French cruiser Châteaurenault (1898)

Châteaurenault was a protected cruiser of the French Navy intended for commerce raiding. She was the first ship of the French Navy named in honour of François Louis de Rousselet, Marquis de Châteaurenault. Launched on 24 March 1898, Châteaurenault was commissioned in October 1902. In 1904, she was damaged after hitting a submerged rock. In 1910, she ran aground on Spartel, and had to be taken in tow by French cruiser Victor Hugo. From 1913, she was used as a school ship in Toulon.

For other ships with the same name, see French cruiser Châteaurenault.
Châteaurenault coaling in Toulon during World War I
Class overview
Operators:  French Navy
Preceded by: Guichen
Succeeded by: D'Estrées class
History
France
Name: Châteaurenault
Namesake: François Louis de Rousselet, Marquis de Châteaurenault
Laid down: 12 October 1895
Launched: 12 May 1898
Commissioned: 10 October 1902
Fate: Sunk by German submarine UC-38, 14 December 1917
General characteristics
Type: Protected cruiser
Displacement: 8,200 tonnes (8,070 long tons)
Length: 140 m (459 ft 4 in)
Beam: 18 m (59 ft 1 in)
Draft: 7.5 m (24 ft 7 in)
Installed power:
Propulsion:
  • 3 × triple-expansion steam engines
  • 3 × screw propellers
Speed: 24 knots (44 km/h; 28 mph)
Complement: 625
Armament:

Recommissioned at the outbreak of the First World War, Châteaurenault patrolled the Mediterranean. In 1917, she was used as a troopship, ferrying soldiers from Taranto to Itea. On 5 October 1917, she rescued survivors of the liner Gallia, torpedoed by the Imperial German Navy submarine U-35, and saved 1,200 men.

Design
The Columbia-class cruiser USS Minneapolis, which strongly influenced the design for Châteaurenault

In the mid-1880s, elements in the French naval command argued over future warship construction; the Jeune École advocated building long-range and fast protected cruisers for use as commerce raiders on foreign stations while a traditionalist faction preferred larger armored cruisers and small fleet scouts, both of which were to operate as part of the main fleet in home waters. By the end of the decade and into the early 1890s, the traditionalists were ascendant, leading to the construction of several armored cruisers of the Amiral Charner class, though the supporters of the Jeune École secured approval for one large cruiser built according to their ideas, which became D'Entrecasteaux.[1]

These debates took place in the context of shifting geopolitical alliances and rivalries. The early 1890s was marked by serious strategic confusion in France; despite the Franco-Russian Alliance of 1891, which should have produced friction between the two countries and their imperial rival Britain, the French Navy was still oriented against the German-led Triple Alliance. This outlook was cemented in the naval program of 1894, but even the Navy's strategic planning remained muddled. The program authorized the large protected cruisers Châteaurenault and Guichen, both of which were intended as long-distance commerce raiders. These vessels were ideally suited to attack the extensive merchant shipping network of Britain, not the continental powers of Germany or Austria-Hungary.[1]

The designs for Châteaurenault and Guichen were based on the United States Navy's Columbia-class cruisers, using the same hull lines as the American vessels. Both ships were intended to resemble passenger liners, which would help them evade discovery while conducting commerce raiding operations. The French cruisers suffered from several defects, however, including insufficient speed to catch the fast transports that would be used to carry critical materiel in wartime and their vast expense militated against their use to attack low-value shipping. Additionally, their weak armament precluded their use against enemy cruisers.[1]

General characteristics and machinery
Profile and plan drawing of Châteaurenault

Châteaurenault was 135 m (442 ft 11 in) long at the waterline, with a beam of 17 m (55 ft 9 in) and a draft of 7.39 m (24 ft 3 in). She displaced 7,898 long tons (8,025 t). Her hull had a long forecastle deck that extended almost her entire length; her stem was slightly sloped backward and she had an overhanging stern. Combined with her four raked and equally spaced funnels, her appearance was adopted to make it relatively easy to disguise her as a passenger liner while on commerce raiding patrols. Her hull had straight sides, rather than the tumblehome shape that characterized most other large French warships of the period.[2]

The ship was fitted with a pair of light pole masts for observation and signalling purposes. Her superstructure was fairly minimal, consisting of a conning tower and bridge structure forward and a smaller, secondary conning position aft. Her crew numbered 604 officers and enlisted men. French naval officers considered Châteaurenault to have improved handling characteristics over her predecessor Guichen.[2]

The ship's propulsion system consisted of three vertical triple-expansion steam engines driving three screw propellers. Steam was provided by fourteen coal-burning, Normand Sigaudy water-tube boilers. These were ducted into four funnels located amidships. Her machinery was rated to produce 23,000 indicated horsepower (17,000 kW) for a top speed of 24 knots (44 km/h; 28 mph) Coal storage amounted to 1,960 long tons (1,990 t).[2] Her cruising range was 7,500 nautical miles (13,900 km; 8,600 mi) at a speed of 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph).[3] During her initial speed test, she only reached 23.12 knots (42.82 km/h; 26.61 mph) from 21,600 ihp (16,100 kW).[4]

Armament and armor

Despite her large size, Châteaurenault carried a relatively light armament, since she was intended to engage unarmed merchant vessels, not other cruisers. Her main battery consisted of two 164 mm (6.5 in) M1893 45-caliber (cal.) quick-firing (QF) gun in single pivot mounts, fore and aft on the centerline, supported by six 138 mm (5.4 in) M1893 45-cal. QF guns. Two of these were carried in sponsons amidships, while the other four were in casemates, one pair abreast the conning tower and the other abreast the main mast. For close-range defense against torpedo boats, she was armed with a battery of ten 47 mm (1.9 in) 3-pounder Hotchkiss guns and five 37 mm (1.5 in) 1-pounder guns.[2]

Armor protection consisted of Harvey steel. Châteaurenault had a curved armor deck that was 55 mm (2.2 in) thick on the flat portion, which was about 0.79 m (2 ft 7 in) above the waterline. Toward the sides of the hull, it sloped downward to provide a measure of vertical protection, terminating at the side of the hull about 1.37 m (4 ft 6 in) below the waterline. The sloped portion increased in thickness to 100 mm (4 in), though toward the bow and stern, it was reduced to 40 mm (1.6 in). An anti-splinter deck was above the flat portion of the main deck with a cofferdam connecting it to the main deck. The forward conning tower was protected by 160 mm (6.3 in) on the sides; an armored supporting tube protected by 150 mm (5.9 in) of armor connected it to the interior of the ship. The ship's main guns were each fitted with gun shields that were 55 mm thick.[5]

Service history
Châteaurenault before completion; note how high the vessel sits in the water
Châteaurenault while fitting out in around 1900

Châteaurenault was built at the Société Nouvelle des Forges et Chantiers de la Méditerranée shipyard in La Seyne-sur-Mer, beginning with her keel laying in May 1896.[2] She was launched on 12 May 1898,[6] began sea trials in March 1900,[4] which continued through October. These included endurance tests on 8 August, where she cruised at a speed of 21 knots (39 km/h; 24 mph) for twenty hours. While operating at high speed, the ship's engines suffered from excessive vibration;[7] the brass bearings in her engines were found to be problematic, so they were replaced with steel bearings. The work delayed her completion by four or five months, and during speed tests in 1902, she reached 24.15 knots (44.73 km/h; 27.79 mph).[8] The ship was finally completed later that year.[2] She was commissioned in October 1902 for service in China.[9] As of 1903, the unit also included the armored cruiser Montcalm and the protected cruisers Bugeaud and Pascal.[10]

Châteaurenault remained in Asia in 1904, along with the armored cruisers Sully, Gueydon, and Montcalm and the protected cruisers Descartes and D'Assas.[11]

By 1911, Châteaurenault had been assigned to the Reserve Division of the Mediterranean Squadron, based in Toulon. The unit initially also included the armored cruisers Victor Hugo and Jules Michelet and the protected cruiser Jurien de la Gravière, and later that year, it was strengthened with the addition of the armored cruiser Jules Ferry.[12]

World War I

At the start of World War I in August 1914, Châteaurenault was assigned to the 2nd Light Squadron, which was based in the English Channel. At that time, the unit consisted of the armored cruisers Marseillaise, Amiral Aube, Jeanne d'Arc, Gloire, Gueydon, and Dupetit-Thouars. The unit was based in Brest, France, and along with Lavoisier, the squadron was strengthened by the addition of several other cruisers over the following days, including the armored cruisers Kléber and Desaix, the protected cruisers Lavoisier, D'Estrées, Friant, and Guichen, and several auxiliary cruisers. The ships then conducted a series of patrols in the English Channel in conjunction with a force of four British cruisers.[13]

In April 1915, she was moved to the Mediterranean as the Allies expanded their naval operations in the area.[14] In February 1916, she was sent to reinforce the 3rd Light Division, which consisted of Gloire , Gueydon, and Dupetit-Thouars. The unit was sent to Dakar in French Senegal to patrol for German commerce raiders operating in the south Atlantic.[15] She joined in the search for the commerce raider SMS Möwe in September.[16] As the threat of German U-boats increased in late 1916, against which large cruisers were particularly vulnerable, the French naval command ordered Châteaurenault and the rest of the division to return home.[15]

Notes
  1. Ropp, p. 284.
  2. Gardiner, p. 313.
  3. Leyland & Brassey, p. 36.
  4. Leyland 1900, p. 25.
  5. Gardiner, pp. 312–313.
  6. Gardiner & Gray, p. 193.
  7. Leyland 1901, pp. 35–36.
  8. Brassey & Leyland, p. 18.
  9. "Naval & Military intelligence". The Times (36899). London. 15 October 1902. p. 8.
  10. Brassey 1903, p. 62.
  11. Garbett, p. 709.
  12. Brassey 1911, p. 56.
  13. Meirat, p. 22.
  14. Jordan & Caresse 2019, p. 225.
  15. Jordan & Caresse 2019, p. 242.
  16. Gardiner & Gray, p. 194.

References
  • Brassey, Thomas A. (1903). "Chapter III: Relative Strength". The Naval Annual. Portsmouth: J. Griffin & Co.: 57–68. OCLC 496786828.
  • Brassey, Thomas A. (1911). "Chapter III: Comparative Strength". The Naval Annual. Portsmouth: J. Griffin & Co.: 55–62. OCLC 496786828.
  • Brassey, Thomas A. & Leyland, John (1902). "Chapter II: The Progress of Foreign Navies". The Naval Annual. Portsmouth: J. Griffin & Co.: 15–46. OCLC 496786828.
  • Friedman, Norman (2011). Naval Weapons of World War One: Guns, Torpedoes, Mines and ASW Weapons of All Nations; An Illustrated Directory. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-1-84832-100-7.
  • Gardiner, Robert, ed. (1979). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 978-0-85177-133-5.
  • Garbett, H., ed. (June 1904). "Naval Notes: France". Journal of the Royal United Service Institution. London: J. J. Keliher & Co. XLVIII (316): 707–711. OCLC 1077860366.
  • Gardiner, Robert & Gray, Randal, eds. (1985). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships: 1906–1921. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-0-87021-907-8.
  • Jordan, John & Caresse, Philippe (2017). French Battleships of World War One. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-1-59114-639-1.
  • Jordan, John & Caresse, Philippe (2019). French Armoured Cruisers 1887–1932. Barnsley: Seaforth Publishing. ISBN 978-1-5267-4118-9.
  • Leyland, John (1900). Brassey, Thomas A. (ed.). "Chapter II: The Progress of Foreign Navies". The Naval Annual. Portsmouth: J. Griffin & Co.: 24–62. OCLC 496786828.
  • Leyland, John (1901). Brassey, Thomas A. (ed.). "Chapter II: The Progress of Foreign Navies". The Naval Annual. Portsmouth: J. Griffin & Co.: 33–70. OCLC 496786828.
  • Leyland, John & Brassey, Thomas A. (1898). "Chapter II: The Progress of Foreign Navies". The Naval Annual. Portsmouth: J. Griffin & Co.: 32–69. OCLC 496786828.
  • Meirat, Jean (1975). "Details and Operational History of the Third-Class Cruiser Lavoisier". F. P. D. S. Newsletter. Akron: F. P. D. S. III (3): 20–23. OCLC 41554533.
  • 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.
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