French parity frustration and the Béarn conversion

The Marine Nationale character stresses that France emerged from the First World War badly damaged yet received the same capital-ship allocation as Italy. In the character's lament, the treaty curtails the new battleships and cruisers meant to rebuild French naval strength. The principal consolation is the conversion that became Béarn, chosen from the available hulls because it had turbines and might gain speed after armor removal. The scene shows why nominal parity could feel unequal when participants entered the settlement with different wartime losses and construction prospects. A cancelled battleship program also creates an experimental path into carrier aviation.