Russian battleship Imperator Aleksandr II

Imperator Aleksandr II (Император Александр II) was a pre-dreadnought battleship built for 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...

in the 1880s. She was an artillery training ship assigned to 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...

by the time 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...

of 1905 and was not sent to the Pacific as was most of the rest of the Baltic Fleet. She was inactive at Kronstadt

Kronstadt

Kronstadt , also spelled Kronshtadt, Cronstadt |crown]]" and Stadt for "city"); is a municipal town in Kronshtadtsky District of the federal city of St. Petersburg, Russia, located on Kotlin Island, west of Saint Petersburg proper near the head of the Gulf of Finland. Population: It is also...

during World War I

World War I

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

, but her crew was active in the revolutionary movement. She was turned over to the Kronstadt port authority on 21 April 1921 before she was sold for scrap on 22 August 1922. She was towed to Germany during the autumn of 1922, but was not stricken from the Navy List until 21 November 1925.

Description

Imperator Aleksandr II was named after the Emperor Alexander II of Russia

Alexander II of Russia

Alexander II , also known as Alexander the Liberator was the Emperor of the Russian Empire from 3 March 1855 until his assassination in 1881...

. She was built by the New Admiralty Yard

Admiralty Shipyard

The Admiralty Shipyard is one of the oldest and largest shipyards in Russia, located in Saint Petersburg. The shipyard's building ways can accommodate ships of up to , 250 meters in length and 35 meters in width...

at Saint Petersburg

Saint Petersburg

Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...

. She was laid down in June 1885, launched in July 1887, and completed in June 1891, although her trials lasted until the spring of 1892.

She was 334 feet (101.8 m) long at the waterline and 346 in 6 in (105.61 m) long overall. She had a beam

Beam (nautical)

The beam of a ship is its width at the widest point. Generally speaking, the wider the beam of a ship , the more initial stability it has, at expense of reserve stability in the event of a capsize, where more energy is required to right the vessel from its inverted position...

of 66 in 11 in (20.4 m) and a draft

Draft (hull)

The draft of a ship's hull is the vertical distance between the waterline and the bottom of the hull , with the thickness of the hull included; in the case of not being included the draft outline would be obtained...

of 25 in 9 in (7.85 m). She displaced 9244 long tons (9,392 t) at load, over 800 LT (813 MT) more than her designed displacement of 8440 LT (8,575 t).

Imperator Aleksandr II had two three-cylinder vertical compound steam engines driving 17 feet (5.2 m) screw propellers. Twelve cylindrical boiler

Boiler (steam generator)

A boiler or steam generator is a device used to create steam by applying heat energy to water. Although the definitions are somewhat flexible, it can be said that older steam generators were commonly termed boilers and worked at low to medium pressure but, at pressures above this, it is more...

s provided steam to the engines. Her engines were built by Baltic Works

Baltic Shipyard

The Baltic Shipyard is one of the oldest shipyards in Russia. It is located in Saint Petersburg in the south-western part of the Vasilievsky Island. It is one of the three shipyards active in Saint Petersburg...

and had a total designed output of 8500 ihp. On trials, the powerplant produced 8289 ihp, and a top speed of 15.27 knots. She carried 967 long tons (982.5 MT) of coal that provided a range of 4400 nautical miles (8,148.8 km) at a speed of 8 knots and 1770 nautical miles (3,278 km) at a speed of 15 knots.

The main armament of the Imperator Aleksandr II class ships was a pair of 12 inches (305 mm) Obukhov Model 1877 30-calibre

Caliber (artillery)

In artillery, caliber or calibredifference in British English and American English spelling is the internal diameter of a gun barrel, or by extension a relative measure of the length....

guns mounted in a twin barbette

Barbette

A barbette is a protective circular armour feature around a cannon or heavy artillery gun. The name comes from the French phrase en barbette referring to the practice of firing a field gun over a parapet rather than through an opening . The former gives better angles of fire but less protection...

mount forward. The four 9 inches (229 mm) Obukhov Model 1877 35-calibre guns were on center-pivot mounts in casemate

Casemate

A casemate, sometimes rendered casement, is a fortified gun emplacement or armored structure from which guns are fired. originally a vaulted chamber in a fortress.-Origin of the term:...

s at the corners of the citadel, the hull being recessed to increase their arcs of fire ahead or behind. The eight 6 inches (152 mm) Model 1877

6 inch 35 caliber naval gun 1877

6 inch 35 caliber naval gun 1877 was a 152 mm naval gun used by Russian Empire. The gun was used from 1887 as battleship secondary armament and cruiser armament. The gun was mostly replaced by newer 6 inch 45 caliber Canet gun 1892 by Russo-Japanese War, but was still used on some ships...

35-calibre guns were mounted on broadside pivot mounts. Four were fitted between the 9-inch guns and could traverse a total of 100°. The others were mounted at each end of the ship where they could fire directly ahead or astern. The ten 47 millimetres (1.9 in) Hotchkiss revolving cannon

Hotchkiss gun

The Hotchkiss gun can refer to different products of the Hotchkiss arms company starting in the late 19th century. It usually refers to the 1.65-inch light mountain gun; there was also a 3-inch Hotchkiss gun...

were mounted in hull embrasures of the ship, between the nine and six-inch guns to defend against torpedo boat

Torpedo boat

A torpedo boat is a relatively small and fast naval vessel designed to carry torpedoes into battle. The first designs rammed enemy ships with explosive spar torpedoes, and later designs launched self-propelled Whitehead torpedoes. They were created to counter battleships and other large, slow and...

s. Four 37 millimetres (1.5 in) Hotchkiss revolving cannon were mounted in each fighting top

Top (sailing ship)

On a traditional square rigged ship, the top is the platform at the upper end of each mast. This is not the masthead "crow's nest" of the popular imagination – above the mainmast is the main-topmast, main-topgallant-mast and main-royal-mast, so that the top is actually about 1/4 to 1/3 of the way...

. Imperator Aleksandr II carried five above-water 15 inches (381 mm) torpedo tube

Torpedo tube

A torpedo tube is a device for launching torpedoes. There are two main types of torpedo tube: underwater tubes fitted to submarines and some surface ships, and deck-mounted units installed aboard surface vessels...

s. Two in the bow, one on each side of the stempost, one tube on each broadside and a tube in the stern. Smaller 14 inches (356 mm) torpedo tube

Torpedo tube

s could be mounted in four of the ship's cutters. 36 mines

Naval mine

A naval mine is a self-contained explosive device placed in water to destroy surface ships or submarines. Unlike depth charges, mines are deposited and left to wait until they are triggered by the approach of, or contact with, an enemy vessel...

could also be carried.

History

Imperator Aleksandr II served in the Baltic Fleet and represented Russia, along with the cruiser , at the opening of the Kiel Canal

Kiel Canal

The Kiel Canal , known as the Kaiser-Wilhelm-Kanal until 1948, is a long canal in the German state of Schleswig-Holstein.The canal links the North Sea at Brunsbüttel to the Baltic Sea at Kiel-Holtenau. An average of is saved by using the Kiel Canal instead of going around the Jutland Peninsula....

in June 1895. She ran aground in Vyborg Bay

Vyborg Bay

The Bay of Vyborg is a deep inlet running northeastward near the eastern end of Gulf of Finland in the Baltic Sea. The city of Vyborg is located near the head of the gulf.The bay is connected by the Saimaa Canal to the lake Saimaa in Finland....

later that year, but sustained little damage. She joined the Mediterranean Squadron in August 1896 and supported Russian interests during the Cretan Revolt of 1897. She returned to Kronstadt

Kronstadt

in September 1901. She was reboilered in December 1903 and modified in 1904 to serve as an artillery school ship. Her crew refused to suppress the mutinous garrison of Fort Konstantin defending Kronstadt in August 1906. She was assigned to the Artillery Training Detachment in 1907. She spent most of World War I in Kronstadt where her crew was active in the revolutionary movement. She was renamed Zarya Svobody (Заря Свободы—Dawn of Freedom) in May 1917. She was turned over to the Kronstadt port authority on 21 April 1921 before she was sold for scrap on 22 August 1922. She was towed to Germany during the autumn of 1922, but was not stricken from the Navy List until 21 November 1925.

Conway's says that she was reconstructed in France between 1902 and 1904, with her torpedo tubes removed and her six and nine-inch guns exchanged for five 8 inches (20.3 cm) 45 calibre guns and eight six-inch 45 calibre guns. Her revolver cannon were also exchanged for ten three-pounder guns. Arbazov confirms that the torpedo tubes were removed and says that she had her nine-inch guns replaced by five 8-inch, the fifth being placed at the stern, the old six-inch guns were exchanged for newer, more powerful models, and four 47-mm and four 120-mm guns were added on the upper deck, presumably replacing the old revolver cannon.

External links

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Description

History

Further reading

External links