Épée was one of four s built for the French Navy around the beginning of the 20th century. During the First World War, the ship saw service in the Mediterranean Sea and survived the war to be stricken from the naval register on 1 October 1920.
Design and description The Framées had an overall length of , a beam of , and a maximum draft of . They displaced at deep load. The two triple-expansion steam engines, each driving one propeller shaft, produced a total of , using steam provided by four water-tube boilers. The ships had a designed speed of and Épée reached a speed of during her sea trials on 1 July 1901. The ships carried enough coal to give them a range of at . Their complement consisted of four officers and forty-four enlisted men.Couhat, p. 83
The Framée-class ships were armed with a single gun forward of the bridge and six Hotchkiss guns, three on each broadside. They were fitted with two single torpedo tubes, one between the funnels and the other on the stern. Two reload torpedoes were also carried.Couhat, p. 81
Construction and career Épée was ordered from Forges et Chantiers de la Méditerranée on 27 October 1897 and was laid down on 126 May 1898 at its shipyard in Granville-Le Havre. The ship was launched on 27 July 1900 and conducted her sea trials in May–July. She was commissioned for her trials on 2 January and was later assigned to the Mediterranean Squadron.Roberts, p. 375
When the First World War began in August 1914, Épée was one of the leaders () in the 3rd Submarine Flotilla () of the 2nd Light Squadron (),Prévoteaux, Tome I, p. 35 based at Cherbourg, although the ship was not ready for service.
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