The Nino Bixio class was a pair of protected cruisers built for the Italian Regia Marina in the 1910s. The two ships, Nino Bixio, and Marsala, were built in Castellammare between 1911 and 1914. They were intended to serve as scouts for the main Italian fleet, and as such required a high top speed. They were overweight as built, which prevented them from reaching their intended maximum speed. They were a disappointment in service, especially compared to the earlier—and faster—cruiser Quarto, which cut their careers short.
Illustration of Marsala
Plan and profile drawing of the Nino Bixio class
Nino Bixio (left) and other warships in Split in 1919
Protected cruisers, a type of cruising warship of the late-19th century, gained their description because an armoured deck offered protection for vital machine-spaces from fragments caused by shells exploding above them. Protected cruisers resembled armored cruisers, which had in addition a belt of armour along the sides.
The Russian protected cruiser Oleg was a Bogatyr-class protected cruiser
The protected cruiser Esmeralda, built by the shipyard of the Armstrong House for the Chilean Navy, was the first warship of its kind in the world.
Hertha on a visit to the United States in 1909
Dutch protected cruiser Noord-Brabant as an accommodation ship
