 Rigault de Genouilly in 1938 | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 France | |
| Name | Rigault de Genouilly |
| Namesake | Charles Rigault de Genouilly (1807–1873), Frenchadmiral |
| Builder | Forges et Chantiers de la Gironde,Lormont, France |
| Laid down | 7 July 1931 |
| Launched | 18 September 1932 |
| Commissioned | 14 March 1934 |
| Fate | Sunk 4 July 1940 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Bougainville-classaviso |
| Displacement | |
| Length | 103.7 m (340 ft 3 in) (o/a) |
| Beam | 12.7 m (41 ft 8 in) |
| Draught | 4.15 m (13 ft 7 in) |
| Installed power | 2,191 PS (1,611 kW; 2,161 bhp) |
| Propulsion | 2diesel engines, 2 shafts; |
| Speed | 15.5knots (28.7 km/h; 17.8 mph) |
| Range | 9,000 nmi (16,700 km; 10,400 mi) at 14 knots (26 km/h; 16 mph) |
| Complement | |
| Armament | |
| Armour |
|
| Aircraft carried | 1 ×Gourdou-Leseurre GL-832 HYfloatplane |
Rigault de Genouilly (PG-80) was one of a dozenBougainville-classavisos built for theFrench Navy during the 1930s. The ships were designed to operate fromFrench colonies inAsia andAfrica. DuringWorld War II,Rigault de Genouilly served on the side of theAllies until June 1940, and then in the naval forces ofVichy France. She was sunk in July 1940.
TheBougainville-class avisos were intended for service in theFrench colonial empire in austere conditions. They had anoverall length of 103.7 metres (340 ft 3 in), abeam of 12.7 metres (41 ft 8 in), and adraught of 4.15 metres (13 ft 7 in). The ships displaced 1,969tonnes (1,938long tons) atstandard load and 2,600 tonnes (2,600 long tons) atdeep load. Thesuperstructure,decks, and the upper plating of the hull was made from armor-steel plates 5–6 millimetres (0.20–0.24 in) thick to better resistsmall arms andmachine gun bullets. Their crew consisted of 14 officers and 121ratings in peacetime.[1]
TheBougainville class was powered by a pair oflicense-built six-cylinderdiesel engines, each driving onepropeller shaft.Amiral Charner hadBurmeister & Waintwo-stroke engines rated at a total of 4,200metric horsepower (3,089 kW; 4,143 bhp) for a designed speed of 15.5knots (28.7 km/h; 17.8 mph). The ships carried enoughdiesel fuel to give them a range of 9,000nautical miles (17,000 km; 10,000 mi) at 14 knots (26 km/h; 16 mph).[2]
TheBougainville-class ships were armed with threeCanon de 138.6-millimetre (5.46 in) Mle 1927 guns in single mounts, onesuperfiring pair forward of thesuperstructure and the third gun atop the aft superstructure. They were protected by 3 mm-thick (0.12 in)gun shields. The ships were fitted with a 3-metre (9 ft 10 in) Mle 1932coincidence rangefinder on the roof of thebridge that fed data to thetype aviso mechanicalfire-control computer.[3] Theanti-aircraft armament of theBougainville class consisted of four 50-caliberCanon de 37 mm (1.5 in) Mle 1925AA guns in single mounts.[4] Short-range protection againststrafing aircraft was provided by eightMitrailleuse de 8 mm (0.3 in) Mle 1914 in four twin mountings. The ships were fitted with mine rails, one set on each side of the aft superstructure to allow them to lay defensiveminefields. They could carry 50 Breguet B4mines or a smaller number of larger Harlé H4 mines. They were also fitted with fourminesweepingparavanes on thequarterdeck. The minerails could also be used to dropdepth charges over the stern via trolleys; a total of 16 depth charges could be loaded on the rails.[5]
Between themainmast and the aftfunnel, space was reserved for areconnaissanceseaplane, either aGourdou-Leseurre GL-832 HYfloatplane or aPotez 452flying boat. The aircraft was lifted onto the water and recovered back on board by aderrick attached to the mainmast.[6]
Rigault de Genouilly waslaid down atForges et Chantiers de la Gironde on theGironde estuary inLormont, France, on 7 July 1931.Launched on 18 September 1932, she wascommissioned on 14 March 1934. Soon after her commissioning,Rigault de Genouilly departed in March 1934 on a cruise toEaster Island, where she arrived on 24 July 1934 and disembarked a scientific mission from theNational Museum of Natural History (Muséum national d'histoire naturelle).[7]
In March 1938, a small group of sailors ordered to joinRigault de Genouilly′s crew began a voyage aboard thecargo shipVille d'Amiens fromMarseille, France, bound forNouméa onGrande Terre inNew Caledonia, where they reported aboardRigault de Genouilly on 13 March 1938.[8]Rigault de Genouilly then departed Nouméa forPort Vila onEfate in theNew Hebrides, from which she conducted an exercise with thetrainingcruiserJeanne d'Arc. She resumed her cruise and arrived atPapeete onTahiti inFrench Polynesia on 15 June 1938. Repainted in gray, she next proceeded toSydney, Australia.
On 20 February 1939,Rigault de Genouilly began a deployment in theFar East when she departed forSaigon inFrench Indochina. After the avisoSavorgnan de Brazza relieved her on the French Indochina station,Rigault de Genouilly visitedShanghai, China.
World War II began on 1 September 1939 with the Germaninvasion of Poland. France entered the war on the side of theAllies on 3 September 1939. On 10 October 1939,Rigault de Genouilly began a deployment in theIndian Ocean. She changed crews on 6 March 1940 atDiego Suarez onMadagascar.
German ground forces advanced into France on 10 May 1940, beginning theBattle of France.Italy declared war on France on 10 June 1940 andjoined the invasion. The Battle of France ended in France's defeat and itsarmistice of 22 June 1940 with Germany and Italy, which went into effect on 25 June 1940.
AfterFrance′s surrender,Rigault de Genouilly served in the naval forces ofVichy France. She was based atOran inAlgeria on 3 July 1940, when the British beganOperation Catapult, which sought to seize or neutralize the ships of the French Navy to prevent their use by theAxis powers. TheRoyal Navy′sForce H arrived off the French naval base atMers El Kébir near Oran that day and demanded that the French Navy either turn over the ships based there to British custody or disable them. When the French refused, the Britishwarships opened fire on the French ships in the harbor at 17:57, beginning theirattack on Mers-el-Kébir. The FrenchbattleshipStrasbourg managed to put to sea from Mers El Kébir and make forToulon, France.Rigault de Genouilly quickly got underway and attempted to joinStrasbourg′s escort, but lacked the speed to keep up with the battleship and turned back for Oran.
AsRigault de Genouilly headed back to Oran, she encountered the ships of Force H, which were in pursuit ofStrasbourg, at 19:33.Rigault de Genouilly steamed toward the BritishbattlecruiserHMS Hood. The Britishlight cruisersHMS Arethusa andHMS Enterprise opened fire onRigault de Genouilly at ranges of 12,000 and 18,000 yd (11,000 and 16,500 m), respectively, andHood also fired several 15-inch (381 mm)shells at her.Rigault de Genouilly fired nineteen 14 cm (5.5 in) shells in return before taking a hit fromEnterprise and withdrawing.[9] Focused on their attempt to catchStrasbourg, the British did not pursueRigault de Genouilly after the brief exchange of gunfire.[10]
On 4 July 1940, the BritishsubmarineHMS Pandora sighted the damagedRigault de Genouilly along the Algerian coast offAlgiers nearCap Matifou. Mistaking her for acruiser,[10]Pandora torpedoed and sank her with the loss of 12 lives.[9][11] The BritishAdmiralty apologized to the French Embassy for the sinking.[10]
Shipwrecks and maritime incidents in July 1940 | |
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| Shipwrecks |
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| Other incidents |
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