers . Among the speakers who created the language, also called Sabir, were Muslims from Aragon called "Tagarins" (a term mentioned by Miguel Cervantes ). Historically,

13965-465: The influence of Castile. And so, Ramiro was forced to leave his monastic life and proclaim himself King of Aragon. He married Agnes, sister of the Duke of Aquitaine and betrothed his only daughter Petronilla of Aragon to Raymond Berenguer IV, Count of Barcelona . The wedding agreement provided Berenguer with the title of Princeps Aragonum and Dominator Aragonensis (Ruler of the Kingdom and Commander of

14112-525: The kingdom of Alfonso V. On the other hand, the General Archive of the Crown of Aragon , which was the official repository of royal documentation of the Crown since the reign of Alfonso II (12th century), was located in the Monastery of Santa María de Sigena until the year 1301 and then moved to Barcelona. In the early 15th century, the de facto capital was Valencia until Alfonso V came to

14259-585: The kingdoms on the Iberian peninsula, save the Kingdoms of Portugal and the Algarve, under one monarch—his co-monarch and mother Queen Joanna I in confinement—thereby furthering the creation of the Spanish monarchy, albeit a composite and decentralized one. The literary evocation of past splendour recalls correctly the great age of the 13th and 14th centuries, when Majorca, Valencia and Sicily were conquered,

14406-412: The lands of the former Logudoro state in north-western Sardinia, and added them to its direct domains. The Giudicato of Arborea , the only remaining independent Sardinian state, proved far more difficult to subdue. The rulers of Arborea developed the ambition to unite all of Sardinia under their rule and create a single Sardinian state, and at a certain point (1368–1388, 1392–1409) almost managed to drive

14553-545: The later dynastic union with the Crown of Castile , considering it the origin of one Spanish nation. The reprisals inflicted on the territories that had fought against Philip V in the War of Succession is given by some Valencian nationalists and Catalan nationalists as an argument against the centralism of Spanish nationalism and in favor of federalism, confederation, or even independence. Some Catalans associated their ancient political status with their Generalitat and resistance to Castile. Because restoration of fueros

14700-526: The latter area in the 19th century, Algerian Lingua Franca was heavily gallicised (to the extent that locals are reported having believed that they spoke French when conversing in Lingua Franca with the Frenchmen, who in turn thought they were speaking Arabic), and this version of the language was spoken into the nineteen hundreds... The similarities contribute to discussions of the classification of

14847-473: The machine-guns of the 1st Cheshire on the Ricasoli foreshore, opened fire. Bosio reached the bridge, only to find the entrance blocked and veered away, blinded by the searchlights and shell explosions. Two MTM were destroyed before they reached the bridge. The gunfire lasted for about two minutes then, at about 04:52 ceased as no more targets could be seen. E, F and G guns at Fort St Elmo each claimed an MTM and

14994-473: The majority of whom were Spanish , and sixty armed galley slaves. The garrison could be reinforced by boat from the forts across the Grand Harbour at Birgu and Senglea . During the bombardment of the fort, a cannon misfired and hit the top of its parapet, sending shards in all directions. Debris from the impact killed the gunner and mortally injured the corsair and Ottoman admiral Dragut , one of

15141-570: The middle valley of the Ebro in the Iberian peninsula. The House of Barcelona looked north to its origins, Occitania , where through family ties it had significant influence, especially in Toulouse , Provence and Foix , towards the south along the Mediterranean coast and towards the Mediterranean sea . Soon, Alfonso II of Aragon and I of Barcelona committed to conquering Valencia as

15288-633: The most competent of the Ottoman commanders. The fort withstood the siege for 28 days, falling to the Turks on 23 June 1565. None of the defending knights survived, and only nine of the Maltese defenders survived by swimming across to Fort St. Angelo on the other side of the Grand Harbour after Fort St Elmo fell. The long siege bought much needed time for the preparation of the other two fortresses and

15435-525: The next new moon in towards the end of June 1941. The attack was given the code-name Operazione MALTA-1 Another reconnaissance by MAS boats during the night of 25/26 June came within 3 km (1.6 nmi; 1.9 mi) without alerting the shore defences, leading the Decima MAS to look on the attack with greater optimism. Operazione MALTA-1 departed from an advanced base at Augusta in Sicily on

15582-654: The nobles and towns united in Zaragoza to demand a confirmation of their privileges, which the king had to accept in 1283. Thus began the Union of Aragon , which developed the power of the Justícia to mediate between the king and the Aragonese bourgeois. When James II of Aragon completed the conquest of the Kingdom of Valencia, the Crown of Aragon established itself as one of the major powers in Europe. In 1297, to solve

15729-514: The old Aragonese Crown lands in Spain (1707–1716). The Crown of Aragon and its institutions and public law were abolished between 1707 and 1716 only after the War of the Spanish Succession (1701–1714) by the Nueva Planta decrees , issued by Philip V of Spain . The original political structure was swept away, the administration was subsumed into the Castilian laws, the states of the Crown of Aragon loss their status of separate entitites and were united formally with those of Castile to legally form

15876-498: The other maiale would attack the submarines at Marsamxett Creek. Small air raids at 02:30 and 04:15 on Valletta by the Regia Aeronautica would be useful navigational aids to Decima MAS . The third air raid was to be a bigger effort, just inland from Valletta, at 04:30 to serve as a diversion when Decima MAS attacked. It was hoped that the noise of the British anti-aircraft guns would mask approaching boats. At 05:30 fighters would take-off from Comiso in Sicily, to escort

16023-463: The other MTM being taken over by MAS-452. The weather abated after night fell but at 21:00 one of the MTM tow cables broke and the MTM engine failed, making it impossible to catch up for the tow to be rejoined. After an hour of fruitless attempts to get the engine going, it was scuttled at 22:00 and the mission was resumed. Only five minutes after resuming the journey, one of the MAS suffered an engine failure and took twenty minutes to get going, by when it

16170-508: The permanent political capital, but not the economic or administrative capital, owing to the obligation for kings to be crowned at the Cathedral of the Savior of Zaragoza . During the Crown of Aragon, the Catalan culture and language underwent a vigorous expansion. During the period of trade, Occitan-Catalan contributions to Maltese occurred. King Fernando II and Queen Isabella , as

16317-433: The person of their son Alfonso II of Aragon , who ascended to the throne in 1162. This union respected the existing institutions and parliaments of both territories. The combined state was initially known as Regno, Dominio et Corona Aragonum et Catalonie (only between 1286-1291), and later as Corona Regum Aragoniae , Corona Aragonum or simply Aragon . Petronilla's father King Ramiro, "The Monk" (reigned 1134–1137) who

16464-415: The pilot of the other maiale , spent half an hour trying to make repairs. Tesei gave up for lack of time and ordered Costa to scuttle it and return to the MTL. Tesei was unable to begin the attack until 03:45, about an hour late. Because of the approaching dawn and the air raid diversion, cutting the St Elmo net could not be delayed beyond 04:30, leaving Tesei 45 minutes to plant his explosive charge. There

16611-553: The population growth could be handled without social conflict, and the urban prosperity, which peaked in 1345, created the institutional and cultural achievements of the Crown. The Aragonese crown's wealth and power stagnated and its authority was steadily transferred to the new Spanish crown settled in Castile after that date—the demographic growth was partially offset by the expulsion of the Jews from Spain (1492), Muslims (1502) and

16758-471: The rebels in control of St James surrendered as well. Eventually the rebels were tried and three were executed while the others were exiled or imprisoned. The heads of the three executed men were displayed on the corners of St James Cavalier but were removed soon after Emmanuel de Rohan-Polduc was elected Grandmaster in November of the same year. The fort was once again modified in the early 19th century by

16905-536: The returning boats. A MAS reconnaissance sortie off Malta during the night of 23/24 July closed to within 1.2 mi (2 km) of the coast. Four searchlights scanned the sea but missed the MAS, which made its way slowly back northwards to safety. On 24 June, Convoy GM 1 from Operation Substance arrived at Malta, guaranteeing that Grand Harbour would contain plenty of targets. Nineteen men of Decima MAS and 2 MAS with 13 crew each, left Augusta at 18:15 on 25 July 1941, with Diana , MAS-451 and MAS-452, nine MTM,

17052-421: The searchlights to warm up. A few seconds after the explosion, Gunner Zammit, with G gun, on Fort St Elmo, spotted movement in the water. The movement resembled a very small wake or bow-wave moving slowly across his line of sight towards the bridge. Zammit fired one round at about 300 yd (270 m), triggering an explosion. The pilots of the MTM did not know that their route was still blocked and raced towards

17199-401: The sky to clear, then sped towards the cruiser, the pilots abandoning their MTMs about 260 ft (80 m) from the ship. At 05:11 an officer on York heard an engine, mistook it for an aircraft and before he could raise the alarm, the ship was hit. Encouraged by this success, Decima MAS was ordered on 26 April to plan a similar attack on Grand Harbour. Valetta Harbour is bisected by

17346-412: The small wave shot at by "G" gun at Fort St Elmo, between Carabelli's explosion and the lighting of the searchlights, was Tesei. Joseph Caruana (1991) thought that destruction by "G" gun was the most likely explanation. If this is true, Tesei took far longer than expected and was a considerable distance away from the bridge when Carabelli's MTM exploded. Feeling the explosion, Tesei might have surfaced under

17493-403: The south-west and eventually saw that he was close to the shore, west of Fort St Elmo. He turned east at creeping speed, hoping that the MTM would look like a wreck drifting on the current. When opposite the entrance, he was going to dash through it, unaware that it was blocked. He came across a drifting MTM and Marchisio in the water nearby, wounded. Near the bridge, Capriotti saw that the entrance

17640-410: The surface of the sea, rather than at depth, destroyed the net and brought down one of the bridge spans, filling the passage with wreckage, making an even worse obstacle. The fort garrisons had not seen the first MTM attack and only realised that something was up when they heard Carabelli revving his engine and then the explosion under the bridge. The 6-pounders were ready but it took thirty seconds for

17787-484: The target because the re-breather lasted no more than six hours and maiali had a range of only 4 nmi (7.4 km; 4.6 mi) at full speed and a maximum of 15 nmi (28 km; 17 mi) at cruising speed. The modified destroyers Francesco Crispi and Quintino Sella , had carried the MTM used in the Raid on Souda Bay (25/26 March 1941). The Motoscafo trasporto lento (MTL, slow transport motorboat)

17934-521: The throne. During the 15th and the 16th centuries, the Crown's de facto capital was Naples . After Alfonso V of Aragon , Ferdinand II of Aragon settled the capital in Naples. Alfonso, in particular, wanted to transform Naples into a real Mediterranean capital and lavished huge sums to embellish it further. Later the courts were itinerant until Philip II of Spain . The Spanish historian Domingo Buesa Conde has argued that Zaragoza ought to be considered

18081-531: The transition to the Early Modern state. Thus, the new territories gained from the Moors —namely Valencia and Majorca—were given furs as an instrument of self-government in order to limit the power of nobility in these new acquisitions and, at the same time, increase their allegiance to the monarchy itself. The trend in the neighbouring kingdom of Castile was quite similar, both kingdoms giving impetus to

18228-481: The trawler Jade , a drifting MTM and Costa's maiale . The MAS was renamed X-MAS and used as a tender . The MTM was sent to Britain for evaluation in September 1943. Further Decima MAS operations were delayed by the severity of its casualties at Malta. On 24 September and 21 October 1940 and again in May 1941 Decima MAS had made attempts on shipping at Gibraltar to no avail. The fourth attempt on 10 September 1941 succeeded, three human torpedoes sinking

18375-684: The waste that accumulated over the years, and the Grand Harbour Regeneration Corporation is making plans to begin restoration. From 1975, part of the fort housed the National War Museum , which contained military equipment and other things related to World War I and II. A replica of the George Cross that was awarded to Malta by King George VI in April 1942, was also on display in this museum. The museum closed in September 2014, and reopened in May 2015 having

18522-401: Was 20 ft (6.1 m) long; twelve MTs were built and about forty MTMs. Both types carried an explosive charge of 660–730 lb (300–330 kg) in the bows at up to 31 kn (57 km/h; 36 mph). The MTM was fitted with a seat back/life raft behind the pilot for him to float on after dropping off the MTM, to wait for rescue. Early in 1941, a smaller MT Ridotto was built with

18669-408: Was a composite monarchy ruled by one king, originated by the dynastic union of the Kingdom of Aragon and the County of Barcelona and ended as a consequence of the War of the Spanish Succession . At the height of its power in the 14th and 15th centuries, the Crown of Aragon was a thalassocracy controlling a large portion of present-day eastern Spain, parts of what is now southern France , and

18816-525: Was a dynastic union which became the constituent event for the dawn of the Monarchy of Spain . At that point both the Castile and the states of the Crown of Aragon remained distinct polities, each keeping its own traditional institutions, parliaments and laws. The process of territorial consolidation was completed when their grandson King Charles I , known as Emperor Charles V, in 1516 ruled over all of

18963-466: Was a wooden-hulled boat 28 ft (8.5 m) long by 9 ft 6 in (2.9 m) wide, to carry two maiali close to the target. The MTL had a range of 60 nmi (110 km; 69 mi) with its petrol engine cruising at 5 kn (9.3 km/h; 5.8 mph) and another 40 nmi (74 km; 46 mi) on its electric motor for a silent approach; few were built and they were rarely used. Air transport gave way to submarines; early in 1940

19110-406: Was about 500 m (550 yd). The short, eastern, breakwater ended at the rocks under Fort Ricasoli. The longer, western, breakwater had a 70 m (77 yd)-gap at the shore end under Fort St Elmo, for small craft. A bridge spanned the gap, resting on a central pylon and a steel torpedo net had been suspended from it down to the seabed. The main entrance between the breakwaters was blocked by

19257-660: Was an Italian raid against Allied shipping in Grand Harbour , Valletta , Malta in the early morning of 26 July 1941 during the Second World War . MTM explosive motorboat pilots and Frogmen from the Decima Flottiglia Motoscafi Armati Siluranti ( Decima MAS 10th Flotilla Torpedo Armed Motorboats) of the Regia Marina conducted a raid to penetrate the harbour and attack British shipping. The attackers destroyed

19404-404: Was barely time to reach the bridge and no time to detach the fuze and get away. Tesei told Costa, The net must be blown-up at 04:30 and it will be blown-up. If I am late, I will explode it instantaneously. Tesei had to advance to about 330 ft (100 m) off Fort St Elmo on the surface, then dive to conduct the attack. Tesei began his approach but there was an offshore westerly current and

19551-413: Was blocked and decided to scuttle both MTMs. The MTMs had been seen on the edge of the search-lit area and the gunners had assumed that they had been abandoned and held their fire, wanting to capture them. Around 05:20 Capriotti's manoeuvre was spotted, his MTM was coned by the searchlights and the 6-pounders "D", "E", "F" and "G" at Fort St Elmo, the three at Fort Ricasoli, Bofors 40 mm anti-aircraft guns on

19698-466: Was built in 1614, and in 1687 the Carafa Enceinte was built on the foreshore surrounding the entire fort. In the late 17th century, the fort was directly linked to the cavalier and part of the ditch was filled in burying some of the original ramparts in the process. In the 18th century, a new polverista was built in the Vendome Bastion, and stores were built in the area between the main fort and

19845-583: Was clear, Catalan influence north of the Pyrenees, beyond the Roussillon , Vallespir , Conflent and Capcir , was to cease. James I had realized that wasting his forces and distracting his energies in attempts to keep a footing in France would only end in disaster. In January 1266, James I besieged and captured Murcia, then settled his own men, mostly Catalans, there; and handed Murcia over to Castile with

19992-545: Was decided that a major expansion was necessary, and in 1552 the tower was demolished and a new star fort began to be built. It was designed by a Spanish Engineer named Pietro Pardo. It had a cavalier, a covertway and a tenaille. A ravelin was hastily constructed months before the 1565 siege. In 1565, in the Great Siege of Malta , the Ottomans invaded Malta once again with much more force than in 1551. Fort Saint Elmo

20139-510: Was detected early on by a British radar facility, and the coastal artillery at Saint Elmo opened fire when the Italians approached to close range. Fifteen of the attackers were killed and 18 captured, and all the human torpedoes and MT boats, along with two of the MAS boats were lost. One of the MT boats hit St. Elmo Bridge , which linked the breakwater with the tip of the peninsula near the fort, and

20286-409: Was fruitless and after an hour, the crew was ordered back to Sicily. Decima MAS pressed on but the delay had been serious; MAS-452 took over the tow of the MTL. Moccagatta got the boats moving faster than planned, the damaged MTM dropped back and had to be scuttled, the pilot, Montanari, going aboard MAS-452. After half an hour MAS-451 turned, up the crew having freed the propeller. The first raid by

20433-405: Was hit and stopped. After the fighters had flown away, Bosio set the destruct mechanism of his boat and died in the explosion. Zaniboni scuttled his MTM and swam ashore to surrender. Shortly before 06:00, MAS-452 was about 5 km (2.7 nmi) off St Elmo and lingered for a few minutes, watching for survivors. At about 06:00, the MAS was spotted from St Elmo and 6-pounder "E" fired a shot, despite

20580-399: Was one of its tenets, Carlism won support in the lands of the Crown of Aragon during the 19th century. The Romanticism of the 19th century Catalan Renaixença movement evoked a "Pyrenean realm" that corresponded more to the vision of 13th century troubadours than to the historical reality of the Crown. This vision survives today as "a nostalgic programme of politicised culture". Thus,

20727-478: Was raised in the Monastery of Saint Pons de Thomières, Viscounty of Béziers as a Benedictine monk was the youngest of three brothers. His brothers Peter I (reigned 1094–1104) and Alfonso I El Batallador (The Battler, reigned 1104–1134) had fought against Castile for hegemony in the Iberian peninsula. Upon the death of Alfonso I, the Aragonese nobility that campaigned close to him feared being overwhelmed by

20874-554: Was shot down by a Saetta , the MAS was set on fire, three more of the crew members were killed and nine survivors abandoned ship, which blew up at about 06:40. Paratore, in the MTL, had waited for longer for the maiali , drifting much further east on the current. When Paratore decided to return, he was undone by the slow speed of the MTL. At about 06:40, he was spotted 6 nmi (11 km; 6.9 mi) north-east of Grand Harbour and returning Hurricanes were instructed to attack. A 6-pounder round fired from Fort St Rocco directed

21021-516: Was taken over by Commander Mario Giorgini and in August attempts to use the unconventional weapons began, with little success and the capture of Giorgini in October. On 23 January 1941 Commander Vittorio Moccagatta replaced Giorgini and on 15 March formed the Decima Flottiglia Motoscafi Armati Siluranti (10th Flotilla, Torpedo Armed Motorboats, Decima MAS ). The new force had a HQ, including

21168-406: Was the scene of some of the most intense fighting of this siege, and it held out for nearly a month, withstanding massive bombardment from Turkish cannon deployed on Mount Sciberras that overlooked the fort and from batteries on the north arm of Marsamextt Harbour, the present site of Fort Tigné . The initial garrison of the fort was around one hundred and fifty knights and six hundred soldiers,

21315-436: Was the site of the first aerial bombardment of Malta on 11 June 1940. Among the people that were in the fort during the air raid was the military doctor Ċensu Tabone , who later became President of Malta. He survived the attack, but six others were killed in the same air raid. On 26 July 1941, the Italians launched a seaborne attack on the Grand Harbour with two human torpedoes , four MAS boats and six MT boats . The force

21462-431: Was to tow the MTL and carry the nine MTM and an MTS. Getting into the harbour was made easier by adding two maiali , carried by the MTL, for surprise. A maiale was to explode a charge against the torpedo net at 04:30 and the MTM would pass in line-ahead through the 6 ft 7 in (2 m) gap in the inner-boom. Once through the boom, the MTM would speed into the harbour, to attack ships at their moorings and

21609-449: Was too late to attack before dawn. The raiders reversed course and the attack was postponed again, until new moon period the end of July. For the next attempt on Grand Harbour, the attack was re-named Operazione MALTA-2 . The attack was scheduled for the night of 25/26 July 1941. The earlier operations had shown that MTM could not make the sea crossing to Malta and the number of MAS was reduced to MAS-451 and MAS-452. The aviso Diana

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