Frimaire was one of 16 s built for the French Navy during the 1910s. The submarine was assigned to the 2nd Submarine Squadron based at Cherbourg when the First World War began in August 1914.
Design and description The Brumaire class was built as part of the French Navy's 1906 building programSmigielski, p. 210 to a double-hull design by Maxime Laubeuf that were diesel-engined versions of the preceding . The boats displaced surfaced and submerged. She had an overall length of , a beam of , and a draft of .Roberts, p. 440 Her crew numbered 29 officers and crewmen.
For surface running, the Brumaires were powered by two diesel engines, each driving one propeller shaft. The engines were designed to produce a total of , but normally only produced , which was enough to give the boats a speed of . When submerged each shaft was driven by a electric motor. The maximum speed underwater was . They had a surface endurance of at and a submerged endurance of at .
The Brumaire class was armed with one torpedo tube in the bow and 6 external 450 mm torpedo launchers; all of which were positioned on the top of the hull. The two forward ones were fixed outwards at an angle of six degrees. The other launchers were single rotating Drzewiecki drop collars amidships. They could traverse 135 degrees to each side of the boat. One reload was provided for the bow tube. Frimaire received a Canon de 75 Mle 1897 deck gun at some point during the war.Garier 1998, p. 121
Construction and career Frimaire was ordered on 26 August 1905 and was laid down on 20 July 1909 at the Arsenal de Cherbourg. The boat was launched on 26 August 1911 and commissioned on 9 October 1913. She was then assigned to the 2nd Submarine Squadron () of the 2nd Light Squadron () at Cherbourg when the First World War began a month later.
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