French destroyer Tartu (1931)

The depth-charge throwers were removed in 1936 and more 200-kilogram depth charges were carried in their place. The Navy reconsidered its anti-submarine warfare tactics after the war began in September and intended to reinstate the depth-charge throwers, although these were an older model than the one previously installed; Tartu had not received her as of early 1942. As an interim measure, a pair of rails were installed on the stern for 35-kilogram (77 lb) depth charges. Each rail could accommodate three depth charges and ten more were stored in the magazine. During the ship's mid-1941 anti-aircraft refit, the mainmast was replaced by a platform for a single 37-millimeter twin-gun mount and two of her single 37-millimeter mounts were transferred to the platform while the other two single mounts were removed. The Hotchkiss machineguns were on new platforms between the funnels and a pair of Browning 13.2-millimeter AA machineguns were installed in front of the bridge. Tartu received a British Alpha 128 ASDIC system in October 1941 that had been taken from another ship.[5][6]

On 27 August 1939, in anticipation of war with Nazi Germany, the French Navy planned to reorganize the Mediterranean Squadron into the FHM of three squadrons. When France declared war on 3 September, the reorganization was ordered and the 3rd Light Squadron, which included the 5th and 9th Scout Divisions with all of the Vauquelin-class ships, was assigned to the 3rd Squadron which was transferred to Oran, French Algeria, on 3 September. On 5 April 1940, the 5th Scout Division with Le Chevalier Paul, Tartu and Maillé Brézé was assigned to Force Z in anticipation of an Allied invasion of Norway; their mission was to escort convoys between Scotland and Norway. The German invasion on 9 April preempted the Allies and Tartu did not begin her escort duties until mid-April when she covered Convoy FP-1 transporting the 5th Demi-Brigade of Mountain Infantry (5^e Demi-Brigade de Chasseurs alpins) to participate in the Namsos Campaign on 19 April. On 24–27 April, the ship escorted Convoy FP-2 conveying the 27th Demi-Brigade of Mountain Infantry to Harstad, Norway, to join the Battle of Narvik. On 3–4 May she joined Le Chevalier Paul, the destroyer Milan and the British destroyers HMS Sikh and HMS Tartar in an unsuccessful attempt to intercept a German convoy. The 5th Scout Division returned to Toulon on 27 May as the Mediterranean Fleet was developing plans to attack the Italians in case they decided to join the war. After the Italians declared war on 10 June, the fleet planned to bombard installations on the Italian coast. Tartu and the rest of the 5th Scout Division were among the ships ordered to attack targets in Vado Ligure. The destroyer was tasked to bombard the Nafta oil tanks. Two Italian MAS boats on patrol attempted to attack the French ships, but only one was able to launch a torpedo before they were driven off with light damage by the French defensive fire. Damage assessments afterward revealed that little damage had been inflicted despite expending over 1,600 rounds of all calibers during the bombardment.[10]

Tartu after she had been scuttled

After the French surrender on 22 June, the Royal Navy attacked the ships in Mers-el-Kébir, French Algeria, on 3 July to prevent them from being turned over to the Germans. To avoid an attack on the ships based nearby in Oran, they steamed for Toulon and Tartu was one of the ships that rendezvoused with them en route and escorted them to Toulon. The Vichy French reformed the FHM on 25 September after it negotiated rules limiting the force's activities and numbers with the Italian and German Armistice Commissions. Tartu was in reserve until she was assigned to it on 15 November. After the Allies invaded French Lebanon and Syria in June 1941, Tartu, Cassard and the heavy cruiser Foch transported a battalion of infantry from Algiers, French Algeria, to Marseilles that was intended to reinforce the Levant between 30 June and 1 July. Shortly afterwards, Tartu began a refit that lasted from 4 July to 4 August. The ship was transferred to Algiers, French Algeria, in early December to prepare to escort the damaged battleship Dunkerque back to Toulon in February 1942. After the Allies invaded French North Africa on 8 November, the Germans attempted to capture the French ships in Toulon intact on 27 November, but the ship was scuttled by her crew. Tartu settled to the harbor bottom and took on a list; salvage attempts were abandoned on 11 December 1943. Her wreck was struck by bombs during three Allied air raids in March–April 1944 during the war and her wreck was broken up in 1956.[11]