Light Cruisers of the World Part 3 Quiz

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. This French light cruiser was designed as a training ship but served in combat throughout World War II. What was her name?

Answer: Jeanne d'Arc

"Jeanne d'Arc" was built between 1928-1930 and carried eight 6.1-inch guns on a displacement of 6500 tons. Designed as a dedicated training ship, she had accommodations for over 150 trainees. The ship took French gold reserves to Canada in 1940, then served with the Allies in the Mediterranean. She resumed training duties after the war and was scrapped in 1964.

2. The German cruisers of the "Leipzig" class, "Leipzig" and "Nurnberg", both served throughout World War II, but one ship was seized at the end of the war by the Soviet Union as war reparations. Which ship was taken?

Answer: Nurnberg

"Leipzig" and "Nurnberg" were built between 1928-1934, weighed 8900 tons, and carried nine 5.9-inch guns. Both ships were torpedoed in 1939 and served mostly on training duties after repairs. Badly damaged in a collision with the "Prinz Eugen" in 1944, "Leipzig" remained in harbor until after the war and was scrapped in 1946. "Nurnberg" was captured by the British and turned over to the Soviets, where she served as the "Makarov" until scrapped in 1960.

3. This group of four cruisers, known as the "Giussano" class, were the first part of a related class that ultimately numbered twelve ships. Built in five groups from 1928-1936 for the Italian Navy, what was the collective name given to this group of ships?

Answer: Condottieri class

The four ships of the "Giussano" group of the "Condottieri" class were built between 1928-1930. They displaced 6850 tons and were armed with eight 6-inch guns. Among the fastest cruisers ever built, they sacrificed armor for speed, with the result of all four ships being sunk by torpedo attack during World War II.

4. The second group of the "Condottieris" built by the Italians was the "Luigi Cadorna" class of two ships, completed in 1933. What was the top speed of these ships?

Answer: 37 knots

The "Luigi Cadorna" and her sister ship "Armando Diaz" displaced 7000 tons and carried eight 6-inch guns. The "Diaz" was sunk by a British submarine in 1941. "Cadorna" surrendered to the Allies in 1943 but was returned to Italy in 1947 and served as a training ship until she was scrapped in 1951.

5. This French cruiser, built from 1931-1935, was another single ship class. She was designed as a minelayer and destroyer flotilla leader. What was her name?

Answer: Emile Bertin

The French "Emile Bertin" carried nine 6-inch guns on a displacement of 6500 tons. She was the first French warship to carry triple turrets, and her basic layout became the standard for all later French cruisers. "Bertin" joined the Allies in 1943 and served in the Mediterranean theater. Used as a training ship from 1946, she was scrapped in 1959.

6. The third group of the "Condottieri" class were the "Raimondo Montecuccoli" and the "Muzio Attendolo". Which of these two ships survived the war?

Answer: Raimondo Montecuccoli

The two ships of the "Montecuccoli" class displaced 9000 tons and were armed with eight 6-inch guns. Both ships saw extensive action in World War II. The "Attendolo" was wrecked by air attack in 1942 and scrapped after the war. "Montecuccoli" surrendered in 1943 and was returned to Italy in 1947, serving as a training ship until 1965.

7. Two of the smallest ships that were rated as light cruisers were the two units of the Chinese "Ning Hai" class. One ship was built in a foreign shipyard, while the other was built in China with assistance from another country. Which country assisted the Chinese with the construction of these two vessels?

Answer: Japan

The Chinese "Ning Hai" was built in Japan, while the "Ping Hai" was constructed in China with Japanese assistance. Displacing 2500 tons and armed with six 5.5-inch guns, both ships were sunk in 1937 after less than a year of service. The Japanese raised and repaired both ships, using them as escorts. Both units were sunk in 1944.

8. The next group of the "Condottieri" class ships built for Italy were the two ships of the "Duca d'Aosta" class. These vessels were heavier due to better armor protection than the previous units. What was their main armament?

Answer: Eight 6-inch guns

Continuing the evolution of the basic "Condottieri" design, the "Duca d'Aosta" and the "Eugenio di Savoia" were 1500 tons heavier than the previous two ships in the class, almost all of the extra weight devoted to better underwater armor. "Duca d'Aosta" was allocated to the Soviets after the war and served as the "Kerch" until scrapped in 1961.

The "Savoia" was given to Greece, renamed "Elli", and was broken up in 1973.

9. This class of eight British cruisers, built in two groups, saw five of the ships serving with Commonwealth navies. Built between 1933-1936, what was the class name of these vessels?

Answer: Leander

The "Leanders" were built in two groups. Of the "Leander" group of five ships, "Achilles" and "Leander" served with the New Zealand navy. "Neptune" was sunk in 1941. The "Achilles" was sold to India in 1948. The other three ships were all scrapped by 1949.
The three ships of the "Amphion" group, "Amphion", "Apollo", and "Phaeton", served as the "Perth", "Hobart", and "Sydney" in the Australian navy. Both
"Perth" and "Sydney" were lost during the war. "Hobart" was scrapped in 1962.

10. The last of the "Condottieri" ships were the "Luigi di Savoia Duca Degli Abruzzi" and the "Giuseppe Garibaldi", which were better armored and carried two more 6-inch guns each. Both ships survived the war. Which ship was converted into a missile cruiser?

Answer: Giuseppe Garibaldi

Carrying ten 6-inch guns on a displacement of 11,750 tons, the "Abruzzis" were the most capable of the "Condottieri" vessels built by Italy. Both ships were retained by Italy after the war. "Abruzzi" was scrapped in 1972. The "Garibaldi" was converted into a guided missile cruiser from 1957-1961 and was the Italian flagship until she was scrapped in 1972.

11. Another small Chinese ship, rated as a light cruiser, was the "Yat Sen", completed in 1934. Where was this ship built?

Answer: Shanghai, China

The "Yat Sen" was designated by the Chinese as a light cruiser even though it was the size of a destroyer. Sunk and captured by the Japanese in 1937, she was renamed "Atada" and used as a training ship. The ship was returned to the Chinese in 1946 and was scrapped in 1959.

12. This class of American light cruisers were the first units designed under the Washington Treaty conditions. There were nine units completed between 1935-1938. What was the name of this class?

Answer: Brooklyn class

The "Brooklyn" class weighed 12,200 tons and carried 15 6-inch and eight 5-inch guns. The "Brooklyns" were active in all of the major battles in the Pacific, and only the "Helena" was lost in combat. The "Honolulu" and "Savannah" were scrapped in 1947. The "Brooklyn", "Nashville", "Philadelphia", "Phoenix",
"Boise", and "St. Louis" were all sold to South American navies in 1951, some of them serving into the 1980s.

13. This Dutch cruiser was a single ship design which was almost cancelled due to budget constraints and a powerful public pacifist movement. What was the ship's name?

Answer: De Ruyter

The "De Ruyter" was originally designed as a smaller, more lightly armed ship, due to both a strong pacifist movement among the Dutch people and budget constraints during the Great Depression. The design was enlarged at the insistence of the Navy, who felt that a larger, more powerful ship was needed to counter Japanese designs on the Dutch East Indies. "De Ruyter" weighed 7700 tons and carried seven 5.9-inch guns.

She was sunk in 1942.

14. Not to be confused with the 1914 class of the same name, the British "Arethusa" class of 1935-1937 carried six 6-inch guns and weighed 5220 tons. How many ships were in the class?

Answer: Four

Of the four ships built, both "Galatea" and " Penelope" were lost in World War II. The "Aurora" was sold to the Chinese Nationalist government in 1948 and renamed "Chunking", but the crew defected to the Communists in 1949. The ship was scrapped in 1967. The "Arethusa" was discarded in 1950.

15. The "La Galissoniere" class of French cruisers were evenly split during World War II, three serving with the Vichy navy and three with the Free French forces. How many of the ships survived the war?

Answer: Three

Carrying nine 6-inch guns on a displacement of 9100 tons, the ships of the "La Galissoniere" class were fast and well-armed. Three ships, the name ship, the "Jean de Vienne", and the "Marseillaise" were scuttled at Toulon in 1942. "Gloire" was scrapped in 1958, "Georges Leygues" in 1959, and "Montcalm" in 1970.

Source: Author Reamar42

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor Bruyere before going online.
Any errors found in FunTrivia content are routinely corrected through our feedback system.

The light cruisers built in the late 1920s and into the 1930s were, for the most part, larger, faster, and more heavily armed than units that were only a few years older. These ships bore the brunt of combat in World War II. What do you know about them?

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