Historical overview

The history of artillery-carrying river ships began in 1907, when the Danube Squadron began equipping them with four monitors built in Trieste in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, assembled and mounted at the Naval Arsenal in Galati. The four monitors were named "Lahovari", "Brătianu", "Catargiu" and "Kogălniceanu". On September 17, 1907, they were launched into the water, in the presence of the royal family, members of the government and representatives of the city of Galaţi. Two days later, on September 19, 1907, their entry into the service of the Danube Squadron was signed.

In 1913, artillery-carrying river ships participated in the military actions that took place in the Second Balkan War, demonstrating, on this occasion, their great firepower and good nautical and evolutionary qualities.

In the war for the unification of Romania, the monitors "Lahovari", "Brătianu", "Catargiu" and "Kogălniceanu" participated in military operations, executing missions on the Danube and in the Danube Delta, for striking enemy ships, fighting enemy artillery batteries and supporting by fire of the actions of the ground forces. The fact that the monitors survived the war demonstrated the good training of the crews and their professionalism. The contribution of the monitors "Brătianu" and "Kogălniceanu", in the war of national unity, was appreciated by the state leadership, they were decorated with the "Star of Romania with the Ribbon of Military Virtue".

In 1918, the monitors " Ardealul", "Basarabia" and " Bucovina", received as war reparations from the former Austro-Hungarian Empire, entered the composition of the Romanian Naval Forces. In this way, Romania became the country with the strongest fluvial combat potential in Europe.

In the period 1936-1940, an extensive operation was carried out to modernize and equip the monitors. At the end of 1940, the monitor "Basarabia" could be considered the most modern river ship in the world.

In August and September 1944, the monitors "Brătianu", "Lahovari", "Ardealul", "Basarabia" and "Bucovina" were illegally captured and deployed in the Caucasian ports, and the monitor "Mihail Kogălniceanu" was sunk at Valkov by the Soviet aviation .

Following the signing, on September 11, 1945, of the Convention on the retrocession of Romanian commercial and military ships, the Soviet government returned 18 warships and 23 commercial ships, including the five Danube monitors.

In 1957, the monitors were preserved, and in the period 1959-1962 they were scrapped and taken out of operation.

Starting with 1993, at the shipyard in Drobeta-Turnu Severin, the construction of the first modern monitor was started. On 08.12.1993, the project monitor 1316 "Mihail Kogălniceanu", with boarding number 45, came into the possession of the Navy, and on 25.12.1994 the monitor project 1316 "I.C. Brătianu", with registration number 46.

The 67th Monitor Squadron was established in 1995, in the Brăila garrison, and became part of the 24th Riverine Brigade of the Danube Flotilla, through O.G. no. 4 of 03.02.1995 of the Minister of National Defense.

The 67th Monitor Squadron consisted of project 1316 monitors "Mihail Kogălniceanu" and "Ion C. Brătianu". On May 30, 1996, the monitor "Lascăr Catargiu" entered the endowment of the Navy, with the boarding number 47. The names given to these monitors honored the memory of political figures of major importance in the 19th century.

Between the years 2001-2003, the operationalization of the squadron was achieved, and at the end of this period it was considered to be able to carry out specific NATO missions.

In 2018, the unit was given the honorary name "Commander Virgil Alexandru Dragalina", with Saint Mary as its spiritual patron.

From its establishment to the present, the 67th Riverine Gunboat Squadron has participated in numerous national and international exercises, where it has demonstrated a high level of professionalism.

Currently, the 67th Riverine Gunboat Squadron, composed of two sections (Section 1 Monitors and Section 2 Riverine Gunboat), is subordinated to the "Mihail Kogălniceanu" Riverine Flotilla Headquarter and represents a powerful river force, capable of defending national interests on the Danube River and at its mouths.