Built as a battleship by Arsenal de Lorient for the French Navy.
21 May 1912 laid down.
20 April 1913 launched under the name PROVENCE named after the region of Provence, one of the Bretagne class of which three were built.
Displacement 23.936 ton standard, 26.600 full load. Dim. 166 x 26.9 x 9.10m. (draught).
Powered by Parsons steam turbines, 29.000 bhp., four shafts, speed 20 knots.
Range by a speed 10 knots, 4600 mile.
Bunker capacity coal 900 ton normal, 2.680 ton supercharge
Armament: 10 – 340 mm., 22 – 138.6mm., 7 – 47mm QF, 2 – 75mm AA guns, 4 – 450mm torpedo tubes.
Crew 34 Officers, 139 Petty Officers and 1020 men.
20 January 1916 completed.
01 March 1916 commissioned.
After commissioned used in the French Mediterranean Fleet based at Lorient. She were the most powerful units in the French fleet between 1916 and 1938.
She was refitted at Toulon between 1 February 1922 till 4 July 1923.
Again from 12 december 1925 till 11 July 1927 at Toulon.
Refitted again from 20 September 1931 till 20 August 1934 at Brest.
When the second world broke out, and after the surrender of France on 22 June 1940, many French warship outside French were demilitarised but a large navy force under command of Admiral Marcel Bruno Gensoul were lying in Mers-el-Kebir the navy base of Oran, Algeria, under which the PROVENCE.
On the morning of 3 July a message from Vice Admiral Sir James Somerville, which was commanding the British Squadron in the Mediterranean send via Captain Cedric Holland a former naval attaché at the British Embassy at London was delivered to Admiral Gensoul.
He could steam to British ports and continue in alliance with Britain.
He could leave the ships in a British port, demilitarised and with a nucleus crews.
He could steam to an anchorage in the French West Indies and lay-up his ships there.
He could intern the ships in the United States (at that time a neutral power) until the end of the war.
When he refused all this options he had to scuttle his ships within six hours. After these six hours the British fleet would attack the ships.
When Admiral Gensoul did not respond, the British Squadron attacked the base for 10 minutes with heavy gunfire, not much resistance was given by the French.
After that the British launched an air attack with a squadron of the Fleet Air Arm from the aircraft carrier ARK ROYAL, in which the sister of the PROVENCE the BRETANGNE blow up with heavy loss and the PROVENCE with some other ships were running ashore with damage.
The PROVINCE had 3 men lost.
She was later refloated and patched up and brought to Toulon, she was unfit thereafter for battle for a long period.
When Germany invaded unoccupied France in November 1942, the PROVENCE was scuttled on 27 November 1942 at Toulon to prevent her for falling in German hands.
11 July 1943 the PROVENCE was refloated by the Germans, where after her main 340mm guns were removed and used as shore batteries.
After D-Day she was scuttled again as a blockship.
April 1949 refloated and scrapped.
The ship depict is a composite of PROVENCE and CONDORCET, and Admiral Dominique-Marie Gauchet (1853-1931), Admiral Gauchet was born in St Pierre et Miquelon, and spend his childhood on Ile aux Chiens (Dog Island). His name is given to the place were today the Post-office and Custom House are situated in St Pierre.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_battleship_Provence Dictionary of Disasters at Sea during the age of steam 1824-1962 by Charles Hocking. Some other web-sites. Warship Volume X
The other ship used for the design is the CONDORET.
Built as a battleship by A.C. de La Loire, St Nazaire for the French Navy.
23 August 1907 keel laid down.
20 April 1909 launched under the name CONDORCET one of the Danton class of which six were built.
Displacement 18.318 ton standard, 19.763 ton full load, dim. 146.6 x 25.8 x 9.2m. (draught), length bpp. 144.9m.
Powered by four Parsons steam turbines, 22.500 hp., four shafts, speed maximum 20.6 knots.
Armament: 4 – 305mm, 12 – 240mm., 16 – 75mm, 10 – 47mm guns, 2 – 450mm torpedo tubes.
Crew 753 - 923.
25 July 1911 commissioned.
Refitted between 1923-1924.
1931 In use as a Torpedo School training ship.
1942 Scuttled in Toulon.
1947 Stricken and broken up in 1959.
The stamp design shows a composite of the PROVENCE and CONDORET. SG453
Source: http://www.miramarshipindex.org.nz http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_bat ... cet_(1909)