French submarine Morse (Q3)
French submarine Morse (“Walrus”) was an early submersible built for the French Navy at the end of the 19th century. She was designed by French naval engineer Gaston Romazotti and remained in service until 1909, when she was superseded by more advanced designs.
 Morse, c. 1909 | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 France | |
| Name | Morse |
| Namesake | The Walrus |
| Builder | Arsenal de Cherbourg |
| Laid down | 13 June 1897 |
| Launched | 4 July 1899 |
| Commissioned | 3 March 1900 |
| Stricken | November 1909 |
| Fate | Scrapped |
| General characteristics (as built)[1] | |
| Class and type | unique vessel |
| Displacement |
|
| Length | 36.5 m (119 ft 9 in) (o/a) |
| Beam | 2.7 m (8 ft 10 in) |
| Draft | 2.8 m (9 ft 2 in) |
| Installed power | 284 cv |
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed |
|
| Range | 90 nmi (170 km; 100 mi) at 4.3 knots (8.0 km/h; 4.9 mph) (surfaced) |
| Test depth | 30m |
| Complement | 13 |
| Armament |
|
Construction
Morse was designed by French naval engineer Gaston Romazotti, who was chief engineer at the Arsenal de Cherbourg and an early submarine pioneer, having worked with Gustave Zédé on both Gymnote and Sirene (later renamed for Zédé after his death). Morse was designed to combine the best features of both vessels. Morse was laid down at Cherbourg in June 1897 and launched two years later in July 1899. She was of single-hulled construction, and built of Roma-bronze, a copper alloy of Romazotti's devising, which was intended to be more flexible than an all-steel hull, and which would interfere less with the vessels magnetic compass. Morse was powered by a 284cv electric motor, which gave her a range of 90 nautical miles on the surface at an average speed of 4.3 knots.[1]
Plan
- Key
- a. screw propeller
- b. vertical rudder
- c. accumulators
- d. ballast tank
- e. trim weights
- f. compressed air
- g. torpedo
- h. torpedo tube
Service history
Morse was commissioned in March 1900. She was based at Cherbourg and remained in service for nine years, In March 1909 Morse was involved in a collision with the British schooner Greenwich, receiving damage to her rudder and propeller.[1]
In November the same year Morse was stricken from service.[1]
Notes
- Conway p206
References
- Campbell, N. J. M. (1979). "France". In Chesneau, Roger & Kolesnik, Eugene M. (eds.). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905. Greenwich: Conway Maritime Press. pp. 283–333. ISBN 0-8317-0302-4.
- Garier, Gérard (n.d.). L'odyssée technique et humaine du sous-marin en France [The Technical and Human Odyssey of the Submarine in France: From Plongeur (1863) to Guêpe (1904)] (in French). Vol. 1: Du Plongeur (1863) aux Guêpe (1904). Bourg-en-Bresse, France: Marines édition. ISBN 2-909675-19-X.
- Roberts, Stephen S. (2021). French Warships in the Age of Steam 1859–1914: Design, Construction, Careers and Fates. Barnsley, UK: Seaforth Publishing. ISBN 978-1-5267-4533-0.
- Smigielski, Adam (1985). "France". In Gray, Randal (ed.). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. pp. 190–220. ISBN 0-87021-907-3.