French cruiser Duquesne (1925)

Duquesne was a French heavy cruiser and name ship of her class that served during World War II.

For other ships with the same name, see French ship Duquesne.
Duquesne
Duquesne in 1943
History
France
Name: Duquesne
Namesake: Abraham Duquesne
Builder: Brest Dock Yard
Laid down: 30 October 1924
Launched: 17 December 1925
Commissioned: 6 December 1928
Fate: Condemned 2 July 1955
General characteristics
Class and type: Duquesne-class cruiser
Displacement:
  • 10,000 tonnes (standard)
  • 12,200 tons (full load)
Length: 191 m (627 ft) overall
Beam: 19 m (62 ft)
Draught: 6.32 m (20.7 ft)
Propulsion: 4-shaft Rateau-Bretagne single-reduction geared turbines, 9 Guyot boilers, 120,000 shp (89,000 kW)
Speed: 33.75 knots (62.51 km/h)
Range: 4,500 nautical miles (8,300 km) at 15 knots (28 km/h)
Complement: 605
Armament:
Armour:
Aircraft carried: 2 GL-812 (superseded by GL-832 then Loire-Nieuport 130, 1 catapult

Design and description

The design of the Duquesne class was derived from an enlarged version of the Duguay-Trouin-class light cruiser armed with 203-millimetre (8 in) guns. The ships had an overall length of 191 meters (626 ft 8 in), a beam of 19 meters (62 ft 4 in), and a draft of 6.45 meters (21 ft 2 in). They displaced 10,160 metric tons (10,000 long tons) at standard load and 12,435 t (12,239 long tons) at deep load. Their crew normally consisted of 605 men and increased by 32 when serving as flagships.[1]

Service history

At the outbreak of the Second World War, Duquesne was part of the Force X, under Vice Admiral Godfroy. In January 1940, she took part in the hunt for the German cruiser Admiral Graf Spee, and later returned to Alexandria. On 3 July, the French squadron under Admiral René-Emile Godfroy in Alexandria was blockaded by the British executing Operation Catapult ; Godfroy avoided destruction by negotiating to disarm his fleet and stay in port until the end of the war. In June 1943, Duquesne was incorporated in the Free French Naval Forces and served in the Atlantic.

She undertook a refit in 1945, and served in French Indochina until 1947.

References
  1. Jordan & Moulin, p. 44

Bibliography
  • Jordan, John & Moulin, Jean (2013). French Cruisers 1922–1956. Barnsley, UK: Seaforth Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84832-133-5.


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