Enseigne Roux-class destroyer explained
The
Enseigne Roux class was the thirteenth class of
destroyers to be built for the
French Navy during
World War I. The first two units of this class, the
Enseigne Roux and the
Mécanicien Principal Lestin saw use during the war. However, the construction of the third ship of the class -
Enseigne Gabolde - was suspended in 1914. It was then resumed in 1921, and completed in 1923 to a modified design.
Design and construction
The Ensigne Roux-class was an enlarged derivative of the previous, themselves an improved . Two (and) were ordered from Rochefort Dockyard to a standard design, while a third was ordered from the Le Havre shipyard of Normand to a modified design, with different machinery.
Enseigne Roux and Mécanicien Principal Lestin were 82.6m (271feet) long, with a beam of 8.6m (28.2feet). They displaced 1075t. Four boilers fed two sets of direct-drive Parsons steam turbines rated at 17000shp which drove two propeller shafts, giving a design speed of . Enseigne Gabolde was longer, and was fitted with geared steam turbines instead of direct-drive units. These were rated at 20000shp, with a design speed of .
The design armament was as for the previous two classes, i.e. two 100abbr=onNaNabbr=on Mle 1893 guns, four 65mm Mle 1902 guns and two twin 450 mm torpedo tubes. During the First World War, a 75mm anti-aircraft gun was added, with an anti-submarine armament of ten depth charges and a towed explosive sweep.
Enseigne Roux and Mécanicien Principal Lestin were laid down in late 1913, launched in 1915 and completed in 1916. Construction of Enseigne Gabolde was suspended due to the war, with her boilers used in other ships, with work not restarting until after the end of the war, and she was not completed until 1923.
Ships
| Name | Builder | Launched | Fate |
|---|
| | 13 July 1915 | Struck, 1936 |
| Arsenal de Rochefort | 15 May 1915 | Struck, 1936 |
|
References
- Book: Couhat, Jean Labayle. French Warships of World War I. 1974. Ian Allan. London. 0-7110-0445-5.
- Book: Friedman, Norman. Naval Weapons of World War One: Guns, Torpedoes, Mines and ASW Weapons of All Nations; An Illustrated Directory. Seaforth Publishing . Barnsley, UK . 2011 . 978-1-84832-100-7 . Norman Friedman.
- Book: Prévoteaux . Gérard . La marine française dans la Grande guerre: les combattants oubliés: Tome I 1914–1915 . 2017 . Éditions Lela presse . Le Vigen, France . 978-2-37468-000-2. The French Navy during the Great War: The Forgotten Combatants, Book I 1914–1915. Collection Navires & Histoire des Marines du Mond. 23.
- Book: Prévoteaux . Gérard . La marine française dans la Grande guerre: les combattants oubliés: Tome II 1916–1918 . 2017 . Éditions Lela presse . Le Vigen, France . 978-2-37468-001-9. The French Navy during the Great War: The Forgotten Combatants, Book II 1916–1918. Collection Navires & Histoire des Marines du Mond. 27.
- Book: Roberts, Stephen S.. French Warships in the Age of Steam 1859–1914: Design, Construction, Careers and Fates. 2021. Barnsley, UK. Seaforth Publishing . 978-1-5267-4533-0.
- Book: Smigielski, Adam. France. 190–220. Gray. Randal . Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921. 1985 . Annapolis, Maryland. Naval Institute Press. 0-87021-907-3.
