After the surrender of the Axis powers in North Africa on May 13, 1943, the Allies bombed Rome on May 16, invaded Sicily on July 10 and prepared to land on the Italian mainland.

After the Fascist Grand Council, held on July 25, 1943, adopted a vote of no-confidence against prime minister Benito Mussolini and the latter was dismissed by King Victor Emmanuel III, Giuseppe Castellano was sent to speak with the Allies to set the conditions for Italy’s surrender.

On August 27, General Castellano returned to Italy and, three days later, briefed Marshal Pietro Badoglio, who had replaced Mussolini as prime minister of Italy, about the Allied request for a meeting to be held in Sicily, which had been suggested by the British ambassador to the Vatican.

After negotiations, an armistice was signed at Cassibile,  in Sicily on September 3, 1943 by Major General Walter Bedell Smith for the Allies and Brigade General Castellano for Italy at a conference of generals from both sides at an Allied military camp at Cassibile.

The armistice was approved by both the Italian king and Marshal Badoglio.

On September 7, a small Allied delegation reached Rome to inform Badoglio that the next day (September 8) would be the day of the armistice.

The Allies coveted the Regia Marina, the Italian Royal Navy, with its 206 ships in total, including the battleships Roma, Vittorio Veneto and Italia (known as Littorio until July 1943).

The truce called for the Italian warships on Italy’s west coast, mostly at La Spezia and Genoa, to sail for North Africa and to pass Corsica and Sardinia and for those at Taranto, in the heel of Italy, to sail for Malta.

The following are some episodes that occurred at St Paul’s Bay, as found in the police occurrences books of these respective districts.

St Paul’s Bay – September 10, 1943

The following owners of fishing boats and their employees and partners were personally warned that Italian [naval] ships were anchoring in St Paul’s Bay and that they were not to approach or communicate with the members of the crew of the said ships and on no account whatever as, otherwise, they risked being fired upon, as per instructions received through phone from Superintendent West:

Joseph Muscat, No. 18, High Street, St Paul’s Bay; John Azzopardi, Buġibba Road, St Paul’s Bay; Francis Micallef, 6, Stella Maris Street, St Paul’s Bay; Joseph Grech, No. 14, Toni Bajada Street, St Paul’s Bay; Carmelo Sant, No. 3, Isouard Street, St Paul’s Bay; Francis Micallef, No. 67, St Paul’s Street, St Paul’s Bay; Pasquale Grima, No. 10, Stella Maris Street, St Paul’s Bay; Salvu Azzopardi, Buġibba Road, St Paul’s Bay; Joseph Agius, No. 239, St Paul’s Street, St Paul’s Bay; Michele Mifsud, No. 12, Stella Maris Street, St Paul’s Bay; Carmelo Altari, No. 35, Isouard Street, St Paul’s Bay; Pacifico Zammit, No. 33, Isouard Street, St Paul’s Bay; Carmelo Vella, No. 407, St Paul’s Street, St Paul’s Bay; Carmelo Cuschieri, No. 336, St Paul’s Street, St Paul’s Bay; Anthony Fenech, No. 200, St Paul’s Street, St Paul’s Bay; Carmelo Sant, No. 25, Isouard Street, St Paul’s Bay; Anthony Borg, No. 19, Church Street, St Paul’s Bay; and Anthony Cremona, No. 17, St Paul’s Street, St Paul’s Bay.

September 12

At about 2.30pm, two Italian naval ratings swam from one of the Italian battleships at anchor in St Paul’s Bay and went to rest on the shore at Buġibba Road, where three or four residents in that area spoke to them.

After about eight minutes, they swam back in the direction of the Italian ships but, after swimming a good distance from the shore, they were lost sight of. It is not known from which ship they left or to which ship they returned.

When information reached the police of their presence, by order of Inspector Saliba, PC 439 N. Borg duly proceeded to note their movements. All non-commissioned officers (NCOs) and men stationed at St Paul’s Bay were instructed that, in the event of a similar occurrence, they were to immediately order any Italian naval ratings approaching shore to return to their ship as per instructions received through phone from Superintendent West.

September 20 

At about 4.30pm, around 12 Italian naval ratings swam from one of the battleships moored at St Paul’s Bay and came ashore to rest in Buġibba Road, where they talked for a few minutes to men and women residing there.

PS 137 G. Scicluna went immediately on site and asked them to return to their ship, which they duly did.

At the same time and at the same locality, there was also a ship’s boat with some more Italian naval ratings about 100 metres away from the shore. These also returned to the ship when requested.

September 30

At 4.15pm, a boat with some Italian naval ratings approached the shore up to a distance of 20 metres from Ta’ L-Għażżelin, St Paul’s Bay and while R/PC 100 A. Borg went in the direction of their ship another boat with 12 Italian ratings approached the shore and landed near Il-Gillieru.

When R/PC. 100 returned on seeing them landing and asked them to go with him to the police station, they immediately got on the boat and returned to where three young ladies were swimming, two of whom swam towards the boat with the ratings and boarded the vessel.

After PS 78 S. Vella of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and R/PC 100 A. Borg, who were on duty ashore, checked the Italian ratings, they jumped in the water and swam to their boat and PS 78 Vella and PC. Borg took the three girls to the St Paul’s Bay police station, where they gave their following names and particulars:

Josephine Caruana, 21 years, No. 68, Windsor Terrace, Sliema; Alice Caruana, 17 years, No. 68 Windsor Terrace, Sliema; and Helen Bonnici, 19 years, No. 90, Sliema Wharf, Sliema.

After they were released to catch the last bus from St Paul’s Bay, it was found that the three ladies had given the police false names and particulars and, from enquiries, it was established that their correct names and particulars were:

Nadine Mallia Pulvirenti, 19 years, Villa Mallia Pulvirenti, No. 38, Inguanez Street, Rabat; her sister Irene, 17 years, of same address; and Mary Pierman, 17 years of No. 17, Museum Road, Rabat.

The first two were interviewed by Insp. Bencini of Rabat and admitted their identity and handed him a pamphlet entitled ‘Radio Successi: Le belle canzoni più in voga’ [Radio success: the most beautiful and popular songs], containing many Italian songs. The Mallia Pulvirenti declared they had been given the pamphlet by one of the Italian ratings.

Marsaxlokk Bay – September 25, 1943 

Three Italian naval ratings belonging to the destroyer torpedo boat Calliope, which had anchored in Marsaxlokk Harbour, landed at Marsaxlokk on September 25, 1943.

They were immediately detected by the police and escorted to the police station where they were detained till, by order of the commissioner of police, they were released and allowed to return to their ship on their own boat. They were sottotenente [second lieutenant] Giuseppe Relli, sottotenente Pietro Luigi Gaspari and medico [doctor/surgeon] Leone Calvi.

When questioned about the purpose of their landing,the naval ratings said they had no instructions to the effect that they may or may not come ashore or that they may not have any communication in any way with anybody. Besides, they did not know that a landing place on the Delimara side had been allocated for them.

September 27

Mikiel Incorvaja reported that,  on September 27, at about 6pm, he noticed that someone had tampered with his basket traps that were moored in Marsaxlokk Bay, near the Italian naval ships. He further reported that, on the day, at about 7am, he noticed three Italian naval ratings in a boat pulling the above-mentioned traps.

He said that he saw the three Italian naval ratings getting on board an Italian destroyer-escort with letters FT (Fortunale). He also stated that he had suffered no damages except that about a dozen crabs that were in the basket traps were missing.

On the same day, Marshal Pietro Badoglio came to Malta on the cruiser Scipione and, at 12.15pm, the ‘Long Document of Armistice Terms’ was signed on board the British battleship HMS Nelson in Grand Harbour. General Dwight Eisenhower signed for the Allies and Badoglio for Italy.

Conclusion 

On October 13, 1943 the Kingdom of Italy declared war on Germany and, thus,  started the kingdom’s ‘co-belligerence status’. The ‘co-belligerence status’ of the Kingdom of Italy within the Allies was only conventional because, officially, the kingdom was never abolished and, as such, was officially acknowledged by the Allied powers as the only legitimate Italian government.

From this time until the end of the war, the Italian armed forces took their oath of allegiance to King Victor Emmanuel III and Marshal of Italy, Badoglio, the men who had ousted Mussolini. Thus, the Italian Co-Belligerent Navy (Marina Cobelligerante Italiana), or Navy of the South (Marina del Sud), was created or, as it was also known before, the Italian Royal Navy (Regia Marina). This was the navy of the Italian royalist forces fighting on the side of the Allies in southern Italy.

The Italian navy played an important role once the armistice was signed.

Altogether, five battleships, eight cruisers, 33 destroyers, 39 submarines, 12 motor torpedo boats, 20 escorts and three mine-layers joined the Marina Cobelligerante Italiana.

Acknowledgement

The author wishes to thank Heritage Malta and the staff of the National Archives, Rabat, Malta for their continuous help in his research.

Charles Debono is curator, National War Museum.