Whitehead Torpedo, Torpedofabrik Moto Fides s.a.- Livorno, Counter Admiral Eberhard Weichold, 1941
Large model of a torpedo, made by Officine Whitehead in the Moto Fides S.A. factory in Livorno, as a gift intended for Counter Admiral Eberhard Weichold who was, from 1 November 1941 to 4 March 1943, Commander of the German Naval Command in Italy (Deutsches Marinekommando Italien) at the General Staff of the Italian Royal Navy in Rome.
In all likelihood this gift was delivered to him, as reported imprinted on its double-sided base designed to present and support it, on the occasion of his visit to the torpedo factory in December 1941. It is very likely that this visit had the purpose of inspecting and viewing the plant since, at the very end of 1941, Moto Fides S.A. of Livorno developed the technical-mechanical process to complete the production of torpedoes since, until that time, it had only dealt with the production of some parts to be sent to other sites owned by Whitehead.
This large model of torpedo was made of iron and brass perfectly reflecting all the characteristics and details, even the smallest and most minute, which could only be considered by the workers responsible for building the torpedoes in real dimensions. In addition, the torpedo rests on two "supports" conforming to the original ones used in the factories to support the finished torpedoes, and they also report every detail in an extremely proportionate and careful way.
Length: 47 cm Diameter 4.5 cm.
Eberhard Weichol, On 2 November 1939, transferred from the Wehrmacht High Command to the Special Staff for Commercial and Economic Warfare, where he served as Chief of Staff. He then became chief of the German liaison staff at the Admiralty Staff of the Royal Italian Navy in Rome on 28 June 1940 and as such was promoted to Rear Admiral shortly after 1 July 1940. Weichold served as a German Admiral at the Admiralty Staff of the Italian Navy from 16 August 1941 to 4 March 1943 and was also commander of the German Naval Command in Italy from 22 November 1941. In this role he was responsible, among other things, for the seaborne supply of the Afrika Korps.
Moto Fides S.A. Torpedo Factory in Livorno. In 1933, IRI (Institute for Industrial Reconstruction) acquired 40% of the share package of "Silurificio Whitehead" through Società Finanziaria Italiana, the financial company of Credito Italiano, and all the shares of "Silurificio Italiano" through Società Finanziaria Industriale Italiana, the financial company of Comit.
In 1937, the Fiume company opened a branch in Livorno, which a few years later was named Società Moto Fides and in both cities the war production activity was frenetic due to the arms race that characterized the period before the Second World War. However, the Livorno factory was not yet able to build Whitehead torpedoes and its activity was initially limited to the construction of parts for the torpedoes built in Fiume and only towards the end of 1941 did the first complete torpedoes leave the factory in the Tyrrhenian city. The factories in Fiume and Livorno were supported in the production of torpedoes for the Royal Navy by the Silurificio Italiano, which had transferred its production to a factory built in 1936 by converting a shipyard in the Campi Flegrei area, using the old factory as a torpedo factory.
References:
- "SS Polynesien (I) (+1918)". Wreck Site. Retrieved 26 October 2015.
- ^ "Eberhard Weichold". uboat.net Retrieved 26 October 2015.
- ^ Milan Radovanović & Slobodan Sokolović, "Serbian Post from Malta", The London Philatelist, Vol. 124, September 2015, No. 1428, pp. 338–341.
- Dieter Hartwig: Großadmiral Karl Dönitz – Legende und Wirklichkeit, Ferdinand Schöningh, Paderborn 2010, ISBN 978-3-506-77027-1, S. 70
- ↑ Hochspringen nach:a b c d e f Rangliste der Deutschen Reichsmarine, Hrsg.: Reichswehrministerium, Mittler & Sohn, Berlin 1929, S. 44
- ↑ Klaus D. Patzwall und Veit Scherzer: Das Deutsche Kreuz 1941–1945, Geschichte und Inhaber Band II, Verlag Klaus D. Patzwall, Norderstedt 2001, ISBN 3-931533-45-X, S. 124