French ironclad Duguesclin

Duguesclin was an ironclad barbette ship built for the French Navy in the late 1870s and 1880s; she was the second and final member of the Vauban class. Intended for service in the French colonial empire, she was designed as a "station ironclad", which were smaller versions of the first-rate vessels built for the main fleet. The Vauban class was a scaled down variant of Amiral Duperré. They carried their main battery of four 240 mm (9.4 in) guns in open barbettes, two forward side-by-side and the other two aft on the centerline. Duguesclin was laid down in 1879 and was completed in 1885. Despite the intention to use her overseas, the ship remained in home waters for the duration of her career, serving with the Mediterranean Squadron from 1888 to 1895, though the last two years were as part of the Reserve Division. She spent the next several years in the 2nd category of reserve, ultimately being struck from the naval register in 1904. Her ultimate fate is unknown.

Duguesclin in port, date unknown
History
France
Name: Duguesclin
Builder: Rochefort
Laid down: December 1878
Launched: April 1883
Commissioned: August 1886
General characteristics
Displacement: 6,112 long tons (6,210 t)
Length: 81 m (265 ft 9 in) lwl
Beam: 17.45 m (57 ft)
Draft: 7.62 to 7.7 m (25 ft 0 in to 25 ft 3 in)
Installed power:
Propulsion:
Speed: 14 to 14.5 kn (25.9 to 26.9 km/h; 16.1 to 16.7 mph)
Crew:
  • 24 officers
  • 450 enlisted men
Armament:
Armor:

Design
Main article: Vauban-class ironclad
Profile, upper deck, and battery deck drawing of the Vauban class

The Vauban class of barbette ships was designed in the late 1870s as part of a naval construction program that began under the post-Franco-Prussian War fleet plan of 1872. At the time, the French Navy categorized its capital ships as high-seas ships for the main fleet, station ironclads for use in the French colonial empire, and smaller coastal defense ships. The Vauban class was intended to serve in the second role, and they were based on the high-seas ironclad Amiral Duperré, albeit a scaled-down version.[1]

Duguesclin was 81 m (265 ft 9 in) long at the waterline, with a beam of 17.45 m (57 ft) and a draft of 7.62 to 7.7 m (25 ft 0 in to 25 ft 3 in). She displaced 6,112 long tons (6,210 t). She was fitted with a pair of pole masts equipped with spotting tops for her main battery guns. The crew numbered 24 officers and 450 enlisted men. Her propulsion machinery consisted of two compound steam engines with steam provided by eight coal-burning fire-tube boilers. Her engines were rated to produce 4,400 indicated horsepower (3,300 kW) for a top speed of 14 to 14.5 knots (25.9 to 26.9 km/h; 16.1 to 16.7 mph). To supplement the steam engines, she was fitted with a brig sail rig with a total area of 2,160 m2 (23,200 sq ft).[2][3]

Her main battery consisted of four 240 mm (9.4 in), 19-caliber guns mounted in individual barbette mounts, two forward placed abreast, and two aft, both of the latter on the centerline. She carried a 190 mm (7.6 in) gun in the bow as a chase gun. These guns were supported by a secondary battery of six 140 mm (5.5 in) guns carried in a central battery located amidships in the hull, three guns per broadside. For defense against torpedo boats, she carried twelve 37 mm (1.5 in) 1-pounder Hotchkiss revolver cannon, all in individual mounts. Her armament was rounded out with two 356 mm (14 in) torpedo tubes in above-water launchers. The ship was protected with wrought iron armor; her belt was 152 to 254 mm (6 to 10 in) thick and extended for the entire length of the hull. The barbettes for the main battery were 203 mm (8 in) thick.[2]

Service history
Duguesclin as originally built

The keel for Duguesclin was laid down at the Arsenal de Rochefort in March 1877,[3] or December 1878. She was launched in April 1883 and was completed in August 1886, when she underwent her final sea trials.[2][4] The ship was placed in the reserve fleet initially, and was activated on 23 August 1888 for the annual fleet maneuvers. She got underway two days later to join the rest of the fleet, which had assembled at Hyères by 30 August. The maneuvers ended on 4 September, with the fleet returning to Toulon by the 10th.[5]

Duguesclin served in the 3rd Division of the Mediterranean Squadron in 1890, along with her sister ship Vauban and the ironclad Bayard. She took part in the annual fleet maneuvers that year in company with her division-mates and six other ironclads, along with numerous smaller craft. Duguesclin served as part of the simulated enemy force during the maneuvers, which lasted from 30 June to 6 July.[6] During the 1890 fleet maneuvers, the ship was transferred to the 4th Division of the 2nd Squadron of the Mediterranean Fleet, along with Duguesclin and Bayard. The ships concentrated off Oran, French Algeria on 22 June and then proceeded to Brest, France, arriving there on 2 July for combined operations with the ships of the Northern Squadron. The exercises began four days later and concluded on 25 July, after which Duguesclin and the rest of the Mediterranean Fleet returned to Toulon.[7]

During the fleet maneuvers of 1891, which began on 23 June, Duguesclin served in the 3rd Division, once again with Vauban and Bayard. The maneuvers lasted until 11 July, during which the 3rd Division operated as part of the "French" fleet, opposing a simulated hostile force that attempted to attack the southern French coast.[8] By 1893, Duguesclin had been reduced to the Reserve Division of the Mediterranean Squadron, where she and Vauban were rated as armored cruisers. While in reserve, the ships were kept in commission with full crews for six months of the year to take part in training exercises.[9] By 1895, the two Vauban-class ironclads had been removed from the Reserve Division altogether, and were no longer kept in service, their place having been taken by new, purpose-built armored cruisers.[10] They were reduced to the 2nd category of reserve, along with several old coastal defense ships and unprotected cruisers. They were retained in a state that allowed them to be mobilized in the event of a major war.[11] The French Navy had reconstructed several ironclads in the 1890s, but in 1899, decided against allocating funds to modernize Duguesclin.[12] She saw no further active service and was struck from the naval register in 1904. Her ultimate fate is unknown.[2]

Notes
  1. Ropp, p. 97.
  2. Gardiner, p. 303.
  3. Dale, p. 405.
  4. Brassey 1888, p. 331.
  5. Brassey 1889, pp. 450–451.
  6. Brassey 1890, pp. 33–36, 64.
  7. Brassey 1891, pp. 33–40.
  8. Thursfield, pp. 61–67.
  9. Brassey 1893, p. 70.
  10. Brassey 1895, p. 51.
  11. Weyl, p. 96.
  12. Brassey 1899, p. 78.
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References
  • Brassey, Thomas, ed. (1888). "Duguesclin". The Naval Annual. Portsmouth: J. Griffin & Co.: 331. OCLC 496786828.
  • Brassey, Thomas (1889). "French Naval Manoeuvres, 1888". The Naval Annual. Portsmouth: J. Griffin & Co.: 230. OCLC 496786828.
  • Brassey, Thomas, ed. (1890). "Chapter II: Foreign Manoeuvres". The Naval Annual. Portsmouth: J. Griffin & Co. OCLC 496786828.
  • Brassey, Thomas, ed. (1891). "Foreign Maneouvres: I—France". The Naval Annual. Portsmouth: J. Griffin & Co.: 33–40. OCLC 496786828.
  • Brassey, Thomas A. (1893). "Chapter IV: Relative Strength". The Naval Annual. Portsmouth: J. Griffin & Co.: 66–73. OCLC 496786828.
  • Brassey, Thomas A. (1895). "Chapter III: Relative Strength". The Naval Annual. Portsmouth: J. Griffin & Co.: 49–59. OCLC 496786828.
  • Brassey, Thomas A. (1899). "Chapter III: Comparative Strength". The Naval Annual. Portsmouth: J. Griffin & Co.: 70–80. OCLC 496786828.
  • Dale, George F. (1982). Wright, Christopher C. (ed.). "Question 23/81". Warship International. Toledo: International Naval Research Organization. XIX (4): 404–405. ISSN 0043-0374.
  • Gardiner, Robert, ed. (1979). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 978-0-85177-133-5.
  • Ropp, Theodore (1987). Roberts, Stephen S. (ed.). The Development of a Modern Navy: French Naval Policy, 1871–1904. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-0-87021-141-6.
  • Thursfield, J. R. (1892). Brassey, Thomas A. (ed.). "Foreign Naval Manoeuvres". The Naval Annual. Portsmouth: J. Griffin & Co.: 61–88. OCLC 496786828.
  • Weyl, E. (1896). Brassey, Thomas A. (ed.). "Chapter IV: The French Navy". The Naval Annual. Portsmouth: J. Griffin & Co.: 61–72. OCLC 496786828.
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