Jeune École strategy and the armored-cruiser shift

Châteaurenault emerged from a strategy of attacking the worldwide connections of the British Empire rather than challenging the Royal Navy in a decisive fleet battle. By the time she was built, French designers were already favoring armored cruisers that could carry heavier weapons and survive broader combat roles. The late-nineteenth-century armored cruiser was effectively a precursor to the battlecruiser, and some carried more firepower than contemporary battleships. Cruisers occupied the firepower-and-speed side of the design triangle, while battleships aimed for a more even balance of firepower, protection, and speed.