After her launch, she was used on prestige missions. In January 1940, she took part in the hunt for the Admiral Graf Spee, and later returned to Alexandria. On 3 July, the French squadron under Admiral René-Emile Godfroy in Alexandria was blockaded by the British executing Operation Catapult ; Godfroy avoided destruction by negotiating to disarm his fleet and stay in port until the end of the war. In June 1943, she was incorporated in the Free French Naval Forces and served in the Atlantic. She undertook a refit in 1945, and served in French Indochina until 1947.