Victor Baptistin Sénès
Encyclopedia
Victor Baptistin Sénès (Toulon
, 31 May 1857 - Léon Gambetta
, 27 April 1915) was a French
naval officer and admiral.
Sénès entered the École Navale
in October 1874. He reached the rank of enseigne de vaisseau 2e classe in August 1876, and joined the battleship Richelieu
. He reached the rank of enseigne de vaisseau 1ère classe the following year and was promoted in October 1879 to Lieutenant de vaisseau
.
He served as Maneuvering Officer on Orne from 1881, and he participated in the campaign of Tunisia
. Three years later, when in command of the ship's machine guns at Tonkin
, he distinguished himself during operations in the River Claire (Sông Lô River, also called the Lo River
).
Injured in February 1885, he was promoted to Lieutenant de vaisseau in March of that same year. He then headed the Secrétariat Général majority in Toulon in 1886, and later attended the School of Submarine Defence on the Algésiras
.
Commissioned as a destroyer commander, he was finally ordered in 1890 to Destroyer Squadron 127 in the Mediterranean and, in 1891, took command of torpedo boat Éclair. In 1897, he took part in the operations of the international squadron sent in Crete
during the Greco-Turkish War
.
He was promoted to Frigate captain
in 1898, served as aid to the Ministry, and eventually rose to personal secretary of the Minister of War. He became chief of the 1st section of the General Staff in Toulon, and he was conspicuous in 1899 during the explosion of the powder magazine at Lagoubran near Toulon. Sénès became a Captain in 1905 and took command of the battleship Charles Martel
, in the Mediterranean Squadron.
He was promoted to Rear-Admiral in 1911, and took command of the 2nd Division of the 1st Light Wing , on the armoured cruiser Léon Gambetta
. At the beginning of the First World War, he took part in cruiser operations in the Mediterranean and Adriatic. On 27 April 1915, the Léon Gambetta was torpedoed by the Austrian-Hungarian submarine off of Cape Santa Maria di Leuca. Sénès sank with his vessel.
Toulon
Toulon is a town in southern France and a large military harbor on the Mediterranean coast, with a major French naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur region, Toulon is the capital of the Var department in the former province of Provence....
, 31 May 1857 - Léon Gambetta
French armoured cruiser Léon Gambetta
The Léon Gambetta was a French Navy armoured cruiser of 12,400 tons, the lead ship of the her class. The Gambettas were larger than previous armoured cruisers of the class, but they lacked the heavier firepower. They also were vulnerable to underwater attacks.-Early history:She was launched on 26...
, 27 April 1915) was a French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
naval officer and admiral.
Sénès entered the École Navale
École Navale
The École Navale is the French Naval Academy in charge of the education of the officers of the French Navy.The academy was founded in 1830 by the order of King Louis-Philippe...
in October 1874. He reached the rank of enseigne de vaisseau 2e classe in August 1876, and joined the battleship Richelieu
Richelieu (1873)
The French ironclad Richelieu was a wooden-hulled central battery ironclad built for the French Navy in the early 1870s. She was named after the 17th century statesman Cardinal de Richelieu. The ship was the flagship of the Mediterranean Squadron for most of her career. Richelieu caught on fire in...
. He reached the rank of enseigne de vaisseau 1ère classe the following year and was promoted in October 1879 to Lieutenant de vaisseau
Ship-of-the-Line Lieutenant
Ship-of-the-line lieutenant is a common naval rank, equivalent to the naval rank of Lieutenant in the UK, Commonwealth and US.The name of the rank derives from the name of the largest class of warship, the ship of the line, as opposed to smaller types of warship .The rank is lieutenant de vaisseau...
.
He served as Maneuvering Officer on Orne from 1881, and he participated in the campaign of Tunisia
Tunisia
Tunisia , officially the Tunisian RepublicThe long name of Tunisia in other languages used in the country is: , is the northernmost country in Africa. It is a Maghreb country and is bordered by Algeria to the west, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Its area...
. Three years later, when in command of the ship's machine guns at Tonkin
Tonkin
Tonkin , also spelled Tongkin, Tonquin or Tongking, is the northernmost part of Vietnam, south of China's Yunnan and Guangxi Provinces, east of northern Laos, and west of the Gulf of Tonkin. Locally, it is known as Bắc Kỳ, meaning "Northern Region"...
, he distinguished himself during operations in the River Claire (Sông Lô River, also called the Lo River
Lô River
The Lô River is a major river of Vietnam. It flows through Hà Giang Province, Tuyen Quang Province and Phu Tho Province for 470 kilometres and has a basin area of 39,000 km² and originates in Yunnan, China as the Panlong River....
).
Injured in February 1885, he was promoted to Lieutenant de vaisseau in March of that same year. He then headed the Secrétariat Général majority in Toulon in 1886, and later attended the School of Submarine Defence on the Algésiras
French ship Algésiras (1855)
The Algésiras was a 90-gun steam ship of the line of the French Navy.In 1859, she took part in the blockade of Venice and various operations in the Mediterranean.She was decommissioned in 1865 and used as a transport...
.
Commissioned as a destroyer commander, he was finally ordered in 1890 to Destroyer Squadron 127 in the Mediterranean and, in 1891, took command of torpedo boat Éclair. In 1897, he took part in the operations of the international squadron sent in Crete
Crete
Crete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, and one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece. It forms a significant part of the economy and cultural heritage of Greece while retaining its own local cultural traits...
during the Greco-Turkish War
Greco-Turkish War (1897)
The Greco-Turkish War of 1897, also called the Thirty Days' War and known as the Black '97 in Greece, was a war fought between the Kingdom of Greece and Ottoman Empire. Its immediate cause was the question over the status of the Ottoman province of Crete, whose Greek majority long desired union...
.
He was promoted to Frigate captain
Frigate Captain
Frigate captain is a naval rank in the naval forces of several countries.It is, usually, equivalent to the Commonwealth/US Navy rank of commander.Countries using this rank include Argentina and Spain , France , Belgium , Italy ,...
in 1898, served as aid to the Ministry, and eventually rose to personal secretary of the Minister of War. He became chief of the 1st section of the General Staff in Toulon, and he was conspicuous in 1899 during the explosion of the powder magazine at Lagoubran near Toulon. Sénès became a Captain in 1905 and took command of the battleship Charles Martel
French battleship Charles Martel (1893)
The Charles Martel was an ironclad battleship of the French Navy. She was designed before the era of the dreadnought, and at a time when battleship design theory in terms of armour and armament was changing continually...
, in the Mediterranean Squadron.
He was promoted to Rear-Admiral in 1911, and took command of the 2nd Division of the 1st Light Wing , on the armoured cruiser Léon Gambetta
Léon Gambetta
Léon Gambetta was a French statesman prominent after the Franco-Prussian War.-Youth and education:He is said to have inherited his vigour and eloquence from his father, a Genovese grocer who had married a Frenchwoman named Massabie. At the age of fifteen, Gambetta lost the sight of his right eye...
. At the beginning of the First World War, he took part in cruiser operations in the Mediterranean and Adriatic. On 27 April 1915, the Léon Gambetta was torpedoed by the Austrian-Hungarian submarine off of Cape Santa Maria di Leuca. Sénès sank with his vessel.