The only test in battle for Strasbourg came in the attack on Mers-el-Kébir on 3 July.
The British, misinterpreting the terms of the armistice as providing the Germans with access to the French fleet, feared that the ships would be seized and pressed into service against them despite assurances from François Darlan, the Chief of the Naval General Staff, that if the Germans attempted to take the vessels, their crews would scuttle them.
Prime Minister Winston Churchill then convinced the War Cabinet that the fleet must be neutralized or forced to re-join the war on the side of Britain.
The British Force H, commanded by Admiral James Somerville and centered on the battlecruiser HMS Hood and the battleships Resolution, and Valiant, arrived off Mers-el-Kébir to coerce the French battleship squadron to join the British cause or scuttle their ships.
The French Navy refused, as complying with the demand would have violated the armistice signed with Germany.
To ensure the ships would not fall into Axis hands, the British warships opened fire at 17:55.
Strasbourg was tied alongside the mole with her stern facing the sea, so she could not return fire.

Immediately after the British started shooting, Gensoul issued the order to get underway and return fire.
Strasbourg, at that time commanded by Capitaine de vaisseau (Ship of the line captain) Collinet, was the first large warship to slip her mooring, following four destroyers on their way out of the harbor.
Debris from near misses showered the ship as she made her way through the port; some of these fragments dented or punched holes in her hull, and burning debris scorched her deck.
A salvo of 15-inch (380 mm) shells near-missed the ship at 18:00.
As the vessels cleared the jetty, the destroyers steamed first ahead of Strasbourg to engage British destroyers off the harbor entrance and then arrayed themselves to her port side as the ships steamed east.
Heavy smoke in the harbor from the destroyed battleship Bretagne, which had suffered a magazine explosion, masked the escape of Strasbourg and the destroyers, and Somerville was initially unaware that she had evaded his attack.
Somerville had received a report from a patrolling Fairey Swordfish pilot that a Dunkerque-class battleship had left the harbor, but he refused to believe it, as he believed that a field of naval mines that had been laid earlier that morning would have prevented any escape.

Upon clearing the harbor, the British destroyer HMS Wrestler, which had been tasked with watching the entrance, turned to lay a smoke screen to protect Force H from what appeared to be a destroyer attack.
The effect was to help to obscure Strasbourg, which, as she increased speed from 15 to 28 knots (28 to 52 km/h; 17 to 32 mph), let out a large cloud of black smoke.
The French ships steered for a gap in the defensive minefield to bring themselves under the protection of a battery of 240 mm (9.4 in) coastal guns on Cape Canastel.
By this time, the destroyers Tigre and Lynx had arrayed themselves ahead of the ship while Le Terrible and Volta covered her to the rear.
At 18:40, the two leading destroyers depth charged the British submarine Proteus, forcing her to take evasive action.
At 19:00, the destroyers Bordelais and Trombe and the torpedo boat La Poursuivante arrived from Oran to help cover her withdrawal.

By this time, Somerville had realized that Strasbourg had escaped and turned east in pursuit; he launched an air strike from the aircraft carrier Ark Royal, hoping to slow Strasbourg, while he steamed ahead with Hood, two light cruisers, and several destroyers.
The first wave of aircraft, six bombers carrying 250 lb (110 kg) bombs, attacked at 19:45; all of the aircraft missed and two were shot down by the heavy anti-aircraft fire from Strasbourg and the destroyers.
Strasbourg was still belching thick, black smoke, the result of damage to one of her air intakes from fragments of the jetty; the problem could only be corrected by shutting down boiler room No.
2.
This would have reduced her speed to 20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph), which was not a
The only test in battle for Strasbourg came in the attack on Mers-el-Kébir on 3 July. The British, misinterpreting the terms of the armistice as providing the Germans with access to the French fleet, feared that the ships would be seized and pressed into service against them despite assurances from François Darlan, the Chief of the Naval General Staff, that if the Germans attempted to take the vessels, their crews would scuttle them. Prime Minister Winston Churchill then convinced the War Cabinet that the fleet must be neutralized or forced to re-join the war on the side of Britain. The British Force H, commanded by Admiral James Somerville and centered on the battlecruiser HMS Hood and the battleships Resolution, and Valiant, arrived off Mers-el-Kébir to coerce the French battleship squadron to join the British cause or scuttle their ships. The French Navy refused, as complying with the demand would have violated the armistice signed with Germany. To ensure the ships would not fall into Axis hands, the British warships opened fire at 17:55. Strasbourg was tied alongside the mole with her stern facing the sea, so she could not return fire.
Immediately after the British started shooting, Gensoul issued the order to get underway and return fire. Strasbourg, at that time commanded by Capitaine de vaisseau (Ship of the line captain) Collinet, was the first large warship to slip her mooring, following four destroyers on their way out of the harbor. Debris from near misses showered the ship as she made her way through the port; some of these fragments dented or punched holes in her hull, and burning debris scorched her deck. A salvo of 15-inch (380 mm) shells near-missed the ship at 18:00. As the vessels cleared the jetty, the destroyers steamed first ahead of Strasbourg to engage British destroyers off the harbor entrance and then arrayed themselves to her port side as the ships steamed east. Heavy smoke in the harbor from the destroyed battleship Bretagne, which had suffered a magazine explosion, masked the escape of Strasbourg and the destroyers, and Somerville was initially unaware that she had evaded his attack. Somerville had received a report from a patrolling Fairey Swordfish pilot that a Dunkerque-class battleship had left the harbor, but he refused to believe it, as he believed that a field of naval mines that had been laid earlier that morning would have prevented any escape.
Upon clearing the harbor, the British destroyer HMS Wrestler, which had been tasked with watching the entrance, turned to lay a smoke screen to protect Force H from what appeared to be a destroyer attack. The effect was to help to obscure Strasbourg, which, as she increased speed from 15 to 28 knots (28 to 52 km/h; 17 to 32 mph), let out a large cloud of black smoke. The French ships steered for a gap in the defensive minefield to bring themselves under the protection of a battery of 240 mm (9.4 in) coastal guns on Cape Canastel. By this time, the destroyers Tigre and Lynx had arrayed themselves ahead of the ship while Le Terrible and Volta covered her to the rear. At 18:40, the two leading destroyers depth charged the British submarine Proteus, forcing her to take evasive action. At 19:00, the destroyers Bordelais and Trombe and the torpedo boat La Poursuivante arrived from Oran to help cover her withdrawal.
By this time, Somerville had realized that Strasbourg had escaped and turned east in pursuit; he launched an air strike from the aircraft carrier Ark Royal, hoping to slow Strasbourg, while he steamed ahead with Hood, two light cruisers, and several destroyers. The first wave of aircraft, six bombers carrying 250 lb (110 kg) bombs, attacked at 19:45; all of the aircraft missed and two were shot down by the heavy anti-aircraft fire from Strasbourg and the destroyers. Strasbourg was still belching thick, black smoke, the result of damage to one of her air intakes from fragments of the jetty; the problem could only be corrected by shutting down boiler room No. 2. This would have reduced her speed to 20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph), which was not a
French battleship Strasbourg