French submarine Argo
United States East Coast on 19 November 1944.
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
  France | |
| Name | Argo |
| Namesake | Argo, the ship used by Jason and the Argonauts in Greek mythology |
| Operator | French Navy |
| Builder | Chantiers Dubigeon, Nantes, France |
| Laid down | 25 August 1927 |
| Launched | 11 April 1929 |
| Commissioned | 12 February 1933 |
| Homeport | Brest, France |
| Fate | Disarmed 26 April 1946 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | Redoutable-class submarine |
| Displacement |
|
| Length | 92.3 m (302 ft 10 in) |
| Beam | 8.1 m (26 ft 7 in)[1] |
| Draft | 4.4 m (14 ft 5 in) (surfaced) |
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed |
|
| Range |
|
| Test depth | 80 m (262 ft) |
| Complement |
|
| Armament |
|
Argo was a French Navy Redoutable-class submarine of the M6 series commissioned in 1933. She participated in World War II, first on the side of the Allies from 1939 to June 1940, then in the navy of Vichy France until November 1942, and finally in the Free French Naval Forces through the end of the war. Along with Archimède, Casabianca, Le Centaure, and Le Glorieux, she was one of only five out of the 31 Redoutable-class submarines to survive the war.
Characteristics
Argo was part of a fairly homogeneous series of 31 deep-sea patrol submarines also called "1,500-tonners" because of their displacement. All entered service between 1931 and 1939.
The Redoutable-class submarines were 92.3 metres (302 ft 10 in) long and 8.1 metres (26 ft 7 in) in
Construction and commissioning
Service history
World War II
At the start of World War II in September 1939, Argo was assigned to the 4th Submarine Division based in Brest, France.[3] Her sister ships Henri Poincaré, Le Centaure, and Pascal made up the rest of the division.[3][4]
Part of the
German ground forces advanced into France on 10 May 1940, beginning the
Vichy France
After the French surrender, Argo served in the naval forces of
In August 1942, Argo transferred to French West Africa, departing Casablanca on 10 August 1942[3] in company with Le Centaure and their sister ship Archimède and arriving on 16 August 1942 at Dakar in Senegal,[3] where the three submarines formed the 3rd Submarine Division.[3][7] By 9 November 1942, she was part of the French West Africa Submarine Group.[3]
After Allied forces
In September 1943 Argo was detached to the
After Germany surrendered on 8 May 1945, the need for antisubmarine warfare training in the Atlantic dropped sharply, and French submarines operating at U.S. Navy sound schools were soon returned to French operational control.[9] They departed U.S. ports for bases in French North Africa in July 1945.[9] World War II ended with the surrender of Japan on 2 September 1945, and Argo was disarmed on 26 April 1946.[10]
References
Citations
- ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "FR Ajax of the French Navy – French Submarine of the Redoutable class – Allied Warships of WWII". uboat.net. Retrieved 30 March 2018.
- ^ a b c Allied Warships: FR Argo, uboat.net Accessed 13 July 2022
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p u-boote.fr ARGO (in French) Accessed 15 August 2022
- ^ Huan, p. 49.
- ^ Picard, pp. 33–35.
- ^ Huan, p. 64.
- ^ Huan, p. 127.
- ^ Huan, p. 147.
- ^ a b c d e Jones, Mark C., "SUBMARINE SHORTAGE SOLVED: FRENCH AND ITALIAN SUBMARINES AS U.S. NAVY TRAINING TARGETS IN THE WESTERN ATLANTIC, 1943–1945," Naval Submarine League, June 2015 Accessed 15 August 2022
- ^ Picard, p. 88.
Bibliography
- Fontenoy, Paul E. (2007). Submarines: An Illustrated History of Their Impact (Weapons and Warfare). Santa Barbara, California. ISBN 978-1-85367-623-9.]
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)[verification needed - Gardiner, Robert; Chesneau, Roger (1980). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1922–1946. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-146-7.
- Huan, Claude (2004). Les Sous-marins français 1918–1945 (in French). Rennes: Marines Éditions. ISBN 9782915379075.
- Picard, Claude (2006). Les Sous-marins de 1 500 tonnes (in French). Rennes: Marines Éditions. ISBN 2-915379-55-6.