French ironclad Océan

Océan photographed by Neurdein
History
France
Name:	Océan
Builder:	Brest
Laid down:	18 April 1865
Launched:	15 October 1868
Commissioned:	15 July 1870
Struck:	26 November 1894
Fate:	Broken up in 1895
General characteristics (Océan as built)
Class and type:	Océan-class ironclad
Displacement:	7,749 metric tons (7,627 long tons)
Length:	86.2 m (282 ft 10 in)
Beam:	17.52 m (57 ft 6 in)
Draft:	9.09 m (29.8 ft) (mean)
Installed power:	3,780–4,180 indicated horsepower (2,820–3,120 kW)
Propulsion:	1 shaft, 1 Horizontal return connecting rod compound steam engine 8 oval boilers
Sail plan:	Barque or barquentine-rig
Speed:	13–14 knots (24–26 km/h; 15–16 mph)
Range:	approximately 3,000 nautical miles (5,600 km; 3,500 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph)
Complement:	750–778
Armament:	4 × 1 – 240 mm (9.4 in) guns 4 × 1 – 194 mm (7.6 in) guns 4 × 1 – 164 mm (6.5 in) guns
Armor:	Belt: 178–203 mm (7.0–8.0 in) Battery: 160 mm (6.3 in) Barbettes: 150 mm (6 in)

Océan was a wooden-hulled, armored frigate built for the French Navy in the mid to late 1860s and the lead ship of her class. She was commissioned in 1870 to participate in the Franco-Prussian War and was assigned to the Baltic Squadron that unsuccessfully attempted to blockade Prussian ports in the Baltic Sea. The ship later served in both the Northern and Mediterranean Squadrons before being discarded in 1894.

The Océan-class ironclads were designed by Henri Dupuy de Lôme as an improved version of the Provence-class ironclads. The ships were central battery ironclads with the armament concentrated amidships. For the first time in a French ironclad three watertight iron bulkheads were fitted in the hull. Like most ironclads of their era they were equipped with a metal-reinforced ram.

The ship measured 87.73 meters (287 ft 10 in) overall, with a beam of 17.52 meters (57 ft 6 in). Océan had a maximum draft of 9.09 meters (29 ft 10 in) and displaced 7,749 metric tons (7,627 long tons). Her crew numbered between 750 and 778 officers and men. The metacentric height of the ship was very low, between 1.7–2.2 feet (0.5–0.7 m).

The Océan-class ships had one horizontal return connecting rod compound steam engine driving a single propeller. Their engines were powered by eight oval boilers. On sea trials the engine produced 3,600 indicated horsepower (2,700 kW) and Océan reached 13.5 knots (25.0 km/h; 15.5 mph). She carried 650 metric tons (640 long tons) of coal which allowed her to steam for approximately 3,000 nautical miles (5,600 km; 3,500 mi) at a speed of 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph). The Océan-class ships were barque or barquentine-rigged with three masts and had a sail area around 2,000 square meters (22,000 sq ft).