French cruiser Algérie

Algérie was the last treaty cruiser constructed for the French Navy. Designed and built in response to the Italian's Zara class of 8-inch gun cruisers, she was a totally new design and not based on the previous ships. The armoured caisson system used in Foch and Dupleix was abandoned in favour of a full armoured belt enclosing both the magazines and machinery spaces. She abandoned the unit propulsion system used previously and grouped her boilers forward leading to the reduction to a single funnel. She was one of the first vessels to utilize super heating boilers. Welding was used primarily in place of the normal rivetting in previous vessels. She maintained the same main armament but her secondary guns were increased to 100 mm guns. She served in the Mediterranean Sea after entering service then searched for German surface raiders at the beginning of the war. She was at Toulon, France, at the time of the Armistice and remained there until scuttled in November 1942.

Algérie in May 1937
Class overview
Operators French Navy
Preceded bySuffren class
Succeeded bySaint-Louis class (planned)
Completed1
Lost1
History
France
NameAlgérie
NamesakeAlgeria
Ordered15 May 1930
BuilderArsenal de Brest, Brest
Laid down19 March 1931
Launched21 May 1932
Completed5 September 1934
Commissioned15 June 1934
FateScuttled at Toulon, 27 November 1942. Scrapped 1951
General characteristics
TypeHeavy cruiser
Displacement
  • 10,160 t (10,000 long tons) (standard)
  • 10,950 t (10,780 long tons) (Normal)
  • 13,677 t (13,461 long tons) (full load)
Length
  • 186.2 m (610 ft 11 in) overall
  • 180 m (590 ft 7 in) between perpendiculars
Beam20 m (65 ft 7 in)
Draught6.3 m (20 ft 8 in)
Propulsion
  • 6 boilers
  • 4 geared steam turbines
Speed31 knots (57 km/h; 36 mph)
Range
  • 8,000 nmi (15,000 km; 9,200 mi) at 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph)
  • 4,000 nmi (7,400 km; 4,600 mi) at 27 knots (50 km/h; 31 mph)
Complement746
Armament
Armour
  • Armoured Belt: 110 mm (4.3 in)
  • Deck: 30 mm (1.2 in) to 80 mm (3.1 in)
  • Turrets: 100 mm (3.9 in) face. 70 mm (2.8 in) sides and roof, 50 mm (2.0 in) rear
  • Conning tower: 100 mm (3.9 in) sides, 70 mm (2.8 in) roof
  • Steering gear: 26 mm (1.0 in) sides and 18 mm (0.71 in) roof
Aircraft carried2 GL-810 then Loire-Nieuport 130
Aviation facilities1 catapults

Normally major ships of the Marine Nationale were named after famous people or statesmen but instead she was named to honour the 100 years of French colonial rule of Algeria.

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