Designed in the 1930s, the De Grasse class was three "Improved La Galissoniére" light cruisers: De Grasse, ordered in 1937 and the Chateaurenault and Guichen in 1938 (the latter two ships were cancelled). This class was intended to be faster than earlier classes and had a modified aircraft arrangement (two catapults and a hangar were placed amidships). Work on De Grasse was suspended with the invasion of the German army in 1940. De Grasse was captured by the Germans in April 1942. The Germans began planning to convert De Grasse to a light aircraft carrier, provisionally named II, but the work was stopped in February 1943 for due to a lack of materials and manpower as well as the threat of air attacks in Lorient. Construction of De Grasse was restarted again in 1946 and soon stopped as the French considered modernizing the design. Construction was resumed again in January 1951. In June 1954 incomplete ship sank at shipyard after she had been floated out with open sea-cocks, and De Grasse’s completion was delayed again.
Specifications (1938 design)
Displacement: 8000 tons standard, 11,431 tons full load
Dimensions: Length 180.4 m, beam 18.6 m, draught 5.5 m
Machinery: two-shaft steam turbine, 4 boilers, 110,000 hp (82,000 kW)
Speed: 33 knots (61 km/h)
Armament:
9 × 152 mm guns (3 turrets)
6 × 100 mm guns (3 twin turrets)
8 × 37 mm guns
8 × 13.2 mm machine guns
6 × 550 mm torpedo tubes
Armour
Belt: 100 mm
Deck: 38 mm
Turrets: 100 mm
Conning tower: 95 mm
Aircraft: 2 catapults, 2 seaplanes
Crew: 691
wikipedia.org
De Grasse1938:
![[ img ]](https://www.dropbox.com/s/mv01g3c4mdaqgyr/France%20CL%20De%20Grasse%201938%207.png?dl=1)
