MNN Bretagne Country: France Type: Battleship Service: 1915 - 1940 Laid down: 1 July 1912 Launched: 21 April 1913 Commissioned: September 1915 Fate: Sunk 3 July 1940

The three Bretagne class of super-dreadnought battleships were built for the French Navy during the First World War. They had the same hull dimensions as the Courbet Class but had a heavier main armament with ten of the powerful new 340 mm main guns mounted two per turret; two centerline superfiring forwards, two centerline superfiring aft and one amidships centerline turret that could fire to both sides. While well armed, the overall armor protection of the Bretagne class was found wanting.

The Bretagne was a battleship of the French Navy, and the lead ship of her class. She was named in honour of the French region of Bretagne, and was built by Arsenal de Brest. Bretagne served in the Mediterranean during both the First World War and World War II. After the Fall of France in 1940, the Bretagne sailed to Mers-el-Kebir. The British had feared that the powerful French fleet would fall into Nazi hands, and were resolved to prevent this. Thus, after an ultimatum to surrender from the British battleships HMS Valiant and HMS Resolution and battlecruiser HMS Hood was refused, the Bretagne was blown up and sunk by naval gunfire from these three ships at Mers-el-Kebir on 3 July 1940, with the loss of 977 French sailors. Salvaged in 1952, she was scrapped thereafter.