a variety of locations, including in the fighting tops, in a small battery directly above the wing barbettes, and elsewhere in the superstructure. Her armament was rounded out with five torpedo tubes in above-water mounts. Two were placed on each broadside and the last was in the stern. Hoche was protected with compound armor; she was the first French capital ship to use the new type of armor. Her armor belt covered the entire length of the hull, and the central portion that protected her vitals—the propulsion machinery spaces and ammunition magazines—was . The central portion was above the waterline and below, though it tapered to at the bottom edge. But because of her overloaded condition, her belt was almost entirely submerged, significantly reducing its effectiveness. The bow section was , while the stern section of the hull was thick. Above the belt was a strake of . She had an armor deck that consisted of of wrought iron on a layer of of mild steel; the armor deck was connected to the main belt armor just below the top edge. The main battery turrets and barbettes were thick, while the supporting tubes that connected them to their magazines consisted of of wrought iron. The conning tower had sides. Modifications The ship was modified several times over the course of her career to correct her stability deficiencies. Six of her 138 mm guns were removed by 1895 in an effort to lighten her superstructure. In 1898, Hoche underwent a more thorough reconstruction to remedy her instability and upgrade her armament and propulsion system. Her superstructure was reduced significantly to lower her center of mass. The old compound engines were replaced with vertical triple-expansion steam engines and sixteen coal-fired, water-tube Belleville boilers were installed in place of her original fire-tube boilers. Her original 138 mm guns were removed and twelve 138 mm Modèle 1893 guns were added. Eight of these were placed in the battery, four per broadside, and the other four were placed in the upper deck mounts above the wing barbettes. Four 9-pounder guns were added to supplement the anti-torpedo boat defense. Two of her torpedo tubes were also removed. These alterations reduced her displacement to at full load. The reduction in weight restored her intended waterline and kept the side armor above the water. Her cruising range was increased to . Service history Construction – 1901 Hoche was