Content deleted Content added
→Bibliography: redundant cat |
|||
| (20 intermediate revisions by 10 users not shown) | |||
Line 1:
{{Short description|French class of armored cruisers}}
{{good article}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin}}
Line 8 ⟶ 9:
|Name=''Dupleix'' class
|Builders=
|Operators={{navy|
|Class before={{sclass
|Class after={{sclass
|Cost=
|Built range= 1897–1904
Line 48 ⟶ 49:
}}
|}
The '''''Dupleix'' class''' consisted of three [[armored cruiser]]s built for the [[French Navy]] ({{lang|fr|Marine
{{ship|French cruiser|Dupleix|1900|2}} was initially assigned to the Atlantic Division ({{lang|fr|Division de l'Atlantique}}) as its [[flagship]]. Her [[sister ship]]s were initially assigned to the [[Mediterranean Squadron (France)|Mediterranean Squadron]] ({{lang|fr|Escadre de la Méditerranée}}), although {{ship|French cruiser|Desaix||2}} relieved ''Dupleix'' as flagship of the Atlantic Division in 1905. ''Dupleix'' was reduced to [[Reserve fleet|reserve]] from 1906 to 1909 before she was sent to the [[Far East]] in 1910 as the flagship of the ships there. ''Desaix'' and {{ship|French cruiser|Kléber||2}} exchanged assignments in 1907, although the former ship returned to the Atlantic in 1908 before being placed in reserve from 1909 to 1914. ''Kléber'' was also placed in reserve in 1909, but she was reactivated two years later to join ''Dupleix'' in the Far East before returning home in 1913 to be placed in reserve again.
Line 63 ⟶ 64:
A traditionalist Navy Minister, [[Vice Admiral]] ({{lang|fr|Vice amiral}}) [[Armand Besnard]], succeeded the liberal politician [[Édouard Lockroy]] in April 1896, after the latter had authorized construction of the very large armored cruiser {{ship|French cruiser|Jeanne d'Arc|1899|2}} in the 1896 budget proposal, despite opposition from the {{lang|fr|Conseil des travaux}}. After rejecting a repeat {{convert|8000|t|LT|lk=on|adj=on|sp=us|0}} [[protected cruiser]] like {{ship|French cruiser|D'Entrecasteaux||2}} in the 1896 budget, Lockroy and his allies in the Budget Committee were willing to accept smaller cruisers in the following year's budget. The {{lang|fr|Conseil des travaux}} rejected Besnard's proposal for a {{convert|5700|t|LT|adj=on|sp=us|0}} protected cruiser in late 1896,<ref name=r6/> saying that the navy "needed ships that can deal out and withstand punishment",<ref>Jordan & Caresse, p. 77</ref> but Besnard authorized construction of {{ship|French cruiser|Jurien de la Gravière||2}} a few weeks later in the 1897 budget proposal anyway.<ref name=r6>Ropp, p. 286</ref>
In the meantime, the Superior Naval Council had produced a new naval program that included an additional three each armored and protected cruisers for overseas service and five armored cruisers for service with the battle fleet. For the 1898 budget, Besnard proposed one battleship, two armored cruisers and two protected cruisers, but Lockroy and his allies, probably influenced by the ideas of Vice Admiral [[François Ernest Fournier]], who believed that most cruiser tasks, including commerce raiding, would be better performed by armored cruisers smaller than ''Jeanne d'Arc'', deleted the battleship and offered him 120 million [[French franc|francs]] for armored cruisers. Besnard initially proposed adding an enlarged version of ''Jeanne d'Arc'', but this was rejected by the {{lang|fr|Conseil des travaux}} in early 1897. He countered with a revised program of three armored cruisers for overseas duties, which became the ''Dupleix'' class, and three {{sclass
Preliminary design work in December 1896 was for a {{convert|7300|t|LT|sp=us|adj=on|0}} ship armed with ten {{convert|164.7|mm|adj=on|sp=us|1}} guns, two in single-[[gun turret]]s fore and aft of the superstructure and the remaining eight in [[Casemate#Single casemates (1889 onwards)|casemates]], protected by a {{convert|70|mm|adj=on|sp=us}} [[waterline]] [[armor belt]]. The {{lang|fr|Conseil de travaux}} thought that the belt protection was too weak and that the ships needed more endurance. The [[naval architect]] [[Louis-Émile Bertin]], recently appointed as the Director of Naval Construction ({{lang|fr|Directeur centrale des constructions navales}}), agreed and revised the design, sacrificing one pair of guns for more armor and additional coal, which increased its displacement. The {{lang|fr|Conseil}} accepted his revised design on 4 May 1897, although complaining about the deleted guns.<ref>Jordan & Caresse, pp. 79–80</ref>
''Dupleix'' was ordered from one of the naval dockyards on 18 December and orders for the other two followed on 28 December. Six months later, the {{lang|fr|Conseil}} proposed revising the armament, exchanging the single-gun turrets and the casemated guns for four twin-gun turrets, two replacing the turrets on the [[centerline (nautical)|centerline]] and two [[wing turret]]s, one on each [[Broadside (naval)|broadside]], and adding four {{convert|100|mm|adj=on|1|sp=us}} guns in casemates. By this time, preliminary work had already begun on ''Dupleix'' and Lockroy, recently returned to office, suggested suspending work on the ships while studies were done. Bertin opposed the changes, but produced drawings by early March 1899, despite the work load on his designers who were focused on other projects, and they were approved by the Minister on 6 April. The changes greatly retarded the progress on the two ships ordered from private dockyards, which had already been laid down in early 1899.<ref>Jordan & Caresse, pp. 81–82</ref>
==Design and description==
The ''Dupleix''-class ships were much smaller and more lightly armed than ''Jeanne d'Arc''. They measured {{convert|132.1|m|ftin|sp=us}} [[Length overall|long overall]]<ref name=s9>Silverstone, p. 79</ref> with a [[beam (nautical)|beam]] of {{convert|17.8|m|ftin|sp=us}} and had a maximum [[draft (ship)|draft]] of {{convert|7.46|m|ftin|sp=us}}. The cruisers [[Displacement (ship)|displaced]] {{convert|7700|t|LT|sp=us|0}} as designed. To reduce [[biofouling]], their hulls were sheathed in [[teak]]. The ships normally had a crew of 19 officers and 550 enlisted men, but accommodated 24 officers and 583 enlisted men when serving as flagships.<ref>Jordan & Caresse, pp. 82, 91</ref>
The ships' propulsion machinery consisted of three [[Marine steam engine#Triple or multiple expansion|vertical triple-expansion steam engine]]s, each driving a single [[propeller shaft]], using steam provided by [[water-tube boiler]]s, but the types of machinery differed between them. The first two ships, {{Ship|French cruiser|Dupleix|1900|2}} and {{Ship|French cruiser|Desaix||2}}, had four-cylinder engines fed by 24 [[Belleville boiler]]s with a working pressure of {{convert|20|kg/cm2|kPa psi|0|abbr=on|lk=on}} while the last ship, {{Ship|French cruiser|Kléber||2}}, had three-cylinder engines that used 20 [[Niclausse boiler]]s at {{convert|18|kg/cm2|kPa psi|0|abbr=on}}. The engines of all three ships were designed to produce a total of {{convert|17100|PS|lk=on|sp=us}} that was intended to give them a maximum speed of {{convert|21|kn|lk=in}}. Despite exceeding their horsepower rating, only ''Kléber'' met or exceeded her designed speed during their [[sea trial]]s, the ships attaining {{convert|20.6|-|21.5|kn}} from {{convert|17177|-|17870|PS|sp=us}}. The sisters carried up to {{convert|1200|t|sp=us}} of coal and could steam for {{convert|6450|nmi|lk=in}} at a speed of {{convert|10|kn}}.<ref>Jordan & Caresse, pp. 82, 94</ref>
===Armament===
The ships of the ''Dupleix'' class had a [[Main battery|main armament]] that consisted of eight [[quick-firing gun|quick-firing (QF)]] 45-[[caliber (artillery)|caliber]] [[Canon de 164 mm Modèle 1893|Canon de 164 mm Modèle 1893–96]] guns. They were mounted in four twin-gun turrets, one each fore and aft of the [[superstructure]] and a pair of wing turrets [[amidships]].<ref name=ck5>Chesneau & Kolesnik, p. 305</ref> The guns fired {{convert|54.9|kg|lb|adj=on|sp=us}} shells at [[Muzzle velocity|muzzle velocities]] ranging from {{convert|865|m/s|ft/s|sp=us}}. This gave them a range of about {{convert|10800|m|yd|sp=us}} at the turrets' maximum [[elevation (ballistics)|elevation]] of +15 degrees. Each gun was provided with 200 [[Cartridge (firearms)|rounds]], of which 44 shells were stowed in the turrets, which it could fire at a rate of three rounds per minute.<ref>Friedman, p. 223; Jordan & Caresse, pp. 85, 87, 89</ref>
The cruisers' [[
===Protection===
The [[nickel steel]] armor belt of the ''Dupleix''-class cruisers extended from {{convert|1.2|m|ftin|sp=us}} below the waterline to {{convert|1.995|m|ftin|sp=us|0}} above it<ref>Jordan & Caresse, p. 91</ref> and covered the entire length of the ship except for {{convert|62|ft|m|sp=us|1|disp=flip}}<ref name=ck5/> of the stern where it ended in a transverse [[bulkhead (partition)|bulkhead]] {{convert|84|mm|in|sp=us}} thick. The armor was {{convert|102|mm|sp=us|0}} thick, although it reduced to 84 mm in front of the forward turret and thinned to {{convert|38|mm|in|sp=us}} at its lower edge.<ref>Jordan & Caresse, pp. 91–92</ref>
The curved protective [[deck (ship)|deck]] had a total thickness of {{convert|42|mm|in|sp=us}} on the flat and {{convert|70|mm|1|sp=us}} on the upper part of the curved portion where it met the bottom edge of the belt armor. Behind the belt armor was a highly-subdivided watertight internal [[cofferdam#Naval architecture|cofferdam
==Ships==
{|
|+ Construction data
!scope="col"|Name
!scope="col"|Builder<ref name=f7/>
!scope="col"|[[Laid down]]<ref name=f7>Jordan & Caresse, p. 81</ref>
!scope="col"|[[Ship naming and launching|Launched]]<ref name=f7/>
!scope="col"|[[Ship commissioning|Commissioned]]<ref name=f7/>
!scope="col"| Fate<ref>Jordan & Caresse, pp. 245–256, 256</ref>
|-
|scope="row"|{{ship|French cruiser|Dupleix|1900|2}}
|[[Arsenal de Rochefort]]
| 18 January 1899
Line 95 ⟶ 102:
| Sold for scrap, 1922
|-
|scope="row"|{{ship|French cruiser|Desaix||2}}
|[[Ateliers et Chantiers de la Loire]], [[Nantes]]
| rowspan=2|Early 1899
Line 102 ⟶ 109:
| Sold for scrap, 1927
|-
|scope="row"|{{ship|French cruiser|Kléber||2}}
|[[Forges et Chantiers de la Gironde]], [[Bordeaux]]
| 20 September 1902
Line 109 ⟶ 116:
|}
==Service history==
The first ship completed, ''Dupleix'', was initially assigned to the Atlantic Division as its flagship. Her sisters were initially assigned to the Mediterranean Squadron's Light Squadron ({{lang|fr|Escadre légère}}), although ''Desaix'' relieved ''Dupleix'' as flagship of the Atlantic Division in 1905. In her turn ''Kléber'' relieved ''Desaix'' as flagship of the Atlantic Division in 1907. ''Desaix'' took ''Kléber''{{'}}s place in the Light Squadron. While visiting the United States later that year, the cruiser accidentally collided with and sank an American [[cargo ship]] and participated in the [[Jamestown Exposition]], celebrating the tercentenary of the founding of [[Jamestown, Virginia]]. At the beginning of 1908, ''Kléber'' became flagship of the Moroccan Division ({{lang|fr|Division du Maroc}}).<ref>{{cite book |author1=U.S. Department of Commerce and Labor Bureau of Navigation |title=Thirty-Ninth Annual List of Merchant Vessels of the United States for the Year Ending June 30, 1907 |series=1936/37-1939/41: Report series, no.[1], 4, 8, 11 |date=1907 |publisher=Government Printing Office |___location=Washington, D.C. |page=379 |url=https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=uc1.b3330071}}</ref><ref>Jordan & Caresse, pp. 95, 210; Sieche, pp. 150, 155, 157</ref>
The sisters all spent significant amounts of time before 1914 in reserve. ''Dupleix'' from 1906 to 1909, ''Desaix'' from 1909 to 1914 and ''Kléber'' in 1909–1910 and 1913–1914. ''Dupleix'' was reactivated in 1910 to serve as the flagship of the Far Eastern Division ({{lang|fr|Division navale de l'Extrême Orient}}) and was joined by ''Kléber'' in 1911–1912. ''Dupleix'' was replaced as flagship in 1913 by the larger and more spacious, albeit older, armored cruiser {{ship|French cruiser|Montcalm|1900|2}}.<ref>Jordan & Caresse, p. 95</ref>
===World War I===
After the French declaration of war on [[Imperial Germany]] in early August 1914, ''Dupleix'' was assigned to the British [[China Squadron]] and participated in the early stages of the blockade of the German-leased port of [[
''Desaix'' and ''Kléber'' were reactivated in July 1914 and were assigned to the 3rd Light Division ({{lang|fr|3<sup>e</sup> Division légère}} (DL)) of the 2nd Light Squadron which was tasked to defend the English Channel in conjunction with the British. The division was on station in the western end of the Channel by 4 August, where their mission was to intercept German shipping and provide distant [[Covering force|cover]] for the smaller ships escorting convoys in the Channel. Improved defenses in the Channel and the stabilization of the front in early 1915 allowed the cruisers to be released from their tasks, so ''Desaix'' was assigned to the 3rd Squadron upon her arrival in the [[Eastern Mediterranean]] on 16 February. The squadron was tasked to patrol the area between [[Port Said]], [[Egypt]], and [[Alexandretta]], [[Ottoman Syria]]. The cruiser was detached in May to assist the 1st Naval Army ({{lang|fr|1<sup>re</sup> Armée Navale}}) in the Central Mediterranean with searching for German shipping near Italian ports. She rejoined the 3rd Squadron and was tasked to help blockade the Ottoman coast near the Turkish and Syrian border. In contrast to her sister, ''Kléber'' was transferred to the [[Naval operations in the Dardanelles campaign|Dardanelles to support]] Allied forces in the Gallipoli Campaign in May where she joined the Dardanelles Squadron together with ''Dupleix'' and were assigned to blockade the coast of [[Asia Minor]].<ref>Jordan & Caresse, pp. 223–225, 232–236</ref> ''Kléber'' collided with the [[Royal Australian Navy]] [[troopship]] [[SS Pfalz (1913)|HMT ''Boorara'']] in the [[Aegean Sea]] on 17 July, damaging her bow.<ref>{{cite web |title=Australian troopship A42 HMAT Boorara (ex Pfalz) at Mudros, after being rammed by French cruiser... |url=https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/C1203566 |website=Australian War Memorial |
The successes of German merchant raiders like {{SMS|Möwe|1914|2}} in 1916 caused the Allies to transfer cruisers to the Atlantic to protect their shipping. The sisters were assigned to a newly-raised 6th Light Division in July 1916 that was based in [[Dakar]], [[French West Africa]], with ''Kléber'' as the division's flagship.<ref>Corbett, III, pp. 36, 172–174; Jordan & Caresse, p. 242</ref> To release manpower for higher-priority [[patrol boat]]s in 1917, the 6th DL was reduced to ''Dupleix'' and ''Desaix'' and renamed the Coast of Africa Division ({{lang|fr|Division navale de la côte d'Afrique}}) on 18 May; {{lang|fr|Contre-amiral}} (Rear Admiral) [[Louis Jaurès]] transferred his flag to ''Dupleix''. En route to [[Brest, France]], ''Kléber'' struck a mine and sank on 27 June that the German [[U-boat]] {{Ship|SM|UC-61||2}} had laid off the [[Iroise Sea|Iroise]] entrance to Brest. Nearby ships were able to rescue all but 38 of her crew.<ref>Jordan & Caresse, pp. 245–246</ref>
The division was disbanded on 14 September and ''Dupleix'' sailed to Brest where she was placed in reserve on 15 October. ''Desaix'' remained at Dakar for the rest of the war, tasked to escort convoys in the South Atlantic. ''Dupleix'' was [[Ship decommissioning|decommissioned]] on 1 May 1919 and stricken on 27 September from the [[Navy List]]. In 1920 ''Dupleix'' was towed to [[Landévennec]] and she was sold for scrap in 1922. ''Desaix'' returned to France after the war, but was assigned to the Far Eastern Division in 1919. Her service there was uneventful and the ship arrived back in France on 31 March 1921 after which she was decommissioned. ''Desaix'' was stricken from the Navy List on 27 July, but was not sold for scrap until 1927.<ref>Jordan & Caresse, pp. 245, 247, 252, 254, 256</ref>
Line 127 ⟶ 134:
==Bibliography==
{{Commons category}}
* {{cite book|title=Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905|editor1-last=Chesneau |editor1-first=Roger|editor2-last=Kolesnik|editor2-first=Eugene M.|publisher=Conway Maritime Press|___location=Greenwich, UK|year=1979|isbn=0-8317-0302-4|
* {{cite book|last=Corbett|first=Julian|
*{{cite book|last=Corbett|first=Julian|title=Naval Operations|edition=2nd|series=History of the Great War: Based on Official Documents|volume=III|orig-year=1940|year=1997|publisher=Imperial War Museum in association with the Battery Press|___location=London; Nashville, Tennessee|isbn=1-870423-50-X}}
*{{cite journal |last1=Dai|first1=Wei|title=A Discussion on French Armored Cruiser Identification: From the ''Gueydon'' Class to the ''Edgar Quinet'' Class |journal=Warship International |date=September 2020 |volume=LVII |issue=3 |pages=199–221 |issn=0043-0374}}
*{{cite book
*{{cite book |last1=Jordan |first1=John |last2=Caresse |first2=Philippe |title=French Armoured Cruisers 1887–1932 |date=2019 |publisher=Seaforth Publishing |___location=Barnsley, UK |isbn=978-1-5267-4118-9|name-list-style=amp}}
* {{cite book
| last = Ropp|
| first = Theodore
| title = The Development of a Modern Navy: French Naval Policy, 1871–1904
Line 147 ⟶ 155:
{{Dupleix class cruiser}}
{{WWI French ships}}
{{coord|48|17|13|N|4|50|50|W|region:TK_type:landmark_source:kolossus-dewiki|display=title}}
[[Category:Dupleix-class cruisers| ]]
[[Category:Cruisers of the French Navy]]▼
[[Category:World War I cruisers of France]]
| |||