She was named in honour of the French region of Brittany, and was armed with a main … Bretagne was a battleship of the French Navy built in the 1910s, and the lead ship of her class; she had two sister ships, Provence and Lorraine. Bretagne was the lead ship of her class of three dreadnought battleships built in the 1910s for the French Navy. The battleship Bretagne was the type ship of the class of the same name, which consisted of three dreadnought battleships and was completed during the First World War. Bretagne was a battleship of the French Navy built in the 1910s, and the lead ship of her class; she had two sister ships, Provence and Lorraine. The ship was laid down in July 1912 at the Arsenal de Brest, launched in April 1913, and commissioned into the fleet in February 1916, after the outbreak of World War I. Launch and design: After building the Courbet class battleships, the French Navy decided to build more but more heavily armed dreadnought battleships to modernize and expand the navy. The ship was laid down in July 1912 at the Arsenal de Brest , launched in April 1913, and commissioned into the …