The Bouclier-class was nearly double the size of the preceding 450t destroyers to match the increase in size of foreign destroyers. The French Navy issued a general specification that required oil-fired boilers, steam turbine propulsion and a uniform armament that allowed individual shipyards the freedom to design their ships as they saw fit. This allowed for some variations in size (from 72.32- in length) and machinery (and had three shafts, all the others had two, while Casque has three funnels, all the rest had four).[1]
Bouclier was the shortest ship with an overall length of 72.32 meters and her sister ships ranged in length from 74to. All of the ships had beams of 7.6- and drafts of 2.9-. Bouclier and her sister had the lightest displacements at 6920NaN0; the others displaced 720- at normal load. Their crews numbered 80–83 men.[1]
The destroyers were powered by two or three steam turbines of four different models, each driving one propeller shaft using steam provided by four water-tube boilers of four different types. The turbines were designed to produce 13000shp which was intended to give the ships a speed of 30kn. During their sea trials, they reached speeds of 29.3-. The ships carried of fuel oil which gave them a range of 1200nmi1600nmi at cruising speeds of 12-.[2]
The primary armament of the Bouclier-class ships consisted of two 100mm Modèle 1893 guns in single mounts, one each fore and aft of the superstructure, and four 65adj=onNaNadj=on Modèle 1902 guns distributed amidships. They were also fitted with two twin mounts for 450mm torpedo tubes amidships.[1]
During World War I, a 45adj=onNaNadj=on or 75mm anti-aircraft gun, two 8adj=onNaNadj=on machine guns, and eight or ten Guiraud-type depth charges were added to the ships. The extra weight severely overloaded the ships and reduced their operational speed to around .[1]
| Name | Builder | Launched | Fate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 29 June 1911 | Struck, 15 February 1933 | ||
| 2 May 1911 | Sunk by mine laid by off Brindisi, 15 May 1917, during the Battle of the Strait of Otranto | ||
| 20 April 1912 | Struck, 10 July 1926 | ||
| Forges et Chantiers de la Méditerranée, Le Havre | 25 August 1910 | Struck, 26 March 1926. Broken up, 1927. | |
| Forges et Chantiers de la Gironde, Bordeaux | 13 April 1911 | Struck, 10 July 1926 | |
| Dyle et Bacalan, Bordeaux | 14 September 1912 | Struck, 29 July 1926 | |
| Forges et Chantiers de la Gironde, Bordeaux | 2 October 1912 | Struck, June 1933 | |
| 13 April 1911 | Sunk by a drifting mine in Antivari Roads, 24 February 1915 | ||
| 18 April 1912 | Struck, 1933 | ||
| Établissement de la Brosse et Fouché, Nantes | 2 February 1911 | Accidentally rammed and sunk by in Strait of Otranto, 18 April 1918 | |
| 21 October 1910 | Torpedoed and sunk by, 23 June 1916 | ||
| Chantiers et Ateliers Augustin Normand, Le Havre | 1 October 1912 | Struck, 10 February 1926 | |