The Liberté |
| Class overview |
| Name: |
Liberté |
| Builders: |
Chantiers de la Loire in Saint-Nazaire |
| Operators: |
 French Navy |
| Preceded by: |
République-class |
| Succeeded by: |
Danton-class |
| In commission: |
1908 |
| Completed: |
4 |
| Lost: |
1 |
| General characteristics |
| Type: |
Pre-dreadnought battleship |
| Displacement: |
14,900 tonnes |
| Length: |
134 m |
| Beam: |
24.25 m |
| Draught: |
8.40 m |
| Propulsion: |
3 steam engines, 22 boilers, 20,500 hp |
| Speed: |
19.4 knots |
| Range: |
8,000 nmi at 12 knots |
| Capacity: |
900 tonnes of coal |
| Complement: |
25 officers, 715 men |
| Armament: |
4 × 305mm/40 Modèle 1893 guns (twin)
10 × 194 mm (6 in turrets, 4 in casemates)
5 × torpedo tubes |
| Armour: |
Belt: 280 mm |
| Notes: |
Ships in class include: Liberté, Justice, Vérité, Démocratie |
The Liberté class ("liberty") was a class of pre-dreadnought battleships of the French Navy, an improvement of the République-class battleship of a similar design.
[edit] Design and History
Right elevation and deck plan as depicted in Brassey's Naval Annual 1906
The type was designed by engineer Émile Bertin. Each unit cost 42 million gold francs.
With the Liberté class, French pre-dreadnought design finally caught up with U.S. and British standards (the Connecticut-class and Lord Nelson-class battleships respectively).
[edit] See also
Media related to Liberté class battleships at Wikimedia Commons
French Navy
Media related to Liberté class battleships at Wikimedia Commons
