French battleship Carnot

Carnot was an ironclad battleship of the French Navy. She was laid down in July 1891, launched in July 1894, and completed in July 1897. She was a member of a group of five broadly similar battleships, along with Charles Martel, Jauréguiberry, Bouvet, and Masséna, which were ordered in response to the British. Like her half-sisters, she was armed with a main battery of two 305 mm guns and two 274 mm guns in individual turrets. She had a top speed of 17.8 kn.

Carnot had a fairly uneventful career. She spent the majority of her service life in the Northern and Mediterranean Squadrons of the French fleet, where she participated in extensive, annual maneuvers. She was withdrawn from service by the outbreak of World War I in August 1914, and so did not see action during the conflict. She remained in the French Navy's inventory until 1922, when she was stricken from the naval register and sold for scrap.

Design
Carnot was the second member of a group of five battleships built to a broadly similar design, but different enough to be considered unique vessels. The first ship was Charles Martel, which formed the basis for Carnot and three other ships. Design specifications were identical for each of the ships, but different engineers designed each vessel. The ships were based on the previous battleship Brennus, but instead of mounting the main battery all on the centerline, the ships used the lozenge arrangement of the earlier vessel Magenta, which moved two of the main battery guns to single turrets on the wings. The five ships were built in response to the British s.

General characteristics and machinery
Carnot was 114 m long between perpendiculars, and had a beam of 21.4 m and a draught of 8.36 m. She had a displacement of 11954 t. Her bridge was cut down compared to Charles Martel to save weight, and she was equipped with lighter pole masts instead of the heavy fighting masts used on her half-sister. She had a crew of 647 officers and enlisted men.

Carnot had two vertical triple expansion engines each driving a single screw, with steam supplied by twenty-four Lagrafel d'Allest water-tube boilers. Her propulsion system was rated at 16300 ihp, which allowed the ship to steam at a speed of 17.8 kn. As built, she could carry 680 MT of coal, though additional space allowed for up to 980 MT in total.

Armament and armor
Carnot's main armament consisted of two Canon de 305 mm Modèle 1887 guns in two single-gun turrets, one each fore and aft. She also mounted two Canon de 274 mm Modèle 1887 guns in two single-gun turrets, one amidships on each side, sponsoned out over the tumblehome of the ship's sides. Her secondary armament consisted of eight Canon de 138.6 mm Modèle 1888 guns, which were mounted in single turrets at the corners of the superstructure. She also carried four 9-pounder quick-firing guns, twelve 3-pounders, and eight 1-pounder revolving cannons. Her armament suite was rounded out by two 450 mm torpedo tubes, which were submerged in the ship's hull.

The ship's armor was constructed with nickel steel. The main belt was 460 mm thick amidships, and tapered down to 250 mm at the lower edge. On either end of the central citadel, the belt was reduced to 305 mm at the waterline and 250 mm on the lower edge; the belt extended for the entire length of the hull. Above the belt was 101 mm thick side armor. The main battery guns were protected with 380 mm of armor, and the secondary turrets had 101 mm thick sides. The main armored deck was 69 mm thick. The conning tower had 230 mm thick sides.

History
Carnot was laid down in Toulon in July 1891 and launched three years later in July 1894. Fitting-out work was completed another three years after that, in July 1897, and the ship was commissioned into the French Navy.

Carnot spent the majority of her active career alternating between the Northern and Mediterranean Squadrons. The newer battleships typically served in the Mediterranean, while older vessels were assigned to the Northern Squadron. In 1901, she was assigned to the Northern Squadron, under the command of Vice Admiral Ménard. The Northern Squadron conducted annual training exercises in June; the following month, they joined the Mediterranean Squadron for combined fleet maneuvers.

By 1902, Carnot had been transferred to the Reserve Squadron of the Mediterranean Squadron, alongside the old battleships Charles Martel, Brennus, and Hoche. The Reserve Squadron was commanded by Rear Admiral Besson, who flew his flag in Brennus. The entire French fleet, including Carnot, conducted extensive maneuvers in the Mediterranean in July and August of that year.

Carnot had been transferred to the Northern Squadron by 1906, and participated in the annual summer maneuvers in June–July 1906. The following year, Carnot was back in the Mediterranean, in the Second Squadron. She remained in the Second Squadron through 1909.

By the outbreak of World War I in August 1914, Carnot had been laid up in the port of Brest, along with Charles Martel. Both ships were retained on the effective list, however, pending the completion of the new s. Carnot was ultimately stricken from the naval register in 1922 and sold for scrapping that year.