History Studies (Feb 2023)
THE IMPACT OF THE PORT OF VALONA IN THE CONTEXT OF THE ITALIAN NAVY'S DOMINATION OF THE ADRIATIC SEA IN THE FIRST WORLD WAR
Abstract
Valona has a critical importance for the Adriatic Sea, and as of the beginning of the twentieth century, its influence and deterrence increased considerably, especially in the Adriatic Sea competition between Italy and the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Although the Italian navy was very active in the Mediterranean in terms of military power before the First World War, it could not establish a full and definite dominance in the Adriatic Sea due to the influence of the Austro-Hungarian navy. Being in competition with the French navy in the west of the Mediterranean, the Italians saw fit to compensate for the lack of warships in their navy by gaining dominance in the area, and captured the port of Valona at the very beginning of the First World War. In this way, the Italians gained an advantage both against the Austro-Hungarian Empire in the Adriatic Sea and against Greece in the Balkans. Having a strategically important port for the navy, especially in the era of armored warships, increased the strength of the navy in the region. Despite this advantage, since the military capacity of the Italians was not enough to fortify the port of Valona from sea and land, Valona was bombed by German and Austro-Hungarian naval and air elements and the Italians suffered losses. In this context, in our study, the importance and deterrence of the port of Valona were tried to be determined in the context of the strategy of the Italian navy in the Adriatic Sea in the First World War.
