The design combined an 11.9-inch belt and 15.7 inches of turret armour with a planned speed of 28 knots. Those protection figures were decent rather than the heaviest available, so the emphasis is on balance rather than invulnerability. The important feature is the package: battleship armament and useful protection on a ship fast enough to complicate an opponent's deployment. Compared with the slower ships Britain expected to use, Italy's programme could force the Royal Navy to revisit its own fast-capital-ship plans. Armour, speed, and firepower must be judged together rather than as isolated rankings.
Notable Point · 9:30-10:18
Protection traded against 28-knot speed
An 11.9-inch belt and heavily protected turrets made the class a credible fast capital ship, though neither protection figure was exceptional by itself.