The Jean de Vienne was a French light cruiser

Light cruiser

A light cruiser is a type of small- or medium-sized warship. The term is a shortening of the phrase "light armored cruiser", describing a small ship that carried armor in the same way as an armored cruiser: a protective belt and deck...

 of the La Galissonnière class

La Galissonnière class cruiser

The La Galissonnière cruiser class was a group of six warships admitted in active service in the French Navy in the 1930s. They were the last French cruisers completed after 1935, until the completion of De Grasse in 1956. They are considered as fast, reliable and successful ships...

. During World War II, she remained with the 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...

. She was named for Jean de Vienne

Jean de Vienne

Jean de Vienne was a French knight, general and Admiral of France during the Hundred Years' War.-Early life:Jean de Vienne was born at Dole, in what is now Franche-Comté. As a nobleman, he started his military career at the age of 19, and was made a knight at 21.-Career:By the age of 24, de Vienne...

 a 14th century French knight, general and admiral during the Hundred Years' War

Hundred Years' War

The Hundred Years' War was a series of separate wars waged from 1337 to 1453 by the House of Valois and the House of Plantagenet, also known as the House of Anjou, for the French throne, which had become vacant upon the extinction of the senior Capetian line of French kings...

.

At the start of World War II, she had completed a major refit at Toulon

Toulon

Toulon is a town in southern France and a large military harbor on the Mediterranean coast, with a major French naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur region, Toulon is the capital of the Var department in the former province of Provence....

 and had returned to the 3rd Cruiser Division, based at Bizerte

Bizerte

Bizerte or Benzert , is the capital city of Bizerte Governorate in Tunisia and the northernmost city in Africa. It has a population of 230,879 .-History:...

. Her formation was to protect French interests in North Africa, should Italy enter the war. Until this occurred, the 3rd Cruiser Division's role was limited, the main event being a transport of gold bullion to Halifax, Nova Scotia

Halifax Regional Municipality, Nova Scotia

Halifax Regional Municipality is the capital of the province of Nova Scotia, Canada. The Regional Municipality had a 2006 census population of 372,679, while the metropolitan area had a 2010 estimated population of 403,188, and the urban area of Halifax had a population of 282,924...

 in December 1939. After Italy's entry into the war on 10 June 1940, there was a major French sortie to prevent anticipated attempts by the Kriegsmarine

Kriegsmarine

The Kriegsmarine was the name of the German Navy during the Nazi regime . It superseded the Kaiserliche Marine of World War I and the post-war Reichsmarine. The Kriegsmarine was one of three official branches of the Wehrmacht, the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany.The Kriegsmarine grew rapidly...

 to force the Straits of Gibraltar. The only sight of the enemy was a failed attack by the Italian submarine Dandolo.

Jean de Vienne was at Algiers at the time of the French surrender and avoided the destruction of the French Fleet at Mers-el-Kebir

Destruction of the French Fleet at Mers-el-Kebir

The Attack on Mers-el-Kébir, part of Operation Catapult and also known as the Battle of Mers-el-Kébir, was a naval engagement fought at Mers-el-Kébir on the coast of what was then French Algeria on 3 July 1940...

 in June 1940. She subsequently covered the escape of the Strasbourg

French battleship Strasbourg

The Strasbourg was a more heavily armoured Dunkerque-class battleship of the French Navy, labeled as a "fast battleship". Faster than full battleships, but not as heavily armed or armoured as them, they were designed to counter the threat of the German "pocket battleships" - the Deutschland-class...

 and destroyers from Mers-el-Kébir

Mers-el-Kébir

Mers-el-Kébir is a port town in northwestern Algeria, located by the Mediterranean Sea near Oran, in the Oran Province.-History:Originally a Roman port, Mers-el-Kébir became an Almohad naval arsenal in the 12th century, fell under the rulers of Tlemcen in the 15th century, and eventually became a...

 in July and escorted them to Toulon

Toulon

Toulon is a town in southern France and a large military harbor on the Mediterranean coast, with a major French naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur region, Toulon is the capital of the Var department in the former province of Provence....

. There she remained, out of action until she joined the French High Seas Force in March 1941.

During the Scuttling of the French fleet in Toulon

Scuttling of the French fleet in Toulon

The French fleet in Toulon was scuttled on 27 November 1942 on the order of the Admiralty of Vichy France to avoid capture by Nazi German forces during Operation Lila of the Case Anton takeover of Vichy France.- Context :...

, the Jean de Vienne was in drydock

Dry dock

A drydock is a narrow basin or vessel that can be flooded to allow a load to be floated in, then drained to allow that load to come to rest on a dry platform...

, and her captain, Capitaine de Vaisseau Mailloux had her moved forward, to obstruct the gates. Although German commandos rushed aboard and found and disarmed the demolition charges, the ship's valves had been opened and the ship settled, blocking the gates and making the drydock useless. Her crew had also smashed every piece of equipment.

She was handed over to Italy, renamed FR 11 and raised on 18 February 1943. A refit began but this had not finished at time of the Italian armistice, and the vessel fell into German hands once more. In an air raid, she was hit by incendiary bombs on 24 November 1943 and set ablaze, gradually listing until she rested against the quayside.

When Toulon was liberated by the Allies in August 1944 (Operation Dragoon

Operation Dragoon

Operation Dragoon was the Allied invasion of southern France on August 15, 1944, during World War II. The invasion was initiated via a parachute drop by the 1st Airborne Task Force, followed by an amphibious assault by elements of the U.S. Seventh Army, followed a day later by a force made up...

), a refit was considered but the idea was abandoned and the Jean de Vienne was scrapped.