The historical Richelieu was laid down in 1935, launched in 1939 and still not fully complete at the start of World War II. She served both sides during the war. She began the war under Vichy France, notably helping fend off an Allied attack on Dakar. She joined the Allies in November 1942, and after a refit in New York was mostly employed in the Indian Ocean. After the war she served as a training ship and was eventually scrapped in 1968.
She is named after the "Red Eminence" Cardinal Richelieu, a French clergyman and statesman.
