Used on the battleships Andrea Doria and Dulio as a secondary weapon and on the "Capitani Romani" class light cruisers as the main weapon. It had been intended to mount these weapons in the "Commandanti Medaglie d'Oro" and Etna classes in a new AA mounting but these ships were not completed.
These weapons were designed to give about the same range as the 12 cm/50 (4.7") guns but with a lower muzzle velocity and with less dispersion. In fact, partly due to the wider barrel spacing used on the mountings, these guns had only a quarter of the dispersion of the 12 cm guns.
Construction was loose barrel, jacket and breech ring construction with a horizontal sliding breech-block.
Components of these guns were reused during the postwar era when the light cruiser Giuseppe Garibaldi was rearmed with 135 mm/45 guns during her conversion to a missile cruiser.
| Designation | 135 mm/45 (5.3") Model 1938 |
|---|---|
| Ship Class Used On | Andrea Doria and "Capitani Romani" classes
Giuseppe Garibaldi as rebuilt |
| Manufacturer | Ansaldo and OTO |
| Date of Design | 1938 |
| Date In Service | 1940 |
| Gun Weight | 14,401 lbs. (6,532 kg) |
| Gun Length oa | N/A |
| Bore Length | 239.2 in (6.075 m) |
| Rifling Length | 202.4 in (5.142 m) |
| Grooves | about 36 |
| Lands | N/A |
| Twist | N/A |
| Chamber Volume | about 976 in3 (16.0 dm3) |
| Rate Of Fire | 6 - 7 rounds per minute |
| Type | Separate |
|---|---|
| Projectile Types and Weights | APC: 72.1 lbs. (32.7 kg)
HE: 72.1 lbs. (32.7 kg) Others: N/A |
| Bursting Charge | N/A |
| Projectile Length | N/A |
| Propellant Charge | 19.6 lbs. (8.88 kg) |
| Muzzle Velocity | 2,707 fps (825 mps) |
| Working Pressure | 20.0 tons/in2 (3,150 kg/cm2) |
| Approximate Barrel Life | N/A |
| Ammunition stowage per gun | Andrea Doria: N/A
Capitani Romani: 320 rounds + 260 Illum 1 |
- ^For the Capitani Romani class, the outfit was 440 AP, 756 HE and 84 AA together with 1,280 VR flashless cartridges (VR = "Vampa Ridotta"). There were also 260 star shells, half of which were supplied with VR cartridges.
| Shell | Distance |
|---|---|
| 45 degrees | 21,435 yards (19,600 m) |
| Designation | Two-gun Turrets 1a 2a "Capitani Romani" (4): Model 1938 3a Giuseppe Garibaldi as rebuilt (2): N/A (Model 1957?) Three-gun Turrets 1a |
|---|---|
| Weight | Model 1938: 41.3 tons (42 mt)
Model 1937: 103.3 tons (105 mt) Model 1957: N/A |
| Elevation | Models 1937 and 1938 3a: -5 / +45 degrees |
| Elevation Rate | N/A |
| Train | about +120 / -120 degrees |
| Train Rate | Model 1938: N/A
Model 1937: 10 degrees per second |
| Gun recoil | 21.7 in (55 cm) |
| Loading Angle | Any 4a |
- ^A twin AA version for the Etna class cruisers and for the rebuild of the damaged battleship Conte Di Cavour were only in the planning stages by the time of the Italian Armistice.
- ^Rammers were recoil operated, but this was apparently too weak to load shells at elevations beyond 30 degrees. For higher elevations, shells were hand loaded. Cartridges were always loaded by hand. Empty shell cases were transported mechanically to ports in the turret face under each gun barrel.
"Capitani Romani" articles by Elio Andò in "Warship Volume II"
"Naval Weapons of World War Two" by John Campbell
"Italian Warships of World War II" by Aldo Fraccaroli
---
Marina Militare
29 December 2007 - Benchmark
26 May 2012 - Updated to latest template
07 March 2021 - Reorganized notes