Bougainville class aviso
Encyclopedia
The Bougainville class was a type of colonial aviso
or sloop
of the French Navy
of the 1930s that were designed to operate in remote locations of the French Empire
.
The ten ships of the Bougainville class were built from 1931 to 1940 in various French naval yards. The ships were designed to operate autonomously from French colonies in Asia and Africa with a capacity of 297 tons of diesel, giving a endurance distance of 13000 nautical miles (24,076 km). Their shallow draught
allowed them to operate on large rivers, while carrying an infantry company. In this respect they were an improvement over existing gunboat
s.
Eight of the Bougainville class avisos were commissioned, the two remaining ships (the Beautemps-Beaupré and La Pérouse) were still under construction during the Fall of France. Beautemps-Beaupré was scuttled in the Gironde Estuary
on 24 June 1940.
The ships of the Bougainville class had varied careers that were typical of French Naval ships of the period and were torn between the Free French Naval Forces
and Navy of Vichy France
. With the ships of Vichy France being hunted by both the Axis and Allies at different times during the war.
On 9 November 1940 there was a rare case of fratricide between two ships of the same class when the Bougainville
, lead ship of the class and loyal to the Vichy government, fought her sister ship Savorgnan de Brazza
, who served in the FNFL. This battle happened off of Libreville
, during the Battle of Gabon
. After a short exchange of fire Savorgnan-de-Brazza had reduced Bougainville to a wreck and forced her to beach to avoid sinking. Bougainville later foundered in March 1941 during a re-floating operation.
The Dumont d'Urville and Amiral Charner took part in the Battle of Koh Chang
on 17 January 1941.
The La Grandière was extensively modernised in 1944. Her anti-aircraft armament was replaced with 40 mm Bofors and 20 mm oerlikon guns, and new anti-submarine armament of (4 depth charge
throwers and 6 depth charge rails, with 66 charges) was installed. She also received two radars and a sonar.
Four ships survived the war and served during the Indochina War and in the Korean War
.
Aviso
An aviso , a kind of dispatch boat or advice boat, survives particularly in the French navy, they are considered equivalent to the modern sloop....
or sloop
Sloop-of-war
In the 18th and most of the 19th centuries, a sloop-of-war was a warship with a single gun deck that carried up to eighteen guns. As the rating system covered all vessels with 20 guns and above, this meant that the term sloop-of-war actually encompassed all the unrated combat vessels including the...
of the French Navy
French Navy
The French Navy, officially the Marine nationale and often called La Royale is the maritime arm of the French military. It includes a full range of fighting vessels, from patrol boats to a nuclear powered aircraft carrier and 10 nuclear-powered submarines, four of which are capable of launching...
of the 1930s that were designed to operate in remote locations of the French Empire
French colonial empire
The French colonial empire was the set of territories outside Europe that were under French rule primarily from the 17th century to the late 1960s. In the 19th and 20th centuries, the colonial empire of France was the second-largest in the world behind the British Empire. The French colonial empire...
.
The ten ships of the Bougainville class were built from 1931 to 1940 in various French naval yards. The ships were designed to operate autonomously from French colonies in Asia and Africa with a capacity of 297 tons of diesel, giving a endurance distance of 13000 nautical miles (24,076 km). Their shallow draught
Draft (hull)
The draft of a ship's hull is the vertical distance between the waterline and the bottom of the hull , with the thickness of the hull included; in the case of not being included the draft outline would be obtained...
allowed them to operate on large rivers, while carrying an infantry company. In this respect they were an improvement over existing gunboat
Gunboat
A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies.-History:...
s.
Eight of the Bougainville class avisos were commissioned, the two remaining ships (the Beautemps-Beaupré and La Pérouse) were still under construction during the Fall of France. Beautemps-Beaupré was scuttled in the Gironde Estuary
Gironde estuary
The Gironde is a navigable estuary , in southwest France and is formed from the meeting of the rivers Dordogne and Garonne just below the centre of Bordeaux...
on 24 June 1940.
The ships of the Bougainville class had varied careers that were typical of French Naval ships of the period and were torn between the Free French Naval Forces
Free French Naval Forces
Les Forces Navales Françaises Libres were the naval arm of the Free French Forces during the Second World War. They were commanded by Admiral Emile Muselier.- History :...
and Navy of Vichy France
Vichy France
Vichy France, Vichy Regime, or Vichy Government, are common terms used to describe the government of France that collaborated with the Axis powers from July 1940 to August 1944. This government succeeded the Third Republic and preceded the Provisional Government of the French Republic...
. With the ships of Vichy France being hunted by both the Axis and Allies at different times during the war.
On 9 November 1940 there was a rare case of fratricide between two ships of the same class when the Bougainville
Bougainville (PG 76)
Bougainville was an of the French Navy launched in 1931. The ship was designed to operate from French colonies in Asia and Africa.- References :...
, lead ship of the class and loyal to the Vichy government, fought her sister ship Savorgnan de Brazza
Savorgnan de Brazza (PG 78)
Savorgnan de Brazza was an of the French Navy. The ship was launched in 1931 and designed to operate from French colonies in Asia and Africa...
, who served in the FNFL. This battle happened off of Libreville
Libreville
Libreville is the capital and largest city of Gabon, in west central Africa. The city is a port on the Komo River, near the Gulf of Guinea, and a trade center for a timber region. As of 2005, it has a population of 578,156.- History :...
, during the Battle of Gabon
Battle of Gabon
The Battle of Gabon or the Battle of Libreville was part of the West African Campaign of World War II fought in November 1940. The battle resulted in the Free French forces under General Charles de Gaulle taking Libreville, Gabon, and taking all of French Equatorial Africa from Vichy French...
. After a short exchange of fire Savorgnan-de-Brazza had reduced Bougainville to a wreck and forced her to beach to avoid sinking. Bougainville later foundered in March 1941 during a re-floating operation.
The Dumont d'Urville and Amiral Charner took part in the Battle of Koh Chang
Battle of Koh Chang
The Battle of Koh Chang took place on 17 January 1941 during the French-Thai War and resulted in a decisive victory by the French over the Royal Thai Navy. During the battle, a flotilla of French warships attacked a smaller force of Thai vessels, including a coastal battleship.In the end, Thailand...
on 17 January 1941.
The La Grandière was extensively modernised in 1944. Her anti-aircraft armament was replaced with 40 mm Bofors and 20 mm oerlikon guns, and new anti-submarine armament of (4 depth charge
Depth charge
A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare weapon intended to destroy or cripple a target submarine by the shock of exploding near it. Most use explosives and a fuze set to go off at a preselected depth in the ocean. Depth charges can be dropped by either surface ships, patrol aircraft, or from...
throwers and 6 depth charge rails, with 66 charges) was installed. She also received two radars and a sonar.
Four ships survived the war and served during the Indochina War and in the Korean War
Korean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
.
Ships
| Ship | Namesake | Builder | Launched | Fate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bougainville Bougainville (PG 76) Bougainville was an of the French Navy launched in 1931. The ship was designed to operate from French colonies in Asia and Africa.- References :... |
Louis Antoine de Bougainville Louis Antoine de Bougainville Louis-Antoine, Comte de Bougainville was a French admiral and explorer. A contemporary of James Cook, he took part in the French and Indian War and the unsuccessful French attempt to defend Canada from Britain... |
FC de la Gironde Forges Et Chantiers De La Gironde Forges et Chantiers de la Gironde was a French shipbuilder at Lormont near Bordeaux on the Gironde estuary. The company was previously called Usine de construction navale Chaigneau et Bichon, then Chantiers et Ateliers de la Gironde S.A. Ets Schneider, before becoming Forges et Chantiers de la... |
25 April 1931 | Sunk 9 November 1940 |
| Amiral Charner Amiral Charner (PG 81) Amiral Charner was an of the French Navy launched 1 October 1932. The ship was designed to operate from French colonies in Asia and Africa. On the night between 16 and 17 January 1941, she participated in the Battle of Koh Chang.. She was scuttled on 10 March 1945.- References :... |
Léonard Charner Léonard Charner Léonard Victor Joseph Charner was an Admiral of the French Navy.-Far East:In 1843, Captain Charner was part of the fleet sent to the Pacific Ocean by the French Foreign Minister François Guizot under Admiral Jean-Baptiste Cécille and together with the diplomat Lagrene... |
AC Maritime de Sud Ouest | 1 October 1932 | Scuttled 10 March 1945 |
| Dumont d'Urville Dumont d'Urville (PG 77) Dumont d'Urville was an of the French Navy, designed to operate from French colonies in Asia and Africa. She was built by Ateliers et Chantiers Maritime Sud-Ouest of Bordeaux and launched on 21 March 1931.... |
Jules Dumont d'Urville Jules Dumont d'Urville Jules Sébastien César Dumont d'Urville was a French explorer, naval officer and rear admiral, who explored the south and western Pacific, Australia, New Zealand and Antarctica.-Childhood:Dumont was born at Condé-sur-Noireau... |
AC Maritime de Sud Ouest | 21 March 1931 | Broken up 26 March 1958 |
| D'Entrecasteaux D'Entrecasteaux (PG 79) D'Entrecasteaux was an of the French Navy launched in 1931. The ship was designed to operate from French colonies in Asia and Africa.-External links:... |
Bruni d'Entrecasteaux Bruni d'Entrecasteaux Antoine Raymond Joseph de Bruni d'Entrecasteaux was a French navigator who explored the Australian coast in 1792 while seeking traces of the lost expedition of La Pérouse.... |
AC de Provence | 22 June 1931 | Broken up 19 October 1948 |
| La Grandière La Grandière (PG 83) La Grandière was an of the French Navy launched on 22 June 1939. The ship was designed to operate from French colonies in Asia and Africa. She was broken up in 1959.... (ex-Ville d'Ys) |
Pierre de la Grandière | AC de Provence | 22 June 1939 | Broken up 23 November 1959 |
| D'Iberville D'Iberville (PG 82) D'Iberville was an of the French Navy launched on 23 September 1934. The ship was designed to operate from French colonies in Asia and Africa. She was scuttled on 27 November 1942.... |
Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville pronounced as described in note] Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville pronounced as described in note] Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville pronounced as described in note] (16 July 1661 – 9 July 1702 (probable)was a soldier, ship captain, explorer, colonial administrator, knight of... |
AC Maritime de Sud Ouest | 23 September 1934 | Scuttled 27 November 1942 |
| Rigault de Genouilly Rigault de Genouilly (PG 80) Rigault de Genouilly was an of the French Navy. The ship was designed to operate from French colonies in Asia and Africa. On 4 July 1940 the Rigault de Genouilly was torpedoed and sunk by the submarine HMS Pandora off the Algerian coast.... |
Charles Rigault de Genouilly Charles Rigault de Genouilly Pierre-Louis-Charles Rigault de Genouilly was a nineteenth-century French admiral... |
FC de la Gironde | 18 September 1932 | Sunk by 4 July 1940 |
| Savorgnan de Brazza Savorgnan de Brazza (PG 78) Savorgnan de Brazza was an of the French Navy. The ship was launched in 1931 and designed to operate from French colonies in Asia and Africa... |
Pierre Savorgnan de Brazza Pierre Savorgnan de Brazza Pietro Paolo Savorgnan di Brazzà, best known as Pierre Paul François Camille Savorgnan de Brazza , was a Franco-Italian explorer, born in Italy and later naturalized Frenchman... |
AC Maritime de Sud Ouest | 18 June 1931 | Broken up 20 March 1957 |