French submarine Le Verrier

An unidentified Brumaire-class submarine in Cherbourg
History
France
Name	Le Verrier
Ordered	29 October 1906
Builder	Arsenal de Toulon
Laid down	4 August 1909
Launched	31 October 1912
Completed	30 October 1913
Stricken	3 February 1925
Identification	Budget number: Q88
Fate	Sold for Sold for scrap, 25 June 1927
General characteristics (as built)
Class and type	Brumaire-class submarine
Displacement	397  t (391 long tons) (surfaced) 551 t (542 long tons) (submerged)
Length	52.15 m (171 ft 1 in) (o/a)
Beam	5.42 m (17 ft 9 in)
Draft	3.19 m (10 ft 6 in)
Installed power	725  PS (533  kW; 715  bhp) (diesels) 660 PS (490 kW; 650 bhp) (electric motors)
Propulsion	2 × shafts; 2 × diesel engines 2 × electric motors
Speed	13 knots (24 km/h; 15 mph) (surfaced) 8.8 knots (16.3 km/h; 10.1 mph) (submerged)
Range	2,000  nmi (3,700 km; 2,300 mi) at 9.6 knots (17.8 km/h; 11.0 mph) (surfaced) 84 nmi (156 km; 97 mi) at 5 knots (9.3 km/h; 5.8 mph) (submerged)
Complement	2 officers and 27 crewmen
Armament	1 × 450 mm (17.7 in) bow torpedo tube 4 × single 450 mm Drzewiecki drop collars 2 × single external 450 mm torpedo launchers

Le Verrier was one of 16 Brumaire-class submarines built for the French Navy during the 1910s. Completed in 1913, the boat was assigned to the 2nd Submarine Squadron in Bizerte, French Tunisia, when the First World War began in August 1914.

Design and description

The Brumaire class was built as part of the French Navy's 1906 building program ^[1] to a double-hull design by Maxime Laubeuf that were diesel-engined versions of the preceding Pluviôse class. The boats displaced 397 metric tons (391 long tons ) surfaced and 551 metric tons (542 long tons) submerged. She had an overall length of 52.15 meters (171 ft 1 in), a beam of 5.42 meters (17 ft 9 in), and a draft of 3.19 meters (10 ft 6 in). ^[2] Her crew numbered 29 officers and crewmen. ^[1]

For surface running, the Brumaires were powered by two diesel engines, each driving one propeller shaft. The engines were designed to produce a total of 840 metric horsepower (829  bhp ; 618  kW ), but normally only produced 725 PS (715 bhp; 533 kW), which was enough to give the boats a speed of 13 knots (24 km/h; 15 mph). When submerged each shaft was driven by a 330-metric-horsepower (325 bhp; 243 kW) electric motor. The maximum speed underwater was 8.8 knots (16.3 km/h; 10.1 mph). They had a surface endurance of 2,000 nautical miles (3,700 km; 2,300 mi) at 9.6 knots (17.8 km/h; 11.0 mph) and a submerged endurance of 84 nmi (156 km; 97 mi) at 5 knots (9.3 km/h; 5.8 mph). ^[2]

The Brumaire class was armed with one 450-millimeter (17.7 in) torpedo tube in the bow and 6 external 450 mm torpedo launchers; all of which were positioned on the top of the hull. The two forward ones were fixed outwards at an angle of six degrees. The other launchers were single rotating Drzewiecki drop collars amidships. They could traverse 135 degrees to each side of the boat. One reload was provided for the bow tube. Le Verrier received a 47-millimeter (1.9 in) deck gun at some point during the war. ^{[2] [3]}

Construction and career

Le Verrier was ordered on 29 October 1906 and was laid down on 4 August 1908 at the Arsenal de Toulon. The boat was launched on 31 October 1912 and commissioned on 30 October 1913. When the First World War began in August 1914, she was assigned to the 2nd Submarine Squadron (2e escadrille des sous-marins) of the 1st Naval Army (1^ère Armée Navale) at Bizerte. ^[2]

Citations

1. Smigielski, p. 210
2. Roberts, p. 440
3. Garier 1998, p. 121

Bibliography

• Couhat, Jean Labayle (1974). French Warships of World War I. London: Ian Allan. ISBN   0-7110-0445-5.
• Garier, Gérard (2002). A l'épreuve de la Grande Guerre. L'odyssée technique et humaine du sous-marin en France (in French). Vol. 3–2. Bourg-en-Bresse, France: Marines édition. ISBN   2-909675-81-5.
• Garier, Gérard (1998). Des Émeraude (1905-1906) au Charles Brun (1908–1933). L'odyssée technique et humaine du sous-marin en France (in French). Vol. 2. Bourg-en-Bresse, France: Marines édition. ISBN   2-909675-34-3.
• 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.