stability. These problems were common for French capital ships of the period. Characteristics Neptune was long between perpendiculars, with a beam of and a draft of . She displaced . She was fitted with a pair of pole masts equipped with fighting tops that carried some of her light guns and spotted for her main battery. The crew included 643–651 officers and enlisted men. Her propulsion machinery consisted of four compound steam engines that drove a pair of screw propellers. Steam was provided by twelve coal-burning fire-tube boilers. Her engines were rated to produce for a top speed of . Her main armament consisted of four Modèle 1881, 28-caliber (cal.) guns mounted in individual barbette mounts, one forward and one aft, both on the centerline, and two amidships in wing mounts. These guns were supported by a secondary battery of sixteen 30-cal. guns, all carried in individual pivot mounts in an unarmored gun battery in the hull, eight guns per broadside. For defense against torpedo boats, she carried an extensive battery of light guns, though the numbers vary between sources. Gardiner reports a range of three to six guns, nine to eighteen 3-pounder guns, eight to twelve 1-pounder five-barrel Hotchkiss revolving cannon; naval historian Eric Gille gives four to seven 65 mm guns, nine to twelve 47 mm guns, and eight 37 mm guns; naval historian Paul Silverstone says six 65 mm guns and twelve 47 mm guns. There is similar disagreement over the torpedo armament, with Gardiner providing three to five torpedo tubes, Gille reporting five to six tubes, and Silverstone stating five tubes. The ship was protected with a combination of mild steel and compound armor; her belt was thick and extended for the entire length of the hull. Horizontal protection consisted of an armor deck that was thick. The barbettes for the main battery were thick and the supporting tubes that connected them to their magazines were . The guns themselves were protected by thick gun shields. Her conning tower was thick. Service history The contract for Neptune was authorized on 7 October 1880, though work on the ship did not begin until her keel laying on 17 April 1882 at the Arsenal de Brest. She was launched on 7 May 1887 and was commissioned to begin sea trials on 15 May 1891. She was not fully manned for testing until 21 September, and her trials lasted