Russian gunboat Korietz
Encyclopedia
Korietz ' onMouseout='HidePop("51417")' href="/topics/Korean_people">Korean
into English) was a gunboat
in Russian Imperial Navy. She was the lead vessel in a class of nine ships in her class (including the Mandzhur and Khivinets served on the Baltic
, Donets, Zaporozhets, Kubanets, Terets, Uralets and Chernomorets on the Black Sea
.) The etymology of the names of this class of ships was: Korietz is a Russian word for "Korea
n man", Mandzhur - "Manchuria
man", Khivinets - "Khiva
man", Donets - "Don Cossack
" (literally "Don
man"), Kubanets - "Kuban Cossack
" ("Kuban
man"), Terets - "Terek Cossack" ("Terek
man"), Uralets - "Ural Cossack" ("Ural
man"), Chernomorets - "Black Sea
man" and Zaporozhets - "Zaporozhian Cossack".
, Sweden
at the Bergsund Mekaniksa shipyards in December 1885, launched on August 7, 1886, and commissioned in 1888.
Assigned to service with the Russian Pacific Fleet in 1895, she was a frequent visitor to ports in Korea
, Japan
and northern China
. During the Boxer Rebellion
, she participated in the Eight-Nation Alliance
attack on Taku Forts
on June 1900. During this battle, she was hit six times by shells fired by the Chinese defenders, and suffered nine crewmen killed and 20 wounded.
Together with the cruiser
, Korietz was dispatched from Port Arthur
to the main Korean port of Chemulpo (modern-day Incheon
) in early 1904 to protect Russian interests, as diplomatic tensions continued to increase between Russia and the Empire of Japan
. After the Russian transport Sungari arrived at Chemulpo on 7 February 1904, reporting the sighting of a large Japanese force approaching, Korietz (under the command of G.P.Belyaev) was ordered to return to Port Arthur to report and request instructions. In the early morning of 8 February 1904, Korietz spotted outside the Chemulpo roadstead, and mistaking it for a fellow Russian ship, loaded its guns for a salute. On closing in, the crew of the Korietz realized their mistake and in the ensuing confusion the guns were discharged. Chiyoda responded by launching a torpedo
. Both sides missed, but this was the first actual exchange of fire in the Russo-Japanese War
, and it is highly unclear which side actually opened fire first. Korietz retreated back to Chemulpo harbor.
In the subsequent Battle of Chemulpo Bay
, Captain Vsevolod Rudnev
of the Varyag refused an ultimatum by Imperial Japanese Navy
admiral Uryu Sotokichi
to surrender, and on February 9, 1904 attempted to break through the Japanese squadron from Chemulpo to the open sea. Vastly outnumbered and outgunned, Korietz fired 52 rounds at the Japanese ships, but was at a distance that most of its shots did not even reach the Japanese fleet. Varyag took heavy damage; Korietz suffered from only light damage from sharpnel with no casaulties. Unable to break past the Japanese squadron by mid-afternoon, Korietz and Varyag returned to Chemulpo harbor, where both took refuge near the neutral warships. At 1600 the same day, Korietz was scuttled by its crew by blowing up two ammunition magazines. The crew was taken aboard a French cruiser "Pascal", taken to Saigon, French Indochina
, and returned to Russia. In St. Petersburg all the officers were awarded the Order of St. George
(4th class), the highest military decoration of the Russian Empire.
After the end of the Russo-Japanese War, the wreckage of Korietz was raised by Japanese engineers, and scrapped.
, Russia. She was of the Gilyak class. At the end of the First World War she participated in the Battle of Moon Sound
, but was blown up by her crew on August 8, 1915 in to avoid having to be surrendered to German forces.
Korean people
The Korean people are an ethnic group originating in the Korean peninsula and Manchuria. Koreans are one of the most ethnically and linguistically homogeneous groups in the world.-Names:...
into English) was a gunboat
Gunboat
A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies.-History:...
in Russian Imperial Navy. She was the lead vessel in a class of nine ships in her class (including the Mandzhur and Khivinets served on the Baltic
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...
, Donets, Zaporozhets, Kubanets, Terets, Uralets and Chernomorets on the Black Sea
Black Sea
The Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...
.) The etymology of the names of this class of ships was: Korietz is a Russian word for "Korea
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
n man", Mandzhur - "Manchuria
Manchuria
Manchuria is a historical name given to a large geographic region in northeast Asia. Depending on the definition of its extent, Manchuria usually falls entirely within the People's Republic of China, or is sometimes divided between China and Russia. The region is commonly referred to as Northeast...
man", Khivinets - "Khiva
Khiva
Khiva is a city of approximately 50,000 people located in Xorazm Province, Uzbekistan. It is the former capital of Khwarezmia and the Khanate of Khiva...
man", Donets - "Don Cossack
Don Cossacks
Don Cossacks were Cossacks who settled along the middle and lower Don.- Etymology and origins :The Don Cossack Host was a frontier military organization from the end of the 16th until the early 20th century....
" (literally "Don
Don River (Russia)
The Don River is one of the major rivers of Russia. It rises in the town of Novomoskovsk 60 kilometres southeast from Tula, southeast of Moscow, and flows for a distance of about 1,950 kilometres to the Sea of Azov....
man"), Kubanets - "Kuban Cossack
Kuban Cossacks
Kuban Cossacks or Kubanians are Cossacks who live in the Kuban region of Russia. Most of the Kuban Cossacks are of descendants of two major groups who were re-settled in the Western Northern Caucasus during the Caucasus War in the late 18th century...
" ("Kuban
Kuban
Kuban is a geographic region of Southern Russia surrounding the Kuban River, on the Black Sea between the Don Steppe, Volga Delta and the Caucasus...
man"), Terets - "Terek Cossack" ("Terek
Terek
The Terek River is a major river in the Northern Caucasus, flowing through Georgia and Russia into the Caspian Sea. It rises in Georgia near the juncture of the The Greater Caucasus Mountain Range and the Khokh Range, to the southwest of Mount Kazbek, then flows north through North Ossetia and...
man"), Uralets - "Ural Cossack" ("Ural
Ural (region)
Ural is a geographical region located around the Ural Mountains, between the East European and West Siberian plains. It extends approximately from north to south, from the Arctic Ocean to the bend of Ural River near Orsk city. The boundary between Europe and Asia runs along the eastern side of...
man"), Chernomorets - "Black Sea
Black Sea
The Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...
man" and Zaporozhets - "Zaporozhian Cossack".
Operational history
Korietz was laid down in StockholmStockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
at the Bergsund Mekaniksa shipyards in December 1885, launched on August 7, 1886, and commissioned in 1888.
Assigned to service with the Russian Pacific Fleet in 1895, she was a frequent visitor to ports in Korea
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
, 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...
and northern 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...
. During the Boxer Rebellion
Boxer Rebellion
The Boxer Rebellion, also called the Boxer Uprising by some historians or the Righteous Harmony Society Movement in northern China, was a proto-nationalist movement by the "Righteous Harmony Society" , or "Righteous Fists of Harmony" or "Society of Righteous and Harmonious Fists" , in China between...
, she participated in the Eight-Nation Alliance
Eight-Nation Alliance
The Eight-Nation Alliance was an alliance of Austria-Hungary, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States whose military forces intervened in China to suppress the anti-foreign Boxers and relieve the siege of the diplomatic legations in Beijing .- Events :The...
attack on Taku Forts
Taku Forts
The Dagu Forts , also called the Peiho Forts are forts located by the Hai River estuary, in Tanggu District, Tianjin municipality, in northeastern China. They are located 60 km southeast of the Tianjin urban center.-History:The first fort was built during the reign of the Ming Jiajing...
on June 1900. During this battle, she was hit six times by shells fired by the Chinese defenders, and suffered nine crewmen killed and 20 wounded.
Together with the cruiser
Cruiser
A cruiser is a type of warship. The term has been in use for several hundreds of years, and has had different meanings throughout this period...
, Korietz was dispatched from Port Arthur
Lüshunkou
Lüshunkou is a district in the municipality of Dalian, Liaoning province, China. Also called Lüshun City or Lüshun Port, it was formerly known as both Port Arthur and Ryojun....
to the main Korean port of Chemulpo (modern-day Incheon
Incheon
The Incheon Metropolitan City is located in northwestern South Korea. The city was home to just 4,700 people when Jemulpo port was built in 1883. Today 2.76 million people live in the city, making it Korea’s third most populous city after Seoul and Busan Metropolitan City...
) in early 1904 to protect Russian interests, as diplomatic tensions continued to increase between Russia and the Empire of Japan
Empire of Japan
The Empire of Japan is the name of the state of Japan that existed from the Meiji Restoration on 3 January 1868 to the enactment of the post-World War II Constitution of...
. After the Russian transport Sungari arrived at Chemulpo on 7 February 1904, reporting the sighting of a large Japanese force approaching, Korietz (under the command of G.P.Belyaev) was ordered to return to Port Arthur to report and request instructions. In the early morning of 8 February 1904, Korietz spotted outside the Chemulpo roadstead, and mistaking it for a fellow Russian ship, loaded its guns for a salute. On closing in, the crew of the Korietz realized their mistake and in the ensuing confusion the guns were discharged. Chiyoda responded by launching a torpedo
Torpedo
The modern torpedo is a self-propelled missile weapon with an explosive warhead, launched above or below the water surface, propelled underwater towards a target, and designed to detonate either on contact with it or in proximity to it.The term torpedo was originally employed for...
. Both sides missed, but this was the first actual exchange of fire in 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...
, and it is highly unclear which side actually opened fire first. Korietz retreated back to Chemulpo harbor.
In the subsequent Battle of Chemulpo Bay
Battle of Chemulpo Bay
The Battle of Chemulpo Bay was an early naval battle in the Russo-Japanese War , which took place on 9 February 1904, off the coast of present-day Incheon, Korea.-Background:...
, Captain Vsevolod Rudnev
Vsevolod Rudnev
Vsevolod Fyodorovich Rudnev was a career naval officer in the Imperial Russian Navy, noted for his heroic role in the Battle of Chemulpo Bay during the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905.-Biography:...
of the Varyag refused an ultimatum by 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...
admiral Uryu Sotokichi
Uryu Sotokichi
Baron was an early admiral of the Imperial Japanese Navy, active in the Russo-Japanese War, most notably at the Battle of Chemulpo Bay and the Battle of Tsushima...
to surrender, and on February 9, 1904 attempted to break through the Japanese squadron from Chemulpo to the open sea. Vastly outnumbered and outgunned, Korietz fired 52 rounds at the Japanese ships, but was at a distance that most of its shots did not even reach the Japanese fleet. Varyag took heavy damage; Korietz suffered from only light damage from sharpnel with no casaulties. Unable to break past the Japanese squadron by mid-afternoon, Korietz and Varyag returned to Chemulpo harbor, where both took refuge near the neutral warships. At 1600 the same day, Korietz was scuttled by its crew by blowing up two ammunition magazines. The crew was taken aboard a French cruiser "Pascal", taken to Saigon, French Indochina
French Indochina
French Indochina was part of the French colonial empire in southeast Asia. A federation of the three Vietnamese regions, Tonkin , Annam , and Cochinchina , as well as Cambodia, was formed in 1887....
, and returned to Russia. In St. Petersburg all the officers were awarded the Order of St. George
Order of St. George
The Military Order of the Holy Great-Martyr and the Triumphant George The Military Order of the Holy Great-Martyr and the Triumphant George The Military Order of the Holy Great-Martyr and the Triumphant George (also known as Order of St. George the Triumphant, Russian: Военный орден Св...
(4th class), the highest military decoration of the Russian Empire.
After the end of the Russo-Japanese War, the wreckage of Korietz was raised by Japanese engineers, and scrapped.
Second gunboat
There was a second gunboat named Korietz, laid down in 1906 at the Putilov Plant in Saint PetersburgSaint 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...
, Russia. She was of the Gilyak class. At the end of the First World War she participated in the Battle of Moon Sound
Battle of Moon Sound
The Battle of Moon Sound was a naval battle in World War I, fought on 17 October 1917 between naval forces of the German and Russian Empires in the Baltic Sea....
, but was blown up by her crew on August 8, 1915 in to avoid having to be surrendered to German forces.
External links
- Encyclopedia article for Korietz
- New York Times 1904 article about the Battle of Chemulpo Bay
- Taku Forts May-June 1900
- http://www.battleships-cruisers.co.uk/russian_gunboats.htm http://www.agenziabozzo.it/navi_da_guerra/C-Navi%20da%20Guerra/C-523.htm