The Admiral Ushakov was the lead ship in her class

Admiral Ushakov class coast defense ship

The Admiral Ushakov-class were coast defense battleships built for the Imperial Russian Navy during the 1890s to counter armored ships of the Swedish Navy. All three ships were stationed in the Baltic Sea when the Russo-Japanese war began and sailed with the Baltic Fleet around the Cape of Good...

 of armoured warships (coastal battleships) of the Imperial Russian Navy

Imperial Russian Navy

The Imperial Russian Navy refers to the Tsarist fleets prior to the February Revolution.-First Romanovs:Under Tsar Mikhail Feodorovich, construction of the first three-masted ship, actually built within Russia, was completed in 1636. It was built in Balakhna by Danish shipbuilders from Holstein...

, and named after Admiral Fyodor Fyodorovich Ushakov

Fyodor Fyodorovich Ushakov

Fyodor Fyodorovich Ushakov was the most illustrious Russian naval commander and admiral of the 18th century.- Life and naval career :...

 the Russian naval commander of the 18th century.

Service Life

Admiral Ushakov was part of the Baltic Fleet

Baltic Fleet

The Twice Red Banner Baltic Fleet - is the Russian Navy's presence in the Baltic Sea. In previous historical periods, it has been part of the navy of Imperial Russia and later the Soviet Union. The Fleet gained the 'Twice Red Banner' appellation during the Soviet period, indicating two awards of...

 at the beginning of the Russo-Japanese war

Russo-Japanese War

The Russo-Japanese War was "the first great war of the 20th century." It grew out of rival imperial ambitions of the Russian Empire and Japanese Empire over Manchuria and Korea...

. The Ushakov was chosen to form part of Admiral Nikolai Nebogatov

Nikolai Nebogatov

Nikolai Ivanovich Nebogatov was a Rear-Admiral in the Imperial Russian Navy, noted for his role in the final stages of the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905.-Biography:...

's "Third Pacific Squadron" which was sent out to reinforce Admiral Zinovy Rozhestvensky

Zinovy Rozhestvensky

Zinovy Petrovich Rozhestvensky was an admiral of the Imperial Russian Navy. He was in command of the Second Pacific Squadron in the Battle of Tsushima, during the Russo-Japanese War....

 on his journey to the Far East. The ship was obsolete and was not considered suitable for a voyage to the Pacific. However the Admiralty insisted on including Ushakov and her sister ships General-Admiral Graf Apraxin

Japanese battleship Okinoshima

The General Admiral Graf Apraksin , sometimes transliterated as Apraxin, was a member of the s of the Imperial Russian Navy. She was named after General Admiral Fyodor Matveyevich Apraksin, the first commander of Russian Baltic Fleet. She was one of eight Russian pre-dreadnought battleships...

 and Admiral Senyavin

Japanese battleship Mishima

Admiral Seniavin , was a built for Imperial Russian Navy during the 1890s. She was one of eight Russian pre-dreadnought battleships captured by the Imperial Japanese Navy from the Russians during the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905...

 to bolster their force. Journeying via the Suez Canal

Suez Canal

The Suez Canal , also known by the nickname "The Highway to India", is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. Opened in November 1869 after 10 years of construction work, it allows water transportation between Europe and Asia without navigation...

 and across the Indian Ocean, they linked up with Rozhestvensky's fleet off Cam Ranh Bay

Cam Ranh Bay

Cam Ranh Bay is a deep-water bay in Vietnam in the province of Khánh Hòa. It is located at an inlet of the South China Sea situated on the southeastern coast of Vietnam, between Phan Rang and Nha Trang, approximately 290 kilometers / 180 miles northeast of Hồ Chí Minh City / Saigon.Cam Ranh is...

 in Indochina and proceeded together to the Straits of Tsushima

Tsushima Strait

is the eastern channel of the Korea Strait, which lies between Korea and Japan, connecting the Sea of Japan and the East China Sea.The Tsushima Strait is the broader eastern channel to the east and southeast of Tsushima Island, with the Japanese islands of Honshū to the east and northeast, and...

.

At the Battle of Tsushima

Battle of Tsushima

The Battle of Tsushima , commonly known as the “Sea of Japan Naval Battle” in Japan and the “Battle of Tsushima Strait”, was the major naval battle fought between Russia and Japan during the Russo-Japanese War...

, on 27–28 May 1905, the Ushakov was separated from Nebogatov during the night and fought to the last. She was twice hit below the water line and once above, the blazing wreck being scuttled on the evening of 28 May.