French battleship République (1902)
| File:Battleship République.png République under way | |
| Career (France) |  |
|---|---|
| Name: | République |
| Namesake: | French Republic |
| Laid down: | December 1901 |
| Commissioned: | December 1906 |
| Decommissioned: | 1921 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | République-class |
| Type: | Pre-dreadnought battleship |
| Displacement: | 14,600 tonnes |
| Length: | 134 metres |
| Beam: | 24 metres |
| Draught: | 8.4 metres |
| Propulsion: | 3 triple-expension steam engines, 18,000 shp |
| Speed: | 19 knots |
| Complement: | 830 |
| Armament: |
2 × 2 305 mm Modèle 1893/96 guns |
| Armour: |
Belt: 280 mm Deck: 55 mm Bridge: 305 mm Barbettes: 255 mm Turrets: 355 mm |
The République was a pre-dreadnought République class battleship of the French Navy. She served from 1906 to 1921. She was moored near the Liberté when the latter exploded accidentally in 1911, and was damaged by flying debris.[2] Seeing little service in the First World War, she was scrapped soon afterwards.
Design
The République was 134 metres (440 ft) long, had a maximum beam of 24 metres (79 ft) and a draught of 8.4 metres (28 ft). The ship was propelled by three vertical triple expansion steam engines. On trials, they developed 18,000 indicated horsepower (13,423 kW) and drove the ship to a maximum speed of 19 knots (35 km/h; 22 mph).
The ship's main armament was four 305 mm Modèle 1893/96 guns in two twin turrets. Each turret had an arc of fire of 250°.[3] The guns could probably be depressed to −5° and elevated to 15°. They fired 340-kilogram (750 lb) projectiles at the rate of 1 round per minute at a muzzle velocity of 780 metres per second (2,600 ft/s) which gave a range of 12,000 m (13,000 yd) at maximum elevation.[4]
Her secondary armament consisted of eighteen 164 mm Modèle 1896 guns mounted in casemated pivot mounts. The guns had the ability to depress to -10° and elevate to +25°. The guns fired 52-kilogram (110 lb) shells at a muzzle velocity of 865 metres per second (2,840 ft/s) to a maximum range of 9,000 metres (9,800 yd).[5] The ship was also fitted with five 45 centimetres (18 in) torpedo tubes, two of which were submerged, the others being above water.
Service history
On 18 February 1910, during exercises in the Gulf of Jouan, a torpedo was accidentally launched from her sister ship Patrie. The torpedo struck the République, damaging her hull.[6]
On 25 September 1911, the battleship Liberté was moored near Republique in Toulon. An accidental explosion occurred aboard the Liberté, destroying her and hurling debris into the air. République was hit by an armour plate from Liberté, wounding several of her crew.[1] The explosion was a result of the spontaneous combustion of nitrocellulose gel, the preferred propellant of the French Navy at that time.[1] After World War One, in which she saw minimal service, République was towed to the breakers and scrapped in 1921.[7]
References
- Notes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 French Battleship Republique (1903)
- ↑ Battleship List
- ↑ Gibbons, p. 140
- ↑ "French 305 mm/40 (12") Model 1893/1896 305 mm/45 (12") Model 1893 305 mm/40 (12") Model 1893 305 mm/45 (12") Model 1887". navweaps.com. 11 October 2007. http://www.navweaps.com/Weapons/WNFR_12-40_m1893.htm. Retrieved 2 May 2010.
- ↑ Carrere, p. 121
- ↑ Torpedoing report
- ↑ Republique Class French Battleships. Accessed 2010-05-29.
- Bibliography
- Caresse, Philippe (2007). The Iéna Disaster, 1907. Warship 2007. London: Conway. pp. 121–138. ISBN 1-84486-041-8.
- Gibbons, Tony (1983). The Complete Encyclopedia of Battleships: A Technical Directory of Capital Ships from 1860 to the Present Day. New York: Crescent Books. ISBN 0-517-37810-8.
External links
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