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Landi (Count Carlo Zanardi) Collection
SPC.2009.001
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Table of contents
Contributing Institution:
California State University Dominguez Hills, Gerth Archives and Special Collections
Title: Count Carlo Zanardi Landi Collection
Creator:
Landi, Carlo, 1872-
Identifier/Call Number: SPC.2009.001
Physical Description:
2 boxes
Physical Description:
1 Linear Feet
Date (inclusive): 1907-1929
Date (bulk): 1917-1927
Abstract: Records of Count Carlo Zanardi Landi (1907-1929), Marine Superintendent of the Ocean Salvage Company Limited. Included in
the collection are handwritten letters; typed correspondence; photographs; telegrams; newspaper clippings; memorandums; bills
and invoices; a Dutch pamphlet regarding new diver apparatus, and blank hotel stationary. The correspondence is primarily
regarding steamship salvage business after World War I, including the management of crews, the purchase of ships and supplies,
and the status of salvage operations. Personal letters from Count Landi's adopted children, Tonio and Elissa Landi, are also
included.
Language of Material:
English
, Italian
, French
, Dutch; Flemish
.
There are no access restrictions on this collection.
All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Director of Archives
and Special Collections. Permission for publication is given on behalf of Special Collections as the owner of the physical
materials and not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained.
For information about citing archival material, see the
Citations for Archival Material guide, or consult the appropriate style manual.
The records in this collection were acquired through a donation from Jennifer Cady, daughter of a former instructor at California
State University Dominguez Hills.
Collection processed in March 2009 by Michele Anderson.
The Admiralty was a British authority that oversaw the functions of the Royal Navy. During and after World War I, the British
Admiralty Salvage Section, as dictated by the Admiralty, was responsible for the salvaging of ships stranded at sea. Salvage
duties included refloating, towing, pumping, dredging and repairing damage to ships. Some ships suffered major damage from
torpedoes, while others only required to be patched, pumped or tugged to another location.
Count Carlo Zanardi Landi (1876-1953) was an Italian nobleman who worked as a Marine Superintendent for the Ocean Salvage
Company Limited, a marine salvage company based in London. During World War I, Count Landi was commissioned by the British
Admiralty Salvage Section to recover ships primarily stranded in the British Isles and the Mediterranean and Black Seas. Landi
was responsible for organizing the crews on the salvage ships, such as divers, blacksmiths and carpenters, and ordering ship
supplies. He also accompanied and managed crews traveling to various ports as dictated by the British Admiralty.
Landi was married to Countess Zanardi Landi, who claimed to be the secret daughter of Emperor Francis Joseph and Elizabeth
of Austria and subsequently wrote the book "The Secret of an Empress". Count Landi adopted his wife's children, Tonio and
Elissa, who was a film actress from the 1920's to 1940's.
The Count Carlo Zanardi Landi Collection contains materials from 1907 to 1929. The bulk of the material stems from 1917 to
1927. The correspondence is primarily regarding steamship salvage business after World War I, including the management of
crews, the purchase of ships and supplies, and the status of salvage operations. Subject matter in the collection include
marine accidents; salvage vessels; steamboats; the Admiralty of Great Britain; historic ships, and salvage missions in the
Black Sea, British Isles and Mediterranean Sea.
The collection contains handwritten letters; typed correspondence; newspaper clippings; memorandums; telegrams; bills and
invoices; a journal titled "The Yachting World and Marine Motor Journal"; a Dutch pamphlet regarding new diver apparatus,
and blank hotel stationary. The collection also includes 153 photographs of salvage steamers, salvaged ships, ship damage,
crewmembers and miscellaneous images related to salvage work from 1907 to 1927.
One salvage steamer in particular, the Semper Paratus (translated in Latin, means "Always Ready") is mentioned periodically
in the correspondence and photographs. Damage done to the S.S. Novington and S.S. Oilfield in Great Britian; the S.S. Andonio
D. Kydoniefs in Greece, and the S.S. Sebat, S.S. Lothar Bohlen, and S.S. Cleopatra in Turkey, among a few, are documented
in the photograph collection. Many of the photographs were taken in areas of Turkey, including Istanbul (nee Constantinople),
Gallipoli, and Karaburun in the Anatolia region.
Also included are typed and handwritten correspondence in Italian and French, as well as handwritten personal letters from
Landi's son Tonio Landi and daughter, actress Elissa Landi.
Arranged in two series:
- Series I. Count Zanardi Landi Documents 1917-1929
- Series II. Photographs 1907-1927
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Admiralty -- Great Britain
Salvage
Salvage -- Great Britain
Salvage -- Turkey
World War, 1914-1918
Black Sea
British Isles
Mediterranean Sea
Turkey
Gallipoli (Turkey)
Marine accidents
Steam-navigation
Steamboats
Salvage vessels
Ships
Historic ships
Navigation -- History
Landi, Carlo, 1872-
Landi, Elissa, 1904-1948
Great Britain. Royal Navy