Russian battleship Imperator Nikolai I
Encyclopedia
Imperator Nikolai I was a Russia
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
n pre-dreadnought battleship built for 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...
in the late 1880s
1880s
The 1880s was the decade that spanned from January 1, 1880 to December 31, 1889. They occurred at the core period of the Second Industrial Revolution. Most Western countries experienced a large economic boom, due to the mass production of railroads and other more convenient methods of travel...
. She participated in the celebration of the 400th anniversary of the discovery of America in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
in 1892. She assigned to the Mediterranean Squadron and visited Toulon
Toulon
Toulon is a town in southern France and a large military harbor on the Mediterranean coast, with a major French naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur region, Toulon is the capital of the Var department in the former province of Provence....
in October 1893. She sailed for the Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
during the First Sino-Japanese War
First Sino-Japanese War
The First Sino-Japanese War was fought between Qing Dynasty China and Meiji Japan, primarily over control of Korea...
and remained in the Pacific until late 1896, when she returned to the Mediterranean Squadron and supported Russian interests during the Cretan Revolt. She returned to the Baltic in April 1898 and had a lengthy refit, which replaced all of her machinery, before returning to the Mediterranean in 1901.
Returning to the Baltic during 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...
Imperator Nikolai I was refitted in late 1904 to serve as the flagship
Flagship
A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, reflecting the custom of its commander, characteristically a flag officer, flying a distinguishing flag...
of the Third Pacific Squadron under Rear Admiral
Rear Admiral
Rear admiral is a naval commissioned officer rank above that of a commodore and captain, and below that of a vice admiral. It is generally regarded as the lowest of the "admiral" ranks, which are also sometimes referred to as "flag officers" or "flag ranks"...
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:...
. She was slightly damaged during 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...
and was surrendered, along with most of the Third Pacific Squadron, by Admiral Nebogatov to the Japanese the following day. She was taken into the Imperial Japanese Navy
Imperial Japanese Navy
The Imperial Japanese Navy was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1869 until 1947, when it was dissolved following Japan's constitutional renunciation of the use of force as a means of settling international disputes...
under the new name of and she served as a gunnery training ship until 1910 and then became a first-class coast defense ship and training vessel. She was sunk as a target ship
Target ship
A target ship is a vessel — typically an obsolete or captured warship — used for naval gunnery practice or for weapons testing.-Rationale:Sinking redundant warships is an effective way of testing new weapons and warships in as realistic a manner as possible. Whilst practice torpedoes are fired...
in October 1915.
Development
Imperator Nikolai I was originally intended as a smaller ship than her half-sisterSister ship
A sister ship is a ship of the same class as, or of virtually identical design to, another ship. Such vessels share a near-identical hull and superstructure layout, similar displacement, and roughly comparable features and equipment...
along the lines of the Brazilian
Brazilian Navy
The Brazilian Navy is a branch of the Brazilian Armed Forces responsible for conducting naval operations. It is the largest navy in Latin America...
battleship , but armed with 12 inches (30 cm) guns. A contract was signed on 6 November 1885 with the 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...
for a 7572 LT ship armed with two 12-inch guns in a forward 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...
. However, this was quickly cancelled and a contract was quickly let with the Franco-Russian Works
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...
for a repeat of the Imperator Aleksandr II even though the earlier ship had been built by the Baltic Works. The Franco-Russian Works had difficulties getting the drawings and was forced to redraft some of them. They took the opportunity to change the design in a number of relatively minor ways while doing so. However, the substitution of a gun turret
Gun turret
A gun turret is a weapon mount that protects the crew or mechanism of a projectile-firing weapon and at the same time lets the weapon be aimed and fired in many directions.The turret is also a rotating weapon platform...
for Imperator Aleksandr IIs barbette mount was made in 1887, well after the start of construction and proved problematic. The design of the turret was not finalized until April 1889 and work on the forward part of the hull had to cease for more than six months because the dimensions of the turret were not yet known. The turret proved to be 44.9 LT heavier than the older ship's barbette and made the Imperator Nikolai I slightly bow-heavy despite a reduction in the height of the belt armor in compensation.
Description
Imperator Nikolai I was 333 in 6 in (101.65 m) long at the waterline and 346 in 6 in (105.61 m) long overall. She had a beamBeam (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 24 in 3 in (7.39 m), 1 in 3 in (0.381 m) more than designed. She displaced 9594 long tons (9,748 t) at load, over 1000 LT (1,016 t) more than her designed displacement of 8440 LT (8,575 t).
Imperator Nikolai I had two triple-cylinder vertical compound steam engines, each driving a single propeller
Propeller
A propeller is a type of fan that transmits power by converting rotational motion into thrust. A pressure difference is produced between the forward and rear surfaces of the airfoil-shaped blade, and a fluid is accelerated behind the blade. Propeller dynamics can be modeled by both Bernoulli's...
. 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 non-superheated steam to the engines. They 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 8000 ihp. On trials, the powerplant produced a total of 7842 ihp, and a top speed of 14 knots. She carried 847 long tons (860.6 t) of coal that gave her a range of 2630 nautical miles (4,870.8 km) at a speed of 10 knots.
The main armament of the Imperator Aleksandr II class ships was a pair of 12 inches (305 mm) Obukhov Model 1877 30-caliber
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. Imperator Nikolai I carried hers in a twin-gun turret forward. The four 9 inches (229 mm) Obukhov Model 1877 35-caliber 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 given a pronounced tumblehome
Tumblehome
In ship designing, the tumblehome is the narrowing of a ship's hull with greater distance above the water-line. Expressed more technically, it is present when the beam at the uppermost deck is less than the maximum beam of the vessel....
to increase their arcs of fire ahead and 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-caliber 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 embrasure
Embrasure
In military architecture, an embrasure is the opening in a crenellation or battlement between the two raised solid portions or merlons, sometimes called a crenel or crenelle...
s 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 Nikolai I carried six 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. One was in the bow, two tubes were on each broadside and a tube was in the stern.
Most of Imperator Nikolai Is armor was imported from the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and some deliveries were delayed which caused problems during construction. The height of the waterline armor belt was reduced 6 inches (15 cm) in comparison to that of her half-sister, being 8 feet (2.4 m) tall, of which 3 foot (0.9144 m) was above the designed waterline and 5 feet (1.5 m) below. Most of the rest of the protection matched that of Imperator Aleksandr II other than the waterline belt forward which only reduced to a minimum of six inches rather than the 3.9 inches (10 cm) of the older ship and the walls of the conning tower
Conning tower
A conning tower is a raised platform on a ship or submarine, often armored, from which an officer can con the vessel; i.e., give directions to the helmsman. It is usually located as high on the ship as practical, to give the conning team good visibility....
were only six inches thick, 2 inches (5 cm) less than her half-sister.
History
Nicholas I of Russia
Nicholas I , was the Emperor of Russia from 1825 until 1855, known as one of the most reactionary of the Russian monarchs. On the eve of his death, the Russian Empire reached its historical zenith spanning over 20 million square kilometers...
. She was built by the Franco-Russian Works
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 on 4 August 1886, launched on 1 June 1889, and completed in July 1891, although her trials lasted until the spring of 1892. She sailed in June 1892 for New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
to participate in the celebration honoring the 400th anniversary of the discovery of America. Upon her departure she was assigned to the Mediterranean Squadron and visited Toulon in October 1893. She sailed for the Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
during the First Sino-Japanese War
First Sino-Japanese War
The First Sino-Japanese War was fought between Qing Dynasty China and Meiji Japan, primarily over control of Korea...
and arrived at Nagasaki
Nagasaki
is the capital and the largest city of Nagasaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu in Japan. Nagasaki was founded by the Portuguese in the second half of the 16th century on the site of a small fishing village, formerly part of Nishisonogi District...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
on 28 April 1895, before sailing for Chefoo
Yantai
Yantai is a prefecture-level city in northeastern Shandong province, People's Republic of China. Located on the southern coast of the Bohai Sea and the eastern coast of the Laizhou Bay, Yantai borders the cities of Qingdao and Weihai to the southwest and east respectively.The largest fishing...
in China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
. She remained in the Pacific until late 1896, when she returned to the Mediterranean Squadron and supported Russian interests during the Cretan Revolt. She returned to the Baltic in April 1898 for an extensive, multi-year, refit. Her machinery was replaced with Belleville water-tube boiler
Water-tube boiler
A water tube boiler is a type of boiler in which water circulates in tubes heated externally by the fire. Fuel is burned inside the furnace, creating hot gas which heats water in the steam-generating tubes...
s and vertical triple expansion steam engines. Her after superstructure was cut down one deck abaft
Glossary of nautical terms
This is a glossary of nautical terms; some remain current, many date from the 17th-19th century. See also Wiktionary's nautical terms, :Category:Nautical terms, and Nautical metaphors in English.- A :...
the mainmast and most of her 47 mm and 37 mm revolving cannon were removed. Only two 37 mm revolvers were retained and she received sixteen 47 mm and two 37 mm single-barreled guns in their place.
She returned to the Mediterranean in September 1901 and remained there until 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...
when she was transferred to the Baltic to be refitted in late 1904 to serve as the flagship
Flagship
A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, reflecting the custom of its commander, characteristically a flag officer, flying a distinguishing flag...
of the Third Pacific Squadron under Rear Admiral
Rear Admiral
Rear admiral is a naval commissioned officer rank above that of a commodore and captain, and below that of a vice admiral. It is generally regarded as the lowest of the "admiral" ranks, which are also sometimes referred to as "flag officers" or "flag ranks"...
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:...
. The squadron departed Liepāja
Liepaja
Liepāja ; ), is a republican city in western Latvia, located on the Baltic Sea directly at 21°E. It is the largest city in the Kurzeme Region of Latvia, the third largest city in Latvia after Riga and Daugavpils and an important ice-free port...
on 15 January 1905 for the Pacific. She was slightly damaged during 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...
, receiving one hit from a twelve-inch gun, two from eight-inch guns and two from six-inch guns, and suffered only 5 killed and 35 men wounded. She was surrendered, along with most of the Third Pacific Squadron, by Admiral Nebogatov the following day.
On 6 June 1905, she was taken into the Imperial Japanese Navy
Imperial Japanese Navy
The Imperial Japanese Navy was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1869 until 1947, when it was dissolved following Japan's constitutional renunciation of the use of force as a means of settling international disputes...
and renamed Iki, after Iki Island
Iki Island
Iki Island is an island lying between the island of Kyūshū and the Tsushima islands in the Tsushima Strait, the eastern channel of the Korea Strait. It is currently part of Nagasaki Prefecture of Japan. The city of Iki is the centre of the local government. The island has three ports.The island’s...
in the Sea of Japan
Sea of Japan
The Sea of Japan is a marginal sea of the western Pacific Ocean, between the Asian mainland, the Japanese archipelago and Sakhalin. It is bordered by Japan, North Korea, Russia and South Korea. Like the Mediterranean Sea, it has almost no tides due to its nearly complete enclosure from the Pacific...
, near site of the Battle of Tsushima. She served as a gunnery training ship until 12 December 1910 when she was redesignated as a first-class coast defense ship and a training vessel. Some of her 6-inch guns were removed in 1910 and replaced by six 120 millimetres (4.7 in) 45-caliber guns and some 76.2 millimetres (3 in) 12-pounder guns were also added. She was stricken 1 May 1915 and sunk as a target by the battlecruisers and , although Watts and Gordon say that she was scrapped in 1922.