page_title: Antoine Groignard
section_title: Career
hierarchical_section_title: Antoine Groignard / Career
context_page_description: Antoine Groignard, was a French naval constructor who developed standard designs for French war ships, and built and improved the dry docks at the French naval bases in Toulon and Brest.
context_section_description: Groignard became a student at the shipbuilding school in Paris (one of the predecessors of today's ENSTA ParisTech). Appointed assistant naval constructor at Brest in 1747 and at Rochefort 1749, he was promoted to naval constructor in 1754.  Attached to the French East India Company at Lorient, he designed ships suitable for combat and commerce; among them the Duc de Duras that later became the famous American frigate Bon Homme Richard. 
  During the Seven Years' War, he distinguished himself in defending Le Havre against the British floating batteries. As an adviser to the minister of marine, he standardized the design of ships at the several naval dockyards of France. Promoted to chief constructor in 1769, he was put in charge of building the docks of Toulon, solving the difficult technical problems involved. In 1782 Groignard was promoted to constructor general with the rank of post-captain, working on the docks at Brest putting them in condition to receive the largest ships of the Navy. He notably directed the construction of Bretagne.
  Due to sickness he retired in 1790. Recalled to duty Groignard was in charge of the construction of Port-de-Bouc 1792-1795, and a project for draining the salt marshes of the Marignane in Saint-Miter 1793-94. Groignard was in charge of the naval administration of Toulon in preparation for the French campaign in Egypt and Syria.
caption: Model of the dry dock at Toulon.
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