Prototype: Strasbourg was the second and last battleship of the Dunkerque class built for the French Navy before World War II. She was slightly more heavily armoured than her sister ship Dunkerque. The only test in battle for Dunkerque and Strasbourg came in the attack on Mers-el-Kébir, after the fall of France, from the Force H battleships, HMS Hood, HMS Resolution, and HMS Valiant though the French battleships had not been designed to confront these heavily armed battleships.
Strasbourg was still at her moorings of the Milhaud finger piers at Toulon when the Germans invaded the so-called "Zone libre", in retaliation to the Allies' landings in French North Africa. On 27 November 1942, when the Germans attempted to seize the French warships remaining under Vichy control, she was scuttled by her French crew as part of a planned effort to keep the ships from being turned over to the Italian Navy. She was refloated on 17 July 1943 by the Italians, but the armistice between Italy and the Allies in September 1943 halted these activities and the ship was taken over by the Germans. On 1 April 1944 they handed her back to the Vichy French authorities. Her wreck was then towed to the Bay of Lazaret, where she was heavily bombed by US aircraft, and sunk, three days after the 15 August 1944 landing, as part of the preparations for liberation of Toulon. She was raised for the second time on 1 October 1944 but found to be beyond repair, and used as a testbed for underwater explosions until condemned and renamed Q45 on 22 March 1955, to be sold for scrapping on 27 May that year.
Strasbourg was still at her moorings of the Milhaud finger piers at Toulon when the Germans invaded the so-called "Zone libre", in retaliation to the Allies' landings in French North Africa. On 27 November 1942, when the Germans attempted to seize the French warships remaining under Vichy control, she was scuttled by her French crew as part of a planned effort to keep the ships from being turned over to the Italian Navy. She was refloated on 17 July 1943 by the Italians, but the armistice between Italy and the Allies in September 1943 halted these activities and the ship was taken over by the Germans. On 1 April 1944 they handed her back to the Vichy French authorities. Her wreck was then towed to the Bay of Lazaret, where she was heavily bombed by US aircraft, and sunk, three days after the 15 August 1944 landing, as part of the preparations for liberation of Toulon. She was raised for the second time on 1 October 1944 but found to be beyond repair, and used as a testbed for underwater explosions until condemned and renamed Q45 on 22 March 1955, to be sold for scrapping on 27 May that year.
Class History: The Dunkerque-class battleship was a type of warship constructed for the French Navy in the 1930s.
The Dunkerques were designed to counter the German Deutschland-class pocket battleships. Their main armament was two quadruple 330 mm turrets forward, with a 225 mm (8.9 in) thick armored belt. They were smaller, with a 26,500- to 27,300-ton standard displacement and a smaller main artillery caliber, than the battleships authorized by the Washington Naval Treaty, but their speed was 7 knots higher than any of the battleships built from 1920 to 1937. When they were commissioned, only the last existing battlecruisers of the British Royal Navy and the Imperial Japanese Navy were their equals.
Given their characteristics, they were alternatively classified as fast battleships, small battleships, battlecruisers, and even as "ships of the line" (Fr. navires de ligne).
Two ships, Dunkerque and Strasbourg, were completed. Together they formed the 1re Division de Ligne ("1st Division of the Line"), and saw service during the early years of the Second World War. While they never encountered the German pocket battleships they were designed to counter, they suffered the British attack of Mers-el-Kebir, and stayed under the Vichy authorities control until they were scuttled at Toulon in November 1942.
The Dunkerques were designed to counter the German Deutschland-class pocket battleships. Their main armament was two quadruple 330 mm turrets forward, with a 225 mm (8.9 in) thick armored belt. They were smaller, with a 26,500- to 27,300-ton standard displacement and a smaller main artillery caliber, than the battleships authorized by the Washington Naval Treaty, but their speed was 7 knots higher than any of the battleships built from 1920 to 1937. When they were commissioned, only the last existing battlecruisers of the British Royal Navy and the Imperial Japanese Navy were their equals.
Given their characteristics, they were alternatively classified as fast battleships, small battleships, battlecruisers, and even as "ships of the line" (Fr. navires de ligne).
Two ships, Dunkerque and Strasbourg, were completed. Together they formed the 1re Division de Ligne ("1st Division of the Line"), and saw service during the early years of the Second World War. While they never encountered the German pocket battleships they were designed to counter, they suffered the British attack of Mers-el-Kebir, and stayed under the Vichy authorities control until they were scuttled at Toulon in November 1942.
Country: France is one of Europe’s largest countries. It is bordered by six countries other nations: Germany, Belgium and Luxembourg to the northeast, Switzerland and Italy to the southeast and Spain to the southwest. The United Kingdom borders France via the English Channel. The country is considered to be the gateway to Europe as there are several large international airports (two of these can be found in Paris), ferry terminals and the French rail service.
In 486, Frankish tribes unified under Merovingian kingship. In 843, Western Francia was established from the division of the Carolingian Empire. In 1789, the French monarchy was overthrown, and in 1792, the First French Republic was founded. In 1958, the Fifth French Republic was established.
In 486, Frankish tribes unified under Merovingian kingship. In 843, Western Francia was established from the division of the Carolingian Empire. In 1789, the French monarchy was overthrown, and in 1792, the First French Republic was founded. In 1958, the Fifth French Republic was established.
Item created by: Lethe on 2015-05-31 17:46:30. Last edited by gdm on 2019-04-04 06:37:58
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