The most beautiful ship in the world! This is how the American aircraft carrier USS Independence defined it after crossing its way at sea. They asked the Training Ship of the Italian Navy to identify themselves and the comment that followed has gone down in history: “You are the most beautiful ship in the world!”.
It was back in 1962 and since then it’s been a lot of water under the bridge, or better at sea, but the Italian vessel (also provided with a diesel-electric engine) has never ceased to amaze, surprise and seduce us, other than certainly educate and train the cadets at the Naval Academy in Livorno.
The Training Campaign on board of Vespucci ship represents a cornerstone for the education and training of the Officer Cadets. The times have changed, and so has the culture, but what is permanent are the founding values of the Officers of the Navy: ethics, loyalty, discipline and honour. The training of the young Navy Officer Cadets on board of Vespucci ship places side by side tradition and technological innovation.
Symbol par excellence (and of the excellence) of the Italian Navy, the Amerigo Vespucci represents the most antique unit in service in the Armed Forces and it was entirely built and assembled at the Royal Shipyard in Castellammare di Stabia. The hull was set up on 12th May 1930 and it was launched on 22nd February 1931, and later consigned to the Royal Navy on 26th May 1931, and put in service as a training ship on 6th June. On the return from its first Training Campaign, on 15th October 1931, it received the War Flag in Genoa.
With its 264 crew members (we can count 15 Officers, 30 non-commissioned Officers, 34 Sergeants and 185 Sub-chief and Commoners), the Amerigo Vespucci has its own motto: “Not who begins but he who perseveres“, appointed in 1978 in place of “For the Homeland, for the King”, which in its turn had been substituted, after the second war world, with “Firm in the fury of the winds and events”, giving way to the current one.
From a technical-architectural point of view, the Amerigo Vespucci is a Sailing Ship equipped with an engine. It is a “full rigged ship”, that means it has three masts (fore, main and mizzen), all square-rigged and equipped with yards, and with the bowsprit functioning as a fourth mast. The ship is also equipped with jibs in the bow, between the bowsprit and the foremast, stays, between the foremast and the main mast, and between the main and the mizzen mast, and a main sail, equipped with the boom and the peak on the mizzen mast.
With its home port in La Spezia, the Italian Navy’s School Ship par excellence has been conducting training activities every year since it was put in service (except for 1940 because of the war, and 1964, 1973 and 1997, for extraordinary maintenance), completing 79 Training Campaigns during which (since it mainly lands at foreign ports) the Vespucci ship performs the duties of presence and representation (including Naval Diplomacy), contributing to enrich the image of Italy and the Italian Navy abroad.
We kindly thank the Marina Militare Italiana for their collaboration.
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by Alessandro Colombo