Base of French vessel (5)

I believe the answer is:

depot

'base' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)

'of french vessel' is the wordplay.
'of french' becomes 'de' ('of' in French).
'vessel' becomes 'pot' (type of container).
'de'+'pot'='DEPOT'

(Other definitions for depot that I've seen before include "Toped (anag.)" , "Bus station in the US" , "(Military) store" , "Wherein bus drivers" , "Large storage site" .)

I've seen this clue in the Sydney Morning Herald.

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