Italian battleship Leonardo da Vinci sinking

Italian battleship Leonardo da Vinci

Leonardo da Vinci was one of three Conte di Cavour-class dreadnoughts built for the Regia Marina (Italian Royal Navy) in the early 1910s. Completed just before the beginning of World War I, the ship saw no action and was sunk by a magazine explosion in 1916 with the loss of 248 officers and enlisted men. The Italians blamed Austro-Hungarian saboteurs for her loss, but it may have been accidental. Leonardo da Vinci was refloated in 1919 and plans were made to repair her. Budgetary constraints did not permit this and her hulk was sold for scrap in 1923.

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Italian battleship Leonardo da Vinci