Doctrine did not produce a balanced French fleet

Technological achievement did not guarantee fleet coherence. France could produce advanced submarines, but it did not consistently provide the trained crews needed to exploit them. Its reputation as a leading exponent of Jeune École also sits awkwardly beside the force it was actually building. Much of the battle fleet was not yet composed of dreadnoughts, while the early dreadnought designs are described as unusual enough to raise questions about their classification. Isolated technical successes and a fashionable doctrine did not by themselves create a balanced fleet.