Italian submarines in World War Two

Italian Commanders


Giovanni Lorenzotti

Born  6 Apr 1912 Viterbo
Died  6 Dec 1942(30)Killed in action

Ranks

  T.V.Tenente di Vascello

Decorations

11 Mar 1947 Medaglia d'argento al valore militare (posthumous)

Career information

PORFIDO (T.V. C.O.): from 26.06.1942 to 06.12.1942 (sunk, Lorenzotti was killed).

Commands listed for Giovanni Lorenzotti


Submarine Type Rank From To
Porfido (PO)Coastal / Sea goingT.V.26 Jun 19426 Dec 1942

Ships hit by Giovanni Lorenzotti

No ships hit by this Commander.

War patrols listed for Giovanni Lorenzotti

 SubmarineDateTimePortArr. dateArr. timeArr. portMilesDescription
Porfido (PO)2 Jul 19420849Monfalcone2 Jul 19421920Susa (Fiume)130Passage Monfalcone-Susa.

Porfido (PO)4 Jul 19420853Susa (Fiume)4 Jul 19421831Susa (Fiume)32Exercises.

Porfido (PO)6 Jul 19420850Susa (Fiume)6 Jul 19421840Susa (Fiume)32Exercises.

Porfido (PO)7 Jul 19420853Susa (Fiume)7 Jul 19421815Susa (Fiume)32Exercises.

Porfido (PO)9 Jul 19420855Susa (Fiume)9 Jul 19421748Susa (Fiume)42Exercises.

Porfido (PO)10 Jul 19420801Susa (Fiume)10 Jul 19421209Susa (Fiume)28Exercises.

Porfido (PO)13 Jul 19421116Susa (Fiume)14 Jul 19420231Susa (Fiume)70Exercises.

Porfido (PO)14 Jul 19421135Susa (Fiume)14 Jul 19421526Susa (Fiume)Exercises.

Porfido (PO)14 Jul 19422144Susa (Fiume)15 Jul 19420210Susa (Fiume)51Exercises [mileage includes morning sortie].

Porfido (PO)16 Jul 19421130Susa (Fiume)16 Jul 19421359Susa (Fiume)Exercises.

Porfido (PO)16 Jul 19422117Susa (Fiume)17 Jul 19420030Susa (Fiume)51Exercises [mileage includes morning sortie].

Porfido (PO)17 Jul 19421400Susa (Fiume)17 Jul 19421830Susa (Fiume)29Exercises.

Porfido (PO)18 Jul 19420805Susa (Fiume)18 Jul 19420901Fiume4Passage Susa-Fiume for docking.

Porfido (PO)19 Jul 19420830Susa (Fiume)19 Jul 19420903Fiume4Undocked and passage Fiume-Susa.

Porfido (PO)20 Jul 19421042Susa (Fiume)20 Jul 19421730Susa (Fiume)36,5Exercises.

Porfido (PO)22 Jul 19421144Susa (Fiume)22 Jul 19421750Susa (Fiume)Exercises.

Porfido (PO)22 Jul 19422217Susa (Fiume)23 Jul 19420130Susa (Fiume)42,5Exercises [mileage includes morning sortie].

Porfido (PO)24 Jul 19420815Susa (Fiume)24 Jul 19421752Susa (Fiume)Exercises.

Porfido (PO)24 Jul 19422045Susa (Fiume)25 Jul 19420104Susa (Fiume)49Exercises.

Porfido (PO)27 Jul 19420744Susa (Fiume)27 Jul 19421804Susa (Fiume)61Exercises.

Porfido (PO)29 Jul 19420636Susa (Fiume)29 Jul 19421345Susa (Fiume)Exercises.

Porfido (PO)29 Jul 19422317Susa (Fiume)30 Jul 19420106Susa (Fiume)52Exercises.

Porfido (PO)30 Jul 19420300Susa (Fiume)31 Jul 19421617Susa (Fiume)86Exercises.

Porfido (PO)4 Aug 19421735Susa (Fiume)8 Aug 19421454Messina714Passage Susa-Messina. Armed with four G7e torpedoes in her forward tubes. Escorted until 1830 hours on the 4th by the torpedo boat Insidioso.
  5 Aug 19421015
1045 (e)
42° 42'N, 15° 35'EAt 1015 hours, an enemy submarine was sighted at a distance of 1,500 metres. This was HMS Traveller (Lieutenant M.B. St. John, RN) who fired two torpedoes from 2,300 yards (they missed) and opened fire with her 4" gun, firing 26 rounds. Porfido escaped by diving after the first two rounds were fired.
  6 Aug 19420805+40° 04'N, 18° 50'EAt 0805 hours, in heavy seas, an Italian minesweeper collided slightly with the submarine. Porfido was holed in the bunker no.4 and lost some fuel.
  7 Aug 1942
0637C (e)
At 0637C hours, HMS Traveller (Lieutenant M.B. St. John, RN) sighted a submarine of the FOCA class steering 000° at 15 knots. Three torpedoes were fired from her stern tubes (her last torpedoes) at a range of 3,000 yards but the enemy submarine changed course and they missed.

Porfido was in the general area, but there is no evidence she was the submarine attacked. She was submerged at that time and would have proceeded southward. In any case, she did not observe any attack.


1.Porfido (PO)17 Aug 19420245Messina19 Aug 19421205Trapani506Sailed escorted by A.S.66 until 0810 hours on the 18th, and patrolled off Tunisia between 37°20'N and 37°50'N and between 09°20'E and 10°20'E to intercept an enemy convoy [PEDESTAL]. On her return was met at 0815 hours on the 19th by the minesweeper R.D.19 and escorted to Trapani.
  18 Aug 19420035At 0035 hours, a vessel was sighted on a southerly course. Porfido closed to 600 meters and was ready to fire two torpedoes from the forward tubes, when the ship was recognised as Italian and the attack was broken off.

Porfido (PO)22 Aug 19420055Trapani22 Aug 19422003Cagliari216Passage Trapani-Caglliari.

2.Porfido (PO)27 Aug 19420215Cagliari8 Sep 19420920Cagliari1570Patrolled between between 38°40'N and 39°00'N, 00°20'E and 01°00'E. Sighted only Spanish and French ships.

Porfido (PO)16 Sep 19421329Cagliari16 Sep 19421936Cagliari44Exercises.

Porfido (PO)23 Sep 19420758Cagliari23 Sep 19421323Cagliari36Exercises.

Porfido (PO)30 Sep 19420804Cagliari30 Sep 19421735Cagliari92Exercises.

Porfido (PO)3 Oct 19421345Cagliari3 Oct 19421819Cagliari31Exercises.

Porfido (PO)5 Oct 19420800Cagliari5 Oct 19421232Cagliari34,5Exercises.

Porfido (PO)15 Oct 19420800Cagliari15 Oct 19421225Cagliari33Exercises.

Porfido (PO)22 Oct 19420820Cagliari22 Oct 19421230Cagliari34Exercises.

3.Porfido (PO)29 Oct 19420225Cagliari31 Oct 19420640Cagliari267Patrolled off La Galite, between 37°20'N and 37°40'N, and between 08°30'E and 08°50'E, but recalled at 2000 hours on the 30th. Uneventful.

4.Porfido (PO)7 Nov 19420350Cagliari19 Nov 19421330Cagliari?Patrolled off Philippeville, between 37°25'N and 37°35'N, and between 07°00'E and 07°30'E.
  8 Nov 19420926At 0926 hours, an aircraft was seen and the submarine dived and heard bomb explosions.
  8 Nov 19421550At 1550 hours, a vessel was sighted at distance of 8,000 metres. It was thought to be a German 6,000-ton ship.
  8 Nov 19421820At 1820 hours, an Italian submarine was sighted at a distance of 8,000 metres and exchanged recognition signals.
  9 Nov 1942053437° 12'N, 4° 42'EAt 0534 hours, two MTBs were sighted and the submarine dived.
  9 Nov 1942204037° 12'N, 4° 41'EAt 2040 hours, a destroyer or corvette was sighted at a distance of 800 metres. Porfido dived.

5.Porfido (PO)2 Dec 19422025Cagliari6 Dec 19420147SunkSailed for patrol between 37°00'N and 37°20'N, and between 05°00'E and 05°20'E (Grid 2124) and was to have returned on 22nd December (the patrol was later shortened to 13th December, but by then the submarine had been sunk). Sunk off Galita Island by the British submarine HMS Tigris. Four survivors. Five officers (including T.V. Lorenzotti) and thirty-nine ratings killed.
  6 Dec 19420146.5At 0143 hours, Lieutenant R. G. Sampson, officer of the watch of HMS Tigris (Lieutenant Commander G.R. Colvin) sighted a vessel broad on the port bow and immediately recognised it to be a submarine head-on.

At 0146.5 hours, two torpedoes were fired at a range of 600 yards. One hit and sank the submarine.

This was Porfido. G.M. Ermanno Devescovi and three ratings survived and were picked by the British submarine. T.V. Giovanni Lorenzotti, four officers and thirty-nine ratings perished.

43 entries. 37 total patrol entries (5 marked as war patrols) and 10 events.

Italian Commanders

Italian Submarines