French battleship Jean Bart (1940)

:"For the first battleship with this name, see French battleship Jean Bart (1911)".

"Jean Bart" was a French battleship of World War II named for the seventeenth century seaman and corsair Jean Bart.Derived from the "Dunkerque" class, "Jean Bart" (and her sistership "Richelieu") were designed to counter the threat of the Italian Navy. Their speed, shielding, armament and overall technology were state of the art but they had an unusual main armament arrangement with two 4-gun turrets to the front and none to the rear.

"Jean Bart" was laid down in December 1936 and launched on 6 March 1940. Barely 75% completed, her engine having never worked before, she sailed to Casablanca in June 1940 to escape the advance of the German army in France. Only one of her two convert|380|mm|in main turrets was present. The second one, with only two of the intended four guns, was loaded on a cargo ship which was torpedoed and sunk by a German submarine. The convert|152|mm|in battery was also missing, and was replaced by anti-aircraft armament. Like other French assets in North Africa, "Jean Bart" went under control of the Vichy government.

On 8 November 1942, during Operation Torch, the French fleet in Casablanca was attacked by American warships and airplanes from USS "Ranger". "Jean Bart" managed to battle USS "Massachusetts", taking hits from several bombs and 16 in (406 mm) shells. On the 10th, "Jean Bart" opened fire again onto USS "Augusta", much to the surprise of the American staff who thought she had been silenced. This drew action from "Ranger", and "Jean Bart" took two 500 kg bombs, which opened a leak, making her run aground. Combat was over in the evening, and along with the rest of French forces in North Africa, she sided with the Allies.Subsequently, it was suggested that "Jean Bart" be completed in the USA (her sistership, "Richelieu", had undertaken refitting there), but this proved impossible. Projects to convert her into an aircraft carrier were studied but rejected. For the next two years the unfinished ship remained stranded in Casablanca.

She returned to France in 1945, and was eventually completed in 1949, under a brand new design influenced by lessons from the previous conflict. "Jean Bart" took her part in the Suez Crisis. Put into the reserve in 1957, she was decommissioned in 1961, and scrapped in 1969.

Pictures

External links

* [http://www.netmarine.net/bat/croiseur/jeanbart/caracter.htm Caractéristiques principales] (in French) Schematics of a turret
* [http://www.netmarine.net/bat/croiseur/jeanbart/photos.htm Galerie de photos] (in French) Photographs
* [http://www.maritimequest.com/warship_directory/france/battleships/jean_bart/jean_bart.htm Maritimequest Jean Bart Photo Gallery]