Toulon Naval Base (Arsenal de Toulon)

Toulon Naval Base, known in French as the arsenal de Toulon, is the principal base of the French Navy and the largest naval installation in the Mediterranean and Western Europe. It occupies the northern shore of the Rade of Toulon, on the Mediterranean coast of southern France, a roadstead sheltered from the open sea by the peninsulas of Giens and Saint-Mandrier-sur-Mer. The rade also shelters the ports of Saint-Mandrier-sur-Mer, La Seyne-sur-Mer and the commercial port of Toulon.

The base holds most of the force d'action navale, including the aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle, the French nuclear attack submarine squadron and the remaining ships of the Mediterranean fleet. More than 60 percent of the French Navy's tonnage is based at Toulon, and some 20,000 military and civilian personnel work there. The monumental façade at the main gate houses the Mediterranean maritime préfecture.

The base is divided into four zones, each with its own access to the sea: from east to west, Castigneau, Malbousquet, Missiessy and Milhaud. The honour quay berths visiting foreign ships and large units. Dry docks handle repairs on medium and large hulls, while the Vauban dock moors small craft — diver support vessels, mine warfare units, tugs and patrol boats — and older ships. The Missiessy and Malbousquet quays berth the nuclear attack submarines and are fitted with mobile roofs that cover the boats during refits of their nuclear plant; both zones also include dry docks. The Milhaud quays are the main mooring stations, used by frigates, aircraft carriers, fleet tankers and landing ships. The arsenal du Mourillon, on the east side of the roadstead, is reached through the north arsenal; the south arsenal is served by the Mourillon slipway. At the western end, in the communes of La Seyne-sur-Mer and Ollioules, the base adjoins the commercial port of Brégaillon, connected to national and regional networks for the supply of artillery munitions and other stores. Internal infrastructure includes more than 30 km of roads with level crossings and traffic signals, and an SNCF rail line running from La Seyne-sur-Mer station to the docks via the storage sheds.

A naval arsenal and shipyard were established on the site in 1599, and the sheltered Vieille Darse was built between 1604 and 1610. Richelieu enlarged the yard, and from 1680 Colbert had Vauban lay out the larger Darse Neuve. The arsenal was extended through the 19th and 20th centuries and was rebuilt and modernised after Allied bombing damage in the Second World War.