One operation forces several Italian responses

Cunningham's plan aimed beyond damage to individual ships. A raid in the Adriatic would normally provoke a rapid fleet response, but the simultaneous attack on Taranto left Italian commanders choosing between mutually exclusive actions: defend the harbour, protect shipping, or redeploy the surviving fleet. The delay gave the British time to withdraw and created the possibility that a hurried Italian sortie would meet Force A's battleships and carrier support. Cunningham appears to have wanted an angry response that would expose a weakened fleet, yet Italy sent neither its capital ships nor a heavy-cruiser striking force. The psychological effect lasted longer, since later British movements could force Italian commanders to wonder whether an apparent convoy operation concealed another strike.