BATTLE OF VIS 

The most important naval battle in the history of the Adriatic, and one of the most significant naval engagements in European history in general, took place on July 20th 1866 in the waters around the island of Vis. The Battle of Vis, or “Vi?ki boj” in Croatian, was the first major naval battle in which ironclads and steamships took part and the first engagement in which two armored fleets battled on the high seas. The Austrian fleet under Wilhelm von Tegetthoff defeated the stronger and more numerous Italian fleet under the command of Admiral Persano, preventing Italy from occupying Vis and other parts of the eastern Adriatic coast. The Italian ironclads Re d’Italia and Palestro were sunk in the battle and their wrecks lie preserved to this day in the depths around the island of Vis.