Suffren-class ship of the line

The Suffren class was a late type of 90-gun ships of the line of the French Navy.

Inflexible as a boys' school
Class overview
Name: Suffren
Builders: Toulon, Brest
Operators:  French Navy
Preceded by: Bucentaure class ship of the line
Succeeded by: Hercule class
Completed: 14
General characteristics
Class and type: Suffren class ship of the line
Displacement: 4,070 tonnes
Length: 60.50 metres
Beam: 16.28 metres
Draught: 7.40 metres
Propulsion: 3,114 m² of sails
Complement: 810 to 846 men
Armament:
Armour: 6.97 cm of timber

The design was selected on 30 January 1824 by the Commission de Paris, an appointed Commission comprising Jean-Marguerite Tupinier, Jacques-Noël Sané, Pierre Rolland, Pierre Lair and Jean Lamorinière. Intended as successors of the 80-gun Bucentaure class and as the third of four ranks of ships of the line,[1] they introduced the innovation of having straight walls, instead of the tumblehome design that had prevailed until then; this tended to heighten the ships' centre of gravity, but provided much more room for equipment in the upper decks. Stability issues were fixed with underwater stabilisers.

Only the first two, Suffren and Inflexible, retain the original design all through their career; the others were converted to steam and sail during their construction.[2]

Design

Units

Fourteen ships were ordered to this design, of which twelve were modified as steam-driven vessels.

  • Suffren
Builder: Cherbourg
Begun: August 1824
Launched: 27 August 1829
Completed: March 1831
Fate: Deleted February 1861, renamed Ajax in April 1865, and taken to pieces 1874-76.
Builder: Rochefort
Begun: August 1827
Launched: 21 November 1839
Completed: August 1840
Fate: Condemned August 1875.
Builder: Lorient
Begun: July 1823
Launched: 28 August 1847
Completed: August 1849
Fate: Renamed Triton in August 1876
Builder: Rochefort
Begun: March 1823
Launched: 3 May 1848
Completed: August 1848
Fate: Wrecked 14 December 1859; refloated and taken to pieces in June 1860
Builder: Brest
Begun: May 1827
Launched: 31 July 1848
Completed: 1849
Fate: Deleted in May 1871, renamed Breslau 1881 and taken to pieces 1886-87.
  • Charlemagne
Builder: Toulon
Begun: April 1834
Launched: 16 January 1851
Completed: December 1851 (as steam screw ship)
Fate: Condemned in February 1882. Taken to pieces 1884
Builder: Lorient
Begun: 28 January 1849
Launched: 14 September 1852
Completed: April 1853 (as steam screw ship)
Fate: Renamed Donawerth in August 1868; sold or broken up in 1869
Builder: Lorient
Begun:
Launched: 15 February 1854
Completed:
Fate:
Builder: Cherbourg
Begun:
Launched: 30 March 1854
Completed:
Fate:
Builder: Brest
Begun:
Launched: 25 April 1854
Completed:
Fate:
Builder: Rochefort
Begun:
Launched: 27 March 1857
Completed:
Fate:
Builder: Toulon
Begun:
Launched: 2 December 1858
Completed:
Fate:
Builder: Toulon
Begun:
Launched: 15 March 1860
Completed:
Fate:
Builder: Toulon
Begun:
Launched: 14 July 1860
Completed:
Fate:
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References
  1. Les vaisseaux de la commission de Paris (1824), Nicolas Mioque
  2. 80/90-guns ships-of-the-line Archived 2008-01-20 at the Wayback Machine
  • Roche, Jean-Michel (2005). Dictionnaire des bâtiments de la flotte de guerre française de Colbert à nos jours, 1671–1870. Group Retozel-Maury Millau. ISBN 978-2-9525917-0-6. OCLC 165892922.
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