Stanislas Charles Henri Dupuy de Lôme (; 15 October 18161 February 1885) was a French
naval architect This is the top category for all articles related to architecture and its practitioners.
{{Commons category, Architecture occupations
Design occupations
Architecture, Occupations ...
. He was the son of a naval officer and was born in
Ploemeur
Ploemeur (; br, Plañvour), sometimes written instead as Plœmeur, is a commune in the Morbihan department in the region of Brittany in north-western France. It is a western suburb of Lorient.
Population
The inhabitants are called the ''Ploeme ...
near
Lorient
Lorient (; ) is a town (''Communes of France, commune'') and Port, seaport in the Morbihan Departments of France, department of Brittany (administrative region), Brittany in western France.
History
Prehistory and classical antiquity
Beginn ...
,
Brittany
Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, Historical region, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known ...
, in western France. He was educated at the
École Polytechnique
École may refer to:
* an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education establishments (collège and lycée)
* École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing in région Île-de-France
* École, Savoi ...
and
ENSTA
The ENSTA Paris, officially École nationale supérieure de techniques avancées ( en, Superior National School of Advanced Techniques) is a prestigious French graduate school of engineering ("''école d'ingénieurs''"). Founded in 1741, it is th ...
. He was particularly active during the 1840–1870 period.
After finishing his professional education, he went to England about 1842, and made a thorough study of iron shipbuilding and steam navigation. He wrote a report, subsequently published under the title of ''Mémoire sur la construction des bâtiments en fer'' in 1844.
The first steam battleship
After his return from England, Dupuy de Lôme started work at the arsenal in
Toulon
Toulon (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Tolon , , ) is a city on the French Riviera and a large port on the Mediterranean coast, with a major naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, and the Provence province, Toulon is th ...
. At the time the only armed steamships in the French Navy were propelled by paddle-wheels, and there was great opposition to the introduction of steam power into line-of-battle ships. The paddle-wheel was seen to be unsuited to such large fighting vessels, and there was no confidence in the screw; while the great majority of naval officers in France, as well as in England, were averse to any decrease in sail spread.
Dupuy de Lôme had carefully studied the details of the
''Great Britain'', which he had seen being built at
Bristol
Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...
, and was convinced that full steam power should be used on line-of-battle ships. He held fast to this idea; as early as 1845 he addressed a report to the Minister of Marine suggesting the construction of a screw-driven
frigate
A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied somewhat.
The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and ...
, to be built with an iron hull, and protected by a belt of armour formed by several thicknesses of iron plating. This report alone would justify his claim to be considered the leading naval architect of that time; such a ship was not built for several years, but the idea of the "classic" iron battleship was clearly stated in this report.
Dupuy de Lôme did not stand alone in the feeling that radical changes in the construction and propulsion of ships were imminent. His colleagues in the ''Génie Maritime'' (naval engineering) were impressed with the same idea: and in England, about this date, the earliest screw liners — converted "block ships" — were ordered. This action on the British part decided the French also to begin the conversion of their sailing line-of-battle ships into vessels with auxiliary steam power.
Dupuy de Lôme continued work on the idea, and was rewarded in 1847 with the ordering of
''Le Napoléon'', which would become the first steam-powered
battleship
A battleship is a large armored warship with a main battery consisting of large caliber guns. It dominated naval warfare in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
The term ''battleship'' came into use in the late 1880s to describe a type of ...
as well as the first screw battleship ever built. She was 77.8 m (240 ft) in length, 17 m (55 ft) in breadth, and of 5,000 tons displacement, with two gun decks. She was launched in 1850, tried in 1852, and attained a speed of nearly . During the
Crimean War
The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia.
Geopolitical causes of the war included the de ...
her performance attracted great attention, and soon there were plans to introduce steam power to fleets around the world.
The first ironclad battleship
Along with the introduction of steam-power, the use of iron armour was leading to another revolution in design at about the same time. Dupuy de Lôme applied his talents to this field as well, by showing the practicability of armouring the sides of a wooden-built ship. In 1857 he was appointed to the highest office in the ''Constructive Corps—Directeur du Matériel''—and his design for the earliest seagoing ironclad,
''La Gloire'', was approved in the same year. ''La Gloire'' was built fairly quickly, and was followed by a construction program that delivered a total of five such ships by 1863.
Among these new ironclads were the only two-decked broadside ironclad battleships ever built, also designed by Dupuy de Lôme - ''Magenta'' and ''Solferino''. These ships were also the first to be equipped with a spur ram.
In the design of ''La Gloire'', Dupuy de Lôme followed the principle of utilising known forms and dimensions for existing successful designs, and only changing what was absolutely necessary. The ''La Gloire'' nearly reproduced ''Napoléon'' so far as under-water shape was concerned, but with one gun deck instead of two, and a completely protected battery. As long as he retained office, Dupuy de Lôme consistently adhered to this principle; but at the same time he showed himself ready to consider how best to meet the constantly growing demands for thicker armour, heavier guns, and higher speeds. It is important to note, however, especially during his early enthusiasm for ironclads, that only a small proportion of the ships added to the French Navy during his time in office were built of anything but wood.
Distinctions were showered upon him. He received the cross of the Legion of Honor in 1845, was made a commander in 1858, and grand officer in December 1863. In 1860 he was made a Councilor of State, and represented the French Admiralty in Parliament; in 1861, he was appointed "''inspecteur général du matériel de la Marine''" (general inspector for Navy equipment). In 1866 he was elected a member of the Academy of Sciences. At the beginning of the
Franco-German War he was appointed a member of the committee of defence.
From 1869 to 1875 he was a Deputy, and in 1877 he was elected a
Senator for life. He was a member of the Academy of Sciences and of other distinguished scientific bodies.
Navigable balloons
File:Ballon dirigeable de 4q77fs41h 0 c247dt237.tiff, Henri Dupuy de Lôme Airship, 1872
Image:DupuyLomeDirigeable.jpg, The navigable balloon developed by Dupuy de Lome in 1872
File:Dupuy Lome Aérostat dirigeable envol.png, The navigable balloon February 2, 1872
In 1870 Dupuy de Lôme devoted a large amount of time to perfecting a practical navigable balloon, and the French Government gave him great assistance in carrying out the experiments. For carrying out the project, he was given a credit of 40,000 francs; but the balloon was not ready until a few days before the capitulation. These experiments led to the development of one of the first navigable balloons, named the ''Dupuy de Lôme''(
fr).
The ''Dupuy de Lôme''
airship
An airship or dirigible balloon is a type of aerostat or lighter-than-air aircraft that can navigate through the air under its own power. Aerostats gain their lift from a lifting gas that is less dense than the surrounding air.
In early ...
was 36 meters in length, 14.84 meters in diameter, 29 meters tall, and had a total volume of 3,454 cubic meters. It was powered by a crank, which was operated by 4 or 8 men and which could provide a speed of between 9 and 11 km/h. The basket under the balloon could carry 14 people.
[Tissandier, Gaston, ''Les Ballons dirigeables: Expériences de M. Henri Giffard en 1852 et en 1855 et de M. Dupuy de Lôme en 1872'' teerable balloons: Experiments of Mr. Henri Giffard in 1852 and in 1855, and of Mr. Dupuy de Lôme in 1872(Paris, France: E. Dentu, 1872)]
p. 19
: ''"L'ascension a été exécutée le 2 février 1872, à 11 heures du matin. L'aérostat était gonflé au fort de Vincennes. MM. Depuy de Lôme, Zedé, Yon, Dartois et dix autres personnes, en y comptant les hommes de manœuvre, prennent place dans la nacelle."'' (The ascent was undertaken on the 2nd of February 1872 at 11 in the morning. The balloon was inflated at the fort at Vincennes. Messrs. Depuy de Lôme, Zedé, Yon, Dartois and ten other people, which includes the crew, seated themselves in the basket.)
In 1875, he was busy over a scheme for embarking a railway train at Calais, and exhibited plans of the improved harbour and models of the "bateaux porte-trains" to the Academy of Sciences in July.
Electrical submarine
Towards the end of his life, Dupuy de Lôme worked on a project for an electrical submarine, largely inspired from the experimental results of the submarine ''
Plongeur
Plongeur, the French word for '' diver'' may refer to the following
*The French submarine ''Plongeur''
*An employee charged with washing dishes
Dishwashing, washing the dishes, doing the dishes, or washing up in Great Britain, is the proces ...
''. Upon his death, the project was taken over by his friend
Gustave Zédé
Gustave Zédé was a French naval engineer and pioneering designer of submarines.
Early life
He was born in Paris in February 1825. After studying at the École Polytechnique in November 1843 he qualified in 1845 as a Marine engineer and went t ...
, leading to the launch of one of the first electrical submarines in the world, the ''
Gymnote
''Gymnote'' was one of the world's first all-electric submarines and the first functional submarine equipped with torpedoes.
Launched on 24 September 1888, she was developed in France following early experiments by Henri Dupuy de Lôme, and, ...
''.
Legacy
Dupuy de Lôme was instrumental in helping the French Navy take the initiative in several of the technological advances of the 19th century, consolidating the position of the
French Navy
The French Navy (french: Marine nationale, lit=National Navy), informally , is the maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the five military service branches of France. It is among the largest and most powerful naval forces in t ...
as the second in the world at that time. These innovations relied on a strong industrial base, second only to Britain, and considerably ahead of the United States or Prussia. According to a British obituary, "it may be questioned whether any constructor has ever rendered greater services to the navy of any country...". He died at Paris on 1 February 1885.
![Armoured cruiser Dupuy de Lôme](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/58/Armoured_cruiser_Dupuy_de_L%C3%B4me.jpg)
Several warships have been named after Dupuy de Lôme:
*The
armoured cruiser ''Dupuy de Lôme'', launched in
Brest
Brest may refer to:
Places
*Brest, Belarus
**Brest Region
**Brest Airport
**Brest Fortress
* Brest, Kyustendil Province, Bulgaria
* Břest, Czech Republic
*Brest, France
** Arrondissement of Brest
**Brest Bretagne Airport
** Château de Brest
*Br ...
in 1887, was capable of , and designed to raid on enemy commerce ships during extended forays afloat, following the "
Jeune École
The ''Jeune École'' ("Young School") was a strategic naval concept developed during the 19th century. It advocated the use of small, heavily armed vessels to combat larger battleships, and the use of commerce raiders to cripple the trade of the ...
" doctrine.
*The
submarine
A submarine (or sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability. The term is also sometimes used historically or colloquially to refer to remotely op ...
''
Dupuy de Lôme'', launched in 1915, and the
lead ship
The lead ship, name ship, or class leader is the first of a series or class of ships all constructed according to the same general design. The term is applicable to naval ships and large civilian vessels.
Large ships are very complex and may ...
of
her class.
* ''
Dupuy de Lôme'', launched March 27, 2004, and built in the
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
for the French Navy, is an intelligence vessel, designed to gather Comint (Communication intelligence) and Elint (Electronic intelligence). She will replace ''Bougainville'' from April 2006.
See also
*
Pierre Marie François Ogé
Pierre Marie François Ogé was a French sculptor born in Saint-Brieuc on 24 March 1849 and who died in Paris on 5 June 1913.
Biography
He was the son of the sculptor of the same name and received his first lessons from his father. On his father' ...
*
Giffard dirigible
__NOTOC__
The Giffard dirigible or Giffard airship was an airship built in France in 1852 by Henri Giffard, the first powered and steerable (french: dirigeable, directable) airship to fly. The craft featured an elongated hydrogen-filled envelop ...
*
Georges Baptiste François Allix
Georges Baptiste François Allix (27 July 1808 in Gasny - 29 May 1881 in the same commune) was a Military engineering, military engineer in the French Navy. In particular, he was the designer of the screw frigate ''La Souveraine'', launched in Lor ...
*
Arthur Constantin Krebs
Arthur Constantin Krebs (16 November 1850 in Vesoul, France – 22 March 1935 in Quimperlé, France) was a French officer and pioneer in automotive engineering.
Life
Collaborating with Charles Renard, he piloted Timeline of aviation - 19 ...
Notes
References
* ''Scientific American Supplement, No. 481, 21 March 1885'' (Public Domain)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dupuy de Lome, Henry
1816 births
1885 deaths
People from Ploemeur
Politicians from Brittany
Bonapartists
Members of the 4th Corps législatif of the Second French Empire
French life senators
French balloonists
French naval architects
Submarine pioneers
19th-century French inventors
Airship designers
École Polytechnique alumni
ENSTA ParisTech alumni
Members of the French Academy of Sciences