Evangelista Torricelli was one of four Archimede-class submarines built for the Regia Marina (Royal Italian Navy) during the 1930s.

They had an operational diving depth of 90 meters (300 ft)[1] Their crew numbered 55 officers and enlisted men.

They were also armed with a pair of 100 mm (3.9 in) deck guns, one each fore and aft of the conning tower, for combat on the surface.

[2] During the Spanish Civil War the boat torpedoed and badly damaged the Republican light cruiser Miguel Cervantes while at anchor off Cartagena on 22 November 1936.

The following day the boat narrowly missed colliding with the 2,174 GRT cargo ship SS Cabo Sucratif.