Richelieu class battleship
- Richelieu class battleship
The "Richelieu" class battleships were the last and largest of the battleships of the French Navy, staying in service into the 60s. They were derived from the "Dunkerque" class, and designed to counter the threat of the Italian Navy. Their speed, shielding, armament and overall technology were state of the art (note the unusual 4-gun turret arrangement).
In the context of the Treaty of Washington, the quad arrangement had the advantage of saving weight on turret armouring, compared to four double turrets, while retaining the same firepower. The drawback was that a single lucky shot immobilising one of the turrets would effectively put half the main artillery out of action. On the other hand, the entirety of the main artillery was able to fire forwards, as the ship closed in to her enemy, in an angle where she made the smallest possible target.
Originally, four units were planned, but only the first two, the "Richelieu" and the "Jean Bart", were fitting at the outbreak of the Second World War.
The third unit, the "Clemenceau", was broken up while still under construction.The fourth unit, the planned "Gascogne", was never started. She was planned to bear her second turret on the aft of the ship, bringing back a more traditional design.
The "Richelieu" and the "Jean Bart" saw action during the war, initially under Vichy France, and with the Free French Forces after the Allies captured North Africa.
They saw action again during the First Indochina War and the Suez Crisis.
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