French cruiser Georges Leygues

Georges Leygues

History
France
Namesake:	Georges Leygues
Builder:	At.&Ch de St. Nazaire-Penhoet (St. Nazaire, France)
Laid down:	21 September 1933
Launched:	24 March 1936
Commissioned:	15 November 1937
Decommissioned:	1 May 1957
Nickname(s):	(English) "George's Legs"
Fate:	Sold for scrap in November 1959
General characteristics
Class and type:	La Galissonnière-class cruiser
Displacement:	7,600 tons (standard) 9120 tons (full load)
Length:	179 m (587 ft)
Beam:	17.5 m (57 ft)
Draught:	5.35 m (17.6 ft)
Propulsion:	2-shaft Parsons single reduction geared turbines 4 Indret boilers 84,000 shp (63,000 kW)
Speed:	31 knots (57 km/h)
Range:	7,000 nautical miles (13,000 km) at 12 knots (22 km/h) 6,800 nautical miles (12,600 km) at 14 knots (26 km/h) 5,500 nautical miles (10,200 km) at 18 knots (33 km/h) 1,650 nautical miles (3,060 km) at 34 knots (63 km/h)
Complement:	540
Armament:	9 × 152 mm (6 inch)/ 54.3 calibre (3 × 3) 8 × 90 mm (3.5 inch) anti-aircraft (4 × 2) 24 × 40 millimetre (6 × 4) 4 × 550mm (21.7 inch) torpedo tubes (2 × 2)
Armour:	main belt: 105 mm end bulkheads: 30 mm sides: 120 mm deck: 38 mm turrets: 100 mm tower: 95 mm
Aircraft carried:	up to 4 GL-832, later 2 Loire 130 flying boats
Aviation facilities:	1 catapult

Georges Leygues was a French light cruiser of the La Galissonnière class. During World War II, she served with both Vichy France and Allies. She was named for the prominent 19th and 20th century French politician Georges Leygues.

At the start of World War II, she was assigned to the Force de Raid, patrolling the Atlantic in response to German commerce raids. The only incident, however, was when the French submarine Casabianca was shelled in error. To pre-empt the potential Italian threat, Georges Leygues and other French warships were moved to Mers-el-Kebir (now Oran) on 24 April 1940.

The 3rd and 4th Cruiser Divisions, including Georges Leygues avoided the destruction of the French Fleet at Mers-el-Kebir and eventually put into Toulon. On 9 September 1940, she left Toulon with her sister ships Gloire and Montcalm, and passed Gibraltar without being challenged (for which the local British commander, Admiral North, was relieved of his command). The flotilla refuelled at Casablanca and continued to Dakar, arriving on 14 September.

The three cruisers left Dakar on 18 September, intending to go south to Libreville, but they were intercepted by Allied forces, including the heavy cruiser HMAS Australia. Montcalm and Georges Leygues outran the Allied ships and returned to Dakar, where they helped to defend the port against the unsuccessful British and Free French attack (Operation Menace) on 23–25 September 1940. Georges Leygues hit Australia twice and avoided Fleet Air Arm torpedo attacks. Gloire, slowed by mechanical troubles and, unable to escape, had been ordered back to Casablanca.

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