French cruiser Naïade

Class overview
Preceded by	Iphigénie
Succeeded by	Aréthuse
History
France
Name	Naïade
Builder	Arsenal de Brest
Laid down	1878
Launched	1881
Completed	February 1882
Stricken	1900
General characteristics
Displacement	3,637 long tons (3,695 t)
Length	74.37 m (244 ft) loa
Beam	14.25 m (46 ft 9 in)
Draft	7.61 m (25 ft)
Installed power	8 × fire-tube boilers 2,800 indicated horsepower (2,100 kW)
Propulsion	1 × compound steam engine 1 × screw propeller
Sail plan	Full ship rig
Speed	14.7 knots (27.2 km/h; 16.9 mph)
Complement	439
Armament	4 × 165 mm (6.5 in) guns 22 × 140 mm (5.5 in) guns 2 × 100 mm (3.9 in) guns 8 × 1-pounder Hotchkiss revolver cannon 1 × 350 mm (13.8 in) torpedo tube

Naïade was an unprotected cruiser of the French Navy that was built in the late 1870s and early 1880s.

Design

In 1878, the French Navy embarked on a program of cruiser construction authorized by the Conseil des Travaux (Council of Works) for a strategy aimed at attacking British merchant shipping in the event of war. The program called for ships of around 3,000 long tons (3,048 t) with a speed of 16 knots (30 km/h; 18 mph). Four vessels were ordered, including Naïade; the vessels were dated designs more similar to the first screw frigates that had been built in the 1850s than the latest protected cruisers being designed abroad.

Characteristics

Naïade was 74.37 m (244 ft) long overall, with a beam of 14.25 m (46 ft 9 in) and a draft of 7.61 m (25 ft). She displaced 3,637 long tons (3,695 t). Her hull was constructed with wood; she had a clipper bow and an overhanging stern. She had a forecastle and sterncastle. The ship had no armor protection. Her crew consisted of 439 officers and enlisted men.

The ship was propelled by a single horizontal compound steam engine that drove a screw propeller. Steam was provided by eight coal-burning fire-tube boilers that were ducted into a single funnel located amidships. Coal storage amounted to 450 long tons (460 t). The power plant produced 2,800 indicated horsepower (2,100 kW) for a top speed of 14.7 knots (27.2 km/h; 16.9 mph). To supplement her steam engines, she was fitted with a three-masted full ship rig.

The ship was armed with a main battery of two 165 mm (6.5 in) M1870 guns that were placed in embrasures in the bow as chase guns. Later in her career, the guns were replaced with new M1881 versions. These were supported by a secondary battery of eighteen 140 mm (5.5 in) M1870M guns. Two were placed in embrasures in the stern, four were on the upper deck, and the remaining twelve were mounted in a broadside battery amidships. She also had a pair of 100 mm (3.9 in) guns. For close-range defense against torpedo boats, she carried a battery of eight 1-pounder Hotchkiss revolver cannon in single pivot mounts. The ship's armament was rounded out by a single 350 mm (13.8 in) torpedo tube above the waterline, though it was later removed.

Service history

The keel for Naïade was laid down in 1878 at the Arsenal de Brest. She was launched in 1881 and was completed in February 1882. During her initial sea trials, Naïade had significant problems with her engines.

The ship was struck from the naval register in 1900 and subsequently discarded.

References

• Gardiner, Robert, ed. (1979). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 978-0-85177-133-5.
• Ropp, Theodore (1987). Roberts, Stephen S. (ed.). The Development of a Modern Navy: French Naval Policy, 1871–1904. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-0-87021-141-6.