In the 90s. XIX century. The Russian Empire began building an ocean-going armored fleet. The military leadership of the country still considered England and Germany to be the main opponents, but it was already beginning to closely look at the rapid growth of the Japanese fleet. During this period, the progress of naval technology and weapons was impressive - the firepower of artillery grew, the armor was constantly improved and, accordingly, the displacement and size of the squadron battleships grew. Under these conditions, it was necessary to decide which ships the Russian Imperial Navy needed to protect the country's interests, what they would be armed with and how they would be protected.
ARMOR CARRIERS OF THE NEW GENERATION
After the construction of a number of "low-standing" battleships, the Naval Ministry decided to build a really powerful armored ship. The design began in January 1888. The project of "Emperor Alexander II" was taken as its basis, but later the designers, creating the ship, began to focus on the German battleship "Werth". The design was completed in April 1889, but the head of the Naval Ministry I. A. Shestakov continued to make changes to the draft. Now the English "Trafalgar" was considered the ideal. In July 1889, construction began on the Galerny Island. The official laying took place on May 19, 1890. The new ship was named "Navarin".
Launching took place on October 8, 1891. But even during the construction, the project continued to be corrected. As a result, four 35-caliber 305-mm guns were installed on it, which proved to be good on the Black Sea battleships. It was decided to abandon the foremast. The designers have installed as many as four chimneys on the "Na-Varin". Completion was delayed for four years due to delays in the supply of weapons, armor, ship systems and mechanisms. In winter, the work was hampered by severe frosts. Only in October 1893 he was transferred to Kronstadt to complete the work. On November 10, 1895, although without the turrets of the main caliber, the Navarin went to sea for trials. They were accompanied by finishing touches, the elimination of defects and the installation of weapons. The fifth Baltic battleship entered service in June 1896. It was sent to the Mediterranean Sea, and then to the Far East. On March 16, 1898, she arrived at Port Arthur and became the flagship of the Pacific Squadron.
Squadron battleship "Navarin" in "Victorian" color. Four chimneys and the absence of a foremast gave the ship a rather unusual look.
The squadron battleship "Sisoy the Great" in white "Mediterranean" color. These two ships became the basis for further work on the design of Russian battleships.
The design of the sixth Baltic battleship was also originally based on the "Emperor Alexander II", but its size quickly grew. When designing, we again "looked back" at the "Trafalgar". As a result, a new generation battleship was designed. This work began in 1890 and continued until January 1891. Construction began in July 1891 in the boathouse of the New Admiralty. The official laying took place on May 7, 1892 in the presence of Emperor Alexander III. The ship was named "Sisoy the Great". But alterations and improvements to the project continued. This was reflected in the pace of construction, which caused many difficulties. But he was the first of the Russian battleships to receive a 40-caliber 305-mm gun. On May 20, 1894, it was launched in the presence of Alexander III. Completion of the "Sisoy the Great" dragged on for another two years, only in October 1896.he began official trials. Without completing them, in November 1896 the battleship was sent to the Mediterranean Sea. The international situation required the presence of significant forces of the Russian fleet.
The first voyage of the Sisoy revealed numerous defects and defects. On March 15, 1897, artillery training took place near the island of Crete, and an explosion occurred in the tower when fired from the left stern 305-mm gun. The roof of the tower was thrown by the force of the explosion onto the bow bridge. 16 people were killed, 6 were mortally wounded, 9 were injured. Repairs, damage repairs and elimination of defects were carried out in Toulon. The work lasted until December 1897. After that, Sisoy the Great was hastily sent to the Far East, where the situation escalated. On March 16, 1898, he arrived in Port Arthur with the Navarin.
The presence of two newest Russian battleships made it possible to defend the interests of our country in the Pacific without a fight. Thanks to the "diplomacy of the battleships", the Russian Empire received the right to lease the fortress of Port Arthur. Both battleships took an active part in suppressing the boxing uprising in China in 1900. They were on the roadstead of the Taku fortress, and their landing companies fought on the shore. The military command decided to repair and modernize the battleships. In the Far East, the Russian fleet had several bases, but none of them could provide a full-fledged repair and modernization of ships.
Then in St. Petersburg they decided to carry out work in the Baltic. December 12, 1901 "Navarin" and "Sisoy the Great", together with "Emperor Nicholas I", the cruisers "Vladimir Monomakh", "Dmitry Donskoy", "Admiral Nakhimov" and "Admiral Kornilov" left Port Arthur. These veteran ships formed the backbone of the Pacific Squadron, their crews were the most experienced. The squadron's combat potential had to be rebuilt practically from scratch, which significantly weakened our naval forces in the Far East.
"Sevastopol", "Poltava" and "Petropavlovsk" in the Eastern basin of Port Arthur, 1902. These three battleships of the same type formed the core of the Pacific squadron
CHIEF CALIBER OF RUSSIAN ARMORED
In October 1891, the design of a new 40-caliber 305-mm cannon began at the Obukhov plant. It was a weapon of a new generation, it was created under charges of smokeless powder, did not have trunnions and for the first time a piston bolt was used on it. They provided a high muzzle velocity, long firing range and better penetration resistance. They had a higher rate of fire. The barrel length is 12.2 m, the weight of the gun with the bolt is 42.8 tons. The first gun of this type was tested in March 1895. Serial construction was carried out by the Obukhov plant. From 1895 to 1906, it was these guns that became the main weapon of Russian squadron battleships; they were installed on ships of the Poltava and Borodino type, Retviza-ne, Tsarevich, and Black Sea battleships. This weapon made them one of the strongest ships in the world. On Navarin, four 305-mm guns supplemented the 8x152-mm, 4x75-mm and 14x37-mm guns. 6x152-mm, 4x75-mm, 12x47-mm and 14x37-mm guns were placed on the Sisoye Velikiy. On battleships of the "Poltava" type, designers for medium caliber (8x152-mm) first provided for two-gun turrets, they were supplemented by 4x152-mm, 12x47-mm and 28x37-mm guns. "Retvizan", in addition to 4x305-mm, received 12x152-mm, 20x75-mm, 24x47-mm and 6x37-mm guns. On the "Tsesarevich" medium caliber (12x152 mm) was placed in the towers, it was supplemented by 20x75 mm, 20x47 mm and 8x37 mm guns. On battleships of the "Borodino" type, medium caliber (12x152 mm) was also placed in the towers. The armament was also supplemented by 20x75 mm 20x47 mm, 2x37 mm guns and 8 machine guns.
Nevertheless, in 1891-1892. development of a new 45-caliber 254-mm cannon began. It was conceived as a single one for ships, coastal batteries and ground forces. This unification led to numerous shortcomings of the new weapon. The length of the gun is 11.4 m, the piston lock weighed 400 kg. The weight of the gun with the lock ranged from 22.5 tons to 27.6 tons. The construction of the guns was carried out by the Obukhov plant. Despite the shortcomings, it was decided to install it on "Peresvet" -class battleships and coastal defense battleships. This decision weakened the Russian fleet. Confusion began again in the artillery systems of the battleships, which made it difficult to provide the fleet with ammunition.
SERIAL CONSTRUCTION AT THE ST. PETERSBURG YARD
In 1890 a new shipbuilding program was adopted. The designers used the "Emperor Nicholas I" project as a prototype for new armored ships. But the management again made significant changes to the project, they took into account the latest achievements of technical progress. The ship grew in size, for the first time main and medium-caliber guns were placed in the turrets. A number of ideas were borrowed from the design of the Sisoy the Great (booking, etc.). It was decided to lay down a series of three ships in the fall of 1891, work began on their construction at two St. Petersburg factories. The official laying took place on May 7, 1892 at the "New Admiralty" the "Poltava" was laid down, on the "Galley Island" the battleships "Petropavlovsk" and "Sevastopol". Launching of the "Poltava" took place on October 25, 1894, three days later the "Petropavlovsk" was launched. "Sevastopol" went afloat on May 20, 1895. The completion of the ships was delayed for several years due to various reasons. The first to be tested was "Petropavlovsk" (October 1897), the second (September 1898) "Poltava", the third in October 1898 "Sevastopol". At this time, the situation in the Far East sharply deteriorated again and the naval leadership tried to send battleships to the Pacific Ocean as soon as possible. The first to come to Port Arthur was "Petropavlovsk" (March 1900). It was followed by "Poltava" and "Sevastopol" (March 1901). It was these battleships that formed the basis of the Pacific squadron.
"Peresvet" in Toulon, November 1901 The battleships of this project were an unfortunate compromise: they differed from squadron battleships with weak armament and armor, and for cruisers they had too low a speed
Building "Borodino" on the Neva after the descent. St. Petersburg, August 26, 1901
In 1894, the leadership of the Naval Ministry decided to build a series of "lightweight battleships". It was decided to weaken their armament and armor, but due to this, to increase the speed and cruising range, to improve seaworthiness. It was planned that they would operate both on enemy lines of communication and together with the squadron. They were often called "battleship cruisers" in documents. It was decided to build two battleships, one at the Baltic Shipyard ("Peresvet") and one at the "New Admiralty" ("Oslyabya"). Their construction began in the fall of 1895. Several times the question of replacing the 254-mm with 305-mm guns was discussed, but in this case the ship's readiness dates were disrupted. The official laying of the battleships took place on November 9, 1895. On May 7, 1898, the Peresvet was launched, and on October 27, the Oslyabyu. Completion, equipment and armament of ships began, but the terms of work were still disrupted. "Peresvet" went for trials in October 1899. At the same time, the military leadership decided to build a third ship of this type, "Pobeda". Even the fourth battleship was considered, but no decision was made. The construction of Pobeda began in May 1898 at the Baltic Shipyard. Its official laying took place on February 9, 1899. On May 17, 1900, the ship was launched, and already in October 1901, Pobeda was put on trial. "Oslyabya" was completed the longest and entered trials only in 1902, but then it continued various corrections and additions. The rest of the battleships had already arrived in the Far East, and the Oslyabya had not yet left the Mark-Call Puddle. Peresvet arrived in Port Arthur in April 1902. Pobeda took part in the celebrations of the coronation of King Edward VII of England in May 1902. In July 1902, she took part in a parade at Revel's roadstead in honor of the visit of the German squadron. She came to the Pacific Ocean only in June 1903. And "Oslyabya" was still in the Baltic. Only in July 1903 he left for the Far East together with the cruiser Bayan. But in Gibraltar, the battleship touched an underwater rock and damaged the hull. It was docked in La Spezia for repairs. After repairing the damage, the long-suffering ship became part of the detachment of Rear Admiral A. A. Virenius, who slowly followed to the Far East.
The 305-mm and 152-mm guns on the Borodino-class battleships were housed in two-gun turrets
The shortcomings of the "battleship-cruisers" caused a lot of criticism. They were eliminated on the third series of Baltic battleships. She became the largest in the history of the Russian Imperial Navy - it was planned to build five ships. The project "Tsesarevich" was taken as a basis. It was revised by the shipbuilding engineer D. V. Skvortsov. It was planned to build the series at three St. Petersburg factories. In May 1899, the construction of the first ship of the series began at the "New Admiralty". Its official foundation took place on May 11, 1900 in the presence of Emperor Nicholas II. The ship was named Borodino. On August 26, 1901, the lead ship went down the water. In October 1899, on the "Galerny Island" they took up the second ship, which was named "Eagle". It was launched on July 6, 1902. The construction of the battleships proceeded rhythmically, all issues that arose were resolved promptly. Completion of the ships began - the most difficult stage for domestic factories. It stretched out over several years and by the beginning of 1904 this work was still in progress. Only the beginning of the war with Japan accelerated the completion. At the Baltic Shipyard, as the largest and most modern Russian enterprise, it was decided to build three ships of the series. The first of them was the "Emperor Alexander III", the official laying of which took place on May 11, 1900. On July 21, 1901, it was launched in the presence of Emperor Nicholas II. In October 1903, the battleship went for trials to the Gulf of Finland. The assembly of the second ship began immediately after the descent of the previous one. Such organization of work allowed to reduce the slipway period to 14 months. The official laying of the "Prince Suvorov" took place on August 26, 1901, and on September 12, 1902 it was launched. In terms of completion rates, he overtook both Borodino and Oryol. After the descent of the second ship, work began immediately on the construction of the third - "Glory". It was officially laid down on October 19, 1902, and its launching took place on August 16, 1903. But after the outbreak of the war, the building was frozen, and it entered service only in 1905. The construction of a series of Borodino-class battleships showed that domestic shipbuilding factories are able to independently build battleships squadron, but the time has already been lost.
Squadron battleship Borodino after commissioning. The battleships of this project formed the basis of the second Pacific squadron.
Squadron battleship "Emperor Alexander III" is the only ship of the "Borodino" class, which has passed the full test program
ABROAD WILL HELP US
Having made sure that domestic shipyards are not always able to build such huge and complex warships as battleships in a high-quality and within the terms stipulated by contracts, the military leadership decided to place part of the orders abroad. The military leadership believed that this would allow the program to be completed on time and achieve superiority over the Japanese fleet. Meanwhile, the country's military leadership adopted a program "for the needs of the Far East." In a short time, it was planned to build a large number of battleships, cruisers and destroyers. Foreign factories were supposed to help the Russian Empire maintain parity. Unfortunately, these expectations were met only in one of two cases. One of the first orders was an order placed at the American shipyard of Charles Henry Crump in Philadelphia. The overseas industrialist received a contract for the construction of a cruiser and a battleship with a total value of 6.5 million dollars. The design of the battleship Retvizan was developed on the basis of the drawings of Peresvet and Prince Potemkin-Tavrichesky. Work on the construction of the ship began in the fall of 1898. The official laying took place on July 17, 1899. Advanced American technology significantly reduced the pace of construction. Already on October 10, 1899, the Retvizan was launched. The battleship went for trials in August 1901. On April 30, 1902, it left America and crossed the Atlantic Ocean. In the Baltic, he managed to take part in a parade at the Revel raid in honor of the visit of the German squadron. The newest battleship arrived in Port Arthur in April 1903. The Retvizan was considered the best battleship of the Pacific squadron.
The second order for the construction of the battleship was received by the French shipyard Forges and Chantier in Toulon. The amount of the contract for its construction exceeded 30 million francs. The project was based on the French battleship "Joregiberi", which the designer Antoine-Jean Ambal Lagan "adjusted" to the requirements of the customer. The official laying of the "Tsesarevich" took place on July 26, 1899. At first, construction proceeded at a fairly rapid pace, but often work was interrupted due to urgent matters on other orders. The hull was launched on February 10, 1901. But during the completion of the construction, numerous problems arose and, like in Russian shipyards, it stretched out for several years. Only in November 1903 the "Tsarevich" arrived in Port Arthur. This experience has shown that ordering warships from foreign shipyards is not always justified, and domestic factories could cope with their construction much faster.
Retvizan's hull before launching, Philadelphia, October 9, 1900
Retvizan is the strongest battleship of the first Pacific squadron. Philadelphia, 1901
ARMORED CARRIERS IN THE FIRE OF A LITTLE VICTORY WAR
At the end of 1903 and the beginning of 1904, the Russian military leadership, which incorrectly assessed the situation in the Far East, did not take emergency measures to hastily strengthen the Pacific squadron. It hoped that our naval forces were sufficient to ensure supremacy at sea and Japan would not dare to go into conflict. But negotiations on controversial issues were interrupted, and the Japanese leadership was going to resolve them by force. At this time, on the way to the Far East, there was a detachment under the command of Rear Admiral A. A. Virenius. It consisted of the battleship Oslyabya, 3 cruisers, 7 destroyers and 4 destroyers. With their arrival in Port Arthur, our forces would have received a finished look: 8 battleships, 11 cruisers of the 1st rank, 7 cruisers of the 2nd rank, 7 gunboats, 2 minelayers, 2 mine cruisers, 29 destroyers, 14 destroyers. They were based in Port Arthur and Vladivostok. But with the outbreak of hostilities in St. Petersburg, they decided to return the ships of the Virenius detachment to the Baltic, and not make attempts to break through to Port Arthur or Vladivostok. The Japanese, in turn, were able to successfully transfer two of the latest armored cruisers from the Mediterranean to the Far East, which significantly strengthened their fleet. In January-March, the Russian leadership did not take any real measures to speed up work on the completion of the Borodino-class battleships. Everything changed only after the death of "Petropavlovsk". But time was lost.
Tsesarevich's building before launching. Toulon, February 10, 1901
"Tsesarevich" - the flagship of the first Pacific squadron
The war with the Land of the Rising Sun began on the night of January 27, 1904, when several detachments of Japanese destroyers attacked Russian ships that were stationed in the outer roadstead of Port Arthur. Their torpedoes hit the strongest ships of the squadron, the battleships Retvizan and Tsarevich. They received serious injuries, but did not die, thanks to the heroic actions of the rescue parties. They met the morning of January 27 on the coastal shoals at the entrance to the fortress. In this form, the damaged battleships took part in the first battle with the Japanese fleet, which approached Port Arthur. Our weakened squadron was helped by fire from the coastal batteries of the fortress, and the firefight ended in a draw. During the battle, Petropavlovsk, Pobeda and Poltava received minor damage. After the end of the battle, the squadron gathered on the inner roadstead of the fortress and began to "lick the wounds", only "Retvizan" remained on the shallows. It was necessary to urgently repair the damage to the battleships, but there was no large dock in Port Arthur, it was just beginning to be built. Russian engineers found a way to repair ships and used caissons. The Japanese did not sit idly by and on the night of February 11 decided to destroy the Retvizan. To do this, they used firecrackers. But our sailors repulsed their attack and sank five steamers. The battleship was not damaged, they began to hastily unload it in order to remove it from the shallows. This was accomplished only on February 24, the day Vice Admiral S. O. Makarov arrived at the fortress, who was appointed the new commander of the squadron.
Towing of one of the Tsesarevich's caissons, Eastern Basin of Port Arthur, February 1904. The caisson is a wooden rectangle that allowed partially draining the underwater part of the ship's hull and carrying out repairs. This "Arthurian improvisation" during the war made it possible to repair "Tsesarevich", "Retvizan", "Victory" and "Sevastopol"
Maxim's machine guns from the "Tsarevich" are taken to the coastal fortifications, May 1905
Under Makarov, the squadron began active operations in 35 days of its command, the squadron went to sea six times, the ships made evolutions and maneuvers, and coastal reconnaissance was begun. During the campaigns of the squadron, Makarov raises his flag at Petropavlovsk. The repair of damaged ships accelerated, work began on the Retvizan and Tsarevich. On 8 and 9 March, the Japanese fleet attempted to fire at Port Arthur, but was prevented by the passing fire of the Pobeda and Retvizan. On March 13, during maneuvers, "Peresvet" struck the stern of the "Sevastopol" with its bow and bent the blade of the right propeller, which had to be repaired with the help of a diving bell. On March 31, the flagship battleship Petropavlovsk explodes on Japanese mines in the outer roadstead of Port Arthur. It killed: the commander of the squadron, 30 officers of the ship and staff, 652 lower ranks and the battle painter V. V. Vereshchagin. It was a real disaster, it demoralized the Russian sailors. The situation was aggravated by the explosion at the "Victory" mine, which took 550 tons of water, but returned safely to the fortress. They began to repair it, for this the caisson was again used. At the same time, work continued on the "Tsesarevich" and "Retvizan", the damage to the "Sevastopol" was repaired. After the death of Makarov, the squadron again stopped going to sea and stood on barrels in Port Arthur.
The Japanese took advantage of the lull and landed their troops at Biziwo. Thus, they cut off Port Arthur from Manchuria and blocked it. Soon the Japanese units began preparations for the assault. Airborne companies of sailors took an active part in repelling the attacks. All machine guns and landing guns were hastily removed from the ships of the squadron. The battleships said goodbye to part of their artillery, which they began to install on Arthurian positions. By June 1, the ships of the squadron lost: 19x152-mm, 23x75-mm, 7x47-mm, 46x37-mm, all machine guns and 8 searchlights. Then the governor ordered to prepare the squadron for a breakthrough to Vladivostok, and these guns began to hastily return to the ships of the squadron. By June 9, all repair work on the "Pobeda", "Tsesarevich" and "Retvizan" were completed. The ships took on board coal, ammunition, water and food. On the morning of June 10, the squadron in full force began to leave the fortress. But due to trawling, its exit was delayed. At sea, she was met by the Japanese fleet and the squadron commander, Rear Admiral V. K. Vitgeft refused to fight. He made the decision to abandon the breakthrough and return to Port Arthur. So the real opportunity to go to Vladivostok and start active actions was missed. On the way back, "Sevastopol" was blown up by a mine, but was able to return to the fortress.
"Tsarevich" in Qingdao, August 1904. The damage to the chimneys is clearly visible. In the foreground is the average 152-mm turret.
Damaged "Sevastopol", December 1904
While the damage to the Sevastopol was repaired with the help of the caisson, the ships of the squadron began to be attracted to support the Russian troops. Several times "Poltava" and "Retvizan" went to sea. The Japanese brought up siege weapons and began daily shelling of Port Arthur on 25 July. There were several hits in "Tsesarevich" and "Retvizan". Rear Admiral V. K. Vitgeft was wounded by a shell fragment. On July 25, work on the "Sevastopol" ended, and the squadron again began to prepare for a breakthrough. Early in the morning of July 28, the ships left Port Arthur. At 12.15 a general battle began, which was called the battle in the Yellow Sea. For several hours, the opponents fired at each other, there were hits, but not a single ship sank. The outcome of the battle was decided by two hits. At 17.20 a Japanese shell hit the lower part of the foremast of the "Tsarevich" and showered fragments on the bridge of the battleship. Wit-geft was killed and the squadron lost command. At 18.05 a shell hit the lower bridge, its fragments hit the conning tower. The battleship lost control, went out of order, described two circulation and cut through the formation of the Russian squadron. Our ships lost command, disrupted formation and huddled together. The Japanese covered them with fire. The situation was saved by the commander of the battleship "Retvizan" Captain 1st Rank E. N. Schensnovich, who directed his ship towards the Japanese. The enemy concentrated fire on it, the rest of the squadron ships got a break, rebuilt and turned to Port Arthur. In this battle, Retvizan, Sevastopol and Poltava suffered the most. The damaged "Tsarevich" and a number of other ships left for neutral ports, where they were interned and disarmed.
Returning to the fortress, the battleships began to repair the damage. By the beginning of September, they were eliminated, but at the meeting of the flagships they decided not to make new attempts to break through, but to strengthen the defense of the fortress with guns and sailors. On August 10, "Sevastopol" went out to Tahe Bay to fire at Japanese positions. On the way back, he was again blown up by a mine, but was able to return to Port Arthur on his own. This was the last departure of the battleship of the Arthurian squadron to the sea. On September 19, the Japanese conducted the first shelling of the fortress from 280-mm siege mortars. Each such gun weighed 23 tons, it fired a 200 kg projectile at 7 km. These shelling became daily and it was they who destroyed the Russian squadron. The first victim of the "little ones from Osaka" was "Poltava". She was shot on November 22. After a severe fire, the ship landed on the ground in the western basin of the fortress. On November 23 "Retvizan" was killed, on November 24 - "Pobeda" and "Peresvet". Only "Sevastopol" survived and on the evening of November 25 left the fortress into the White Wolf Bay. He continued shelling Japanese positions. He was attacked for several nights in a row by Japanese destroyers, torpedo boats and mine boats, but to no avail. The battleship was protected by anti-torpedo nets and booms. Only on December 3 did they manage to damage the battleship with torpedoes. He had to be planted astern on the ground, but he continued to fire. He fired the last main battery on December 19. On December 20, Sevastopol was sunk in the outer roadstead of Port Arthur. The fortress was surrendered to the Japanese.
The flagship of the second Pacific squadron is the battleship Prince Suvorov under the flag of Rear Admiral Z. P. Rozhdestvensky
By this time, on the way to Port Arthur, there was the second Pacific squadron under the command of Rear Admiral Z. P. Rozhdestvensky. The basis of its combat power was made up of four newest battleship battleships of the "Borodino" class. For the sake of their hasty completion and the earliest possible commissioning, it was necessary to freeze work on the fifth ship of the series. By the middle of the summer of 1904, all work on them, in general, was completed. Only the readiness of the Eagle lagged behind, which on May 8 lay down on the ground in Kronstadt. The battleships began to undergo tests and make their first campaigns on the Marquis Puddle. Due to the haste of wartime, the test program for the latest battleships was reduced. Their crews underwent only a short course of combat training and began to prepare for the campaign. On August 1, the squadron commander raised his flag on the flagship battleship Prince Suvorov. It included 7 squadron battleships, 6 cruisers, 8 destroyers and transports. On September 26, an imperial review took place in the roadstead of Revel. On October 2, the squadron began an unparalleled voyage to the Far East. They had to travel 18,000 miles, cross three oceans and six seas without Russian bases and coal stations along the way. Baptism of fire battleships of the "Borodino" type were accepted in the so-called. Hull incident. On the night of October 9, Russian ships fired at British fishermen in the North Sea, who were mistaken for Japanese destroyers. One trawler was sunk, five were damaged. Five battleships went around Africa, the rest went through the Suez Canal. On December 16, the squadron assembled in Madagascar. During the stay at Nusiba, a number of warships joined her. But the morale of the sailors of the squadron was undermined by the news of the death of the squadron, the surrender of Port Arthur and "Bloody Sunday." On March 3, the squadron left the island and headed for the shores of Indochina. Here on April 24, ships of the detachment of Rear Admiral N. I. Nebogatova. It was now a significant force: 8 squadron battleships, 3 coastal defense battleships, 9 cruisers, 5 auxiliary cruisers, 9 destroyers and a large number of transports. But the ships were overloaded and badly worn out by the hardest crossing. On the 224th day of the campaign, the second squadron of the Pacific Ocean entered the Korea Strait.
At 2.45 on May 14, 1905, a Japanese auxiliary cruiser discovered a Russian squadron in the Korea Strait and immediately reported this to the command. From that moment on, the battle became inevitable. It began at 13.49 with a shot from "Prince Suvorov". A fierce firefight ensued, with both sides focusing their fire on the flagships. The Japanese were out of order when covering, and the Russian ships did not maneuver. Within 10 minutes after the start of the cannonade "Oslyabya" received significant damage. Large holes formed in the bow, there was a strong roll to the port side, and fires began. At 14.40 the ship was out of order. At 14.50 "Oslyabya" turned over to the port side and sank. Part of its crew was rescued by destroyers. At the same time, the battleship "Prince Suvorov" went out of action. The steering gear was broken on it, it had a roll to the left side, numerous fires raged on the superstructure. But he continued to fire at the enemy. At 15.20 he was attacked by Japanese destroyers, but they were driven off. Further, the squadron was led by the "Emperor Alexander III" course NO23. The Japanese concentrated on it all the power of their fire, and at 15.30 the burning battleship went out of order with a roll to the left side. Soon he extinguished the fires and returned to the column, which was headed by "Borodino" Now he experienced the full power of the Japanese fire, but soon the battle was interrupted due to fog. At 16.45 "Prince Suvorov" again attacked the enemy destroyers, one torpedo hit the left side. At 17.30, the destroyer "Buiny" approached the burning battleship. Despite the intense excitement, he managed to remove the wounded commander and 22 more people. The sailors still remained on the huge flaming battleship, but they decided to fulfill their duty to the end.
Squadron battleship Oslyabya and battleships of the Borodino class. The picture was taken in the parking lot during the transition to the Far East
At 18.20 the battle resumed. The Japanese concentrated their fire on the Borodino. At 18.30, the "Emperor Alexander III" left the column, which turned over and sank in 20 minutes. Several dozen sailors remained on the water at the site of the death of the battleship. The cruiser "Emerald" tried to save them, but the enemy drove it away with fire. Not a single person was saved from the crew of the "Emperor Alexander III". It became a mass grave for 29 officers and 838 lower ranks. The Russian squadron was still led by Borodino. Several fires raged on it, it lost the mainmast. At 19.12 one of the last volleys of the battleship "Fuji" he was covered and received a fatal hit. A 305-mm shell hit the area of the first medium-caliber turret. The hit caused the detonation of ammunition and the battleship instantly sank. Only 1 person from his crew was saved. On "Borodino" 34 officers and 831 lower ranks were killed. At this time, Japanese destroyers attacked "Prince Suvorov". The flaming flagship was firing back from the last 75mm gun, but it was hit by several torpedoes. So the flagship of the second squadron of the Pacific Ocean died. None of the sailors who remained on it survived. Killed 38 officers and 887 lower ranks.
Squadron battleships "Navarin" and "Sisoy the Great" during the imperial review on the roadstead of Reval, October 1904. Veteran ships were also included in the Second Pacific Squadron
In the daytime battle, the Russian squadron was defeated; battleships Oslyabya, Emperor Alexander III, Borodino, Prince Suvorov and an auxiliary cruiser were sunk, many ships received significant damage. The Japanese did not lose a single ship. Now the Russian squadron had to withstand the attacks of numerous destroyers and destroyers. The squadron continued on course NO23, led by "Emperor Nicholas I". The lagging and damaged ships were the first to become victims of mine attacks. One of them was Navarin. In a daytime battle, he received several hits: the battleship landed with its nose and had a roll to the left side, one of the pipes was shot down, and the speed dropped sharply. At about 22.00, a torpedo hit the stern of the Navarina. The roll increased sharply, the speed dropped to 4 knots. At about 2 am, several more torpedoes hit the battleship, it rolled over and sank. Many sailors remained on the water, but because of the darkness, no one saved them. Killed 27 officers and 673 lower ranks. Only 3 sailors were saved. “Sisoy the Great” received significant damage during the day, a big fire broke out on it, there was a significant roll to the left side, the speed decreased to 12 knots. He lagged behind the squadron and independently repulsed the attacks of the destroyers. At about 23.15 a torpedo hit the stern. The ship was no longer under control, a strong roll to starboard appeared. The sailors brought a plaster under the hole, but the water continued to arrive. The commander directed the battleship towards Tsushima Island. Here Japanese ships overtook him and raised the surrender signal on the Sisoy Velikiy. The Japanese visited the ship, but it was already heeling. At about 10 am the battleship capsized and sank.
At about 10 am on May 15, the remnants of the Russian squadron were surrounded by the main forces of the Japanese fleet. At 10.15 they opened fire on the Russian ships. Under these conditions, Rear Admiral N. I. Nebogatov gave the order to lower the Andreevskie flags. The battleships "Eagle", "Emperor Nicholas I" and two battleships of coastal defense surrendered to the Japanese. 2396 people were captured. It was this episode that became a symbol of the defeat of the Russian fleet at Tsushima.
