French submarine Danaé
Danaé′s sister ship Ariane in 1930.
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History | |
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France | |
Name | Danaé |
Namesake | Danaë, a princess in Greek mythology |
Operator | French Navy |
Ordered | 1923 |
Builder | Chantiers et Ateliers Augustin Normand, Le Havre, France |
Laid down | 3 July 1923 |
Launched | 13 September 1927 |
Commissioned | 1 November 1929 |
Fate | Scuttled 9 November 1942 |
General characteristics | |
Class and type | Ariane-class submarine |
Displacement |
|
Length | 64 or 65.98 m (210 ft 0 in or 216 ft 6 in) (sources disagree) |
Beam | 4.92 or 6.2 m (16 ft 2 in or 20 ft 4 in) (sources disagree) |
Draft | 3.82 or 4.1 m (12 ft 6 in or 13 ft 5 in) (sources disagree) |
Propulsion |
|
Speed |
|
Range |
|
Test depth | 80 m (262 ft) |
Complement | 3 officers, 38 men |
Armament |
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Danaé (Q131) was a French Navy Ariane-class submarine commissioned in 1929. During World War II, she operated on the Allied side until 1940, when she became part of the naval forces of Vichy France. She was scuttled in November 1942.
Construction and commissioning
Ordered under the 1923 naval programme,
Service history
Pre-World War II
On 11 July 1932, Danaé participated briefly in the investigation of the loss of the submarine Prométhée,[1] which had sunk suddenly in the English Channel during her sea trials on 7 July 1932 with the loss of 62 lives.[3]
In November 1934 Danaé and the submarines Amazone, Méduse, and La Psyché visited Leith, Scotland.[4]
World War II
When
Vichy France
After France′s surrender, Danaé served in the naval forces of
When the British warships opened fire on the French ships in the harbor at 17:57,[1] beginning their attack on Mers-el-Kébir, Danaé was 4 nautical miles (7.4 km; 4.6 mi) west of Ariane, which was 4 nautical miles (7.4 km; 4.6 mi) west of Diane, which in turn was 3.5 nautical miles (6.5 km; 4.0 mi) west of Pointe de l’Aiguille (35°52′31″N 000°29′04″W / 35.87528°N 0.48444°W) in Oran Province.[1] None of the four submarines was able to close with the British ships during the battle.[1] After dark, a British aircraft sighted Danaé and Eurydice and dropped illuminated marker buoys to guide a British destroyer to them.[1] The destroyer depth-charged the two submarines, but they escaped damage.[1] During the night of 3–4 July 1940, the four submarines patrolled on the surface off Oran in a north-south patrol line.[1] They remained on patrol off Oran until 20:00 on 4 July 1940 before returning to Oran.[1]
In October 1940, Danaé was placed under guard at Oran in an unarmed and unfueled status in accordance with the terms of the 22 June 1940 armistice.[1]
Loss
Danaé still was in this status when Allied forces invaded French North Africa in Operation Torch on 8 November 1942.[1] She was scuttled at Oran on 9 November 1942 to prevent her capture by Allied forces.[1]
References
Citations
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa u-boote.fr DANAÉ (in French) Accessed 15 October 2022
- ^ u-boote.fr u-boote.fr EURYDICE (in French) Accessed 15 October 2022
- ^ Sous-Marins Français Disparus & Accidents: Sous-Marin Prométhée (in French) Accessed 15 October 2022
- ^ uboote.fr AMAZONE Accessed 23 April 2023
Bibliography
- Moulin, Jean (2006). Les sous-marins français en images (in French). Rennes: ISBN 2-915379-40-8..
- Donald A. Bertke; Don Kindell; Gordon Smith; Susan A. Bertke (2011). World War II Sea War: France Falls, Britain Stands Alone: Day-to-Day Naval Actions from April 1940 through September 1940. Vol. 2. Lulu.com. p. 192. ISBN 978-1-937470-00-5..
External links
- "Sous marin côtier de 2ème classe ou 600 tonnes Classe Ondine 1" (PDF). AGASM (in French). 27 May 2018. Retrieved 27 December 2019.
- "13-Sous-marins (12) sous-marins classe Ondine/Ariane (1)". CLAUSUCHRONIA. Une uchronie un peu folle (in French). 29 August 2013. Retrieved 27 December 2019.
- "DANAÉ". Bases Sous-Marines - Sous-Marins et U-Boote - La Bataille de l'Atlantique (in French). Retrieved 29 December 2019.
- "Q131 Danaé". Shipbucket. Retrieved 29 December 2019.