Aviso torpilleurs and France's destroyer starting point

Early French destroyer development begins with aviso torpilleurs, enlarged torpedo boats whose duties increasingly included fighting other torpedo boats. The Durandal and Framée designs were nearly identical in length, displacement, speed, armament, and service dates despite being built by different yards. Both made 26 knots and carried one 65 mm gun, six 47 mm guns, and two single 381 mm torpedo tubes. Durandal displaced about 311 tons and Framée about 319, with beams only one centimetre apart. Despite being the smaller and lighter design, Durandal drew 14 cm more water and carried 52 people against Framée's 48. Their wave-piercing turtleback bows and layouts remained close to those of their torpedo-boat predecessors. The distinction between a large torpedo boat and an early destroyer depended heavily on the space assigned to guns and torpedoes, and these French designs showed little change in that arrangement.