France
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FRANCE |
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| France has always been a difficult
proposition for us Alternate drawers. They have such good looking ships,
I could make drawings out of them all day. If I remember rightly
Zealandia has French bottoms and other countries have French
superstructure, fire control and radar. But the biggest problem is that France as an entity disappears from July 1940 to July 1944. Nothing gets built. The French get given some minor warships and that is it. That period 1940-44 is very tough on the French with over a 100 warships lost to enemy action and the Toulon scuttling. Even the US helped by sinking the Clemencau. So what can I do? Fire Admiral Genosul and save the ships at Mers-el-Kebir, and keep that port as the major overseas French base. That would save the Dunkerque and Strasbourg and all the minor warships that would have been with them and not at Toulon. The cooperation between the French and British Navies would have not had the 1000's of dead French sailors between them. Something that soured relations between the two countries. I try building a 'Lend Lease' battleship for France using the Kentucky hull. Because of the different ships I build for the Germanic States, the French replies are bigger and available earlier. The French have some of the best light cruisers in the Marselaise class and the big contre-torpilleurs were world beaters. The French had a lot of designs that were supposed to be built during the period 1940-44 and some of those uncompleted hulls were finished post-war (battleship Jean Bart). De Grasse and Colbert as AA cruisers. Vichy France is to be neutral. Those ships in Vichy controlled waters either stayed there or went to an Allied port to escape the Germanic States clutches. In real life those ships in British ports were seized and then given back to the 'Free French' forces. The most difficult thing to quantify is 'patriotism'. The French had surrendered to the Germans. The Germans had called for all French forces outside of France to abide by the surrender conditions and return to France. What do you do as a French Captain. Give your crew a say? Make the decision yourself or with your senior officers. I can wave my magic wand and set up whatever scenario I wish to follow. The disposition of the French forces at the time of surrender is critical to what participation the French Forces have from 1940-42 as Free French and from 1942 when the Allies take North Africa from the German forces and those French forces not in Toulon rejoin the war. I think I will work out what and where everything is in July 1940 and take it ship by ship from there. One of the problems I have is 'Me'. I have designed two to three different timelines for the Germans. This also means that France requires two to three different sets of ships as 'rights of reply'. Build the original Deutschland with 6x11", then the Dunkerque with 8x13" is an appropriate response. A German ship with 8x13.8", the Dunkerque with 8x13" needs to be bigger. In my world the response is to go to battleships with 8x16". To which the Germans reply with their huge Scharnhorst class with 16.5". And so it goes on. So in 'France' I have both sets of ships. Dunkerque with 8x15" then Alsace with 12x15". Of which there should be a total of six. The same goes for the other stream. A total of six ships with the Dunkerque 8x16" having four members and the improved class having two. |
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| AIRCRAFT CARRIERS | |||
| FAN Joffre (CV) | 2 | 1943 |
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| FAN Commandante Teste (SPC/CVE) | 1 | 1932 |
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| FAN Guynemer CV | 1 | 1928 |
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| FAN Bearn CV | 1 | 1926 |
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| BATTLESHIPS / BATTLECRUISERS | |||
| FAN Gascogne (BB) | 1 | 1944 |
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| FAN Clemencau (BB) (16") | 2 | 1944 |
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| FAN Alsace (BB) (15") | 2 | 1944+ |
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| FAN Dunkerque (BB) (8x15") | 4 | 1936 |
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| FAN Dunkerque (BB) (8x16") | 4 | 1936 |
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| FAN Languedoc (BC) | 1 | 1928 |
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| FAN Normandie (BB) | 2 | 1927-28 |
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| FAN Verdun | 2 | 1918+ |
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| FAN Lyonnais BC | 1 | 1917 |
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| FAN Bretagne (BB) | 3 | 1915 |
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| FAN Toulouse (BC) | 2 | 1913-14 |
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| FAN Courbet (BB) | 4 | 1913-14 |
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| FAN Gloire (BC) | 3 | 1912+ |
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| FAN Danton (BB) & Voltaire (SD) | 6 | 1909-11 |
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| CRUISERS - Light - Heavy - Anti Aircraft - Training | |||
| FAN St. Louis (CA) | 2 | 1943 |
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| FAN Emile Bertin (CLM) | 2 | 1938 |
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| FAN La Galissoniere (CLA) | 6 | 1938+ |
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| FAN Amiral Aube (CA) | 1 | 1937 |
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| FAN Algerie (CA) | 4 | 1934-37 |
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| FAN Suffren (CA) | 4 | 1930-33 |
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| FAN Jeanne d'Arc (CL) | 1 | 1934 |
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| FAN Pluton (CLM) | 4 | 1932 |
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| FAN Leon Gambetta (CL) | 6 | 1929-33 |
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| FAN Duquesne (CA) | 2 | 1928 |
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| FAN Duguay Trouin (CL) | 4 | 1925-30 |
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| FAN Saint Nazaire CL (ex German cruisers) | 8 | 1914-25 |
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| DESTROYERS - Escort - Fleet - Leaders | |||
| FAN Le Mogador DDL | 6 | 1938+ |
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| FAN Le Fier (DDE) | 15 | 1940+ |
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| FAN Le Hardi (DD) | 12 | 1939+ |
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| FAN Le Fantasque DDL | 18 | 1936+ |
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| FAN Guepard / Aigle / Vauquelin (DDL) | 18 | 1930-34 |
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| FAN Chacal (DD) | 6 | 1926-27 |
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| FAN Bourasque (DD) | 12 | 1926-28 |
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| Ex German Destroyers | 16 | 1915-18 |
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| MISCELANEOUS | |||
| FAN Ernest Renan (ACR) | 3 | 1911 |
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| FAN Bougainville (CC) | 9 | 1931-39 |
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| FAN Loire (Mon) | 2 | 1931-34 |
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