The ceremony for the delivery of the combat flags of eight naval units of the Navy took place yesterday morning at the Shrine of the flags of the Vittoriano; a solemn ceremony with which the Armed Force paid tribute to the ships that have concluded their demanding and multi-year activity at the service of the community and in defense of national maritime interests. A tribute paid through a ritual that is repeated every time a military ship ends its operational life.
In the presence of the Chief of Staff of the Navy, Admiral Valter Girardelli, the commander in chief of the naval team, Admiral Donato Marzano and the former commanders of the eight units, the combat flags of the frigate Mistral, of the team patrolman Grenadier, of the corvettes Minerva, Sibilla, Urania, Danaide and minesweepers Sapri e Lerici, contained in the coffins donated by the Combat Associations upon entry into service of the respective ships, were delivered to the Shrine of the Flags, a symbol of memory and national unity.
The combat flag, which military ships are equipped with due to an ancient tradition handed down by the Maritime Republics of Venice and Genoa, represents the essence of the Navy, the ship and its crew; is the soul of Italy on the sea.
"Hoisted ashore" only when the ship is called to defend the nation and its people "in arms on the sea", the battle flag is "something more" than the one that is raised and lowered daily; according to the journalist Arnaldo Fraccaroli, "embedded" in the First World War, when the battle flag is struck "it is as if the ship were wheeling its very life on the antenna, it is as if the divine spirit of the Fatherland rose to bless and to protect. ".
After recalling the main moments in the operational life of Mistral, Grenadier, Minerva, Sibilla, Urania, Danaid, Sapri e Lerici, the chief of staff of the Navy wanted to give credit to their crews: "The lowest common denominator of these units is you, the commanders, officers, non-commissioned officers, graduates and sailors who with your work, your dedication, your affection for 'Iron' they are made of these ships, you have made in their lives and shaped living memory in time ... you have come and gone on board these units, of which remain the combat flags, so that anyone coming while visiting this Shrine, may he be directly acquainted with it, pay homage to it and, bowing his head, be always grateful ".
