French cruiser Dubourdieu

In 1878, the French Navy embarked on a program of cruiser construction authorized by the Conseil des Travaux (Council of Works) for a strategy aimed at attacking British merchant shipping in the event of war. The program called for ships of around 3,000 long tons (3,048 t) with a speed of 16 knots (30 km/h; 18 mph). Four vessels were ordered, and Dubourdieu was the last of the group; she was to be the last wooden-hulled cruiser to be built in France. The ship was poorly regarded as a result of her dated design; she was significantly weaker than the new protected cruisers that began to enter service in foreign navies by the time she was completed. She was also too slow to escape more powerful vessels. Admiral Jules François Émile Krantz is believed to have remarked that Dubourdieu was "nothing more than nice accommodations."[1] Dubourdieu and the other three vessels were the final generation of unprotected cruisers built in France, that type thereafter being replaced by protected cruisers beginning with Sfax in the early 1880s.[1]

Characteristics

One of Dubourdieu's main guns

Dubourdieu was 77.26 m (253 ft) long overall, with a beam of 14.02 m (46 ft) and a draft of 6.6 m (21 ft 8 in). She displaced 3,700 long tons (3,800 t). Her hull was constructed with wood; she had a clipper bow and an overhanging stern. The ship had no armor protection. Her crew consisted of 412 officers and enlisted men.[2]

The ship was propelled by a single horizontal compound steam engine that drove a screw propeller. Steam was provided by twelve coal-burning fire-tube boilers that were ducted into a single funnel located amidships. Coal storage amounted to 330 long tons (340 t). The power plant produced 3,000 indicated horsepower (2,200 kW) for a top speed of 13.9 knots (25.7 km/h; 16.0 mph). The ship's engines proved to be troublesome in service, a common problem with French cruisers of the period. To supplement her steam engines, she was fitted with a three-masted full ship rig.[2]

The ship was armed with a main battery of four 165 mm (6.5 in) M1881 28-caliber guns that were placed in sponsons on the upper deck, two per side. These were supported by a secondary battery of twelve 140 mm (5.5 in) M1881 30-caliber guns, which were paced in a central gun battery on the main deck. For close-range defense against torpedo boats, she carried a tertiary battery of a single 37 mm (1.5 in) 3-pounder Hotchkiss revolver cannon and ten 25 mm (1 in) 1-pounder revolver cannon. Dubourdieu was also fitted with two 350 mm (13.8 in) torpedo tubes in above-water mounts.[2]

Dubourdieu in dry-dock at the Mare Island Naval Shipyard in California around 1890

Dubourdieu was built at the Arsenal de Cherbourg; her keel was laid down in 1880 and she was launched in 1884. The ship was completed in September 1886,[2] and conducted her sea trials that year. The ship then returned to the shipyard for alterations, including the installation of admiral's quarters to allow the vessel to serve as a flagship. This work lasted two years, and in 1889, Dubourdieu was deployed to the Pacific station, becoming the flagship there. The ship sailed south through the Atlantic, rounded Cape Horn, and made calls in a series of ports along the way, including in Chile, Peru, and the Hawaiian Kingdom, before reaching Tahiti in French Polynesia.[1]

In early 1890, Dubourdieu had to return to France for repairs to her propulsion system; the work lasted for three months.[3] The ship thereafter returned to the Pacific, where she operated with the unprotected cruisers Volta and Champlain.[4] During this period, the ships were primarily responsible for patrolling the French colonies in the Pacific. She remained in the area through 1893; by that time, the unit also consisted of the unprotected cruisers Duguay-Trouin and Duchaffault.[5] By 1895, Dubourdieu had been recalled home and Duguay-Trouin sent to the East Indies, leaving only Duchaffault and a gunboat in the region.[6]

Dubourdieu was assigned to the North American station in 1896 to serve as its flagship, along with the unprotected cruiser Roland.[7] The following year, Roland was replaced by the unprotected cruiser Rigault de Genouilly, with Dubourdieu still the flagship.[8] In May that year, Dubourdieu steamed to Cherbourg to undergo an overhaul and receive a new crew before resuming her role as the station flagship.[9]

She remained on the station through 1899, by which time she had been joined by the protected cruiser Sfax.[10] By that time, Dubourdieu flew the flag of Rear Admiral Escande. She arrived in Brest on 16 April, where Escande hauled down his flag. Four days later, the ship moved to Lorient, where she was paid off into reserve. She was struck from the naval register later that year and was converted into a stationary training ship. The ship's ultimate fate is unknown.[2][11]

• Brassey, Thomas, ed. (1890). "Chapter V: The Foreign Stations". The Naval Annual. Portsmouth: J. Griffin & Co.: 64–68. OCLC 496786828.
• Brassey, Thomas A. (1893). "Chapter IV: Relative Strength". The Naval Annual. Portsmouth: J. Griffin & Co.: 66–73. OCLC 496786828.
• Brassey, Thomas A. (1895). "Chapter III: Relative Strength". The Naval Annual. Portsmouth: J. Griffin & Co.: 49–59. OCLC 496786828.
• Brassey, Thomas A. (1896). "Chapter III: Relative Strength". The Naval Annual. Portsmouth: J. Griffin & Co.: 61–71. OCLC 496786828.
• Brassey, Thomas A. (1897). "Chapter III: Relative Strength". The Naval Annual. Portsmouth: J. Griffin & Co.: 56–77. OCLC 496786828.
• Brassey, Thomas A. (1899). "Chapter III: Relative Strength". The Naval Annual. Portsmouth: J. Griffin & Co.: 70–80. OCLC 496786828.
• Garbett, H., ed. (May 1897). "Naval Notes: France". Journal of the Royal United Service Institution. London: J. J. Keliher & Co. XLI (231): 634–637. OCLC 1077860366.
• Garbett, H., ed. (May 1899). "Naval Notes: France". Journal of the Royal United Service Institution. London: J. J. Keliher & Co. XLIII (255): 555–559. OCLC 1077860366.
• Gardiner, Robert, ed. (1979). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 978-0-85177-133-5.
• "Naval Summary". The Illustrated Naval and Military Magazine. Pall Mall: W. H. Allen & Co. V: 141–146. 1890.
• Ropp, Theodore (1987). Roberts, Stephen S. (ed.). The Development of a Modern Navy: French Naval Policy, 1871–1904. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-0-87021-141-6.