Name Jules Ferry Laid down August 1901 Out of service 19 January 1927 Launched August 1903 Weight 12,400 tons | Builder Cherbourg In service September 1905 Construction started August 1901 Length 149 m Displacement 12.4 million kg | |
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Namesake Jules Ferry, French statesman | ||
The French cruiser Jules Ferry was one of three Léon Gambetta-class armored cruisers built for the French Navy during the first decade of the 20th century. She served through the First World War and was scrapped in 1927.
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Description
The Léon Gambetta-class ships were designed as enlarged and more powerful versions of the Gloire-class armored cruisers. Their crew numbered 728 officers and enlisted men, or 821 when serving as a flagship. The ships measured 149.1 meters (489 ft 2 in) overall, with a beam of 22.5 meters (73 ft 10 in) and a draft of 8.2 meters (26 ft 11 in) Jules Ferry displace 12,379 metric tons (12,183 long tons).
The ships had three vertical triple-expansion steam engines, each driving one propeller shaft. Jules Ferry's engines were rated at a total of 28,500 indicated horsepower (21,300 kW), using steam provided by 20 Guyot du Temple boilers. The ships had a designed speed of 22.5 knots (41.7 km/h; 25.9 mph). They carried up to 2,065 long tons (2,098 t) of coal and could steam for 12,000 nautical miles (22,000 km; 14,000 mi) at a speed of 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph).
The main armament of the Léon Gambetta-class cruisers consisted of four 194-millimeter (7.6 in) guns mounted in twin-gun turrets fore and aft of the superstructure. Their intermediate armament was sixteen Canon de 164 mm Modèle 1893 guns. Twelve of these were in twin-gun turrets on the sides of the ship and the other four were in casemates. For anti-torpedo boat defense, they carried twenty-four 47-millimeter (1.9 in) Hotchkiss guns. They were also armed with two or four submerged 450-millimeter (17.7 in) torpedo tubes.
The waterline armored belt of the Léon Gambettas was 150 millimeters (5.9 in) thick amidships and tapered to 70 millimeters (2.8 in) towards the bow and stern. The conning tower had armored sides 200 millimeters (7.9 in) thick. The main-gun turrets were protected by 200 millimeters (7.9 in) of armor and the intermediate turrets by 130–160 millimeters (5.1–6.3 in). The casemates had armor 140 millimeters (5.5 in) thick.
Construction and career
Jules Ferry was laid down at Cherbourg in August 1901, and was launched in August 1903. She was completed in September 1905. After her commissioning, she was appointed to the 2nd Light Cruiser Division in the Mediterranean. She was struck in 1927 and sold for scrap the next year.