french battleship pre dreadnought battleship french_navy lead ship class technological leap battleship development french_navy ship fleet turbine engines like battleships type completed royal_navy battleship commissioned career sent great_britain honor coronation later served world war escort supply ships troop transports guarding elements german_navy route aid blockade torpedoed sunk march german boat leaving men dead location wreck remained mystery underwater survey team inadvertently discovered battleship december february wreck confirmed ship remarkably good shape age rests upright ocean floor original equipment reported intact design class battleships significant improvement preceding class especially ton displacement increase advent dreadnought completed combined poor traits including great weight coal carry unsuccessful ships numerous rapid firing guns use mediterranean laid arsenal brest february launched july commissioned french_navy june ship meters long overall beam load draft displaced metric tons long tons short tons load crew officers enlisted men powered parsons steam turbines belleville boilers french warship use turbines rated shaft horsepower provided speed knots mph coal storage amounted long tons short tons main battery consisted modèle guns mounted twin gun turrets forward aft secondary battery consisted modèle guns twin turrets ship number smaller guns carried defense torpedo boats included sixteen guns guns ship armed torpedo tubes ship main belt thick main battery protected armor conning tower thick sides service launching ceremony socialist activists prevented ship leaving stocks ship eventually launched july week completed sent united_kingdom honour return france assigned 1st battle squadron sister ships powerful dreadnoughts mediterranean suffered explosion gun turrets killed men injured served world war outbreak war early august assigned guard convoys bringing french soldiers north_africa protect attack german battlecruiser light cruiser operating area time remained 1st battle squadron alongside sister ships command vice admiral august french naval commander admiral took bulk french fleet malta entrance adriatic austro hungarian navy sinking commanded torpedoed commanded march miles nmi south west battleship returning duty refit toulon bound greek island join allied blockade carrying men normal crew members ships foil enemy submarines ship sank minutes men rescued destroyer nearby patrol boats including captain went ship attacked depth charges boat successfully evaded attacker discovery february public late wreck ship discovered remarkable condition underwater survey italy algeria gas pipeline wreck lies kilometres away thought sank sitting upright gun turrets intact depth metres
French battleship Danton