The battleship that became a carrier out of sheer necessity

Wars & Conflicts · Published 10 October 2026 · Updated 22 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: In 1922, a naval treaty effectively killed France's plans to build a massive new class of battleships. Instead of scrapping the unfinished hulls, the navy performed a radical pivot: they took the least-advanced ship and transformed it into an aircraft carrier, creating a vessel that would define early naval aviation.

The Béarn began its life as part of the Normandie-class battleship project in 1914. Nevertheless, the first global war delayed building to such an extent that her vessel's frame reached merely 8–10 percent completion by 1920, while machinery stood at a 25 percent finish. When the Washington Naval Treaty of 1922 restricted battleship production, France faced a dilemma. They chose Béarn for conversion because she was the least advanced of her sisters, making her the cheapest to repurpose. Her four more-complete sisters were broken up for scrap, and their equipment was salvaged to finish Béarn.

The conversion process was an exercise in improvisation. Early trials used a 45-by-9-meter wooden platform weighted with sandbags to test British Sopwith 1½ Strutters. To power the final ship, engineers abandoned her original direct-drive steam turbines for a mixed propulsion system. This combined Parsons turbines for inner shafts with vertical triple-expansion engines for outer shafts, designed to save fuel at low speeds. The result was a carrier capable of 21.5 knots, featuring a unique 'cul de lampe' vented chamber to reduce air turbulence over the flight deck.

Béarn’s design reflected the experimental nature of early carrier aviation. It featured three electrically powered elevators with distinct roles: a forward elevator for fighters that could lift 2,000 kg, a center elevator for reconnaissance planes, and an aft elevator designed specifically for torpedo bombers. Despite its complex engineering, the ship's history was marked by upheaval—from being diverted to Martinique in 1940 to being intentionally run aground by Vichy French forces in 1943 as an act of sabotage.

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