Qualla: French Submarine Le Glorieux

French Submarine Le Glorieux: Introduction

Mon, 09 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Most warships serve one flag. Le Glorieux served three. Commissioned into the French Navy in 1934, this Redoutable-class submarine fought for the Allies in 1939, switched to the Vichy French after France's fall in 1940, then crossed back to the Free French Naval Forces in 1942 when the Allies invaded North Africa. She was one of only five submarines from a class of 31 to survive World War II -- a record that owed as much to political luck as to the skill of her crews.

French Submarine Le Glorieux: A 1,500-Tonner from Cherbourg

Mon, 09 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Le Glorieux was laid down at the Arsenal de Cherbourg on 10 February 1930 and launched on 29 November 1932. She belonged to the Redoutable class, a series of 31 deep-sea patrol submarines the French called "1,500-tonners" for their surface displacement of 1,572 tons. At 92.3 mete...

French Submarine Le Glorieux: Patrolling for the Republic

Mon, 09 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

When war broke out in September 1939, Le Glorieux was sent to patrol off Madeira, where the Allies suspected German merchant ships were serving as supply vessels for U-boats. The most dramatic incident was almost comic: the British cargo ship Egba refused to stop for inspection, ...

French Submarine Le Glorieux: Under the Vichy Flag

Mon, 09 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

After the armistice of June 1940, Le Glorieux found herself in the fleet of Vichy France, based at Dakar in West Africa. She continued operating, though now in an awkward limbo: technically neutral, practically hostile to her former British allies. She collided with an accommodat...

French Submarine Le Glorieux: Crossing Back to the Allies

Mon, 09 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

The Allied invasion of North Africa in November 1942 forced a choice. When the surviving French fleet in North Africa joined the Free French Naval Forces, Le Glorieux followed suit after reaching Oran. She was sent to Bermuda to serve as a submerged target for American anti-subma...

French Submarine Le Glorieux: Last of Her Class

Mon, 09 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

After the Mediterranean war ended, Le Glorieux spent December 1944 generating electric power at Toulon while her crew took leave -- once again, a submarine pressed into service as a generator. She emerged from a postwar refit at Cherbourg in November 1946 with a test depth of 120...