French cruiser Rigault de Genouilly
Rigault de Genouilly was the lead ship of the of unprotected cruisers built for the French Navy in the 1870s. The ships were intended to fill multiple roles, including as scouts for the French fleet, and to patrol the French colonial empire; as such, they were given a high top speed of and were optimized to use their sailing rig for long voyages abroad. They were armed with a main battery of eight guns. Design The two ships of the were ordered under the auspices of the naval plan of 1872, which was laid out to modernize the French Navy in the aftermath of the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–1871. The plan called for large numbers of cruisers of three different sizes: first-, second-, and third-class cruisers, the bulk of which were to be smaller and cheaper second- and third-class vessels. The third-class unprotected cruisers were to fulfill multiple functions, including fleet scouts in home waters and as patrol vessels for the French colonial empire abroad. These new ships required high speed and good sailing qualities, though a powerful armament was not needed. The design for the ships was drawn up by Arthur Bienaymé in 1872–1873. Rigault de Genouilly was long