Raffaele Rossetti

Biography

Born at Genoa, Raffaele Rossetti graduated as engineer from the University of Turin in September 1904. He went to study in the Italian Naval Academy of Livorno, where become lieutenant for the Italian Navy Engineering Corps.

In December 1906 he graduated in the speciality of "naval mechanics engineering" at the Politecnico di Milano.

In 1909 was promoted to captain and in 1911 went to Libya during the Italo-Turkish War with the cruiser Pisa. During the first years of World War I worked as Director of the Navy Arsenal in La Spezia and was promoted to major.

While working there he started to create a new weapon, based on his idea of a torpedo manned by a person, to be linked to enemy vessels underwater and explode under the ship hull. This weapon was called "mignatta" (leech) and was the precursor of the maiale of World War II and the actual human torpedo.

At the 1st November 1918 Rossetti used his "mignatta" to assault the formerly Austrian battleship Viribus Unitis, which, unknown to him (the transfer had taken places a few hours before the action, when Rizzo had already left his base) had already changed hands to the newly established State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs. After entering the Pola harbour undetected, Rossetti placed limpet mines below the hull of the battleship; he was however discovered and captured, and he informed the crew that the ship was going to sink, although he did not reveal that he had placed mines on the hull. However, the explosions were delayed, and the crew started reboarding the ship, believing he was lying. Shortly thereafter, the mines exploded, causing the Viribus Unitis to capsize and sink, with heavy loss of life. Rossetti was awarded the Italian Gold Medal of Military Valor.

In 1919 Raffaele Rossetti retired as colonel. With the advent of the Italian Fascism, he became a member of the Italian Republican Party (PRI). He also founded the anti-fascist movement "Italia libera" together with Giovanni Conti, Randolfo Pacciardi and others. In 1925 he was assailed by Fascist squads, and decided to move to France. Here he was part of the directive of Giustizia e Liberta, an anti-fascist movement of Italian activists in Paris. In 1930 he exited the movement and, together with Cipriano Facchinetti, founded another anti-fascist movement, La Giovine Italia. In 1932 he was elected secretary of the exiled PRI, but the following year he was replaced by Pacciardi.

During the Spanish Civil War, Rossetti moved to Barcelona, and collaborated with local radio by running anti-fascist slogans. In retaliation, the Italian government revoked his Gold Medal won during World War I. This measure was annulled after the Fascist government was ousted and Italy became a Republic after the end of World War II.

He died in Milan in 1951.