Brătianu-class river monitor

The Brătianu-class river monitors were a class of four river monitors of the Romanian Navy. They were built in sections in the Austro-Hungarian port of Triest and assembled in the Romanian port of Galați. Brătianu and Catargiu were completed in 1907 with Lahovari and Kogălniceanu completed the next year. Four more were planned but never laid down. They took part in both World Wars, notably in the Battle of Turtucaia during World War I. On 22 and 23 June 1941, during World War II, Kogălniceanu, aided by another Romanian monitor, Basarabia, and four patrol boats, managed to repel two Soviet attacks, sinking one patrol boat and damaging another two as well as damaging two Soviet monitors in the process. On 24 August 1944, Catargiu and Kogălniceanu were sunk by Soviet aircraft. On 27 August Brătianu was captured by the Russians and renamed Azov. Lahovari was also captured on 2 September and renamed Mariupol. The two ships were given back to Romania on 23 June 1951. They were put into reserve in 1957 and scrapped between 1959 and 1962.