Navarin-class minesweeper

The Navarin class was a class of 12 minesweepers built by Canadian Car and Foundry for the French Navy in 1918, near the end of World War I. The class is mainly remembered for the disappearance of two of its members, Inkerman and Cerisoles, during their maiden voyage on Lake Superior in November 1918.

Ships of the class under construction in 1918
Class overview
NameNavarin-class minesweeper
BuildersCanadian Car and Foundry
Operators French Navy
Cost$2.5 million (for entire class)
Built1918
Planned12
Completed12
General characteristics
TypeMinesweeper
Length41.3 metres (135 ft)
Beam6.9 metres (23 ft)
PropulsionTwin screws
Speed12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph)
Complement36 crew
Armament2 × 100 mm (4 in) deck-mounted guns
Notes[1][2]

Description

The ships were designed to clear naval mines along the coast of France and in the English Channel.[3] French naval documents refer to the ships as chalutiers rather than dragueurs de mines, as the ships were designed to function as fishing trawlers after the war.

A contract for $2.5 million awarded to Canadian Car and Foundry to construct 12 minesweepers for the French government was reported in February 1918.[4] Built in what was then known as Fort William, Ontario,[5] half of the order was completed by early November 1918,[6] and the entire order was finished before the end of the year.[5]

Each vessel was 135 feet (41 m) long and rated at 321 gross register tonnage.[1][2] Their steel-framed wooden hulls were divided into four water-tight compartments. Each ship was fitted with twin screws and a single funnel, and had a top speed of about 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph). Two 100 mm (4 in) deck-mounted guns, with a range of about 20 kilometres (22,000 yd; 12 mi),[3] were located forward and aft.

In November 1918, three of the minesweepers—Inkerman, Cerisoles, and Sebastopol—encountered severe weather while attempting to cross Lake Superior; Sebastopol reached its destination, but the other two ships and their crews were lost; no wreckage of the ships has been located.[7]

Main article: French minesweepers Inkerman and Cerisoles

Ships of the class

A total of 12 Navarin-class minesweepers were built; their names, as listed below, were published in The Gazette of Montreal in November 1918.[8] Seven members of the class are known to have been lost; the fate of the other five members of the class is unclear.

Hull # Original name Launched[9] Completed[9] Namesake Disposition Ref.
1Navarin 29 July 191820 September 1918Battle of Navarino (1827)Deleted 1965
2Mantoue13 August 19185 October 1918Siege of Mantua (1796–1797)Sold 1949
3St. Georges21 August 191826 October 1918Battle of Nuits Saint Georges (1870)Deleted 1952
4Leoben29 August 19181 November 1918Peace of Leoben (1797)Deleted 1933
5Palestro19 August 191816 October 1918Battle of Palestro (1859)Deleted 1936
6Lutzen31 August 19186 November 1918Battle of Lützen (1813)Wrecked on Nauset Beach, Cape Cod 1939[5][10][11]
7Bautzen14 September 191812 November 1918Battle of Bautzen (1813)Foundered off Saint Pierre Island 1961 as Peary MV[5][12]
8Inkerman3 October 191821 November 1918Battle of Inkerman (1854)Lost without trace 1918[1]
9Cerisoles25 September 191821 November 1918Battle of Cérisoles (1544)[2]
10Sebastopol30 September 191821 November 1918Siege of Sevastopol (1854–1855)Sold 1920; wrecked off Cape St. Francis 1933[13][14][15]
11Malakoff1 October 191817 November 1918Battle of Malakoff (1855)Sold 1920; foundered at Bay Roberts 1974 as Illex MV[13][16]
12Seneff20 September 191815 November 1918Battle of Seneffe (1674)Sold 1920; wrecked near Canso, Nova Scotia 1955[13][17][18]

References
  1. "Inkermann (+1918)". wrecksite.eu. Retrieved July 4, 2023.
  2. "Cérisoles (+1918)". wrecksite.eu. Retrieved July 4, 2023.
  3. Bourrie, Mark (18 October 2009). "Treasure hunters seek Lake Superior's 'Holy Grail'". Toronto Star. Retrieved 31 December 2011.
  4. "Steel Products—Canadian Car". National Post. Toronto. February 9, 1918. p. 2. Retrieved July 4, 2023 – via newspapers.com.
  5. Trunrud, Tory (2016-10-16). "Blueberry Boat made here". The Chronicle-Journal. Thunder Bay, Ontario. Retrieved 2018-07-09.
  6. "Car and Foundry". National Post. Toronto. November 9, 1918. p. 4. Retrieved July 4, 2023 – via newspapers.com.
  7. Gmiter, Tanda (August 18, 2022). "Lake Superior's biggest mystery: 2 French minesweepers built for war vanished in 1918". mlive.com. Retrieved July 4, 2023.
  8. "Weather Reports Not Available—Lake Shipping on Move". The Gazette. Montreal. November 23, 1918. p. 4. Retrieved July 4, 2023 – via newspapers.com.
  9. Couhat 1974, p. 208.
  10. "Beached Motorship Abandoned to Seas". The Boston Globe. February 8, 1939. p. 22. Retrieved July 4, 2023 – via newspapers.com.
  11. "MV Lutzen (+1939)". wrecksite.eu. Retrieved 27 January 2017.
  12. "Bautzen (1918~1922) Peary MV (+1961)". wrecksite.eu. Retrieved July 4, 2023.
  13. "Three Steam Trawlers Sold". The Boston Globe. July 23, 1920. p. 7. Retrieved July 4, 2023 – via newspapers.com.
  14. "Shipping Casualties". Western Mail. Cardiff. September 16, 1933. p. 10. Retrieved July 4, 2023 – via newspapers.com.
  15. "Sebastopol (1918~1918) Sebastopol FV (+1933)". wrecksite.eu. Retrieved July 4, 2023.
  16. "Malakoff (1918~1918) Illex MV (+1974)". wrecksite.eu. Retrieved July 4, 2023.
  17. "Ship Bound for Gloucester Sinks Off N.S." Boston Evening Globe. November 28, 1955. p. 3. Retrieved July 4, 2023 – via newspapers.com.
  18. "Seneff (1918~1920) Seneff MFV (+1955)". wrecksite.eu. Retrieved July 4, 2023.
  • Couhat, Jean Labayle (1974). French Warships of World War I. Shepperton, IK: Ian Allan. ISBN 0-7110-0445-5.
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