 Coëtlogon at anchor
| |
| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Name | Forbin class |
| Operators |  French Navy |
| Preceded by | Suchet |
| Succeeded by | Troude class |
| Built | 1886–1894 |
| In service | 1889–1921 |
| Completed | 3 |
| Retired | 3 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Protected cruiser |
| Displacement | 1,857 t (1,828 long tons; 2,047 short tons) |
| Length | 96.1 m (315 ft 3 in) loa |
| Beam | 9.33 m (30 ft 7 in) |
| Draft | 4.5 m (14 ft 9 in) |
| Installed power |
|
| Propulsion | |
| Sail plan | Schooner rig |
| Speed | 20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph) |
| Range | 2,400 nmi (4,400 km; 2,800 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph) |
| Complement | 209 |
| Armament |
|
| Armor | Deck: 40 mm (1.6 in) |
The Forbin class was a group of three protected cruisers built for the French Navy in the late 1880s and early 1890s. The class comprised Forbin, Coëtlogon, and Surcouf. They were ordered as part of a fleet program that, in accordance with the theories of the Jeune École, proposed a fleet based on cruisers and torpedo boats to defend France. The Forbin-class cruisers were intended to serve as flotilla leaders for the torpedo boats, and they were armed with a main battery of four 138 mm (5.4 in) guns.
Forbin spent most of her career in the Mediterranean in the Reserve Squadron, while Surcouf served in the Northern Squadron in the English Channel. Coëtlogon suffered from machinery problems that significantly delayed her completion, and after finally entering service in 1894, joined Surcouf in the Northern Squadron. All three ships were in reserve by 1901. Coëtlogon was discarded in 1906, while Forbin was converted into a collier in 1913. Surcouf was the only member of the class still in active service during World War I, and she was deployed later in the conflict to the Gulf of Guinea. Forbin was scrapped in 1919 and Surcouf was sold to ship breakers two years later.