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The Battle of Cape Matapan was a battle fought from March 27 - March 29, 1941 during World War II off the Peloponnesus coast in the Mediterranean. During the battle British naval forces defeated those of Italy sinking five warships: the cruisers Zara, Fiume, and Pola, and the destroyers Alfieri and Carducci.
The British fleet comprised the carrier Formidable; the battleships Warspite, Valiant, and Barham; and smaller units. (Warspite was the British flagship.) The Italian fleet was centered on the battleship Vittorio Veneto and included the cruisers Zara, Fiume, and Pola, as well as smaller units.
