On 16 December, the four-ship Italian convoy, renamed M42, left Taranto, picking up escorts along the way. The close escort was provided by seven destroyers and a torpedo boat; by the time they reached Sicily they were also accompanied by a close cover force, comprising the battleship Caio Duilio, three light cruisers and three destroyers.[1] The distant covering force consisted of the battleships Littorio, Andrea Doria and Giulio Cesare, two cruisers and 10 destroyers.[2]