Leonardo da Vinci was one of three
dreadnoughts built for the
Regia Marina (Italian Royal Navy) in the early 1910s. Completed just before the beginning of
World War I, the ship saw no action and was sunk by a
magazine explosion in 1916 with the loss of 248 officers and enlisted men. The Italians blamed
Austro-Hungarian saboteurs for her loss, but it may have been accidental.
Leonardo da Vinci was
refloated in 1919 and plans were made to repair her. Budgetary constraints did not permit this and her
hulk was sold for
scrap in 1923.