Clorinde-class submarine

The Clorinde-class submarines consisted of two boats that were built for the French Navy in the 1910s. Completed in 1917 during World War I, they played a small role in the war.

Design and description

The Clorinde class was built as part of the French Navy's 1909 building program, intended as improved versions of the. The boats displaced surfaced and submerged. They had an overall length of, a beam of, and a draft of. Their crew numbered 27 officers and crewmen.
For surface running, the Clorinde-class boats were powered by a pair of two-cycle diesel engines, each driving one propeller shaft. The engines were intended to produce a total of, but were generally only capable of. During 's sea trials, her eight-cylinder MAN-Loire engines only produced, enough for a speed of rather than the designed. The boats were generally capable of on the surface in service. When submerged each shaft was driven by a electric motor. The designed speed underwater was, but they only reached a speed of from during trials. The Clorindes had a maximum fuel capacity of of fuel oil which gave them a surface endurance of at. Their submerged endurance was at.
The boats were armed with a total of eight torpedoes. Two of these were positioned in the bow in torpedo launchers angled outwards 4° 30'. The other six were located in external rotating Drzewiecki drop collars, three on each broadside that could traverse 100 degrees to the side of the boats. The boats were also equipped with a Mle 1885-1915 deck gun aft of the conning tower.