Italy declared war on Austria-Hungary on the afternoon of 23 May 1915, and almost the entire Austro-Hungarian fleet left Pola soon after to deliver an immediate response against Italian cities and towns along the Adriatic coast, aiming to interdict land and sea transport between southern Italy and the northern regions of that country which were expected to be a theatre of land operations. The fleet split into six groups with a range of targets up and down the coast. Group A included three dreadnought battleships, six pre-dreadnought battleships, and four destroyers, accompanied by "74 T" – "77 T" and "83 F", fourteen s and six seaplanes, and participated in the Bombardment of Ancona, a shore bombardment operation against the northern Adriatic coast of Italy. The bombardment began at 04:04 on 24 May, and caused significant damage in the shipyard, killing 68, 30 of them military personnel, and wounding 150. The destroyers entered the harbour and launched several torpedoes, sinking one steam ship and damaging two others. Group A withdrew after 05:00 when news was received of Italian submarines leaving Venice en route to Pola. Group E, formed by the light cruiser , a destroyer and "78 T" – "81 T", was involved in the shelling of Porto Corsini near Ravenna. In the latter action, an Italian shore battery returned fire, hitting "Novara", killing six and wounding ten, and also damaging "80 T", which had not entered the harbour. "81 T" joined "Novara" in shelling the semaphore station and a lighthouse, and then engaged in the duel with the coastal artillery.