1916: A Pioneering Ocean Liner is Launched in Italy

January 9, 1916

SS Duilio was launched at the Ansaldo Shipyard in the city of Genoa in northwestern Italy. This ship was the first Italian super ocean liner and ultimately became one of that country’s largest vessels.

The Duilio was built for use by the Italian shipping company Navigazione Generale Italiana (NGI).  The vessel’s name was derived from that of Gaius Duilius (fl. 200-231 BC), a renowned Roman statesman and fleet commander. The completion of this ship was notably delayed due to Italy’s involvement as an Allied power during World War I. Work on the Duilio resumed in 1920 and she was finally ready for service three years later.

The Duilio was subsequently used by NGI for its Naples-New York City express run. The first of these voyages began on October 29, 1923. The Marine Journal reported the following month, “On her maiden voyage from Naples to New York, she broke all previous records for the run, covering the entire distance in 8 days, 16 hours.”

At this time, the Duilio was also praised for her aesthetic furnishings and appeal. Someone named John V. Clarke wrote about all of this in an extensive feature article that was published in newspapers across the United States.

“She is by far the most luxurious liner afloat,” Clarke asserted. “The combined efforts of great sculptors, painters, artisans in wood and metal work and interior decorators have made concrete and serviceable a wealth of beauty not excelled upon the seas.”

The Duilio achieved an additional measure of fame because her safety standards were over and beyond the requirements of the era.  This ship, for example, had 17 compartments even though only 12 were mandated by the First International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea. Those extra compartments allowed the Duilio to remain afloat even if there were as many as four flooded compartments. 

The Duilio started serving NGI’s Genoa-Buenos Aires route in 1928. In 1932, the Duilio began service with Italia di Navigazione when this company was formed through a merger of NGI and a couple of other shipping businesses. The Duilio served on the new company’s run between Italy and South America. This ocean liner was transferred to the shipping company Lloyd Triestino in 1936 and laid up four years later. 

In 1942, the Duilio was chartered to the International Red Cross to help with humanitarian efforts during World War II. This ship was laid up at the port of northeastern Italy’s city of Trieste the following year. She was among the vessels sunk there during a 1944 attack by Allied aircraft.

Photo Credit: https://static.planetminecraft.com/files/resource_media/screenshot/1743/mny471-1509138619.jpg — licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en

For more information on SS Duilio, please check out https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SS_Duilio