Wattignies

The French cruiser Wattignies was the lead ship of a class of two torpedo cruisers, the Wattignies class, that were built for the French Navy (Marine Nationale) in the early 1890s. The ship was the first in French Navy service to mount quick-firing (QF) guns. As well as five 100 mm (3.9 in) QF guns, the cruiser was fitted with four 356 mm (14.0 in) torpedo tubes. Launched in 1891 in Cherbourg, Wattignies was commissioned into the Mediterranean Squadron (Escadre de la Méditerranée) as part of the reserve. The cruiser saw service in Crete from 1896, supporting French humanitarian and political objectives on the island. This proved to be the only active deployment that the ship would perform. In 1899, the ship was transferred to Rochefort, returning to the reserve. Wattignies remained in service for another eight years until being retired and, in 1908, struck from the naval register.