French destroyer Enseigne Roux

The French destroyer Enseigne Roux was the name ship of her class of three destroyers built for the French Navy during the First World War.

Enseigne Roux at anchor
History
France
Name	Enseigne Roux
Builder	Arsenal de Rochefort
Laid down	13 December 1913
Launched	13 July 1915
Completed	1916
Stricken	1936
Fate	Scrapped after 1935
General characteristics (as built)
Class and type	Enseigne Roux-class destroyer
Displacement	850 t (837 long tons) (normal) 1,075 t (1,058 long tons) (deep load)
Length	82.6 m (271 ft) (o/a)
Beam	8.6 m (28 ft 3 in)
Draft	3 m (9 ft 10 in)
Installed power	4 water-tube boilers 17,000 shp (13,000 kW)
Propulsion	2 shafts; 2 steam turbines
Speed	30 knots (56 km/h; 35 mph)
Range	1,400 nmi (2,600 km; 1,600 mi) at 14 knots (26 km/h; 16 mph)
Complement	76–81
Armament	2 × single 100 mm (3.9 in) Mle 1893 guns 4 × single 65 mm (2.6 in) Mle 1902 guns 2 × twin 450 mm (18 in) torpedo tubes

Design and description

The Enseigne Roux class were an enlarged version of the preceding Bisson class. The ships had an overall length of 82.6 meters (271 ft 0 in), a beam of 8.6 meters (28 ft 3 in), and a draft of 3 meters (9 ft 10 in). They displaced 850 metric tons (837 long tons) at normal load. Their crew numbered 76–81 men.^[1]

The ships were powered by a pair of Parsons steam turbines, each driving one propeller shaft using steam provided by four water-tube boilers. The engines were designed to produce 17,000 shaft horsepower (13,000 kW) which was intended to give the ships a speed of 30 knots (56 km/h; 35 mph). During her sea trials, Enseigne Roux reached a speed of 30.4 knots (56.3 km/h; 35.0 mph).^[2] The ships carried enough fuel oil to give them a range of 1,400 nautical miles (2,600 km; 1,600 mi) at cruising speeds of 14 knots (26 km/h; 16 mph).^[1]

The primary armament of the Enseigne Roux-class ships consisted of two 100-millimeter (3.9 in) Modèle 1893 guns in single mounts, one each fore and aft of the superstructure, and four 65-millimeter (2.6 in) Modèle 1902 guns distributed amidships. They were also fitted with two twin mounts for 450-millimeter (17.7 in) torpedo tubes amidships.^[2]

Construction and career

Enseigne Roux in Brest, 1923

Enseigne Roux was ordered from the Arsenal de Rochefort and was laid down on 13 December 1913. The ship was launched on 13 July 1915 and completed the following year. She spent the war assigned to the Dunkirk Flotilla, defending the English Channel.^[3]

Citations

1. Smigielski, p. 203
2. Couhat, p. 115
3. Couhat, p. 116

References

• Couhat, Jean Labayle (1974). French Warships of World War I. London: Ian Allan. ISBN 0-7110-0445-5.
• Prévoteaux, Gérard (2017). La marine française dans la Grande guerre: les combattants oubliés: Tome I 1914–1915 [The French Navy during the Great War: The Forgotten Combatants, Book I 1914–1915]. Collection Navires & Histoire des Marines du Mond. Vol. 23. Le Vigen, France: Éditions Lela presse. ISBN 978-2-37468-000-2.
• Prévoteaux, Gérard (2017). La marine française dans la Grande guerre: les combattants oubliés: Tome II 1916–1918 [The French Navy during the Great War: The Forgotten Combatants, Book II 1916–1918]. Collection Navires & Histoire des Marines du Mond. Vol. 27. Le Vigen, France: Éditions Lela presse. ISBN 978-2-37468-001-9.
• Roberts, Stephen S. (2021). French Warships in the Age of Steam 1859–1914: Design, Construction, Careers and Fates. Barnsley, UK: Seaforth Publishing. ISBN 978-1-5267-4533-0.
• Smigielski, Adam (1985). "France". In Gray, Randal (ed.). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. pp. 190–220. ISBN 0-87021-907-3.