The ''Aurore'' class was a

class Class, Classes, or The Class may refer to: Common uses not otherwise categorized * Class (biology), a taxonomic rank * Class (knowledge representation), a collection of individuals or objects * Class (philosophy), an analytical concept used d ...

of fifteen

coastal submarine A coastal submarine or littoral submarine is a small, maneuverable submarine with a shallow draft (hull), draft well suited to navigating coastal channels and harbors. Although size is not precisely defined, coastal submarines are larger than mi ...

s designed for the

French Navy The French Navy (, , ), informally (, ), is the Navy, maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the four military service branches of History of France, France. It is among the largest and most powerful List of navies, naval forces i ...

. The prototype – ''Aurore'' – was authorised in 1934, the next four in 1937, a further four in 1938, two in 1938, and a final four subsequently. Some of the ships were captured by

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

after the

Fall of France The Battle of France (; 10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign (), the French Campaign (, ) and the Fall of France, during the Second World War was the German invasion of the Low Countries (Belgium, Luxembourg and the Net ...

, most of them in an unfinished state; two were intended to be completed for the German Navy, ''Africaine'' becoming ''UF-1'' and ''Favorite'' becoming ''UF-2'', but only the first was completed during the

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the second reverting to French control while still uncompleted. Five of the

submarine A submarine (often shortened to sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. (It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability.) The term "submarine" is also sometimes used historically or infor ...

s, , , , and , were completed after the war, were commissioned in the French Navy and served into the 1960s. ''Andromède'', ''Artémis'' and ''Créole'' were fitted with

GUPPY The Greater Underwater Propulsion Power Program (GUPPY) was initiated by the United States Navy after World War II to improve the submerged speed, maneuverability, and endurance of its submarines. (The "Y" in the acronym was added for pronouncea ...

sails and

submarine snorkel A submarine snorkel is a device which allows the engine of a submarine to operate Underwater, submerged while still taking in air from above the surface. British Royal Navy personnel often refer to it as the snort. A concept devised by Dutch eng ...

Ships

* :Builder: Toulon :Ordered: 1934 :Laid down: December 1935 :Launched: 26 July 1939 :Fate: Scuttled during the

scuttling of the French fleet in Toulon The scuttling of the French fleet at Toulon was orchestrated by Vichy France on 27 November 1942 to prevent Nazi German forces from seizing it. After the Allied invasion of North Africa, the Germans invaded the territory administered by Vichy ...

on 27 November 1942 * :Builder: Le Havre :Ordered: 1937 :Laid down: December 1937 :Launched: 8 June 1940 :Fate: Broken up in 1961 * :Builder: Le Havre :Ordered: 1937 :Laid down: December 1937 :Launched: - :Fate: Broken up in June 1940 still on keel, never finished * :Builder: Rouen :Ordered: 1937 :Laid down: December 1937 :Launched: September 1938 :Fate: Taken by the German, becoming ''UF-2''; scuttled in 1945 at

Gotenhafen Gdynia is a city in northern Poland and a seaport on the Baltic Sea coast. With an estimated population of 257,000, it is the List of cities in Poland, 12th-largest city in Poland and the second-largest in the Pomeranian Voivodeship after Gdańsk ...

* :Builder: Rouen :Ordered: 1937 :Laid down: December 1937 :Launched:7 December 1946 :Fate: Broken up in 1963 * :Builder: Nantes :Ordered: 1938 :Laid down: November 1938 :Launched: 3 May 1946 :Fate: Broken up in 1965 * :Builder: Nantes :Ordered: 1938 :Laid down: November 1938 :Launched: 17 November 1949 :Fate: Broken up in 1965 * :Builder: Chalon-sur-Saône :Ordered: 1938 :Laid down: November 1938 :Launched: - :Fate: Broken up in 1940 still on keel, never finished * :Builder: Rouen :Ordered: 1938 :Laid down: November 1938 :Launched: - :Fate: Broken up in 1940 still on keel, never finished * :Builder: Le Havre :Ordered: 1939 :Laid down: May 1939 :Launched: 28 June 1942 :Fate: Broken up in 1967 * :Builder: Rouen :Ordered: 1938 :Laid down: May 1939 :Launched: - :Fate: Broken up in 1940 still on keel, never finished * :Builder: Le Havre :Ordered: 1939 :Launched: :Fate: Broken up on keel while only 8% built * :Builder: Le Havre :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate: Broken up on keel while only 5% built * :Builder: Nantes :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate: Broken up in 1940 still on keel, never finished * :Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate: Keel never laid

References

External links

Les sous marins de type "AURORE"
{{WWII French ships Submarine classes Ship classes of the French Navy

Ships

See also

References

External links