View source for French battleship Saint Louis

{{Short description|French Navy's Charlemagne class pre-dreadnought battleship}}
{{other ships|French ship Saint Louis}}
{{good article}}
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{{Infobox ship image
|Ship image=Battleship saint-louis Bougault.jpg
|Ship caption=''Saint Louis'' in April 1903
}}
{{Infobox ship career
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|Ship country=France
|Ship flag={{shipboxflag|France|naval}}
|Ship name=''Saint Louis''
|Ship namesake=King [[Louis IX of France]]
|Ship ordered=
|Ship awarded=
|Ship builder=Arsenal de [[Lorient]]
|Ship original cost=26,981,000 [[French franc|francs]]
|Ship yard number=
|Ship way number=
|Ship laid down=25 March 1895
|Ship launched=2 September 1896
|Ship sponsor=
|Ship christened=
|Ship completed=1 September 1900
|Ship commissioned=
|Ship recommissioned=
|Ship decommissioned=8 February 1919
|Ship in service=
|Ship out of service=
|Ship renamed=
|Ship reclassified=*As [[training ship]], 8 February 1919
*As [[accommodation ship|accommodation]] [[hulk (ship)|hulk]], 20 June 1920
|Ship struck=29 June 1931
|Ship motto=
|Ship nickname=
|Ship honours=
|Ship fate=Sold for [[ship breaking|scrap]], 25 April 1933
|Ship notes=
|Ship badge=
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
|Hide header=
|Header caption=
|Ship class= {{sclass|Charlemagne|battleship}}
|Ship displacement={{cvt|11275|t|LT|lk=on}} ([[deep load]])
|Ship length={{convert|117.7|m|ftin|abbr=on}}
|Ship beam={{convert|20.3|m|ftin|abbr=on}}
|Ship draught={{convert|8.4|m|ftin|abbr=on}}
|Ship power=* 20 Belleville [[water-tube boiler]]s
* {{convert|14500|PS|lk=on|abbr=on}}
|Ship propulsion=3 shafts, 3 [[Marine steam engine#Triple or multiple expansion|triple-expansion steam engines]]
|Ship speed={{convert|18|knot|lk=in}}
|Ship range={{convert|4200|mi|nmi|lk=in|-1}} at {{convert|10|kn}}
|Ship complement=* 732
* 785 as [[flagship]]
|Ship armament=*2 × 2 - [[Canon de 305 mm Modèle 1893/96 gun|{{convert|305|mm|in|abbr=on|0}}]] Mle 1893 guns
* 10 × 1 - [[Canon de 138 mm Modèle 1893 naval gun|{{convert|138.6|mm|in|abbr=on}}]] Mle 1893 guns
* 8 × 1 - [[Canon de 100 mm Modèle 1891|{{convert|100|mm|in|abbr=on}}]] Mle 1893 guns
* 20 × 1 - [[QF 3 pounder Hotchkiss|47 mm Mle 1885 Hotchkiss guns]]
* 4 × {{convert|450|mm|in|abbr=on|1}} [[torpedo tube]]s
|Ship armour=* [[Belt armor|Belt]]: {{convert|110|–|400|mm|in|abbr=on|1}}
* [[Deck (ship)|Deck]]s: {{convert|55|-|90|mm|in|abbr=on|1}}
* [[Barbette]]s: {{convert|270|mm|in|abbr=on|1}}
* [[Gun turret|Turrets]]: {{convert|320|mm|in|abbr=on|1}}
* [[Conning tower]]: {{convert|326|mm|in|abbr=on|1}}
|Ship notes=
}}
|}
'''''Saint Louis''''' was the last of the three {{sclass|Charlemagne|battleship|0}} [[pre-dreadnought battleship]]s built for the [[French Navy]] in the mid-1890s. She spent most of her career assigned to the [[Commander-in-Chief, Mediterranean (France)|Mediterranean Squadron]] (''escadre de la Méditerranée'') and usually was chosen to serve as a [[flagship]]. The ship was involved in two accidental [[Naval ram|ramming]] incidents with two other French warships in her career, one of which sank a [[submarine]].

When [[World War I]] began, she escorted Allied troop convoys for the first two months. ''Saint Louis'' was ordered to the [[Dardanelles]] in November 1914 to guard against a [[sortie]] into the Mediterranean by the German [[battlecruiser]] {{SMS|Goeben}}. In 1915, she was transferred to the Eastern Mediterranean where she participated in bombarding Turkish positions in Palestine and the Sinai Peninsula. The ship returned to the Dardanelles in May and [[Naval operations in the Dardanelles Campaign|provided fire support]] during the [[Gallipoli Campaign]]. ''Saint Louis'' was transferred to the squadron assigned to prevent any interference by the Greeks with Allied operations on the [[Macedonian front (World War I)|Salonica front]] in May 1916, after a lengthy refit in France. The ship was placed in [[Reserve fleet|reserve]] in April 1917 and briefly became a [[training ship]] in 1919–20. She was converted to serve as an [[accommodation ship|accommodation]] [[hulk (ship)|hulk]] in 1920 and listed for disposal as [[ship breaking|scrap]] in 1931. ''Saint Louis'' did not find a buyer, however, until 1933.

==Design and description==
''Saint Louis'' was {{convert|117.7|m|ftin}} [[length overall|long overall]] and had a [[beam (nautical)|beam]] of {{convert|20.3|m|ftin}}. At [[deep load]], she had a [[draft (ship)|draught]] of {{convert|7.4|m|ftin}} forward and {{convert|8.4|m|ftin}} [[aft]]. She displaced {{convert|11275|MT|LT}} at [[deep load]].<ref name=g8>Gille, p. 98</ref> Her crew consisted of 30 officers and 702 sailors as a [[private ship]], or 41 officers and 744 men as a fleet flagship.<ref name=a6>d'Ausson, p. 6</ref>

The ship used three 4-cylinder [[Marine steam engine#Triple or multiple expansion|vertical triple expansion steam engines]], one engine per shaft. Rated at {{convert|14500|PS|abbr=on}}, they produced {{convert|14900|PS}} during the ship's [[sea trial]]s using steam generated by 20 Belleville [[water-tube boiler]]s. ''Saint Louis'' reached a top speed of {{convert|18.5|kn|lk=in}} on her trials. She carried a maximum of {{convert|1050|t|LT}} of coal which allowed her to steam for {{convert|4200|mi|nmi}} at a speed of {{convert|10|kn}}.<ref name=g8/>

''Saint Louis'' carried her main armament of four 40-[[caliber (artillery)|calibre]] [[Canon de 305 mm Modèle 1893/96 gun|Canon de 305 mm Modèle 1893 gun]]s in two twin-[[gun turret]]s, one each fore and aft. The ship's [[secondary armament]] consisted of ten 45-calibre [[Canon de 138 mm Modèle 1893 gun]]s, eight of which were mounted in individual [[casemate]]s and the remaining pair in [[gun shield|shielded]] mounts on the [[forecastle]] deck amidships. She also carried eight 45-calibre [[Canon de 100 mm Modèle 1891|Canon de 100 mm Modèle 1893 gun]]s in shielded mounts on the superstructure. The ship's anti-[[torpedo boat]] defences consisted of twenty 40-calibre [[QF 3-pounder Hotchkiss|Canon de 47 mm Modèle 1885 Hotchkiss guns]], fitted in platforms on both masts, on the superstructure, and in casemates in the hull. ''Saint Louis'' mounted four {{convert|450|mm|in|adj=on|1}} [[torpedo tube]]s, two on each [[Broadside (naval)|broadside]]. Two of these were submerged, angled 20° from the ship's axis, and the other two were above the waterline. They were provided with twelve Modèle 1892 torpedoes. As was common with ships of her generation, she was built with a plough-shaped ram.<ref>Caresse, pp. 114, 116–17</ref>

The ''Charlemagne''-class ships carried a total of {{convert|820.7|t|LT}}<ref name=c1>Caresse, p. 117</ref> of [[Harvey armor|Harvey armour]].<ref>Chesneau and Kolesnik, p. 117</ref> They had a complete [[waterline]] [[Belt armor|armour belt]] that was {{convert|3.26|m|ftin}} high. The armour belt tapered from its maximum thickness of {{convert|400|mm|in|abbr=on|1}} to a thickness of {{convert|110|mm|in|abbr=on}} at its lower edge. The armoured [[deck (ship)|deck]] was {{convert|55|mm|in|abbr=on}} thick on the flat and was reinforced with an additional {{convert|35|mm|in|abbr=on}} plate where it angled downwards to meet the armoured belt. The main turrets were protected by {{convert|320|mm|in|abbr=on|1}} of armour and their roofs were {{convert|50|mm|in|abbr=on}} thick. Their [[barbette]]s were {{convert|270|mm|in|abbr=on|1}} thick. The outer walls of the casemates for the {{convert|138.6|mm|adj=on}} guns were 55&nbsp;mm thick and they were protected by transverse [[bulkhead (partition)|bulkhead]]s {{convert|150|mm|in|abbr=on|1}} thick. The [[conning tower]] walls were {{convert|326|mm|in|abbr=on|1}} thick and its roof consisted of 50&nbsp;mm armour plates. Its communications tube was protected by armour plates {{convert|200|mm|in|abbr=on|1}} thick.<ref name=c1/>

==Construction and career==
[[File:Saint louis-2-ELD.jpg|thumb|left|Profile view of ''Saint Louis'']]
''Saint Louis'', named after King [[Louis IX of France|Louis IX]],<ref name=s1>Silverstone, p. 111</ref> a [[Catholic Church|Catholic]] [[saint]], was authorised on 30 September 1895 as one of the three ''Charlemagne''-class battleships. The ship was [[Keel laying|laid down]] at the Arsenal de [[Lorient]] on 25 March 1895<ref name=a6/> and [[Ship naming and launching|launched]] on 2 September 1896.<ref>Gille, pp. 97–98</ref> She was [[Ship commissioning|commissioned]] on 1 September 1900<ref>Jordan & Caresse, p. 44</ref> after completing her sea trials at the cost of 26,981,000 [[French franc|francs]]. Even before ''Saint Louis'' was formally commissioned, she participated in a [[Review (disambiguation)|naval review]] conducted by the [[President of France]], [[Émile Loubet]], at [[Cherbourg]] in July 1900.<ref name=a6/>

The ship was assigned to the Mediterranean Squadron and arrived in Toulon on 24 September. ''Saint Louis'' became the squadron flagship on 1 October and retained that duty until 24 February 1904. She transported [[Louis André]], the [[Minister of Defence (France)|Minister of War]] and [[Jean Marie Antoine de Lanessan|Jean de Lanessan]], the [[Minister of Marine]] on their tours of [[Corsica]] and [[Tunisia]] later in October.<ref name=a6/> The following year, ''Saint Louis'' and the Mediterranean Squadron participated in an international naval review by President Loubet in Toulon with ships from Spain, Italy and Russia.<ref>Caresse, p. 121</ref>

On 25 June 1903, the ship received King [[Alfonso XIII of Spain]] aboard while visiting [[Cartagena, Spain|Cartagena]].<ref name=a6/> In April 1904, she was one of the ships that escorted President Loubet during his state visit to Italy.<ref>Caresse, p. 124</ref> ''Saint Louis'' visited Morocco in December 1906 and did not return to Toulon until the following month. She became the flagship of the Second Battleship Division on 18 March and then became the flagship of the 4th Division on 17 April 1908. The ship was briefly transferred to the Northern Squadron (''escadre du Nord''), where she became its flagship, in October 1910,<ref name=a6/> and she participated in a large naval review by President [[Armand Fallières]] off [[Cap Brun]] on 4 September 1911.<ref>Caresse, p. 125</ref> Two days later, ''Saint Louis'' was struck by the [[destroyer]] {{ship|French destroyer|Poignard||2}} during manoeuvers off [[Hyères]]. She was relieved as the Northern Squadron flagship on 11 November and began repairs, combined with a refit, at Cherbourg. This was completed in April 1912 and the ship resumed her role as the squadron flagship on 15 April.<ref name=a6/>

Less than two months later, she accidentally rammed and sank the submarine {{ship|French submarine|Vendémiaire|Q59|2}} on 8 June in the [[English Channel]] off the [[Casquets]], killing all 24 of the submarine's crew.<ref name=a6/><ref>{{cite news|url=http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k619746r.langFR|title=Le submersible Vendémiaire a heurté le cuirassé Saint-Louis|date=9 June 1912|work=Le Petit Journal|language=fr|access-date=29 June 2012}}</ref> ''Saint Louis'' was transferred to the Mediterranean Squadron a few months later and arrived in Toulon on 9 November. She became the flagship of the Second Division of the Third Squadron on 18 March 1913 and then was transferred to the Supplementary Division (''division de Complement'') and became its flagship on 10 February 1914.<ref name=a6/>

===World War I===
Together with the older French pre-dreadnoughts, the ship's first mission in the war was to escort troop convoys from North Africa to France. On 23 September, ''Saint Louis'' was ordered to [[Port Said]] to escort a British convoy carrying troops from India. She remained on escort duties until November when she was ordered to the Dardanelles to guard against a sortie by the German battlecruiser ''Goeben''. The ship remained on station there until January 1915 when she was given a brief refit at [[Bizerte]]. Upon its completion, ''Saint Louis'' was ordered to the Eastern Mediterranean where she became the flagship of the newly formed Syrian Squadron (''escadre de Syrie'') on 9 February. These ships were intended to attack Turkish positions and lines of communication in Syria, Lebanon, Palestine and the Sinai Peninsula. ''Saint Louis'' participated in the bombardment of [[Gaza City|Gaza]] and [[El Arish]] in April before she was transferred back to the Dardanelles in May.<ref name=a6/>

By this time, however, naval operations were limited to bombarding Turkish positions in support of [[Allies of World War I|Allied]] troops. The ship became the flagship of the Dardanelles Squadron (''escadre des Dardanelles'') on 26 August until she was relieved for a major refit at Lorient in October. When the refit was completed in May 1916, ''Saint Louis'' was ordered to [[Salonica]] where she joined the French squadron assigned to prevent any interference by the Greeks with Allied operations in Greece where she arrived on 22 May. She became flagship of the Eastern Naval Division (''division navale d'Orient'') on 26 October until she was transferred to Bizerte in February 1917.<ref>Gille, pp. 98–99</ref> The ship was placed in reserve in April and remained there until January 1919 when she was transferred to Toulon.<ref name=a6/>

''Saint Louis'' was disarmed and decommissioned on 8 February and became a training ship for [[stoker (occupation)|stoker]]s and [[engineering officer (ship)|engineers]] in Toulon. The ship was condemned on 20 June 1920, although she was converted into an accommodation hulk. ''Saint Louis'' listed for disposal on 29 June 1931, but was not purchased, for 600,230 francs, until 24 May 1933.<ref name=a6/>

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

==Bibliography==
* {{cite journal|last=d'Ausson|first=Enseigne de Vaisseau de la Loge|year=1978|title=French Battleship St. Louis|journal=F. P. D. S. Newsletter|publisher=F. P. D. S.|location=Akron, Ohio|volume=VI|issue=1|pages=6–7|oclc=41554533}}
* {{cite book|title=Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905|url=https://archive.org/details/conwaysallworlds00ches_361|url-access=limited|editor-last1=Gardiner |editor-first1=Robert|publisher=Conway Maritime Press|location=Greenwich, UK|year=1979|isbn=0-85177-133-5 |chapter=France |author-last1=Campbell|author-first1=N.J.M.|pages=[https://archive.org/details/conwaysallworlds00ches_361/page/n290 283]–333}}
*{{cite book|editor=Jordan, John|publisher=Conway|location=London|year=2012|chapter=The Battleship Gaulois|last=Caresse|first= Philippe|title=Warship 2012|isbn=978-1-84486-156-9}}
*{{cite book|last=Gille|first=Eric|title=Cent ans de cuirassés français|publisher=Marines édition|location=Nantes|year=1999|isbn=2-909-675-50-5|trans-title=A Century of French Battleships |language=fr}}
*{{cite book |last1=Jordan |first1=John |last2=Caresse |first2=Philippe |title=French Battleships of World War One |date=2017 |publisher=Naval Institute Press|location=Annapolis, Maryland |isbn=978-1-59114-639-1   |name-list-style=amp}}
*{{cite book|last=Silverstone|first=Paul H.|title=Directory of the World's Capital Ships|year=1984|publisher=Hippocrene Books|location=New York|isbn=0-88254-979-0}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Saint-Louis (ship, 1896)|''Saint Louis''}}
* {{in lang|fr}} [http://le.fantasque.free.fr/php3/ship.php3?page_code=charlemagne CUIRASSE Charlemagne]

{{Charlemagne class battleship}}
{{1911 shipwrecks}}
{{1912 shipwrecks}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Louis}}
[[Category:Charlemagne-class battleships]]
[[Category:Ships built in France]]
[[Category:1896 ships]]
[[Category:World War I battleships of France]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in 1911]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in 1912]]