The crew of the cruiser Rurik. Armored cruiser "Rurik II"

XXXIV. Vladivostok. "Rurik". December 1, 1900 During this time, so many nasty things happened to us that we simply don’t know when to start writing. The fact is that “Rurik” is finishing the campaign, and we are being assigned to the squadron. You can’t imagine how unsatisfactory this is:

3. The first battleships of Germany Ironclad ram “Prince Adalbert”

3. The first battleships of Germany Ironclad ram “Prince Adalbert” The first battleship included in the Prussian navy. Named in honor of Heinrich Wilhelm Adalbert (1811-1873) - the younger brother of King Frederick William II * who initiated the creation

Armored frigate “Friedrich Karl” The ship was named in honor of Prince Friedrich Karl (1827-1885), German field marshal general, participant in the Prussian-Danish (1848), Austro-Prussian (1866) and Franco-Prussian ( 1870-71) wars. Later this name was given to the building built in

Armored corvette “Hansa” Hansa is a medieval trade union of German coastal cities (Lübeck, Hamburg, Danzig, Kiel, etc.), which played a significant role in the medieval trade of Western Europe, especially its northern part. It was with the Hanseatic merchants that they dealt

Rurik, Prince and Pirate If we bring together data from different sources, it turns out that we know not so little about Prince Rurik. He was born no later than 808–809. I would venture to suggest that he could have been a “posthumous” child. In ancient times, they tried to give names based on

The Rurik type was a development of the idea of ​​​​creating a 15,000-ton turret cruiser, proposed back in 1895 by the Baltic Shipyard and embodied in the Peresvet-class battleships. "Rurik" incorporated not only the latest achievements of science and technology of that time, but also the latest tactical views on the squadron service of cruisers.

Initially, it was planned to build two more cruisers according to the Rurik drawings at domestic shipyards, but due to the proposal to use turbines as the main mechanisms and the need to rework the project, the construction of the ships was first postponed and then completely cancelled.

The ship was laid down (construction began) on August 9, 1905, and launched on November 4, 1906. The cruiser inherited the name "Rurik" from its glorious predecessor, armored cruiser, who died heroically in battle with the Japanese squadron on August 14, 1904.

The Rurik finally became part of the Russian fleet in July 1909. Before the start of the war, the ship made several overseas voyages, in particular to England and France.

1.09.1914. Cruiser detachment - "Rurik" (flag), "Russia", "Oleg", "Bogatyr", the destroyer "Novik" and a number of other ships left Revel (Tallinn) for reconnaissance on the Steinorth-Hoborg line.

19.11.1914. Covering a mine laying from the minelayer "Amur" on the routes of the German fleet. Four German ships were killed on the minefield laid by the Amur.

14.12.1914. Independent laying of mines together with the cruiser "Admiral Makarov" off the German coast, in front of the Danzig Bay.

13.01.1915. Covering, together with the cruisers "Admiral Makarov" and "Bayan", the mine laying from the cruisers "Oleg" and "Bogatyr", on which the cruiser "Augsburg" was blown up and damaged a few days later.

14.01.1915. Covering a mine laying north of the Arnon lighthouse.

13.02.1915. A detachment of cruisers consisting of: "Rurik", "Admiral Makarov", "Oleg", "Bogatyr" (each ship had 100 mines on board) was tasked with laying mines on the approaches to Danzig Bay. At about 4 o'clock in the morning, in bad weather, due to inaccuracy in dead reckoning, the Rurik, at a 16-knot speed, hit its bottom on underwater rocks in the area of ​​the Fare lighthouse. The damage turned out to be serious; the cruiser took up to 2,400 tons of water. Under the escort of the "Rurik" detachment, he arrived in Revel at a 5-knot speed, and then to Kronstadt. Repair work took 3 months.

2.07.1915. Battle of Gotland: "Rurik", having met the armored cruiser "Roon", the cruisers "Lubeck" and "Augsburg", entered into a battle that lasted about 30 minutes. Having received a hit, the Roon, along with the other ships, managed to hide in the fog.

31.07.1915. Participation in the transfer of the battleship "Slava" from Ere through the Irbene Strait to the Gulf of Riga.

11.11.1915. Setting up, together with other ships, a mine-laying detachment south of the island of Gotland under the cover of the battleships Petropavlovsk and Gangut.

6.12.1915. To strengthen the previously laid minefield, a larger minefield was placed southwest of the island of Gotland, on which the light cruiser Lübeck was blown up a month later. The laying of mines was covered by the battleships Petropavlovsk and Gangut.

20.11.1916. "Rurik", following together with the battleship "Andrey Pervozvanny" and the cruiser "Bayan" from Helsingfors (Helsinki) to Kronstadt, was blown up by a mine 2 miles south of Gotland. Having taken about 500 tons of water, the cruiser independently reached Kronstadt. 52 people were injured. crew. The repair took 2 months.

The February Revolution of 1917 in Russia, which overthrew the autocracy, could not but affect the fate of the Baltic Fleet. The successful German offensive forced the ships to be withdrawn from Helsingfors, where they could be captured by the Germans, to Kronstadt. "Rurik" also took part in this famous ice campaign. At the end of 1918, "Rurik" was put into long-term storage, and in 1923 it was dismantled for metal. Turrets of 203 mm guns were used on the forts of the Kronstadt defensive region.

The construction of the cruiser "Rurik" is an important stage in the development of the Russian fleet. Armored cruisers around the world gave impetus to the creation of a new class of ships - battlecruisers, which appeared in the fleets of the leading naval powers shortly before the First World War.

armored cruiser "Rurik"

Centuries separate us from the dramatic events of the Russo-Japanese War. Historians are still arguing about what this war was like, calling it either the last knightly battle in the history of mankind, or the first clash of the white and yellow races of our time. However, today we still know so little from those who died defending Port Arthur about those who went to the bottom of the sea along with their ship in the Battle of Tsushima.

During the military clashes in the Far East in the period from 1904 to 1905, Russia did not win a single major victory, either at sea or on land. She actually lost her entire fleet. The widely known heroic death of the cruiser "" at the beginning of the war and the Tsushima tragedy of Admiral Rozhdestvensky's squadron at its end. But the naval battle on August 1, 1904 in the Korean Strait between two detachments of Russian and Japanese cruisers remained in the shadows. This unprecedented 5-hour battle has no analogues in the history of the Russian fleet in its ferocity and tenacity of resistance against superior enemy forces. During the naval battle, the armored carrier died heroically under the fire of the Japanese ships surrounding him. cruiser « Rurik».

By the end of the 19th century, Russia was intensively rearming its navy. According to the 20-year shipbuilding program of 1881, a powerful ocean fleet was created. Considering the absence of their own strongholds and supply bases in the oceans, each Russian cruiser had to act independently and be able to deliver quick and decisive strikes, without counting on anyone’s help. As a result, armored frigates appeared, that is, they had a belt of armor along the waterline - “” and “ Memory of Azov" But they did not have high speed and seaworthiness, so the need arose to create a cruiser with a longer cruising range, increased seaworthiness, high speed and strong artillery weapons.

The first Russian project of such a ship was a new armored cruiser " Rurik" It was named in honor of the Grand Duke Rurik, one of the leaders of the Varangians, whom the Slavs called to rule the Novgorod land. Five ships in the Russian fleet bore the name “” from 1815 to 1922. This publication will focus on the fourth ship.

The construction of the cruiser was entrusted to the Baltic Shipyard in St. Petersburg, a contemporary of the beginning of the era of steam and iron shipbuilding under the leadership of N.V. Dolgoruky. Construction was carried out according to the design of engineer Nikolai Rodionov. On October 22, 1892, in the presence of the emperor, the cruiser was launched. The completion of the ship took almost two years and on September 25, 1894 cruiser « Rurik"Joined the company.

The new ship had a huge displacement of 11 thousand tons for a cruiser at that time, an armor belt along the waterline of 200-250 mm and a high speed of 19 knots. The ship could carry 2,000 tons of coal.

The cruiser was armed with four 203 mm guns, sixteen 152 mm and six 120 mm, as well as sixteen small-caliber 37 mm and 47 mm guns. had six torpedo tubes for mine torpedoes. The cruising range at an economical speed of 10 knots was almost 7 thousand miles. The ship could travel from St. Petersburg to America and return back without refueling. However, there were some drawbacks, the main one of which was the side arrangement of the artillery, which did not allow all guns to fire in one direction; lack of rear end reservation; weak armor of the conning tower of only 150 mm. The construction of the cruiser cost the Russian treasury 9 million rubles. The ship's crew consisted of 720 people, of which 27 were officers.

In May 1895 cruiser The new Emperor Nicholas II visited with the imperial review. October 29, 1895 cruiser " Rurik"left the gray Baltic forever. The ship set off on its first long-distance ocean voyage to a new home base in the Far East. He spent four months as part of the Russian Mediterranean squadron, visiting the French port of Algeria and the Greek Piraeus. Having passed the Suez Canal into the waters of the Indian Ocean through the ports of Colombo, the cruiser entered the Pacific Ocean. On April 9, 1896, the ship dropped anchor in the Japanese port of Nagasaki, where the Pacific squadron was mainly based. By the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries, the Pacific Ocean squadron was the most effective and continuously expanding formation of the Russian fleet.

Russia, having acquired in the 20th century the western coast of the Sea of ​​Japan from the mouth of the Amur to the Korean Peninsula, including the Amur and Ussuri territories, continued its expansion to the south. Her eyes were fixed on northern China and Korea. According to a convention with China, Russia acquired a 25-year lease on the Liaodong Peninsula with the town of Lushun, which had the European name Port Arthur. Since 1898, this ice-free port has become the main base of the Pacific squadron. At the same time, construction of the South China Railway from Harbin to Port Arthur began. Taking advantage of the damage to parts of the East China Railway during the uprising in 1900, Russian troops occupied Manchuria, raising their flag in Harbin.

Before the start of the war in 1903, a detachment of cruisers from the Pacific Ocean squadron was formed in Vladivostok, which included new battleships and cruisers: “ Russia», « Thunderbolt, « Rurik", armored cruiser « Bogatyr" The detachment was assigned ten destroyers. The detachment's tasks were to conduct cruising warfare, that is, disrupt the sea communications of the Japanese enemy and raid operations on its coasts. By the beginning of the war cruisers have sufficiently mastered the theater of upcoming hostilities, and the cruiser " Rurik"became a Pacific veteran.

cruiser "Russia"

cruiser "Gromoboy"

In 1895, Japan won the war against decrepit China. Its young army and navy were rapidly gaining experience. All indemnities imposed on China went towards the rearmament of the army and navy. The country purchased the latest ships from France, England and the USA. Japan harbored a grudge against Russia for the Liaodong Peninsula, which it actually took during the war with China. The country demanded world political recognition, and it decided to get it in the war with the Russian Empire. Having secured diplomatic support from England and the United States, on January 26, 1904, Japan began a war with Russia with a sudden attack of its fleet on ships in Port Arthur. The ships of the squadron were seriously damaged by a night torpedo attack, and Russia lost a cruiser in the Korean port of Chemulpo." Varangian"and a gunboat" Korean».

The Pacific squadron from the sea blocked the Japanese fleet under the command of Admiral Togo. The damaged ships were restored to combat effectiveness in the absence of a repair base in Port Arthur. The Japanese fleet rapidly gained supremacy at sea.

The death of Admiral Makarov on the flagship " Petropavlovsk“significantly undermined the morale of the squadron, but the fortress fought selflessly, repelling more and more enemy attacks. The doom of Port Arthur brought the Pacific squadron to the brink of destruction. The Japanese installed siege artillery on the captured heights and were able to adjust the fire of other batteries along the inner roadstead of the port. On July 25, they carried out their first bombardment on the fleet stationed in the harbor. Only then, obeying the order of the commander-in-chief, confirmed by the tsar as the acting commander of the squadron, Rear Admiral Vitgeft took the squadron out to sea to break through to Vladivostok. But on July 28, the detachment entered into battle with the Japanese fleet that was waiting for it. After a fierce naval battle, Vitgeft on the battleship " Tsesarevich"was killed. This disrupted the order of battle, and the formation broke up. Some of the ships returned to Port Arthur, some broke through to neutral ports, and only cruiser"" reached Russia. The battle was lost, but in Vladivostok they did not know about it, since there was no direct telegraph connection.

2nd rank cruiser "Novik"

Headquarters received information only on the morning of July 29, 1904. In response, it was decided to send a detachment of cruisers from Vladivostok to the squadron, which were supposed to divert the forces of Admiral Kamimura’s fleet, and in the event of a successful breakthrough, the Port Arthur squadron would join it at sea. A possible meeting was planned for dawn on August 1 at the parallel of the Korean port of Fuzan (modern Puzan). But having received a message about the failure of the breakthrough, the commander of the Vladivostok cruiser squadron, Vice Admiral Skrydlov, sent a destroyer with orders to return, but he was unable to catch up with the formation. And at dawn, Russian ships, instead of “their own,” already met the Japanese squadron, which was preparing to give battle. The detachment commander, Admiral Jessen, having an order to distract the Japanese detachment with a chase without engaging in battle, already understood that there was no way to carry it out.

At 5 am, with the distance reduced to 6 miles, the Japanese opened fire. Following them, the Russian cruisers returned fire from 203 mm guns on the port side. Soon on the cruisers " Russia», « Thunderbolt" and "Rurik" the first losses appeared. On the bridge of the cruiser " Russia“senior officer captain 2nd rank Berlinsky was killed outright. WITH " Thunderbolt"transmitted by semaphore: "The commander is wounded." Jessen turned his detachment north at 5:50. While turning the cruiser " Rurik" fell behind the detachment and came under concentrated fire from Japanese ships. It was at this moment that the ship received severe damage in the stern, as a result of which the steering gear failed. The ship's commander was seriously wounded. When the flagship asked if everything was okay, “ Rurik“I didn’t answer for a long time. Then a signal rose above the destroyed bridge of the cruiser: “I can’t control it.” Lieutenant N.I. Zenilov led, and, continuing to circulate, fired artillery fire. In the half-flooded stern edema, the team's attempts to restore the steering mechanism did not stop. The enemy transferred all his heavy fire to the wounded cruiser « Rurik" Only at 8 am the Japanese ships transferred their attacks to the Russian cruisers. Russia" And " Thunderbolt", which continued to follow a course towards Vladivostok.

Soon, two low-speed light cruisers of Admiral Uriva approached the cruiser Rurik from the south. There was hope that the Rurik would fight off the less powerful cruisers and repair its damage, but one of the unexploded Japanese shells kills the commander and seriously wounds Zenilov. The command of the ship is taken by junior artillery officer Lieutenant Ivanov XIII.

Already heavily damaged cruisers The Kamimuras rushed in pursuit of two Russian ships. They laid down on parallel courses and opened aimed fire. Four against two. The most effective distance was 30-40 cables. The situation was critical, but the Russian sailors did not think of stopping the fight. Several 203 mm guns were brought into service on the Russian cruisers, and 75 mm guns opened fire. More than 1,000 armor-piercing shells were fired. Soon at 09:50, the Japanese cruisers stopped the battle and turned all four ships to the right. Kamimura went south, where he remained alone cruiser « Rurik».

Having made sure that the Russian sailors were not going to surrender, the Japanese slow-moving cruisers took up an advantageous position and increased artillery fire. A new salvo hit cruiser « Rurik" The knocked out guns gradually fell silent. The crew suffered huge losses, but intend to fight to the end. Another shell explodes inside the conning tower, destroying all the instruments and controls of the ship in an explosion. By the miracle of surviving, the wounded Lieutenant Ivanov goes down to the engine room and gives orders by voice. Fire with " Rurik"almost stopped, Lieutenant Ivanov was convinced that all means of resistance had been exhausted. The last stern gun fired occasionally, and then the commander gave the order to open the kingstons and scuttle the cruiser so that the enemy would not get it. Japanese shells continued to explode, killing the wounded who were already in the water of the sinking ship.

sinking of the cruiser "Rurik"

The wet keel and grandfathers flashed Rurik" as he was called, is gone. The floating sailors shouted “Hurray” in honor of their glorious cruiser. This happened at 10:20 am. In a stubborn, bloody battle, such as the history of the steam fleet has never known, the glorious ship was lost. In this brutal battle, 202 sailors died a heroic death. Japanese ships picked up and captured 604 people, of whom 230 were wounded. The Japanese treated the prisoners with respect.

By the end of the day on August 2, the cruisers " Russia" And " Thunderbolt"We approached Vladivostok. met the whole city, but the cruisers " Rurik“was not among them and nothing was known about his fate.

Arrived in Vladivostok cruisers"Russia" and " Thunderbolt“For two months they healed serious wounds during repairs, and in April 1905 they already made their last trip to the Sangar Strait, where they destroyed several Japanese schooners and coastal steamers.

The largest Russian armored cruiser; one of the most successful ships of this class in the world. Created to interact in battle with the linear forces of the fleet.

Designed and built in England (observers K.A. Tennyson and A.P. Titov), ​​the order cost was 1.5 million pounds. In terms of its combat and tactical qualities, it had no analogues among Russian cruisers, completely corresponding to the contemporary British armored cruisers of the Minotaur type (though in architecture and design it was very similar to the Italian cruisers of the Amalfi type).

The main innovations were: a) the introduction of mixed coal-oil heating boilers; b) placement of 10-dm and 8-dm guns in two-gun turrets; c) the use of mechanisms for feeding projectiles and charges. The 254-mm guns had a vertical aiming angle of 35 degrees, and flooded cellars with an irrigation system were introduced much earlier than on the British ships themselves. Instead of the previously used weak 75 mm anti-mine guns, casemate 120 mm guns were used, most of which were located on the main deck in the central part of the cruiser.

The reservation was established taking into account the “Tsushima” experience: even the chimneys were enclosed in
armored casings. The main belt extended the entire length of the hull, its upper edge reached the battery (main) deck 2.3 meters above the waterline, the lower edge was lowered 1.5 meters below its level. In the central part of the hull (between the barbettes of the main battery towers) the armor plates had a thickness of 152 mm, the upper tier was 127 mm, and the lower tier was 102 mm. At the bow the belt thinned to 76-102, at the stern - to 76 mm; at the aft end there was a 76-mm traverse.

The casemates on the upper deck were protected by 76 mm armor, structurally connected to the upper edge of the belt. The aft casemates for four 120 mm guns had the same protection. The thickness of the armor of the main battery turrets was 203 mm, the barbettes - 183 mm, the roof - 63 mm (the thickness of the parts of the barbettes located behind the side armor was 51-108 mm). For 203-mm towers, the same figures were 178, 152 and 51 mm, respectively (parts of the barbettes hidden behind the main belt had a thickness of 37-76 mm).

Finally, in the central part of the hull there was a 37-mm longitudinal anti-torpedo bulkhead. The total armor mass was 32% of the normal displacement.

Unsinkability was ensured by a well-thought-out division of the hull into waterproof compartments and a new roll and trim leveling system: the compartments in the depths of the hull could be filled through bypass valves within 1.5 minutes.

In general, the ship had very powerful artillery weapons, developed anti-torpedo protection and a robust hull design. During sea trials at the measured mile, the ship was lightly loaded and with engine power of 20,580 hp. developed 21.58 knots.

Among the shortcomings was weak vertical armor; the main deck is 37 mm, the lower deck is 25 mm with 37 mm bevels in the central part of the hull. In addition, the part of the spardeck located above the battery of 120 mm cannons was 25 mm thick.

The low speed also caused criticism, but despite this, the Rurik became one of the strongest cruisers in the world.

In accordance with the old tradition (the lead ship of the series is built abroad, the others are based on its model in Russia), they wanted to use steam turbine units on two cruisers of the same type, but these plans had to be abandoned - the project had become obsolete.

With the beginning of the war, the cruiser became the flagship of the commander of the Baltic Fleet, Vice Admiral N.O. Essen; together with the newest destroyer Novik, it formed a separate tactical unit (a kind of RGK), which was not part of the brigades and divisions.

After being blown up by a German mine in 1916, the ship was overhauled: a foremast was installed (in 1917 it was replaced by a British-type tripod) and the navigation bridge was refurbished. The auxiliary artillery now included two 47 mm and one 40 mm anti-aircraft guns, as well as two machine guns.

In 1918 it was partially disarmed and handed over to the port; The 17-120 mm guns were dismantled and transferred to ships of river and lake flotillas, as well as armored trains. Dismantled in 1923. The 203-mm turret guns removed from the cruiser were installed at the Gray Horse fort (then Advanced), where they served during the Second World War.

August 14(August 1, Old Style) 1904 There was a fierce battle between the Vladivostok detachment of cruisers and the Japanese squadron, as a result of which the cruiser Rurik died heroically. The feat of the crew of this ship is akin to the feat of the Varyag, and even surpasses it in terms of the intensity of the battle and the tragedy of the situation. However, by the will of chance and fate, it so happened that the name “Varyag” is still heard today, but few people remember or know about “Rurik”. However, as well as about the legendary Vladivostok detachment...

Vladivostok "invisible" squad
After the very first days of the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905. our squadron was blocked in Port Arthur by the enemy fleet, there was only one formation of Russian ships left in the Pacific Ocean capable of conducting cruising operations on Japanese communications - the Vladivostok detachment consisting of the cruisers "Russia", "Rurik", "Gromoboy", "Bogatyr" and several destroyer “dogs” assigned to him.
80 years later, the famous writer Valentin Pikul dedicated his novel “Cruisers” to the Vladivostok detachment of cruisers, and local prose writer Anatoly Ilyin wrote a story called “The Vladivostok Detachment”. It is clear that no one just dedicates stories and novels to ships. The Vladivostok detachment forever entered the annals of history with its daring raids on the shores of Japan, which caused panic among the enemy. At the same time, the cruisers themselves remained elusive to the Japanese fleet for a long time, and therefore the foreign press nicknamed them “ghost ships.”

Cruiser raids
Already in the first days of the war, our cruisers managed to sink several Japanese transports carrying soldiers and fuel. After this attack by Russian cruisers, the commander of the Japanese fleet, Admiral Togo, was forced to weaken his forces at Port Arthur in order to strengthen Kamimura’s squadron to fight our cruisers. This is what our naval commanders sought: to distract some of the enemy ships besieging Port Arthur.
And soon the cruiser “Bogatyr” (commander Captain 1st Rank A. Stemman) was unlucky: on May 15 (2), 1904, in the Gulf of Posiet, during fog, it sat tightly on the rocks at Cape Bruce. With great difficulty and not immediately, the cruiser was removed from the rocks and escorted to Vladivostok for repairs, where it remained until the end of the war. Having lost their brother in such an absurd way, “Russia”, “Rurik” and “Gromoboy” were left alone. To the entire Sea of ​​Japan and surrounding areas...
At the end of May, the cruisers went on another raid. In the Korea Strait they intercepted the military transport Izumo-Maru. Realizing that it would be impossible to escape, the Japanese captain, having landed the crew on boats, sank the ship. Then the Thunderbolt overtook another transport, the Hitatsi-Maru, which had on board 1,100 soldiers, 320 horses and 18 280-mm Krupp siege guns to crush the fortifications of Port Arthur. The captain of the Japanese ship, Englishman J. Campbell, tried to ram our cruiser. Having dodged, the "Thunderbolt" shot the "Hitatsi-Mara" from its guns. Meanwhile, “Russia” and “Rurik” caught up with another large military transport “Sado-Maru”, where there were about 15 thousand construction workers, a railway battalion of soldiers, pontoons, a telegraph park, machines for siege weapons (which sank along with the “Hitatsi-Maru” "), boxes with gold and silver. "Rurik" alternately fired a torpedo into the right and left sides of the ship. The cruisers moved on, believing that the transport sinking under the water would end up on the seabed. But, alas, he did not drown. Haste did not allow our sailors to complete the job...

Enemy ships scoured the entire Sea of ​​Japan, looking for the Vladivostok invisibles, but they burned coal in the furnaces in vain. “We’re just unlucky!” - Japanese admirals lamented. Meanwhile, all of Japan was alarmed by the raids of our cruisers, and newspapers published offensive cartoons about Admiral Kamimura. The foreign press also responded to these events. Thus, one of the English newspapers was forced to note: “The cruising of the Vladivostok detachment is the most daring enterprise undertaken by the Russians. The fact that their ships managed to escape from Kamimura’s squadron aroused public opinion in Japan.”
Things eventually came to the point that on June 19, 1904, embittered representatives of Japanese business, suffering millions in losses due to unpunished attacks by the Vladivostok detachment of cruisers on trade communications, destroyed and set fire to Admiral Kamimura’s apartment. If he had been at home at that moment, the brutal crowd would obviously have torn him to pieces, especially since the police chose not to interfere in what was happening. Japanese newspapers in those days added fuel to the fire, demanding "on behalf of the Japanese people, that the government make the most serious reprimand to Kamimura's squadron."
... Meanwhile, our cruisers continued to destroy the enemy’s transport communications, now in the Pacific Ocean, where the Japanese were forced to move the routes of their ships with cargo and troops, thereby hoping to protect them from Russian ghost ships. In the July raid they sank several Japanese transports and schooners. The German steamer Arabia was captured with a cargo of locomotive boilers and rails for Japan. The English steamship Knight Commander, carrying cargo for the Japanese railway, was detained and blown up. Then the German steamship "Thea" with a cargo of fish in its holds, traveling from America to Yokohama, was unlucky. He was stopped, removed from command, and then blown up. And the English steamer Calchas with the contraband was taken as a prize.
The world press made noise about the daring attacks of our cruisers. Business circles not only in Japan, but also in England, Germany, and America became worried. Still would! Freight tariffs and insurance rates increased sharply, and contracts for the supply of goods to Japan were broken. Panic reigned in the ports and stock exchanges...

Fight with the Japanese squadron. The death of "Rurik"
At dawn on August 11, 1904, the cruisers “Russia” (commander captain 1st rank A. Andreev), “Rurik” (commander captain 1st rank E. Trusov) and “Gromoboy” (commander captain 1st rank N. Dabich) under the leadership of the detachment commander, Rear Admiral K. Jessen, went to sea in order, in accordance with the received order, to support the breakthrough of the ships of the Port Arthur squadron to Vladivostok. However, the order came too late - the squadron, badly battered in battle, had already returned to Port Arthur, having failed to break through. And “Russia”, “Rurik” and “Thunderbolt” went to Tsushima, not knowing that they had no one to meet...
Early in the morning of August 14, the Vladivostok detachment of cruisers in the Korea Strait, 40 miles from the port of Fuzan (Busan), was intercepted by a Japanese squadron and with all its might attacked the Russian ships, cutting off the escape route. "Russia", "Rurik" and "Gromoboy" were trapped. The Japanese were superior in numbers, artillery, speed and armor strength. In the fierce battle, “Rurik”, which was in the rear, had the hardest time of all. It was on it that the Japanese concentrated their main fire. “Russia” and “Gromoboy”, having received injuries themselves, tried to alleviate its fate by covering it with themselves, and then began to retreat to the north, hoping to distract the Japanese from “Rurik”. But the enemy grabbed him with a death grip.

(Damaged armored cruiser Russia in Vladivostok, after the battle in the Korea Strait, August 1904.)

Tormented during the unequal battle, settling in the sea with its stern, shrouded in steam from broken boilers, the Rurik seemed an easy prey to the Japanese. They hoped to capture him. However, the junior artillery officer, Lieutenant Konstantin Ivanov, who led the cruiser after the death of the commander and senior officers, and the surviving officers and sailors were not going to lower the flag. They fought to the death. When the Rurik's guns failed, the Japanese moved closer. But the crew of the Russian cruiser suddenly made a desperate attempt to ram their nearest ship, and the cruiser Izumo was hit by a torpedo...
Retreating back, the Japanese ships opened fire again. By the end of the fight there were 14 of them against one. By 10 o'clock. in the morning, after a five-hour (!) battle (“Varyag,” note, only participated in the battle for an hour and did not suffer fatal injuries), “Rurik” was turned into a pile of twisted iron and only miraculously stayed afloat. The Japanese began to approach the stationary cruiser again. To prevent the enemy from getting the Rurik, Lieutenant Ivanov ordered the seams to be opened. Admiral Kamimura, realizing that there would be no capitulation on the part of the Russians, flew into a rage and ordered a barrage of fire to be brought down on the cruiser. Before the ship was sunk, Lieutenant K. Ivanov ordered everyone to leave the agonizing Rurik and throw the wounded overboard. Such was the dire necessity.
At 10 o'clock 42 min. On August 14, 1904, the armored cruiser of the Russian fleet "Rurik" with the St. Andrew's flag raised and the signal "I am dying, but I am not surrendering!" disappeared under water... On the Rurik, 204 people died and 305 sailors were wounded (on the Varyag, 22 sailors were killed in battle, 12 died from wounds). The fallen Rurikites remained forever where they took their last battle - at the bottom of the Korean Strait. “Russia” and “Gromoboy” lost 129 lower ranks and officers in that battle. Historians then wrote: “You need to be iron creatures to withstand such a hellish battle.”

With the death of the Rurik, the legendary raids of the Vladivostok cruiser detachment practically ceased. Until the fall, “Russia” and “Gromoboy” were under repair. Then an order came from the main naval headquarters: “The ships of the Vladivostok cruising squadron should be saved for the second squadron. Cruising operations with the risk of further damage should be avoided.". And only our destroyers sometimes raided enemy communications, sinking several more Japanese schooners. On April 25, 1905, “Russia” and “Gromoboy” made their last joint raid, reaching the Sangar Strait, where they sank several Japanese schooners. On April 28 they returned to base. And on May 2, the Thunderbolt, having gone to sea to test a radiotelegraph, hit a mine and was under repair until the end of the war. “Russia” is orphaned.

An interesting detail. After the war of 1904-1905. The Baltic Fleet included a ship named Rurik II. The name “Varyag” was not assigned to any warship either under the Tsar or during the Stalin era...