"Tsesarevich" at the wall - the holes are repaired, the mast is secured with additional guys, because after the fight they began to sway.

Upon arrival in Qingdao on the evening of July 29, the commander was in no hurry to issue orders to replenish coal reserves and order the materials necessary for repairs. He was not inspired by the example of Novik and Besshumny, who had arrived earlier and were already preparing to leave for the breakthrough. Even worse, Captain 1st Rank Ivanov found it convenient to evade the recommendations that the commander of the Fearless, Lieutenant P.L., approached him for. Trukhachev (1867-1916).

Squadron battleship "Tsesarevich" in Qingdao. Starboard

Arriving on the morning of July 30 together with the "Merciless", he apparently believed that the ships that had broken through should go to Vladivostok together. By taking overall command and, with the help of his team, accelerating the replenishment of coal reserves on the destroyers, the Tsesarevich could take an entire detachment to sea. Depending on the situation, he could either make a breakthrough to Vladivostok or go south to wait for the arrival of the 2nd Pacific Squadron in hard-to-reach areas of French or even foreign colonies. A march to link up with the Vladivostok detachment of cruisers was not ruled out.
Squadron battleship "Tsesarevich" in Qingdao. Bow turret and starboard side

All this was quite realistic given the presence of special cruisers of the Voluntary Fleet in the Russian fleet. After all, their operations already at the beginning of the war caused a great stir among firms involved in military smuggling. It was planned to widely develop cruising operations, which could be quite realistically connected with the fate of the ships that broke through. Let us remember that S.O. Makarov considered it quite possible that the battleship Oslyabya, captured at the beginning of the war in the Red Sea, would break through to Port Arthur (and, possibly, to Vladivostok).
Squadron battleship "Tsesarevich" in Qingdao. Damage to the second chimney

But the commander of yesterday’s flagship and his staff did not find the strength to fully fulfill their duty and prevent disarmament in neutral Qingdao. The ships were left to their own devices and acted completely separately. "Novik", in a hurry to leave before morning, and without receiving help from the "Tsarevich", left the port with an incomplete supply of coal. This circumstance played, as it soon became clear, a fatal role in his fate. "Besshumny" made every effort to cope with the repairs as soon as possible, before the Japanese arrived at the port, and have time to leave for the breakthrough. "Besstrashny", waiting for his readiness, hurried to receive coal. There is no mention in the documents of assistance to the ships during all this time from the “Tsesarevich”.
Having declined all initiatives and being quite satisfied with the current circumstances, commander N.M. Ivanov retired from work with a sense of duty fulfilled.
Squadron battleship "Tsesarevich" in Qingdao. Medium six-inch tower

On the morning of July 30, he went ashore to a German hospital, leaving his ship to solve the problems he, Ivanov, had created on his own. Admiral Matusevich also ended up there. But the ship, despite the strange behavior of its two most senior commanders, did not give up. Hope for the possibility of repairs and a subsequent breakthrough was aroused by a telegram from Emperor Nicholas II transmitted to the ships on July 31, which encouraged the crew “in the consciousness of sacredly and honorably fulfilling their duty to the throne and homeland.”
German orchestra on the forefront of the squadron battleship "Tsesarevich" in Qingdao, summer 1904

Admiral Matusevich’s response telegram addressed to the head of the Naval Ministry expressed the feelings of reverence with which everyone on the battleship and destroyers received the “highly merciful words” of the emperor, and expressed wishes for “sending health and prosperity to the beloved sovereign, the emperor and the highly-born heir.” Further, loyal feelings and the unanimous desire of the ship crews were expressed to “again carry our lives to the glory of the throne and the fatherland.” Alas, reality did not confirm these sublime feelings of all-devotion to the throne. The Germans, however, in order not to expose the ships to Japanese attacks from the sea, transferred them to the internal basin on July 31, and the governor announced on August 1 that the Tsarevich was allowed a 6-day stay. It was explained by the need to bring the ships into the condition necessary to go to sea (but not for full combat readiness). On the day of arrival, the "Merciless" was first required to leave the port within 24 hours (as well as the "Novik" before that), and then, citing the permission of the German Emperor, the stay period was extended until midnight from August 3 to 4.

But on August 2, the attitude of the usually kind German authorities suddenly changed. At 10 am, the commanders of all ships were announced the order of Kaiser Wilhelm II to immediately lower their flags and disarm by 11 o'clock. Everyone was at a loss as to the reason for such exceptional treachery. After all, in all the years preceding the war, Russian ships had become accustomed to the feelings of cordiality, hospitality and even friendship constantly expressed by the German authorities (especially in Kiel). Germany clearly sympathized with Russia in that war, and German ships loaded with coal were already preparing (under contracts concluded with private companies) to accompany the march of Z.P.’s squadron. Rozhestvensky.
Squadron battleship "Tsesarevich" in Qingdao, summer 1904

But N.A. Matusevich, whether due to depression from the wound he experienced or excessive delicacy, did not even try to explain to the Germans the absurdity of their demands: ships that had begun repairs needed much more time to go to sea. He did not consider it necessary to use his right to be strong, which allowed him to simply ignore the dishonest German ultimatum. The authorities in St. Petersburg, as is often done in Russia and as just happened with the cruisers Petersburg and Smolensk operating in the Indian Ocean, chose to simply disown their ships. The unprofessionalism of the supreme authorities again showed itself in all its ugliness.
To Qingdao

Without waiting for a response from St. Petersburg to his urgent request, Matusevich gave the order to the ships to obey German demands. The ships lowered their flags and began unloading ammunition ashore that same day. We handed over to the Germans locks from 75-mm guns, parts from locks of large guns and two covers of spool boxes for medium-pressure cylinders. They took all the guns and revolvers ashore, leaving only 50 for guard duty.
The squadron battleship "Tsesarevich" in Qingdao after its arrival. At the side there are rafts from which the sailors are repairing holes. There is a sun awning on the bow.

That day, as if already knowing about what had happened, a Japanese destroyer showed up at the port. The Japanese did not plan to quarrel with Germany, and they did not attempt to capture the battleship. Satisfied with the information about the disarmament of the battleship, the destroyer immediately left. The countdown for the imprisonment of ships has begun.
"Tsesarevich" with open stern ports of 75 mm guns.

With ease, with one stroke of the pen, abandoning a magnificent warship, the construction of which alone took five years, V this decision cannot be called anything other than a crime. However, they did something even more magical with “Diana” in Saigon. Despite the fact that the French authorities did not make any demands for disarmament and guaranteed that all repairs to the ship would be carried out, the order for disarmament was sent here too. And this happened on August 22, when the ship could, if desired, go to sea and probably join Z.P.’s squadron. Rozhestvensky. In the name of the Admiral General, the order was given by the head of the Naval Ministry, Vice Admiral Avelan. And in front of the wisdom of this order, one can only shrug.
"Tsesarevich" - broken pipes, traces of shrapnel hits on the hull and boats.

So the St. Petersburg rulers, it is not clear what they were thinking about, easily “surrendered” all the ships that had broken through. For some reason they were considered unnecessary for the war. Submitting to the will of the Admiral General, the Tsarevich also plunged into a new, now unimpeded, leisurely - for the entire war - repair period. Before the group could leave the ship before disarmament, as was possible on the Diana, the battleship’s officers, along with the routine of the repair and shore service, began to comprehend the invaluable combat experience that had fallen to their lot. After all, he could still be useful. How, once on August 1, 1904, the 2nd squadron of the Pacific Fleet began a campaign in Kronstadt.
"Tsesarevich" - sealing a hole in the side. To make the foremast lighter, the spar was removed and placed on the deck near the bow wheelhouse.

Fate, too, did not leave the optimistic ship with its worries - it arranged so that one of the officers (flag officer of the headquarters, Lieutenant M.A. Kedrov) had the opportunity, like three officers of the Diana, to take part in the campaign and battle of squadron Z. P. Rozhestvensky. It is unknown with what attention (or whether it was considered necessary at all) Zinoviy Petrovich treated their experience, but Lieutenant Kedrov, who had the most information (flag officer of the headquarters of Makarov and V.K. Vitgeft), received an appointment that was far from the tasks of summarizing the experience - artillery officer on the cruiser (armed passenger steamer) "Ural" The system, as if it had set itself the goal of destroying the fleet, remained true to itself.
"Tsesarevich" - the ship's ladder was damaged in battle, so a German ladder with wheels was installed at the side.

The main question in the fate of the Tsarevich remains unanswered - why the ministry, without blinking, agreed to disarm the ship. What seemingly energetic efforts should have been made to preserve for the war the magnificent, newest battleship, with its crew under fire! But instead, an absurd disarmament order was issued that caused general consternation.
"Tsesarevich" - view of the deck with rowing ships. The stern tube was heavily damaged by hits from two large-caliber shells and was tied together with additional cables to prevent it from falling apart.

The heroes of this dark story did not leave their explanations. Lieutenant A.N. also bypassed it in his work (“The significance and work of the headquarters based on the experience of the Russian-Japanese war”). Shcheglov (1874-1953). But there is no doubt that here, too, the result of the activities of the General Staff was revealed, all of whose military orders, in the opinion of A.N. Shcheglov, “were unfounded and downright harmful.” As a result, “the fleet died from disorganization, and this is entirely the fault of the Main Naval Staff, which rightfully owns 90% of the failures of our fleet.” Without risking making a big mistake, we can offer the following explanations for the fate of the “Tsarevich” in Qing-dao, which are quite consistent with by the “chaotic” nature of the headquarters’ activities, which is so openly discussed in the aforementioned work of Lieutenant Shcheglov.
"Tsesarevich" in 1905 after repair - the foremast was completely removed and new chimneys were installed.

Turning to the motives that at least somehow made it possible to understand the decision of the St. Petersburg strategists, one cannot escape the feeling of their involvement or direct belonging to some virtual world, where the laws of logic and common sense do not apply. For how else can we explain that, seemingly in mortal combat with an extremely active, active and enterprising enemy, while suffering constant setbacks, having incompetently lost the first squadron and preparing the second for a campaign, they so carelessly abandoned the experience of war and the two newest ones, like the air of the necessary own battleships, from the "Slava", despite the opportunity to have time to put it into operation, and the "Tsesarevich", which could well have avoided disarmament. And at the same time - here is the plot for an exciting documentary detective story - desperate, although obviously doomed to failure (the whole deal could not take place without the knowledge of England, which was then in an alliance with Japan) attempts to smuggle the acquisition of the notorious “exotic cruisers” were made.
On the "Tsesarevich" during repair work

In front of the eyes of the whole world and to its ridicule, for more than a year, a spectacle of multi-step intrigues was played out with many “intermediaries” flocking for profit, promising to “arrange” the purchase, in which the main role with a false passport, in a wig and with a false beard was played by someone already familiar to us longtime adjutant of Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich, Rear Admiral A.M. Abaza. This adventure could also be associated with the bluff of the emperor, who, despite the failures, continued to treat the enemy condescendingly or even contemptuously (it is known that in resolutions he allowed himself expressions like “macaque”), and therefore a demonstrative refusal of the “Tsarevich” could represent the breadth of the Russian soul and the endless possibilities of Russia, capable of crushing the enemy, regardless of the number of battleships.

The internal antipathy of the chief of staff towards the battleship, which had aroused his righteous anger and indignation for so long, could also manifest itself. The withdrawal of the battleship from the game could somehow be combined in the sick imagination of Zinovy ​​Petrovich with triumph over his opponents in the eternal behind-the-scenes bureaucratic struggle. Who knows the truth now...

1905 Internment in Qingdao. Russian destroyers (from left to right) - “Brave”, “Boikiy”, “Ruthless”, “Fearless”, “Silent”. The mainmast of the Tsesarevich is visible in the background.

“Tsesarevich” Part I. Squadron battleship. 1899-1906 Melnikov Rafail Mikhailovich

Appendix No. 3 Damage to the squadron battleship “Tsesarevich” in battle on July 28, 1904*

Appendix No. 3

Compiled in Qingdao in August 1904 by the ship's officers under the leadership of senior officer Captain 2nd Rank Maksimov

* RGAVMF, fund 315, inventory 1, file 1534.

1. A shell that hit the poop on the left side of the left towing bollard pierced the left bulwark 1/3" thick [i.e. 8.5 mm - hereinafter editor's note] and exploded when it hit the deck flat on the poop , as a result of which its gases tore out the iron sheets of the bulwark over a distance of 11 m and slightly bent the armor sheets, and also pushed through the wooden and iron decks, making a hole 4 feet 2 1/2 inches long [i.e., about 1.3 m] and a width of 2 feet 3 inches [i.e., about 0.7 m], but did not break the beams and stringers, limiting itself to severe denting. This projectile, apparently, was a 6" high-explosive caliber. Having penetrated into the wardroom room with the force of gases and fragments, he completely broke the iron desk and pierced the waterproof bulkhead with fragments, which is between the officers' quarters in the battery deck and the wardroom (the thickness of the waterproof bulkhead is 1/4 "[i.e. 6 mm]. When this shell exploded, 60 conductors laid under a wooden cornice in the wardroom were severed.

2. The second shell on the poop pierced the port side bulwark and struck the towing bollard, the wall thickness of which was 2 1/2" [i.e., 63 mm], and the outer diameter of the bollard was 14 3/4" [i.e. e. 375 mm], as a result of which the shell exploded and pierced the deck on the poop, breaking out a piece of the beam and stringer, just at the place where they were fastened with corner iron. The hole in the deck on the poop was 1 foot 11 inches long [i.e. i.e. about 1 m] and a width of 1 foot 8 m inches (i.e. 0.53 m]. This shell killed one person in the head and wounded two who were in the wardroom. One of them had his left hand cut off by shrapnel hands, and a piece of meat in the upper part of the left leg was torn out of another. The wounded were at a distance of 8 m from the place where the shell exploded, while the one killed by a shrapnel to the head was located at the ajar doors of the 12" tower. The armor of the 12" tower was slightly pierced by fragments of this shell. the resulting dents, the largest of which were about 1/4" deep. Both of the above-described shells hit the battleship from a distance of 36–38 cables at the end of the last battle, with a time interval of about two minutes, while the battleship was writing off circulation. Small parts were damaged by fragments of these two shells one 75 mm gun, which is in the wardroom, namely: 1) the reservoir ring is broken, 2) the tube connecting the sight and the front sight, 3) the trigger tube, 4) the endless screw spring is broken and 5) the wheel for raising the sight is damaged . In addition, the gun has several traces of fragments, the largest of which are 1/8 inch deep [i.e. e. 3 mm] with a length of 1/2 inch and a width of 1/3 inch [i.e. e. 8x12 mm].

3. A shell that hit from a distance of 45 cables at the end of the first battle into the roof of the aft 12" turret, which consists of armor 1 1/3 inches thick and an inner jacket of soft iron 5/6 inches thick, hit exactly the place where the turret roof was fastened with vertical turret armor 10 inches thick and exploded, leaving a dent in the roof armor 4 1/2 inches deep, 2 feet 6 1/2 inches long and 1 foot 7 inches wide [i.e., measuring 675x485 mm], and in the soft the iron of the tower roof jacket received an even larger dent, 7 inches deep, 3 feet 6 inches long, and 1 foot 11 inches wide [i.e., measuring 1.05x0.6 m], with a 2-inch long crack in the lower part of the concavity, and the layer of the roof jacket separated from the layer of the roof armor plate by 3 1/2 inches. Upon impact with the roof, this projectile lifted the lower edge of the roof armor plate, separating it from the vertical turret armor by 1/4 inch, knocking out five one-inch diameter bolts that held the roof together towers with vertical armor using half-inch corner iron, a piece of which one inch long was completely torn off, cutting off 8 rivets that secured this corner iron to the vertical armor of the tower.

When separating the inner jacket from the armored roof sheet, 5 inch-diameter fastening screws were torn out of the jacket, with which the roof jacket was attached to the left dome of the sight. One person who was in the tower was killed in the head by the nut of one of the bolts. Based on the clear traces of copper plating obtained at the site of impact of the head of the projectile, which left a conical mark in the dent, it can be assumed that this projectile had a copper head shock tube. The caliber of this projectile is difficult to determine, but judging by the traces of the impact that fell above the vertical turret armor, it is no less than 10". The fragments of this projectile were reflected in a sheaf into the elevator, which is at the lower aft wheelhouse and, breaking through its two walls, each of which is 1/4 thick 4" and a 1/5" thick aft lower deckhouse wall, along with an inner 1/8" thick galvanized iron wall and a cork spacer between the two walls, fell to the deck, penetrating the iron deckhouse cabinets. A line connecting the center of the shrapnel circle to the point of impact the head of the projectile, inclined to the horizon at an angle of 10 °. Fragments of this projectile on the aft lower bridge at the rangefinder killed one person and wounded one.

Battleship “Tsesarevich” (Damage to the bow tube from a 12-inch shell)

4. A shell that hit the watchman’s cabin on the aft bridge at the end of the battle from a distance of 38–40 cables, flew into the open door of the cabin on the starboard side, broke the soft hair sofa and exploded when it hit the iron deck of the bridge, 1/4 thick inch, leaving a hole 3 feet 5 inches long and 1 foot 4 inches wide [i.e. e. 1.06x0.4 m], and the gases tore off the iron sheet of the upper deckhouse and bent upward. The left door, which was closed, was ripped off its hinges and completely broken, and the iron cabinet located in the upper wheelhouse was also broken. Most of the fragments from this shell, when it exploded, were directed over the left side into the water and therefore did not cause any harm, only leaving traces of their direction on the handrails and iron of the aft bridge. Three fragments of this shell, being directed downward, pierced the walls of the lower deckhouse, consisting of iron sheets 5/24 inch thick and galvanized iron sheets 1/8 inch thick, together with a cork spacer between these two rows of sheets, and fell on the wooden deck.

5. The first shell that hit the battleship was, apparently, a 12" high-explosive shell, fired by the enemy at the beginning of the first battle from a distance of 70 cables. This shell, having pierced an inch-thick bulwark, when it hit the upper deck, exploded at the very six-inch armored supply pipe of the left aft 6" turret, and the gases and fragments of this projectile in the admiral's room destroyed the buffet and tore the porthole half-porch from its hinges. On the armor of the 6" turret, the embrasure semi-porticos and on the guns there were traces and dents from fragments, the largest of which were inches deep, and one embrasure semi-portico was torn from its hinges. The hole from this shell, resulting in the side, was the following dimensions: 9 feet long and 6 wide ft. Three people were wounded by fragments of this shell: two of them, being removed from the bridges, were on the upper deck, and one was wounded in the left aft 6" tower, through the hole in the dome.

6. A fragment from a shell that exploded in the steel hulls of the topping booms for lifting boats pierced the main top and exploded four boxes of 47 mm cartridges (each box had 10 cartridges), and the fragments from these 47 mm shells were directed upward and, having pierced roof of Mars, killed one person on the upper Mars and seriously wounded two more. The explosion of the cartridges tore off the front wall of the top, an inch thick, but the mast, which consists of three layers of iron (total thickness 1 1/12 inches), was not pierced.

Battleship “Tsesarevich” (Part of the foremast between the upper and lower bridges, broken by a 12" shell (view from the right side of the bridge). In the foreground is a fragment of a manual and 47-mm feed winch. On the left in the photo you can see part of the conning tower. This shell killed : Rear Admiral Vitgeft, Lieutenant Azaryev-1, Midshipman Ellis and three lower ranks.)

In the stern of the battleship there are still traces of a shell that hit the lower aft deckhouse on July 27, 1904, on the eve of the squadron’s departure from Port Arthur. This projectile was fired by enemy artillery from a 120 mm gun and, judging by the thickness of the walls and the size of the projectile fragments, is armor-piercing. Flying over the deck of the battleship, the shell lightly touched the pillars standing near the aft deckhouse and, piercing the wall of the latter, which consists of iron sheets 5/24 inches thick and galvanized iron sheets 1/8 inches thick, together with a cork gasket enclosed between them at On impact with the wooden deck, it exploded, producing two large fragments and several medium-sized fragments. One of the large fragments pushed through a 2" wooden deck and an iron (1/3" i.e. 8 mm), leaving a hole in the above decks a foot long and a foot wide [i.e. e. dimensions 0.22x0.15 m], hit a marble board (3/4 ") of the cabinet in the admiral's room, breaking which, slightly pushing through the iron drawer of the cabinet 1/16 inch thick. The second large fragment cut off the leg of one person, who was at a distance of 5 feet from the place where the shell exploded. The gases from this shell damaged the iron (1/16") cabinet located in the lower wheelhouse and completely destroyed telephones communicating with the Golden Mountain and with the fortress headquarters.

7. A hole in the bunk nets near the left gangway, caused by a shell of about 8" or 12" caliber. The time of impact was approximately around 6 o'clock in the evening, when the enemy ships entered the left side and opened fire on the Tsarevich. The distance at that time was not determined and cannot be determined approximately from the hole, because having pierced one side, the shell immediately exploded and, breaking the frame of the upper platform of the ladder, produced a mass of fragments. The explosion spread straight forward, damaging the top of the mesh at a distance of 59" and the bottom at 119", including damage from the mass of fragments. The explosion did not spread further, and the lower deck remained completely intact, which was greatly facilitated by the bunks stacked in front of the nets in several rows, and about 20 bunks were destroyed and torn apart. The volume of complete destruction from the explosion is about 100 cubic meters. ft. The fragments broke the canopies over the porticoes of the commander's cabin and penetrated into the... commander's bedroom, damaging the cabinets and bunk frame. Others, having pierced the upper bulkhead near the nets, hit the bottom of the boat (1/8 "- 3 mm) standing above the nets, but did not cause any other damage to it, and finally, two fragments, flying a distance of 15 feet, pierced the casing of 2/3" thick gangway extensions. The steam winch, located at a distance of twenty feet from the point of impact [6 m], was not damaged by these fragments.

8. Hole 6 in the upper deck of the bakery on its left side was made by a large-caliber high-explosive projectile. Having pierced a 5 mm thick deck, it exploded and the explosion damaged the upper wall of the furnace and the brickwork. The moment this shell hit was about 5 o'clock from a long distance - 50 cables, no less, because the shell hit almost vertically. The direction of greatest damage was straight forward, and was delayed by the brickwork. The volume of complete destruction of the explosion is about 2.5 m?. Large fragments made 1/4 m holes in the aft bulkhead? and the same fragments damaged the aft chimney in the lower part. Small fragments damaged the tiled deck, the bow bulkhead, and the coaming was broken near the middle 6" towers. The fragments pierced the bulkhead separating the bakery from the 4 mm thick garbage machine, the drum, frame, cylinder, rod and steam pipe, the doors were torn out and thrown aside.

9.10. The stern pipe was broken by two shells that hit - the first at the bottom of the right front part of the pipe and the second at the top right, a large high-explosive caliber, since the entire pipe was covered with small fragments, and no large ones were found at all. The moment of impact was in the middle of the second battle, i.e. about 5 hours 30 minutes, when the distance was approximately 45 cables. The first shell penetrated the pipe casing (5 mm) and the pipe (5 mm), after which it exploded and exploded, breaking the cross, all the small pipes, the double T-iron, the squares and damaging another T-iron.

The second shell also pierced the casing and pipe and, exploding inside, broke the crosspiece and tore down the sheets, which had already lost their strength from the first shell. Both shells severely loosened the pipe fastening, and the middle of the left side bent inward, and the top onto the left side. The explosions, due to the mass of barriers in the form of all sorts of fastenings, did not spread far and only scattered small fragments in all directions. The volume of complete destruction is about 300 m?. The fragments damaged the outer part, and many small fragments penetrated down the pipe, riddling the base of the pipe with small holes, and the fragments of the first shell damaged three rows of tubes of boiler No. 13 and the steam feed pipe of boiler No. 14 was broken with fragments 1" thick. The fragments of the second shell increased damage to boiler No. 13 and wounded two stokers at boiler No. 12 and a quartermaster at boiler No. 14. When a shell hit the chimney, large quantities of fragments penetrated the stokers and fell onto the deck.

11. Wooden whaleboat No. 1, located outside on the starboard side, was damaged by fragments from shells that exploded on the side armor and in the water near the ship; it received many small holes. Steam boat No. 1, standing on the rostra behind the stern tube, received several fragments in the underwater part, one of which, having pierced the side (2 mm) on the right side, crushed the triple sheet (6 mm) at the lifting eye, the other side in the stoker, the bulkheads between the stoker and the engine room and with fragments that fell from the left side, it damaged two feed manifolds, a fan bearing, and a steam pipe of the bottom. In the stoker, the steam manifold, three boiler tubes, a tap for filling water, the casing of the coal pit and the water tank around the boiler were damaged by fragments, and, in addition, there were several fragments that hit the bow and stern, but did not cause any damage inside the boat. The stern winch received several fragments from the light hatch of the admiral's dining room, and the handrails and spool rod of the right stern winch were damaged.

The upper deck was pierced by fragments from a bakery or chimney, and the fragments, having pierced the deck, could no longer pierce anything; other fragments pierced the right bed mesh on the waist. The 16-oar boat No. 1, standing on rostra, had its stern on the left side completely broken, and, in addition, many small fragments got into the hull. Boat No. 2 was also badly damaged by shrapnel, and the wooden gear, standing to the left of the stern pipe, was completely broken, in all likelihood, by fragments from the stern pipe. The middle main compass was knocked off the bridge by the gases, and the bridge was severely damaged by shrapnel. The fragments damaged the light hatches in the officer's and command galleys, the table and stove in the officer's galley and the boxes in the command galley, the wall of one samovar was dented, the nets of the middle towers, frame davits, boat blocks, longboat No. 2 and the rostrum deck. Three tanks on 2/3" thick rostras were broken by fragments.

The left front tank received a hole in the lower right part, at the junction of the pipe with the tank, the right one - five holes in the body, the rear - a knocked down pipe, the rear bottom and several small holes. Thus, the total surface of action of fragments from three shells can be considered about 200 m2, and from gases about 400 m2. On July 26, 1904, during the bombardment of Port Arthur by siege artillery from a distance of 20 cables, a high-explosive 120 mm caliber shell hit the bow armor of the battleship "Tsesarevich" near the 37 bow frame on the right side. The mark on the armor turned out to be barely noticeable and consisted of several specks. The damage was only from the concussion. The damage occurred against the premises of the bow mine apparatus. The mine workshop machine was torn from its place and all four cast iron legs were broken. A box with various accessories was thrown over a man lying on the deck by the force of the blow. There were no other injuries.

12. During the battle on July 28, at about 6 o’clock in the evening, from a distance of about 45 cables (probably from an armored detachment of the Japanese squadron), a shell hit the bow turret of 12" guns on the right side. The shell was high-explosive and exploded when it hit the armor of the turret. The turret hit this the time was on the left side. Judging by the force of the impact felt inside the turret, we can conclude that the shell was 12" caliber. The destruction was as follows: a mark no more than 1.5 cm deep remained on the tower and looked like an irregular ellipse. In the center there was the largest depression (1.5 cm). The fragments from the shell that exploded when it hit the turret's armor did not cause any significant damage and only slightly damaged the deck about 5-6 feet from the turret.

Battleship “Tsesarevich” (Damage to the bow bridge. In the center you can see damage to the bunk nets on the bridge from a shell, which then passed through the conning tower and killed Lieutenant Dragisic-Niksic.)

13. During the first battle on July 28, at about 1 o’clock in the afternoon, from a distance of 50 cables, a shell hit the cushion of the right main anchor. Judging by the thickness of the walls of the fragments found, one can think that it was an 8" or 12" shell. The walls of the fragment were much thicker than those of the Russian 6" projectile, and the fragment itself was quite long. It can be assumed that the projectile hit the 40th frame with its head and immediately exploded. This assumption is based on the fact that the two main holes were created by both sides of the frame: one in the side, and the other in the cushion itself.The frame itself was crushed, and the spardeck deck was broken.

A third, larger fragment hit the porthole of one of the conductor's cabins and knocked it out; the remaining fragments spread along the side to the side armor, heading towards the bow, where they made marks, but did not pierce the sides anywhere. Another part of the fragments hit the spardeck, where they partly flew overboard into the open port of the left 75 mm gun, partly hit the pillars, lost their force, and slightly damaged both 75 mm guns. Some fragments hit the suitcase closets to the left. Two lower ranks were wounded at the same place. The dimensions of the holes are as follows: length 3 meters, width 2.5 meters, height 2.5 meters, in addition, the fragments that pierced the spardeck deck reached the battery deck, which is three meters. So, the volume of complete destruction from the shell explosion was: 3x2.5x2.5 or about 20 cubic meters. meters.

With this shell, the starboard main anchor was thrown overboard. Before leaving Port Arthur, despite the fact that the question was raised, the anchor ropes were not riveted, and therefore the shell hitting the anchor shackle swivel was a happy accident that saved the side of the battleship from an extra hole. The shell freed the anchor in this way: it broke the swivel and tore out the frames from the railing, rustications and fastening stops on the anchor pad. The anchor release machine on the upper deck remained singing.

Soon after the shell hit the anchor cushion, another shell hit the spardeck from a distance of 50 cables. It hit on the right side against the 31st frame. Hitting the side, it exploded; Most of the fragments flew onto the armored pipe covering the supply of the bow 12" turret and, leaving many small holes on it, did not cause significant damage. The remaining fragments scattered somewhat to the sides and slightly damaged the superstructure. Some of the fragments scattered along the side. The dimensions of the hole are as follows: width 2 meters, height 2 meters. The volume of total destruction from the explosion of a shell: 2x2x0.25 = 1 cubic meter. The shell was high-explosive, about 8" (or 6") caliber.

At about 6 o'clock in the evening of the same day, a high-explosive shell (6"?) hit the deck on the forecastle on the right bow. Having hit the deck, it exploded and made a round hole with a diameter of about 1.5 meters. Gases and fragments of the exploding shell met the low tide on its way pipe, broke it and then hit the pillar, which bent and separated from the beam to which it was attached by means of a strip. A recess about 5 cm deep was left in the spardeck deck. The volume of complete destruction is equal to about 1.5 cubic meters. Fragments, Having hit the pillars, they scattered in two directions and reached the sides, the distance between which in this place reaches 8.5 meters.

There was another hit in the bow. The shell hit at about 7.5 o'clock in the evening from a distance of 35–40 cables into the spardeck on the left side against the 21–20 frame, slightly in front of the armored pipe of the left bow 6" turret, directly into the porthole and knocked it out completely. The size of the hole was 1 square. meter The volume of complete destruction is 0.5 cubic meters.

Most of the fragments of the exploding shell were directed at the biteng and scattered about it. There were fragments that reached the opposite side, that is, 12 meters. The power of these fragments was already very weak; they didn't do any damage. This shell came from a detachment of cruisers (“Yakumo”, “Takasago”, “Kasagi” and “Chitose”). Judging by the insignificance of the damage, it can be assumed that it was a 120-mm shell from a 2nd class cruiser or from the Yakumo.

During the first fight about 12.5–1 hour. A high-explosive shell hit the underwater part on the right side against 28–31 frames below the armor. The shell did not make any holes, but only dented the frame and tore out some of the rivets, which resulted in the seepage and filling of two side corridors (upper and lower) with water. In total, 153 tons of water got in. The roll turned out to be no more than 3°. To level the ship, the compartments were flooded on the opposite side and somewhat closer to the stern to avoid trim to the bow.

The shell that hit the conning tower was probably fired from a distance of 45–50 cables at the end of the second battle. From the places of destruction it is possible to reconstruct its trajectory, from which it is clear that it was flying and rising. It was an armor-piercing shell that hit the water and exploded ricocheting. Its head part hit the thin bunk mesh (1/8), tore it, turned the sheets in the direction of movement and flew into the wheelhouse, knocking out a semicircle from the edge of the roof (3" sheets). The head part tore the engine telegraph wiring, hit the roof, leaving abrasion, gave several fragments and, flying away, again touched the edge of the roof. She did not knock it out, but only bent it, losing her living force. Having got further into the nets with beds, she slightly bent them and remained lying in them.

There were several small fragments, probably torn off from the head of the shell when it hit the roof, but the force of them is difficult to calculate, it must have been very insignificant, since the grating in the tower was only slightly pierced, and the edges of the holes on the thin copper casings of the instruments were barely bent , there are even simple dents on the casings. The shock knocked out some of the artillery indicators and telephones, and all the speaking pipes on the bridge were broken. This shell wounded everyone in the cabin, except for one: there were almost no noticeable fragments on the walls of the cabin and on the gratings.

The shell that hit the mast was fired before the shell that hit the conning tower at the end of the second battle. Some abnormality is that the distance (in time) to the enemy should have been less than 40 cables, and the trajectory of the projectile was not steep - it touched the net and hit the mast by 2.5 feet [i.e. e. 0.6 m] above the deck. It could have been a 12" caliber shell. Flying through the nets, it only twisted them, and the explosion occurred immediately after breaking through the first wall of the mast (0.5"). From the place of the first contact of the projectile in the nets to the place of rupture is about 3 m. The projectile only tore and twisted the front wall of the mast, but the rear wall was completely torn out. The volume of the main destruction is very small (each dimension is 1.5 meters) and is directed cone-shaped in the direction of flight of the projectile, but in such a way that already at 3 m the thin walls are not torn apart, but only pierced by fragments and bent.

In the upward direction, the fragments pierced the deck 3/8" 2 m from the rupture site, and 2/3" squares were even bent with fragments or pieces of the mast at 1–1.5 m. There were few fragments back, but the yellow coating from picric acid was mainly in the part of the bridge behind the explosion site. Minor damage is noticeable at a distance of up to 10 m. Despite the fact that relative to the horizontal plane of the shell explosion the deck is 0.75 - 1 m, and the upper bridge is 1.5–2 m, it was damaged more than the deck, which indicates the direction of greatest destruction is from above. This shell broke all the pipes and wires running inside the mast. The shock broke the wiring under the upper bridge. The pressure of the gases pushed out the upper bridge (by 2 m), and the telegraph room, located at the same distance (but horizontal), was not touched by the gases, even bent in the opposite direction by the third shell.

Admiral Vitgeft, Lieutenant Azaryev 1st, Midshipman Ellis were killed by a shell into the mast, and staff officers were wounded. The dead lay between the left walls and the mast, with their heads towards the latter; This is not entirely clear, since the gases should have thrown them away from the mast. Maybe the cutting had an effect here, reflecting the gases, or they were knocked down by some fragment.

Battleship “Tsesarevich” (Two holes from 6" exploding shells, which took out part of the bulwark on the quarterdeck from the left side, broke the towing bollard and penetrated into the officer’s wardroom.)

The shell that hit the telegraph cabin at the end of the second battle from a distance of 50 cables exploded in the front wall of the cabin or even before it from passing through the walls, 10 feet (3 m) from them, since the entrance hole of this high-explosive projectile (the torn up wall of the cabin ) is very large - about 4 square meters, and the bulkhead between the command quarters and the telegraph cabin, which is 1.5 m wide, is broken only by fragments. The volume of greatest destruction is about 12 cubic meters; separate fragments punctured the pipe (5/16") and the casing (5/16") at a distance of 2 m. Small fragments pierced only the casing. The shell produced many very small speckled fragments that damaged the wood and the lining of the cabin. The gases again had a stronger effect upward than downward, bending several sheets of the upper bridge and only in one place below tearing the wheelhouse off the deck. The gases and shock destroyed all the instruments in the control room, but the effect of the gases was only in the direction of movement of the projectiles, since the wires on the wooden lining under the upper bridge remained intact, only turning yellow from picrine. Considering the place where the shell burst was 1 m from the deck, large fragments pierced 3/8" sheets in both decks at a distance of 1.5–2 m, but having pierced the deck under the upper deckhouse, they remained in the wood of the table or in the deckhouse sofa and up to the roof The shell did not produce any particularly large fragments, neither the head part nor the whole bottom was found.

The shells that hit the water either ricocheted (mostly armor-piercing) or turned around if they were high-explosive. There were many flying ricochets, their flight was clearly visible. One of these shells broke the forestay wall. High-explosive shells exploding at the J side in the water produced a whole column of water that washed over the bridge up to the compass, but the fragments did not fly onto the bridge; but they also pierced the sheets on Mars (a fragment flying close hit the armor and bounced off). Their strength was small, since long high-explosive shells were buried in the water, and the fragments had to overcome the resistance of the water layer.

In the middle of the second battle, one high-explosive shell exploded over the bridge, several fragments flew onto the bridge, but did not penetrate the deck: the entire amount of exploding metal fell into the water, flying over the battleship.

“Tsesarevich” on the slipway. February 1901

“Tsesarevich” on the slipway. February 1901

The squadron battleship “Tsesarevich” in France during sea trials. Summer 1903

The squadron battleship “Tsesarevich” in France during sea trials. Summer 1903

The squadron battleship “Tsesarevich” in France during sea trials. Summer 1903

“Tsesarevich” in Port Arthur

“Tsesarevich” in Port Arthur

Before loading coal (photo above)

On the “Tsesarevich” while filling a hole

In Port Arthur

On the “Tsesarevich” the side sheets are riveted

On the “Tsesarevich” during the repair of a hole (photo above) “Tsesarevich” and “Amur” on the outer roadstead of Port Arthur

The “Tsesarevich” arrived in Qingdao.

“Tsesarevich” in Qingdao.

“Tsesarevich” in Qingdao.

"Tsesarevich" in Qingdao. Repair work has begun on the ship.

“Tsesarevich” in Qingdao. Repair work has begun on the ship.

“Tsesarevich” in Qingdao. In the foreground, folded cartridge cases from 152 mm cartridges are visible. They are guarded by Russian and German sailors. On the fence of the bow bridge there is a hole visible from a 152-mm shell, which killed the navigator, Lieutenant Dragisic-Niksic.

Battleship "Tsesarevich". Battle damage in the area of ​​the bow bridge (pictured above).

Damage to the port side at the bow of the ship. On the right in the foreground you can see a hole at the cut for storing anchors. The anchor is lost. Inside, the hole penetrates to the upper deck, where gasoline storage tanks are broken. On the left is a hole in the spardeck at the 12” bow turret, also penetrating into the skipper’s cabin located in the battery deck (pictured below).

Repairing holes on the port side in the area of ​​the aft bridge and damage to the chimneys (pictured above). “Tsesarevich” in Qingdao. Dismantling the stern pipe.

There is a hole in the starboard side of the 305 mm bow turret.

There is a hole in the starboard side of the 152 mm bow turret.

Damage to the 152 mm gun.

Damage to a bakery from a 305 mm shell that hit its roof.

Battle damage to chimneys.

In Qingdao. “Tsesarevich” during repair work.

The renovation of “Tsesarevich” is nearing completion (photo above). “Tsesarevich” in the Mediterranean Sea.

For the Tsesarevich, both battles - at night and in the morning - were combined into one, which inspired great fears for success, a struggle for the survivability of the ship. The French technology, praised and so beloved by the Admiral General, did not reveal obvious advantages over either the American (“Retvizan”) or domestic (Pallada) models. The newest battleship, the last miracle of technology on the squadron, found itself in perhaps a more disastrous situation than the more old cruiser "Pallada".

At the moment of the explosion, having tilted to the right (this is how the roll of ships of this type made itself felt again), the Tsesarevich then began to fall menacingly onto the left side. Despite the immediate order of the commander to flood the right aft corridors with water, the list grew uncontrollably. It reached 16° and continued to increase.

From the book Destroyers of the “Kasatka” class (1898-1925) author Afonin Nikolay Nikolaevich

APPENDIX DESTROYERS OF THE “KILLER Whale” TYPE IN BATTLE ON JULY 28, 1904 Opinion of the commanders and officers of the destroyers “Besshumny”, “Besstrashny” and “Besposhchadny”, withdrawn during the hostilities on September 30, 1904. Captains of the 2nd rank who were commanders of destroyers before the war,

From the book Russian Pacific Fleet, 1898-1905 History of creation and destruction author Gribovsky V. Yu.

Chapter VIII Battle of the Yellow Sea July 28, 1904 Admiral E.I. In order to save the squadron and maintain prospects in the further struggle, Alekseev insisted on relocating it to Vladivostok. In mid-July, from the flagships and commanders of large ships in Port Arthur for the breakthrough in

From the book “Tsesarevich” Part II. Battleship. 1906-1925 author

Appendix No. 1 Chronicle of the voyages of the battleship "Tsesarevich" - "Citizen" 1914 JUNE 24–28 - Revel; 28 - going out to sea for shooting; 30 - departure from Revel for maneuvers to the Rencher - Nargen line. JULY: 1, 3, 4, 7 - departures from Revel for firing; 7-13 - Revel; 13–17 - Helsingfors; 17 - exit from

From the book “Tsesarevich” Part I. Squadron battleship. 1899-1906 author Melnikov Rafail Mikhailovich

From the book Battleships of the “John Chrysostom” type. 1906-1919 author Kuznetsov Leonid Alekseevich

From the book Armored cruisers of the “Admiral Makarov” type. 1906-1925 author Melnikov Rafail Mikhailovich

Appendix No. 3 Damage to the battleship “Eustathius” in the battle on November 5/18, 1914 (From the book by ML. Petrov “Two Battles”. Leningrad. 1926) Diagram of hits to the battleship “Eustathius”. received in the battle at Cape Sarych on November 5/18, 1914. The description is of undoubted interest

From the book Naval Mine War at Port Arthur author Krestyaninov Vladimir Yakovlevich

Appendix No. 3 Damage to the cruiser “Bayan” in the battle of Gotland on June 19/July 2, 1915 (From the book by K. P. Puzyrevsky “Damage to ships from artillery and the struggle for survivability.” Sudpromgiz, 1940.) The desire of the German flagship to distract during the battle attention of Russian ships from

From the book Tsushima - a sign of the end of Russian history. Hidden reasons for well-known events. Military historical investigation. Volume II author Galenin Boris Glebovich

4. Disaster of the squadron battleship "Petropavlovsk" After the failure of the second attempt to block the exit from Port Arthur, Admiral Togo sent a request for the preparation of new fire-ships. Before their arrival, the command of the Japanese fleet decided to conduct a barrage operation

From the book The First Battleships of Germany author Bystrov Alexey Alexandrovich

4.4. July 28, 1904 Exit and approach The morning of July 28 arrived. With sunrise, Russian ships began to leave the inner harbor for the roadstead and take their places according to their disposition. The raid was previously cleared. At 8:45 a.m. the squadron was in the wake column, following

From the book Battleships of the Wittelsbach, Braunschweig and Deutschland types. 1899-1945 (Collection of articles and documents) author Team of authors

Appendix No. 3 Raising the German battleship “Grosser Kurfurst” (From the magazine “Sea Collection” No. 8 for 1879) Work on raising this battleship began in late May. Research carried out by divers found that the position of the ship's hull was not at all

From the book Battleships of the Queen Elizabeth class author Mikhailov Andrey Alexandrovich

Launching of the squadron battleship “Wittelsbach” On July 3, a new squadron battleship was launched at the Wilhelmshaven State Admiralty, which was listed under the letter O during construction and received the named name during its launch. This battleship, according to the message

From the author's book

Launching of the squadron battleship “Mecklenburg” On November 9 (NS) 1901, at the Vulkan shipyard in Stettin, the squadron battleship F was launched, which received the name “Mecklenburg”. This battleship is the fifth and last ship of the Wittelsbach class. Main

From the author's book

The launch of the German squadron battleship “Elsass” In Danzig, at the Schichau shipyard, took place on May 16 (NST) 1903. The launching of the squadron battleship of the “Brunschweig” type, which was built there by order of the German government, was temporarily listed under the letter J and received

From the author's book

Launching of the squadron battleship “Deutschland” On November 20 (NS) 1904, in Kiel, at the “Germany” shipyard, the battleship N was launched, which received the name “Deutschland” during its launch and baptism. The laying of this battleship was carried out July 20 (NS) 1903, so the time

From the author's book

Launching of the squadron battleship “Hannover” On September 29 (NS) 1905, in the Wilhelmshafen Admiralty, the squadron battleship P, which received the name “Hannover” at baptism, was launched. This is already the second ship of the Deutschland class. It was laid in the summer

From the author's book

Appendix No. 1 Damage to battleships of the 5th squadron in the Battle of Jutland [* From the book by K.P. Puzyrevsky. Damage to ships from artillery and the struggle for survivability. Leningrad. Sudpromgiz. 1940] "Warspite". He belonged to the fifth squadron of battleships and was the third in the column.

Attention! The series has been discontinued!
Squadron battleship "Tsesarevich"- the second partwork of the series “Flotilla of the Russian-Japanese War” as part of the magazine “ Russian ships" Publisher: Modelist LLC (Samara).

The squadron battleship "Tsesarevich" was built in France by order of the Russian Empire. He took part in the Russian-Japanese and First World Wars. Subsequently, based on the drawings of this ship, a whole series of Borodino-class ships was built.

Construction of the ship began in 1899 in Toulon. The launch took place on January 23, 1901, but over the next two years various modifications were made to the design. As a result, the Tsarevich entered service only in 1903, almost with the beginning of the Russo-Japanese War. At the end of February 1904, during a battle with a Japanese destroyer, our battleship was damaged by a torpedo. However, the repairs did not take long, and the ship was soon put back into service. In September of the same year, after breaking into the port of Kiao Chao, the battleship was interned until the end of the war. After the ship was returned to Russia, it became part of the Baltic Fleet. In 1907, after a radical restructuring, she was transferred to the class of battleships. In March 1917, the ship was renamed “Citizen”. He also had a chance to test himself as an icebreaker. In difficult ice conditions in December 1917, he made the transition from Helsingfors (Helsinki) to Kronstadt. We can say that this was the last voyage of the ship. Since May 1918, it was accepted for long-term storage. During the Civil War, the artillery was removed from the Citizen. It was already used on land fronts, as well as on river and lake flotillas. The ship completed its service in 1924. Was dismantled for metal.

Characteristics of the battleship "Tsesarevich"

Length: 118.5 m
Width: 23.2 m
Displacement: about 13 thousand tons
Draft: 7.9 m
Speed: 18 knots
Cruising range: 2805 miles
Crew: more than 800 people
Weapons:
305mm – 4 guns
152mm – 12 guns
75mm – 10 guns
37mm – 11 guns
Machine guns – 2
Torpedo tubes – 4

Model of the battleship Tsesarevich

The squadron battleship "Tsesarevich" continues the "Flotilla of the Russian-Japanese War" series from Modelist LLC. This is the second model of this collection (the first is).
The assembly of the model is planned for 80 issues of the magazine, once a week.

Model parameters:

Scale: 1:200
Length: 58.6 cm
Width: 11.6 cm
Height: 30 cm

For the manufacture of parts "Tsesarevich" models the following materials are used:

• HDF – 3 mm
• Brass
• ABS plastic
• Steel bar
• Monofilament
• Birch slats
• Birch veneer

Modelist LLC continues its tradition and, as before, uses the developments of only domestic specialists. All parts are made from domestic materials at Russian enterprises. The model completely replicates the appearance of a real ship. It recreates in great detail all the components and gun superstructures that existed on the battleship. However, assembly of the model, thanks to detailed instructions, will be accessible to modellers of any level.

Magazine Ships of Russia: Tsarevich

Each issue of the magazine includes:

• Attachment – ​​parts for assembling a ship model;
• Convenient assembly instructions with photographs and a detailed description of the assembly procedure;
• Chronology of the battleship's service from the beginning of construction to its dismantling for metal;
• “Encyclopedia of Sea Knots” - each issue contains instructions for tying one or two knots.

Magazine Tsarevich recommended price:
first issue - from 50 to 75 rubles.
second issue - from 70 to 105 rubles.
from the third issue - from 100 to 150 rubles.
Frequency: weekly

There are 80 issues in total.

Room releases are not limited by any period:
Most of the parts for the model are manufactured in-house at Modelist LLC, and printing takes place in its own printing house. All this makes it possible not to limit the magazine’s circulation and not be strictly tied to any release dates. You can place an order for any published issue of the magazine whenever it is convenient for you. Start assembling it yourself and show it to your friends. They also have the opportunity to assemble a ship, starting with the first number. You don't have to worry about the magazine series ending suddenly. Modelist LLC officially declares that all 80 issues will be released.

Squadron battleship "Tsesarevich"- one of the world's best battleships of the early 20th century. Built in France by order of Russia within the framework of the program “For the needs of the Far East”. It was distinguished by its progressive artillery layout and high speed with powerful armor. Participated in the Russo-Japanese War, was the flagship during the battle in the Yellow Sea. Squadron battleships of the Borodino type were built according to the revised design of the Tsesarevich.

Tactical and technical characteristics.

Displacement: 12,915 t.

Length: 113.4 m.

Width: 23.2 m.

Travel speed: 18.78 knots.

Cruising range: 5,500 miles at 10 knots.

Armament:

• 4 guns of 305 mm caliber;
• 12 guns of 152 mm caliber;
• 20 guns of 75 mm caliber;
• 20 guns of 47 mm caliber;
• 8 guns of 37 mm caliber;
• 2 Baranovsky landing guns of 63.5 mm caliber;
• 10 machine guns;
• 4 torpedo tubes (457 mm).

Reservations: up to 254 mm.

Crew: 778 people, of which 28 are officers.

Commissioned: 1903

Design and construction.

Design.

The squadron battleship "Tsesarevich" became another brainchild of the shipbuilding program "For the needs of the Far East." In May 1898, the director of the French company "Fo" rge e "Chantiers de la Mediterrane" arrived in St. Petersburg and presented a draft design of an armored ship to the Marine Technical Committee.

The contract for design and construction was concluded within two months: such a short period of time was influenced by both the reputation of the company with which Russia already had positive experience of cooperation, and the originality of the design of the new battleship.

In its final form, the project included, among other things, 12 six-inch guns in turrets with very wide firing sectors, a torpedo bulkhead protecting the hull from underwater explosions, Krupp armor and a speed of 18 knots. In addition, the French company undertook to transfer all the final drawings to Russia, which would allow them to be used in the future to build their own ships.

Construction and testing.

The official laying of the battleship took place only on June 26, 1899, i.e. Almost a year passed from the moment the contract was signed to the start of construction. All this time, MTK and the company "For" rzh "Chantiers" frantically tried to coordinate the drawings and specifications, while neither the Russian department nor the French company was particularly fast.

The construction itself proceeded just as slowly, during which various problems regularly surfaced. Numerous cases of supply of low-quality materials and equipment were noted: these included armor plates and steam engines. In addition, new mounts for 305 mm guns had to be designed specifically for the Tsarevich, and the guns themselves were delivered by the Obukhov plant very late. As a result, the battleship entered sea trials only in February 1903.

The first tests of the Tsarevich were disappointing: the ship barely exceeded the speed of 16 knots. At the same time, excessive heating of the bearings and numerous problems in the ship's electrical systems were revealed.

"For" rg e "Chantiers" began eliminating the shortcomings, but the customer was no longer ready to wait. By this time, the situation in the Far East had become extremely tense: war with Japan was becoming almost inevitable, which required the immediate strengthening of the Pacific Fleet.

Since the Tsesarevich was supposed to join the squadron in Port Arthur, any delays in testing and eliminating deficiencies seemed unacceptable to naval officials. Ultimately, a very controversial decision was made: turn a blind eye to the shortcomings, reduce the test program and send the new battleship to Port Arthur directly from Toulon, without entering the Baltic.

Although the manufacturing company was able to eliminate some of the comments (in particular, the speed reached the design 18 knots after changing the zygomatic keels), the Tsesarevich set off for the shores of Korea with untested torpedo tubes, without going through the full cycle of sea trials, without a radio station and with ineffective main guns. caliber.

Description of the design.

The design of the Tsarevich was quite breakthrough for its time: a second caliber in full-fledged turrets, a developed anti-torpedo bulkhead, solid armor and high speed. A characteristic feature of the appearance was the strong slope of the sides inward: this made it possible to install heavy second-caliber turrets without loss of stability and somewhat improve seaworthiness.

The length of the ship was 113.4 m, width - 23.2, draft reached 7.9 m. The displacement of the battleship turned out to be higher than the design and was close to 13,000 tons. However, exceeding the design displacement was so common for the Russian (and not only) fleet that no one paid attention to it.

The hull was divided into 10 watertight compartments by transverse bulkheads that reached the upper deck. Five more bulkheads divided the space between the upper and battery decks. Some of the compartments (boiler rooms and engine rooms) were equipped with their own drainage systems, while the rest had a common water pumping system.

Reservation.

The Tsarevich's armor was powerful and well thought out. The main armor belt protected the entire side and was 250 mm thick in the middle part, thinning to 140 mm at the ends.

The upper armor belt was also full, had a thickness of 120 to 200 mm and provided excellent side protection. The armor scheme was complemented by two (for the first time in the Russian fleet) armored decks up to 50 mm thick.

The lower armored deck, curving down, formed an anti-torpedo bulkhead at a distance of two meters from the side - another innovation for the fleet of the Russian Empire. The armor of the main caliber turrets was 254 mm, and there was no differentiation of the turret armor. The conning tower armor was of the same thickness. The barbettes were protected by 229 mm thick plates, the medium-caliber turrets and their supply pipes had an armor thickness of 150 mm.

In addition to all of the above, the ship had an armored communication pipe (up to 127 mm), which protected the drives and communications. All armor on the Tsarevich was hardened using the Krupp method.

Power plant and driving performance.

The Tsarevich's power plant consisted of two four-cylinder vertical triple expansion steam engines and 20 Belleville boilers. The boilers were somewhat improved: due to the large heating surface area and several minor improvements, they were highly economical, which made it possible to increase the cruising range to 5,500 miles with a relatively small supply of coal.

It is interesting that more modern Borodino-class battleships did not have such modifications to their boilers and their fuel consumption was noticeably higher. All of the above allowed the Tsarevich to reach a speed of 18.78 knots, which was a very good indicator. The ship was driven by 2 propellers.

Armament.

The armament of the "Tsesarevich" was traditional and revolutionary at the same time. The main caliber was the usual 305 mm guns with a barrel length of 40 calibers in two turrets. The designers did not introduce any innovations here.

Even during the tests, it became clear that the main caliber loading systems were made so poorly that they could not be used even with the slightest pitching. This drawback, although not immediately, was eliminated; however, the projectile supply systems remained far from ideal. The rate of fire did not exceed 1 shot per two minutes.

Second-caliber artillery, on the contrary, was placed extremely unusually. 12 six-inch (152 mm) guns were housed in six full turrets, three on each side. Due to the placement of the towers at a considerable distance, the guns had a huge firing sector, while it was possible to use eight guns to fire straight ahead.

In addition, the towers made it possible to provide the guns and their crews with reliable protection from enemy shells and bad weather, and most importantly, to protect the shell feeding mechanisms with full-fledged barbettes. Since all medium-caliber artillery was turret-mounted, there were no problems with its centralized guidance (which was typical for Poltava-class battleships). The only drawback of this placement was the relatively low rate of fire.

Anti-mine artillery consisted of 20 Kane guns of 75 mm caliber, located on the battery deck, upper deck and bridges, as well as 20 rapid-fire 47 mm cannons. In addition to this artillery, the ship had 37 mm guns (8 pieces) and machine guns (from 4 to 10 according to various sources). There were 4 torpedo tubes: two underwater onboard and 2 surface at the ends.

Equipment and auxiliary systems.

The Tsarevich's equipment differed little from other Russian battleships of the early 20th century: highly mechanized gun guidance systems, a relatively developed telephone communication system, a radio station and electrical display for centralized fire control.

Electricity was used extremely widely and the Tsarevich became one of the first ships where electrical systems were truly basic, and not just to make life easier. All the main systems of the ship were equipped with electric drives: from lighting in the compartments to elevators for feeding shells and fire pumps.

The level of electrification of the Tsarevich’s household devices was equally high, which somewhat improved the crew’s working conditions. Among other features, only the complicated system for launching boats and boats should be noted: traditional methods, due to the already mentioned shape of the sides, turned out to be inapplicable. To lower the boats, the ship was equipped with an outrigger boom, and the boats were launched into the water using a U-shaped frame.

Service.

Russo-Japanese War.

As already mentioned, immediately after entering service, the Tsarevich headed for the Far East. Having passed Port Said and Singapore along the way, at the end of November 1903 the new battleship arrived in Port Arthur.

The next two months were devoted to completing its tests and eliminating the shortcomings that had been discovered, although there were not as many of them as expected.

An attack by Japanese destroyers on February 9, 1904 found the Tsarevich in the outer roadstead of Port Arthur, and the battleship received a torpedo hit. A serious flaw in the design of the anti-torpedo bulkhead was immediately revealed: due to an unsuccessful design of the jumper between it and the deck, water flooded the side compartments through the hole.

The repair of the Tsarevich proceeded at a slow pace and continued until June 1904. By the time the ship returned to service, the situation had changed dramatically: Admiral Makarov was killed, and the Japanese achieved significant success on land, blockading Port Arthur, which created a real threat of the death of the entire squadron.

Battle in the Yellow Sea.

"Tsesarevich" was the flagship of the Pacific squadron during the battle in the Yellow Sea. In the battle, the battleship received numerous damage, since it was the first target of the Japanese guns.

Here the ship demonstrated very solid survivability: despite a number of hits (at least 10 hits from 305-mm shells) and destruction, the ship continued the battle and successfully repelled all attacks.

It was fatal to hit the navigation bridge where Admiral V.K. was located. Vitgeft, who refused to move to the conning tower. The admiral and several officers were killed by a shell explosion, and control of the ship was lost. The "Tsesarevich" rolled out of the column, mixing up the formation of Russian ships. Although not a single ship was sunk as a result of the battle, and the Japanese fleet suffered noticeably more, the Russian squadron was unable to escape from Port Arthur.

After darkness fell, the heavily damaged Tsarevich, lagging behind the other ships, headed for Qingdao with the intention of then leaving for Vladivostok. At the request of the German authorities, the battleship was interned until the end of the war, which made it possible to carry out the necessary repairs without unnecessary haste.

Return to the Baltic and the First World War.

In February 1906, the Tsesarevich arrived in the Baltic, where for five years it was used to train naval personnel, making numerous long-distance voyages. In 1911, the somewhat modernized battleship (requalified as a battleship) returned to full combat service, becoming part of the linear forces of the Baltic Fleet. Before the start of the Great War, he participated in numerous exercises and maneuvers.

After the outbreak of World War I, it was used in the defense of the Gulf of Finland, covering lighter ships and conducting reconnaissance operations. In 1915, another repair and modernization took place, and almost all small-caliber guns, which were characterized by low efficiency, were removed from the ship.

In 1917, it was renamed "Citizen", participated in the Battle of Moonsund, and received a number of heavy damage from the fire of German dreadnoughts. It is interesting that the battleship practically did not participate in the revolutionary events of 1917 and did without uprisings on its own deck.

In December 1917, the former "Tsesarevich" arrived in Kronstadt, where he was included in the reserve of naval forces. In essence, by this time it no longer had any combat value: the ship was outdated and required major repairs, which no one was going to carry out. In 1925, the battleship was cut into metal.