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The outbreak of war in August 1914 came at an unfortunate time for the French Navy. After decades of confusion and controversy, a more consistent programme to create an up-to-date battle fleet had begun in 1912. The Naval Programme of 1912 was designed to provide France with a large battle fleet with ships of the most modern design in all categories within eight years . The programme envisaged a strength of 28 battleships, 10 scout cruisers, 52 destroyers and 94 submarines by 1920.

Construction work was in its early stages when the German occupation of the industrial areas of north-eastern France combined with the manpower and industrial demands of the French army effectively suspended this programme. As a result, the French Navy had to achieve its objectives in the war at sea with a collection of inadequate ships,

For most of the period since the formation of the Third Republic, the French navy lacked coherent and consistent direction in terms of policy, leadership, organisation and equipment. It was not immune to the bitter political rivalries of the Third Republic.  Those rivalries included those between republicans and monarchists, between church and state, between capitalism and labour. Apart from the latter the others were either unique to France or more intense than in other countries.

The bitter differences of opinion infected both the political and the professional leadership of the navy [and of the army!].  Ministers of Marine and Colonies changed with great frequency, and the naval leaders changed equally frequently to reflect the wishes of the minister *. Admirals were assigned post and promoted according to their political, religious or class background. The problem was compounded by the need for parliamentary approval for budgets and  construction programmes. Rivalries between parties and individuals in parliament did not encourage consistency of direction in naval affairs.


The political confusion was matched by equally bitter rivalries within the navy itself. Admirals were divided publicly on a number of issues. The most persistent division was that between the advocates of two different visions of the structure of the navy, and consequently, on the type of warship required.  The debate was dominated by the 'Jeune Ecole' from the mid 1880's until about 1905/06.

Their ideas were opposed by the 'Traditionalists.'  The ideas of the 'Jeune Ecole' were the brainchild of Admiral Hyacinthe Laurent Theophile Aube when he was minister of marine 1886-1887. This debate was 'a minority sport' compared to the predominance of the Army, and the debates and rivalries within it.

Discussion began on the common assumption that the greatest maritime danger to France was Britain. The problem was the means by which France could be protected against a British naval attack. The essence of the debate was the type of force needed to protect the French coast - in the Channel, Bay of Biscay, and the Mediterranean. The 'Jeune Ecole' rejected the idea of constructing a battle fleet sufficiently strong to nullify British pre-dominance at sea. Although they recognised the importance of attacks on British commerce, they placed their faith in the torpedo.

In their eyes, the torpedo rendered obsolete large armoured warships. They advocated the construction of swarms of torpedo boats which would be stationed along the coast - even suggesting at times that each small harbour, as well as the major bases, should have a flotilla of torpedo boats. In their view, the development and construction of battleships was a waste of time and resources. Admiral Aube suspended all battleship construction between 1882 and 1889. Instead the construction of torpedo boats was accelerated so that 370 torpedo boats were built between 1875 and 1908.
 
This view was not shared by the traditionalists who demanded that the navy focus on the construction of a battle fleet capable of challenging the Royal Navy at sea. This group began to have more influence in the 1890's by which time the elements of a battle fleet had started to come out of the shipyards. By 1896 an active battle fleet had begun to appear, but this progress towards the creation of an effective and homogenous battle fleet was delayed at the end of the 19th century.

As minister of marine 1902-1905 Charles Camille Peletan devoted funds not only to torpedo craft but also authorised the construction of 35 small submarines for coastal defence [almost all were so ineffective that they were discarded long before 1914] . As a result, battleship construction was delayed to such an extent that the main component of the battle fleet in 1914 were the twelve pre-dreadnoughts of the Republique, Liberte, and Danton classes which entered service as late as 1906-1911. Construction of the first dreadnoughts began only in 1911.
 
Building on a long-term interest in commerce warfare against Britain, an obsession with armoured cruisers became the new slogan of the 'Jeune Ecole'. Their observations of the Sino-Japanese war seemed to suggest that armoured cruisers. with their higher speed, could use the greater rapidity of fire of their lighter guns to overwhelm the more ponderous battleship. [A similar argument was to be made in the 1930's when some advocated that the more rapid firepower of the six-inch gun light cruisers could overwhelm the eight-in gun heavy cruisers with their slower rate of fire]. Advocates of the armoured cruiser argued that they would be very useful in conducting a 'guerre de course' against British trade.  This view was shared by admirals in Britain, Germany and the United States - hence the large armoured cruiser construction programmes of the first decade of the 20th century.

The combination of the study of the Russo-Japanese War, and the Entente Cordiale, strengthened the argument for a balanced force centred on battleships.  Increased awareness of other maritime threats, and a persistent overstatement of their case, drew the sting out of the 'Jeune Ecole.' France became more aware of the threat to their predominance in the Mediterranean of the increased size and power of two countries who were Germany's allies: Italy and Austria-Hungary.

The challenges of the Mediterranean took attention away from coastal and commercial warfare, and encouraged France to think in terms of a battle fleet of sufficient power to meet the challenge of the expected combined fleets of Italy and Austria-Hungary. Hence the naval programme of 1912. 


On the positive side, a battle fleet [the Armee Navale] had been created and was concentrated in the Mediterranean. The first class of dreadnoughts was entering service. Eleven semi-dreadnoughts formed the bulk of the fleet - but the two battle squadrons were smaller than the 8 ship squadrons of the British and German fleets.

The armoured cruisers were divided almost equally between Toulon and Brest. Those in the Mediterranean to provide a fast wing for the battle fleet while those at Brest were to conduct operations against surface raiders.

There no light cruisers capable of either scouting for the battle fleet or leading torpedo boat destroyers into the attack against the enemy fleet.

Most of the destroyer force was composed of boats of limited seaworthiness - too small for more than coastal operations [a legacy of the 'Jeune Ecole']

Nearly half the submarines were steam-powered and therefore operationally vulnerable: most submarines of both types of propulsion were too small for duties other than coastal defence.  

 
The most important role was to concentrate the battle fleet in preparation for conflict either with Italy and Austria-Hungary combined, or with the latter alone. The Italian decision for neutrality in 1914, and then for war against Austria-Hungary, made this task a little bit easier. The Armee Navale was deployed to counter any excursion out of the Adriatic by the Hapsburg fleet.

The Army insisted on immediate naval protection for the transfer of the three divisions of the 19th Corps in North Africa to France where they would join the other forty active divisions in a war against Germany.  Again, this task was made easier by the Italian decision to remain neutral - for the time being.

The third anticipated task was the protection of French commerce and colonies with cruiser forces against German surface raiders. This task was largely accomplished by the Royal Navy in 1914.
    
Additional unforeseen tasks were:  
 

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The Ministry of Marine provided the higher policy making and administrative direction for the Navy.

The occupants of the principal posts during the war years were:
 
 


The principal devolved administrative organisation, akin to the Royal Navy's home commands in role and prestige. The main office-holders were the Prefect, the Major-General [Port Admiral], and Coast Defence Commander.








 





By 1896, the French had developed a reasonably effective battle squadron in the Mediterranean [even if they were 'specimens'] and this changed qualitatively and geographically by 1914. A greater uniformity of squadrons by class is evident from 1907 onwards. The concentration of battleships in the Mediterranean occurs in August 1911 when the Armee Navale is formed.

   

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 Atlantic and Channel

 

  [major ships only]

Newfoundland/West Indies Descartes Lavoisier

Morocco Friant Gloire Du Chayla

Indo-China Montcalm [CA] Dupleix Kersaint D'Iberville Fronde Pistolet Mousquet

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Type	France	Italy	Austria-Hungary	Britain	Germany	Ottoman Empire
Dreadnoughts	4	3	3	-	-	-
Battlecruisers	-	-	-	3	1	-
Semi-dreadnoughts	6	-	3	-	-	-
Pre-dreadnoughts	11	8	6	-	-	2
Armoured Cruisers	7	7	3	4		2
Light Cruisers	-	-	4	4	1	-
Destroyers	45	30	18	16	-	8
Submarines	20	20	6	-	-	-
Totals	93	68	43	27	2	12

The principal French force in the Mediterranean was the ARMEE NAVALE. The main purpose of this fleet was to prepare to engage the Austro-Hungarian Fleet in battle. Given the reluctance of the latter to leave port in the northern Adriatic, the Armee Navale was employed as the main force behind attempts to confine the Austro-Hungarian naval forces within the confines of the Adriatic.

In August 1914 - having accomplished its initial task of protecting the troop convoys from North Africa to France from the threat posed by the German Mediterranean Squadron - it moved to Malta. After the entry of Italy into the war it moved light forces to Brindisi and the battleships to Corfu. Apart from some distractions in the Aegean, the Armee Navale spent most of the war at anchor at Corfu.

Like the British Grand Fleet, it had to wait for the enemy to leave harbour - which it never did.

Behind this 'shield' the French Navy was able to deploy older battleships and cruisers, as well as destroyers and submarines on tasks elsewhere in the Mediterranean. Most of these tasks were not anticipated. They involved the use of heavy ships in the Anglo-French attempt to force the Dardanelles, and support for the subsequent ground campaign at Gallipoli. With the insertion of allied forces into the Balkans at Salonika in the autumn of 1915, heavy forces were required to support that operation for the rest of the war. This would involve a major demonstration of naval power to overawe Greece in 1916. Another consequence of the entry of Turkey into the war was the requirement to support ground operations off the coasts of Egypt, Palestine and Syria until the end of the conflict.

The entry of Italy provided the opportunity to forward deploy light forces [including destroyers and submarines] into the southern Adriatic to block the Straits of Otranto and so inhibit the movement of Austro-Hungarian and German submarines into the Mediterranean sea lanes. As the U-boat war intensified destroyers and patrol forces had to be extended to cover a wider area in agreement with allied decisions on areas of national responsibility.

Throughout the conflict the French high command had to co-ordinate their efforts with those of the Italian and British navies. This was not an easy task because of differing national requirements and cultures, even when the allied naval commander-in-chief was the commander-in-chief of the Armee Navale - which was for the duration of the conflict.



The main components of the Armee Navale were the Battle Squadrons and Cruiser Divisions details of which are given below. In general a battle squadron consisted of six ships. The squadron was sub-divided into two divisions. The first division was commanded by a vice admiral [VA] who was the squadron commander, and the second division by a rear admiral [CA]

Commander-in-Chief, Armee Navale

Until 16.04.16-the organisation of the battle fleet was:

Most of the other dreadnoughts were described as 'hors rang' - not allocated to a squadron but under direct command of the CinC. They were:

The two battle squadrons were composed of the semi-dreadnoughts ships of the Danton class, and the pre-dreadnoughts of the Republique and Verite classes:



Upon re-organisation on 16.04.16, the battle fleet consisted of-




A further re-organisation took place on 01.07.18



At the outbreak of war, all the older pre-dreadnoughts were grouped into one of two squadrons.
They were:


In September 1914, Suffren and Verite were sent to the Dardanelles; the latter returned and the older dreadnoughts formed under command of CA Guepratte for operations in the that area.

Between 1st March 1915 and 15th April 1916, the pre-dreadnoughts were grouped into two squadrons for service off Gallipoli and the Syrian coast.



The re-organisation of the Armee Navale on 16.04.16 was reflected in the organisation of the pre-dreadnoughts:


  
The final distribution of pre-dreadnoughts, from 7.08.17 was:




In August 1914, the armoured cruisers of the Armee Navale were grouped into the 1st Light Division which was divided into two divisions. The two divisions were combined into one on 12.08.17.


Other armoured cruisers which operated within the Mediterranean were:



Other Flag Officers employed in the Mediterranean;

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These were two closely related geographic areas with different requirements.

In the Atlantic the French Navy devoted its resources to trade protection. Firstly, by patrolling the western Channel in co-operation with the British Navy to frustrate any German attempt to attack the cross-channel troop convoys.

Then, it extended its resources to general commerce protection. Using armoured cruisers, a network of patrols covered the Atlantic sea-lanes, with ships deployed as far south as West Africa, and as far west as the Caribbean. From the spring of 1917, the cruisers joined with those of the British and American navies to protect the troop convoys bringing the American Expeditionary Force to Europe.   

French forces in the Channel assisted those of the British Navy in protecting the straits of Dover, in coastal defence in the mid channel, and in supporting naval operations in the southern North Sea. No ships larger than a destroyer were involved in these operations. An indication of the forces involved can be found in Section 7 devoted to destroyers which follows this section.


Between August 1914 and November 1915, the principal force in the Atlantic was the 2nd Light Squadron, made up of two divisions of armoured cruisers. A further division was formed from cruisers in reserve.



 
After the abolition of the 2nd Light Division, the light divisions were consolidated into a single division:


On 1.05.16, a further re-organisation took place:



This was followed by the creation of the 6th Light Division in West African waters on 05.07.16. The division was disbanded on 15.10.17:


 
Between 1.06.17 and 28.05.18, the cruiser divisions were:

3rd Light Division -01.02.18 [sometimes described as the Reserve Cruiser Division] CA Etienne Aubry Jeanne D'Arc 12.11.17-01.03.18 Dupetit-Thouars -01.03.18 Montcalm -01.03.18

4th Light Division/Division d'Antilles CA Maurice Grasset Gueydon -01.03.18 Marseillaise -28.05.18 Conde -01.03.18 Amiral Aube -28.06.18 Gloire  -20.05.18 Dupetit-Thouars 01.3.18-

The final organisation consisted of the Division d'Atlantique formed on 28.05.18


 

A number of obselete and very elderly armoured cruisers, and protected cruisers were employed in a range of tasks which are summarised below:

Pothau	.14-West Africa, .16-Egypt, .16-refit, Saigon, .17-gunnery TS, Toulon
Bruix	.15-Red Sea, 12.16-Greece, .18-reserve at Salonika
Amiral Charner	.15-Syrie-torpedoed off Beirut by U.21, 08.02.16
Latouche-Treville	.14-West Africa/Morocco, 2.15-Syria, .16-Salonika -.18 hulked
Guichen	2 Lt Sqn  .15-Levant, .17-transport duties
Descartes	West Indies - .17 p/o
Jurien de la Graviere	-attached Fleet Flagship 8.14-11.18
Chateaurenault	2 Lt Sqn  .15-Levant, 2.16-South Atlantic, .17-Med-torpedoed 14.12.17
D'Entrecasteaux	.14-Med/Levant,  .17-transport duties
Friant	Newfoundland .14-Western Med, .15-Morocco,  .18-3S/MF, Mudros
Du Chayla	West Atlantic, .16-Red Sea, .18-Levant
Cassard	Western Med, .15-Morocco, .16-Red Sea/Indian Ocean/Levant
Lavoisier	2 Lt Sqn  12.15-Egypt,  2.16-West Med., 9.16-Morocco,  7.18-Levant
D'Estrees	2 Lt Sqn  .15-Levant, .16-Red Sea-.18
Surcouf	2 Lt Sqn  .15-Ocean Patrol, Brest -.18 p/o
Cosmao	Morocco, .15-West Med, .15-Morocco-.18
Forbin	Morocco  .17-submarine depot ship at Gibraltar

Two Armoured Cruisers served in the Far East until summer 1915. They were:

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These are listed under original location and status in August 1914.  Squadrons are listed in numerical sequence according to initial allocation to Mediterranean or North/Atlantic.  As precise dates for movements of most individual boats are not available, the squadron composition is given for specific dates when such information is available. 
   
 


Until 15.11.15 the destroyer squadrons were under the command of the 2nd Light Squadron:

Squadrons 1914-1915. All 300 ton types completed 1899-1910	1st Squadron Branlebas -damaged beyond repair 30.09.15 Carquois Etendard Obusier Oriflamme Tromblon	2nd Squadron Claymore Fanion Fleuret Gabion Glaive Stylet	3rd Squadron-1.10.15 Med Arquebus Belier Bombarde Catapulte Epieu Rapiere
Other boats in the area 1914-1915- under Maritime Prefects	Attached submarine flotillas Durandel Escopette Fauconneau* Francisque Javeline Sabre*	Minesweepers, Cherbourg Baliste* Flamberge* Fishery Protection Yatagan Laid up Arc*	Reserve at Cherbourg Carabine* Epee* Harpon Pertuisane Pique* Sagaie*

On 02.11.15 CA Charles de Marliave became Commander Channel Flotillas. He was succeeded by VA Pierre Ronarch on 10.16 as Commander Channel and North Sea Forces - a post held by him until the end of the war

In 08.17 the boats in the Atlantic came under command of CA Zepherin Schwerer who bore the title Commander of Patrols Ocean and Channel.

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Emeraude class [at Bizerte]	Saphir         Topaze        Turquoise Dardanelles -lost 15.1.15 Dardanelles -Aegean Dardanelles -lost 30.10.15
Pluvoise class [all 1 Squadron]	Ampere Cugnot Fresnel Gay-Lussac Messidor Monge Papin 5.15-Brindisi, 5.17-Morocco 5.15-Brindisi 5.15-Brindisi -lost 5.12.15 .16-Brindisi, 1.18-Bizerte    5.15-Brindisi 5.15-Brindisi-lost 29.12.15 5.15-Brindisi
Brumaire class [all 2 Squadron]	Arago  .16-Brindisi Bernouilli 5.15-Dardanelles, .16-Brindisi -lost 13 or 15.2.18 Coulomb 3.15-Dardanelles, .16-Brindisi Curie .14-Adriatic-captured by Austrians 20.12.14, recovered 8.18 Faraday Joule Le Verrier 9.14-Dardanelles, .16-Brindisi 4.15-Dardanelles -lost 1.5.15 9.14-Dardanelles, .16-Brindisi
Other classes	Cigogne Circe Argonaute Toulon, .16-Brindisi 9.14-Dardanelles, .16-Brindisi-lost 20.9.18 Toulon, 5.15-Brindisi, .16-Toulon/training
Commissioned during the war:
Amphitrite class	Atalante Artemis Ariane  Andromaque  Arethuse  Astree  Amarante 12.15-Brindisi 5.16- Brindisi .16- Brindisi -lost 19.6.17 off Bizerte 2.17- Brindisi 4.17- Brindisi 6.18- Toulon 9.18- Toulon
Gorgone class	Gorgone Hermione 10.16-Brindisi, 1.18-Brest 5.18-Brindisi
Diane class	Daphne 7.16-
Dupuy de Lome class	Dupuy de Lome .17-Gibraltar
Lagrange class	Lagrange 2.18- Toulon
Ex Greek	Armide Antigone Amazone 6.16-Mudros 1.17-Bizerte, .18-Mudros 6.17-Brindisi, .18-Mudros

Sirene class	Sirene Triton Espadon Silure all Cherbourg 8.14-11.18
Emeraude class	Emeraude Cherbourg .17-Gibraltar, 11,18-3 Sqn/Mediterranean Opale Cherbourg, .14-2 Sqn/Mediterranean, .18-3 Sqn/Mediterranean Rubis Cherbourg, 12.16-Gibraltar, 7.18-4 Sqn/Corfu
Pluvoise class [all 1 Squadron]	Berthelot Floreal  Fructidor Germinal Giffard Pluvoise Prairial Thermidor Ventose Watt 6.17-2 Sqn/Bizerte .17-Brindisi -lost 2.8.18 - - 6.17-2 Sqn/Bizerte - -lost off Le Havre 29.4.18 - 10.17-2 Sqn/Mudros 3.18-Bizerte
Brumaire class [all 2 Squadron]	Brumaire Euler Foucault  Franklin  Frimaire Montgolfier Newton Nivose Volta - Calais .16-Mediterraean -lost 15.9.16 5.16-Brindisi - - Calais - .18-Brindisi
Various types	Aigrette  Archimede  Mariotte  Cherbourg, 5.16-Brindisi .14-Mediterranean, .16-Brindisi  4.17-? .14-Mediterranean -lost Dardanelles 27.7.15 Amiral Bourgois Cherbourg, dbr 5.17
Commissioned during war years	Gustave Zede Sane Amphitrite Bellone  Clorinde Cornelie  Diane 10.14-, .16-Adriatic, 12.17-Brest 8.16-,  .17-Gibraltar .15-Cherbourg 10.16-Brest 10.16-Brest 9.17-Brest 8.17-Brest -lost 11.2.18

On 7/12/18 a new force structure for the submarine service was announced:

Squadrons of 8 boats each at Cherbourg, Brest, Toulon, and Bizerte; with 10 boats allocated to training duties.  This was reduced to 15 operational boats on 1.01.20 with a further 20 in reserve, and 8 under construction. 

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Brought into service from 1916, starting with the British built Flower class. All allocated to patrol duties to protect convoys from German submarine attacks.

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As a result of the peace treaties, the French Navy acquired a number of German ships and submarines which were on active service from 1921. Some remained in service until the mid 1930's.

The totals were:

In addition:
  

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Immediately after the war, the French Navy rid itself of most of its old or obsolete warships - apart from the armoured cruisers which were retained until new construction came into service. The gap between the size of the need and what was required to fill its commitments was filled by ships acquired from Germany and Austria-Hungary as a result of the peace settlements.

The following distribution list shows the order of battle for January 1922 just as the Washington Naval Treaty was about to be signed [6th February], and the French government approved a new construction programme [28th March]. The latter would provide a modern and powerful navy for France by 1939.

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