Heated (hot air from petrol combustion propulsion)
1909R (heated) – without water injection; speed 42 knots 5-1,000 m., 34
knots, 2,000-3,000 m.
1911V (speed) – for submarines, with water injection into heater; speed
42 knots over 1,000 m.
1911D (distance) – for battleships, water injection into heater; speed
24 knots over 6,000 m.
1912D (distance) – for battleships, water injection into heater and
engine; speed 28 knots over 8,000 m., 19 knots over 15,000 m.
Source: Marine nationale,Manuel du gradé torpilleur , 1st edn. (Paris:
Imprimerie nationale, 1922), 6-7.
Brucelle’s letters became less frequent as the Casabianca went to
sea for durations of time in connection with visits, naval maneuvers,
and fleet exercises. They were written and posted on his return, usually
describing his travels and experiences and inquiring about his mother’s
health and new apartment. Brucelle travelled to Tunisia for the first
time:
we set sail on Thursday morning and we arrived yesterday evening at 6 pm
in sight of Bizerte after 30 hours at sea. We made an excellent crossing
on Friday. Around 9 am in the morning we reached Sardinia, we went along
it for 2 hours having a nice show in front of the oak trees because in
the water a few porpoises followed us for awhile, which slowed us down a
bit. Finally, we entered the Bizerte canal, crossed the city, and came
to anchor at the end of Lake Sidi Abdalah. From what I could see of the
city the air is very open and useful, the houses are dark and white,
which is a pretty good effect. When we passed through Bizerte, there
were Senegalese skirmishers on the quay, they cheered us on. It’s a new
thing for me and I’m happy to have come to this side of Tunisia even
though Bizerte is not very pretty and we do not get to go ashore. It is
very hot but on the water it is bearable. I believe that we will be
going to Algiers and that we will go ashore. I think I have 20 days
leave after the maneuvers and I can tell you my impressions. We have
just been told there will be local leave presently, so I have to
go.11Letter, 16 May 1914.
The Casabianca in fact stayed longer in Tunisia, which gave
sailors more time ashore. Senator Armand Gauthier, minister of marine
(March-August 1914), came to visit Bizerte on a personal tour and made a
point of going aboard French warships in harbour, including the polished
up Casabianca . Brucelle was part of the honour guard which
greeted Gauthier’s arrival and wrote upon return to Toulon:
In Bizerte we had aboard the minister of marine, then Friday evening
cast off for France which gave us 14 days total in Tunisia. We aimed to
arrive Saturday morning so that the crew could spend the holidays in
Toulon. Unfortunately, we were attacked offshore by a powerful storm.
The whole crew and even the officers were sick. I assure you that I
can’t get enough of it, no way to stay up and sick as a real beast. It’s
my first time sick at sea, but I’ll remember it. So, it is one of the
little inconveniences of being a sailor, and I have a good memory of the
maneuvers. In short, around 2 am on Sunday morning we were able to reach
a small port in Sardinia. We left at 10 am so we just arrived this
Monday morning at 4 am.22Letter, 1 June 1914.
The Casabianca ’s crew missed the holiday weekend, but remained in
Toulon for the next two weeks. Sailors however were busily employed in
duties and received few opportunities to get into town for leisure and
other pursuits. Brucelle himself looked forward to going back to sea and
visiting more new places.
The naval army’s evolutions and practice for war were merely a backdrop
for Brucelle’s personal odyssey in naval service. Still relatively new
to service, he enjoyed the experiential side of the life otherwise
unavailable to him if he had stayed in Paris. But, Brucelle yearned to
see his family again in person, creating a pull between the two desires.
For an emotional young man maturing into adulthood, the evolving
independence was key:
We are repairing all the mines that we anchored in Bizerte, which leaves
me no leisure…Wednesday we leave for Porto-Vecchio (Corsica) for
12 days to prepare the Vacca rock for the squadron’s shootings, which
will still be a little distraction and one more country to know because
there it’s not like being on the Michelet and I can go ashore. I
assure you that the navy is interesting because we have a lot of change.
We don’t stay rotting in the same city for years, which is a good thing
for me because as you know I very much like new things.33Letter,
15 June 1914.
Upon returning from Corsica, Brucelle received twenty days of approved
leave the following month. The naval army’s summer season of maneuvers
was ending, and crews duly released to expend accumulated leave
entitlements. Brucelle broke the news about coming to stay in Paris:
know Mother that I am no less happy despite my estrangement from all of
you, no matter how much a separation was inevitable, and knowing that
barracks life did nothing for my health, and then the change of country
from time to time took away the monotony of a prolonged stay. And in
this way time passes more quickly, and once in awhile a little leave
Mother is an opportunity to see your Georges. And the three of us,
Louise, will go take a good little walk in the woods or along the Marne.
Tomorrow we are going to Golfe-Juan for general inspection of the naval
army. I am again going to see pretty sites because for 8 cents I can go
to Monaco, and 3 cents to Cannes, and I shall if it is possible to visit
these spots so renowned for their beauty.’44Letter, 4 July 1914.
It was during this leave period in Paris that the countries of Europe
stumbled into open warfare, and the Marine nationale went onto a
war footing in accordance with pre-war plans. Brucelle treasured the one
last chance to see his family before returning to Toulon andCasabianca .
Active naval operations in the Mediterranean started soon enough. Vice
Admiral Boué de Lapeyrère and the naval army missed the opportunity to
intercept the German cruisers Goeben and Breslau , instead
prioritizing the safe transport of troops in convoy from North
Africa.55Lawrence
Sondhaus, The Great War at Sea: A Naval History of the First
World War (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2014), 97-98;Capitaine de vaisseau de
reserve A. Thomazi, La guerre navale dans la méditerranée(Paris: Payot, 1929), 18-20. France declared war against the
Austro-Hungarian Empire on 12 August 1914, though the much anticipated
naval battle between opposing fleets never materialized because the
naval forces of Imperial Germany’s ally stayed in port to pursue a
fleet-in-being strategy.66Paul
Halpern, The Naval War in the Mediterranean, 1914-1918(Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press, 1987), 17;
Milan N. Vego,Austro-Hungarian Naval Policy 1904-14 (London and Portland, OR:
Frank Cass, 1996), 116-128. Brucelle rejoined the Casabiancathe last week of August. A number of his relatives had enlisted in the
army or been near the fighting on land with the Germans. He inquired
about their wellbeing. Letters sent to his mother and sister were now
subject to censorship and not always received. Brucelle wrote in a last
letter on 10 September 1914: “It has been 15 days since I returned to
port…it is an ordinary life here. This evening we are setting
sail for an unknown destination but say without fear there will be no
danger for me because the role of our warship is not to fight, and we
know its purpose, something we have already done successfully in
detriment of our enemies.”77Letter, 10 September 1914. Letters
are absent from the next ten months up to his death on 3 June 1915.