An item referred to the Vigie de Cherbourg dealing with the composition of the French navy on 1 January 1888. Available were 6 armoured capital ships 1st class new model, with a speed of 15 miles, 17 armoured capital ships 2nd class, 14 armoured cruisers with a speed if 15 miles, 8 torpedo aviso’s with a speed of 18 miles, 8 armoured coastal defence ships of the Tonnerre type, 9 ocean going torpedo boats and 18 torpedo boats 1st and 2nd class. Further more was a large number of in fact not combat vessels, namely 30 aviso’s, 10 aviso transports of the Caravance type, 12 transports (8 of the Annamite and 4 of the Sarthe types) and 46 gunboats. In 1872 was the value of the French fleet estimated to be 223 million francs and on 1 January 1999 on 332 million francs (313 million already built, 79 million under construction).
