Mogador class Destroyer (1937)

French Navy – Contre-Torpilleurs de 3000 tonnes. 2 built 1934-1939, in service until 1942: Mogador, Volta.

French Destroyers WW2

Bourrasque class | L'Adroit class | Le Hardi class | La Melpomène class* | Le Fier class*

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Jaguar class | Guepard class | Aigle class | Vauquelin class | Le Fantasque class | Mogador class

The Mogador-class destroyers were a pair of large French destroyers (also called “contre-torpilleurs”) built for the French Navy before World War II. They were designed in the 1930s as powerful warships with size and armament comparable to light cruisers. Here’s a detailed overview:
Mogador-Class Destroyer Overview:
Mogador and Volta were the last French “Contre Torpilleurs”, commissioned in 1939. Mogador’s displacement, 2,900 tons standard and 4,000 tons full load. They were fairly large vessels, 137.5 m (451 ft) overall, 12.57 m (41.3 ft) in beam, for a 4.65 m (15.3 ft) draft. She had two shaft geared steam turbines fed by four boilers for an output of 92,000 shp and a top speed up to 39–42 knots and a Range of around 3,000 nautical miles at 15 knots. She was armed with eight 138.6 mm (5.46 in) guns in four twin turrets, four 37 mm guns and eight 13.2 mm machine guns and ten 550 mm torpedo tubes in two triple, two twin mounts as well as sixteen 200 kg or 100 kg depth charges plus 40 mines.

These were designed to act as flotilla leaders and “cruiser killers,” intended to outrun anything they couldn’t outgun and outgun anything they couldn’t outrun. The ultimate predators, they were heavily armed and very fast. Their drawback with her underpowered auxiliary systems notably for her turrets, poor damage control and reliability and also top-heavy and not well protected. Their career post June 1940 was limited as they were stuck to Toulon, both scuttling there in November 1942 to prevent German capture.

Development

Design of the class

Hull and general design

Protection

Powerplant

Armament

http://www.navweaps.com/Weapons/WNFR_55-50_m1929.php

⚙ specifications CANNON

⚙ specifications TORPEDO

Career of the Mogador class

At the start of the war, in Brest, the Mogador belonged to the Raiding Force. Along with the Volta, its sister ship, it formed the 6th Destroyer Division. From 21 to 30 October 1939, the Raiding Force escorted convoy KJ.4 to protect it from the German pocket battleship Deutschland patrolling the North Atlantic. Facing the Gneisenau and Scharnhorst operating in the North Atlantic, the Raiding Force set sail from Brest on 21 November to join the British battlecruiser HMS Hood and patrol the region south of Iceland (GIUK zone); the German ships were able to return to their bases undisturbed thanks to the bad weather. The Mogador was at Mers el-Kébir when it was attacked by a British squadron on July 3, 1940. She was hit by a 380mm shell, destroying her quarterdeck and causing her anti-submarine grenades to explode. Fortunately, the aft ammunition bay did not explode. Unable to maneuver, she was towed to Oran for repairs. Drydocked on July 17, she underwent a cursory repair, and was towed to Toulon, arriving on December 1. She remained moored there awaiting refit.

The work was carried out by the Forges et Chantiers de la Méditerranée shipyard in La Seyne-sur-Mer. It did not begin until February 1942 due to a lack of equipment. In October, the completion of the reconstruction of the Mogador was estimated for July 1943. On November 27, 1942, it was scuttled at La Seyne-sur-Mer. It was refloated by the Italians in April 1943, without being repaired. At the end of 1944, the Mogador was sunk by Allied bombing of Toulon. It was demolished in 1949[2].

Mogador and her sister ship Volta were integrated into the Raiding Force upon its formation on September 3, 1939. Volta and Mogador formed the 6th Destroyer Division based in Brest. From October 21 to 30, 1939, the Raiding Force escorted convoy KJ.4 to protect it from the German pocket battleship Deutschland patrolling the North Atlantic. Facing the battlecruisers Gneisenau and Scharnhorst operating in the North Atlantic, the Raiding Force sailed from Brest on November 21 to rendezvous with the British battlecruiser HMS Hood and patrol the area south of Iceland (GIUK area); the German ships were able to return safely under cover of bad weather without being attacked.

Volta was refitted in Brest between January and May 1940, and a number of minor modifications were made. An SS-6 ASDIC was installed in June 1940, but proved ineffective.
It was present, along with the Mogador, during the British attack at the Battle of Mers el-Kébir on July 3, 1940. Only the Volta managed to escape and reach Toulon unscathed. The Mogador, hit by a 380 mm shell, had her stern destroyed by the explosion of the anti-submarine grenades in its magazine. Remaining afloat, it underwent summary repairs and reached Toulon on November 1, 1940.
Between June 1940 and the end of 1942, the destroyer underwent various modifications to its armament (including the addition of two 25mm guns, two 13.2mm machine guns, etc.) and electronics (replacement of the ASDIC with a sonar) when it was scuttled at Berth 9, Quai Noël, in Toulon on November 27, 1942, to avoid capture by German troops. The ship was refloated by the Italians on May 20, 1943, who renamed it FR25, but was damaged during the bombing of November 24, 1943, which caused a significant leak. Deemed beyond repair, it was stranded at the port of Brégaillon (La Seyne-sur-Mer) on January 12, 1944, and refloated in 1948 before leaving ingloriously for demolition.

Read More/Src

Books

Cernuschi, Enrico & O’Hara, Vincent P. (2013). “Toulon: The Self-Destruction and Salvage of the French Fleet”. In Jordan, John (ed.). Warship 2013.
Chesneau, Roger, ed. (1980). Conway’s All the World’s Fighting Ships 1922–1946. Greenwich, UK: Conway Maritime Press.
Jordan, John & Moulin, Jean (2015). French Destroyers: Torpilleurs d’Escadre & Contre-Torpilleurs 1922–1956. Barnsley, UK: Seaforth Publishing.
Rohwer, Jürgen (2005). Chronology of the War at Sea 1939–1945: The Naval History of World War Two (Third Revised ed.). NIP
Whitley, M. J. (1988). Destroyers of World War Two: An International Encyclopedia. NIP
Jordan, John (2007). “The Contre-Torpilleurs of the Mogador Class”. In Jordan, John (ed.). Warship 2007. London: Conway.
Lassaque, J. (1996). Les contre-torpilleurs de 2880 tonnes du type Mogador. Marines éditions.
Roberts, John (1980). “France”. In Chesneau, Roger (ed.). Conway’s All the World’s Fighting Ships 1922–1946. New York: Mayflower Books.
Rohwer, Jürgen (2005). Chronology of the War at Sea 1939–1945: The Naval History of World War Two (Third Revised ed.). NIP
Whitley, M. J. (1988). Destroyers of World War Two: An International Encyclopedia. NIP

Links

https://uboat.net/allies/warships/class.html?ID=291
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mogador-class_destroyer
https://web.archive.org/web/20120313121059/http://www.servicehistorique.sga.defense.gouv.fr/02fonds-collections/banquedocuments/planbato/planbato/Plans/planbato.php?id=345
https://www.maritimequest.com/warship_directory/france/destroyers/mogador/mogador_roll_of_honor.htm
https://web.archive.org/web/20241209022300/http://www.navypedia.org/ships/france/fr_dd_mogador.htm
https://web.archive.org/web/20230825042201/http://navalhistory.flixco.info/H/81281×53056/8330/a0.htm

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