French ironclad Gloire

Gloire anchored, 1869
History
France
NameGloire
NamesakeGlory
Laid down4 March 1858
Launched24 November 1859
CompletedAugust 1860
Stricken1879
FateScrapped, 1883
General characteristics
Class and typeGloire-class ironclad
Displacement5,618 t (5,529 long tons)
Length78.22 m (256 ft 8 in)
Beam17 m (55 ft 9 in)
Draught8.48 m (27 ft 10 in)
Depth of hold10.67 m (35 ft 0 in)
Installed power
Propulsion
Sail planBarquentine rigged
Speed13 knots (24 km/h; 15 mph)
Range4,000 km (2,500 mi) at 8 knots (15 km/h; 9.2 mph)
Complement570 officers and enlisted men
Armament
Armour

The French ironclad Gloire ([ɡlwaʁ], "Glory") was the first ocean-going ironclad, launched in 1859. She was developed after the Crimean War,[1] in response to new developments of naval gun technology, especially the Paixhans guns and rifled guns, which used explosive shells with increased destructive power against wooden ships. Her design was also influenced by the Anglo-French development of ironclad floating batteries to bombard Russian forts during the same war.

  1. ^ The Battle of Sinop at the start of the war convinced the world's naval powers that wooden warships could not withstand the new weapons.

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