Italian speed doctrine meets the escort problem

The Regia Marina's destroyers resembled enlarged torpedo boats: quick offensive weapons built to attack in waves. That design fit a central-Mediterranean offensive vision but gave less weight to convoy work and to screening capital ships against submarines, cruisers, and opposing destroyers. At Cape Matapan, the need to use cruisers in an escort role illustrates the gap between offensive speed and the fleet's defensive requirements. The Royal Navy's Dido-class cruiser escorts offer a contrasting approach, with 5.25-inch batteries intended to stop destroyers and aircraft before they reached the protected force. A destroyer tied to a slow merchantman or screening a capital ship cannot rely on speed to escape danger. The Italian emphasis on torpedoes and maneuver therefore left too little gun power and resilience for missions the war actually imposed.