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Hello everyone and welcome to this new suggestion.
Today I’m presenting a new ship of the French Navy, the last of the Liberté class, the Démocratie.
The Démocratie was a pre-Dreadnought designed from 1903 at the Brest Arsenal and commissioned in 1908. It sailed to the port of Toulon to join the Mediterranean Fleet. It participated in several naval reviews presided over by state officers and made ceremonial visits to Bizerte and Malta to honor foreign dignitaries such as King George V of the United Kingdom.
With the outbreak of the First World War in August 1914, the battleship was mobilized along with its sister ships. It began the war by escorting convoys of French troops being transported from North Africa to mainland France, a crucial mission for reinforcing the Allied forces. It also took part in the Battle of Antivari on August 16, 1914, a minor engagement against Austro-Hungarian units as part of Allied operations in the Adriatic Sea. For most of the conflict, the Démocratie’s activities remained limited: assigned to patrols and presence missions in the Eastern Mediterranean, it operated primarily from bases such as Corfu and Mudros to monitor and contain Austro-Hungarian and Ottoman forces, without participating in major direct naval engagements.
At the end of the war, in November 1918 following the armistice, the Démocratie briefly participated in diplomatic operations: notably, it transported an Ottoman delegation to Paris for the signing of the Treaty of Sèvres, which officially ended the state of war between the Ottoman Empire and the Allies. Shortly thereafter, the ship was placed in reserve in April 1920, and then decommissioned in May 1921.
Characteristics
Length : 133.8 m
Width : 24.3 m
Draft : 8.4 m
Mass : 14,900 tons
The ship is powered by 3 steam engines supplied by 24 boilers, providing a total power of 18,000 hp. Its maximum speed is 19 knots and its range is 8,400 nautical miles at a speed of 10 knots. The crew consists of 742 sailors.
Weapons
The ship possesses armament enabling it to engage most targets of its era, including:
Guns :
- 2 x 2 305mm Mle1893/96
- 10 x 194mm Mle1902
- 12 x 65mm Mle1902
- 8 x 47mm Mle1886
Torpedo :
- 2 x 450mm Torpedo Tube
Armor
The armor of this ship was designed to withstand shells from ships of its time; however, it quickly became obsolete, unable to withstand the fire of more modern vessels.
- Belt: 180-280mm
- Turret: 360mm
- Conning Tower: 266mm
- Deck:
- Upper: 54mm
- Lower: 51mm
In-game, this ship would be a very interesting addition to the French tech tree, providing a versatile combat ship, albeit slightly under-armed and under-armored for its time, thus complementing the French fleet in an intelligent way.
Pictures
Sources
- https://francearchives.gouv.fr/facomponent/f7c266899a54dba59ae30ac3fb08b2651346417d
- https://imagesdefense.gouv.fr/fr/dans-le-bosphore-le-cuirasse-francais-democratie-passe-le-detroit-legende-d-origine.html
- Mémorial national des marins morts pour la France - Démocratie
- LIBERTÉ battleships (1908)
- https://antoine_s.artstation.com/projects/d8RRGX
- Construction navale de l'Arsenal — Wiki-Brest
- DEMOCRATIE - Cuirassé - Page 4 - Forum PAGES 14-18