The battle's matériel loss extended far beyond the count of captured hulls. L'Orient was a seven-year-old Océan-class first rate from a limited program of status ships intended to rebuild French naval strength. Her destruction removed one of the fleet's better-performing crews as well as a nearly new capital asset. The trees, growing time, labor, and long expected service life represented by the ship made the explosion an industrial and institutional setback as well as a tactical spectacle.
Notable Point · 2:59:26-3:03:24
L'Orient's loss consumed a young capital asset
The destruction of the seven-year-old L'Orient cost France a scarce first rate, a trained crew, and the accumulated timber and construction effort embodied in a major capital ship.