French destroyer Kersaint (1931)

Kersaint about 1934–1936
History
France
Name	Kersaint
Namesake	Guy François de Kersaint
Ordered	1 February 1930
Builder	Chantiers Navals Français, Caen Ateliers et Chantiers de la Loire, Saint-Nazaire
Laid down	19 September 1930
Launched	14 November 1931
Completed	31 December 1933
Commissioned	20 September 1933
In service	14 January 1934
Fate	Scuttled, 27 November 1942
General characteristics
Class and type	Vauquelin-class destroyer
Displacement	2,441 t (2,402 long tons) (standard) 3,120 t (3,070 long tons) (deep load)
Length	129.3 m (424 ft 3 in)
Beam	11.8 m (38 ft 9 in)
Draft	4.97 m (16 ft 4 in)
Installed power	4 du Temple boilers 64,000 PS (47,000 kW; 63,000 shp)
Propulsion	2 shafts; 2 geared steam turbines
Speed	36 knots (67 km/h; 41 mph)
Range	3,000 nmi (5,600 km; 3,500 mi) at 14 knots (26 km/h; 16 mph)
Crew	12 officers, 224 crewmen (wartime)
Armament	5 × single 138.6 mm (5.5 in) guns 4 × single 37 mm (1.5 in) anti-aircraft guns 2 × twin 13.2 mm (0.52 in) anti-aircraft machineguns 1 × triple, 2 × twin 550 mm (21.7 in) torpedo tubes 2 chutes and 2 throwers for 36 depth charges 40 mines

Kersaint was one of six Vauquelin-class destroyers (contre-torpilleurs) built for the French Navy (Marine Nationale) during the 1930s. The ship entered service in 1934 and spent most of her career in the Mediterranean. During the Spanish Civil War of 1936–1939, she was one of the ships that helped to enforce the non-intervention agreement. When France declared war on Germany in September 1939, all of the Vauquelins were assigned to the High Sea Forces (Forces de haute mer (FHM)) which was tasked to escort French convoys and support the other commands as needed. Kersaint helped to protect a group of freighters in the Atlantic once, but otherwise remained in the Mediterranean for the duration of the war.

The Vichy French reformed the FHM after the French surrender in June. Kersaint was present when the Royal Navy attacked the ships in French Algeria in July to prevent them from being turned over to the Germans, but managed to escape. The ship was in reserve until she was activated in mid-1941. Kersaint was scuttled in Toulon when the Germans occupied Vichy France in November 1942. The ship was not significantly salvaged during the war and her wreck was broken up in 1950.