So we reached the edge of our native aspens.
As is known, its distinctive feature in relation to the period under review was the idiotic old-regime calendar,
(praise to the Bolsheviks for its abolition and blasphemy of the current Russian Orthodox Church for maintaining it)
which has to be reflected. The rest is as usual.

Battleships

“Empress Maria” (24130)

7(20).10.1915 was seriously damaged as a result of a fire that started around 06:20 and subsequent explosions of ammunition magazines; at 07:16 it capsized and at 07:20 it sank in the harbor of Sevastopol. Losses: 1 officer, 227 sailors.

"Glory" (14415)

4(17).10.1917 at 12:25-12:39 damaged by German artillery. LC “König” and “Kronprinz” on the Kuivast roadstead; due to the impossibility of passing the Moonsund Strait. at 13:57 flooded with demolition charges and a torpedo from the EM “Turkmenets-Stavropolsky” east. Kuivast.

Armored cruisers

"Pallada" (7890)

21.09 (11.10).1914 at 12:12 the German ship was torpedoed and sunk. Submarine “U 26” north-west O. Odesholm (59º36’02” N, 22º46’00” E). Losses: 27 officers, 570 sailors (entire crew).

“Peresvet” (12950)

12/22/1916 (4.1.17) at 05:25 as a result of an explosion on a mine placed by the Germans. Submarine “U 73” 10 miles north. Port Said, and the subsequent detonation of ammunition, capsized and sank. Losses: 6 officers, 84 sailors killed; 143 people were injured. (of which 9 later died).

Cruisers

"Pearl" (3130)

15(28).10.1914 at 05:30-05:40 sunk by German artillery and torpedoes. CRBP “Emden” in the port of Penang. Losses: 1 officer, 80 sailors killed; 9 officers and 120 sailors were wounded, 7 of whom subsequently died.

Destroyers

"Vigilant" (450)

14(27).11.1917 died as a result of an explosion on a mine laid by the Germans. Submarine “US 58” near the island. Odern in the Bothnian Hall..

"Thunder" (1260)

1(14).10.1917 at 14:45, severely damaged as a result of being hit by a 305mm shell from a German shell. LC “Kaiser”, lost speed; at 15:40 damaged by German artillery. MM; abandoned by crew; after 17:40 sank into the channel. Soelo-Zund. Losses: 7 killed, 6 wounded.

"Volunteer ” (660)

8(21).8.1916 died as a result of an explosion on a drifting mine in the Irbensky Strait.

“Tenacious” (450)

5(18).5.1916 died as a result of an explosion on a mine laid by the Germans. Submarine “US 15” in the Ikkerman site near Sevastopol.

"Executive" (410)

11.29 (12.12).1914 at about 12:30, following the mine laying area, capsized in a storm (according to other sources, one of the mines on board exploded) and sank between the island. Odesholm and the Yussar lighthouse in the Finnish Hall.

“Kazanets” (730)

10/15/1916 died as a result of an explosion on a mine laid by the Germans. Submarine “UC 27” near the island. Odesholm.

“Lieutenant Burakov” (410)

30.7 (12.8).1917 died as a result of an explosion on a mine laid by the Germans. Submarine “UC 78” in the area of ​​the Strait. Lensund, Åland Islands.

“Lieutenant Zatsarenny” (635)

7(23).6.1917 died as a result of an explosion on a mine laid by the Germans. KRL “Breslau” (Turkish: “Midilli”) south-east. Fidonisi lighthouse.

“Lieutenant Pushchin” (450)

25.2 (8.3).1916 at 08:55 was blown up by a mine laid by the Bulgarian. MZ “Boris” near Cape Ilandzhik in the Varna region (43º05’ N/28º09’05” E), and sank. Losses: 51 killed, 15 captured; 4 people saved

"Volatile" (410)

29.11 (12.12).1914 at 13:45, following the mine laying area, capsized in a storm and sank between the island. Odesholm and the Yussar lighthouse in the Finnish Hall. 1 person saved

"Hunter" (750)

13(26).9.1917 died as a result of an explosion on a mine, presumably laid by the Germans. by seaplanes 7.9.1917, in the Irbensky Strait.

"Slim" (382)

15(28).8.1917 while evading German attacks. aircraft ran aground in Riga Bay, was destroyed by air bombs during a second raid and sank.

Destroyers

№ 272 (130)

9(22).8.1914 sank in the area of ​​the Khersones lighthouse as a result of a collision with the port ship “Success”.

Submarines

“AG-11” (355/434)

“AG-12” (355/434)

3.4.1918 exploded in the Ganges to avoid the capture of the Germans. troops.

“AG-14” (355/434)

in 09.1917 she went missing in the Baltic Sea in the Libau region; probably died as a result of a mine explosion.

“AG-15” (355/434)

3.4.1918 exploded in the Ganges to avoid the capture of the Germans. troops.

“AG-16” (formerly “AG13”) (355/434)

3.4.1918 exploded in the Ganges to avoid the capture of the Germans. troops.

"Shark" (370/475)

at the end of 11.1915 she went missing in the Baltic Sea between Libau and Memel; Presumably, it was blown up by a German bomb. minefield in the Libau region or capsized during a storm while en route to a mine laying site.

"Leopard" (670/780)

at 05.1917 she went missing in the Baltic Sea. Perhaps she died on May 18 (31), 1917 as a result of a collision with a Russian. EM at o. Dago or sunk by germ. ships 15 (28).5.1917 in the Norrköpping region.

"Cheetah" (670/780)

at 10.1917 she went missing in the Baltic Sea. The last message was sent on October 16 (29), 1917 from the north-west region. Vindavas. She probably died in a mine in the area between Vindava and Fr. Ezel.

"Lioness" (670/780)

in 05-06.1917 she went missing in the Baltic Sea. Perhaps the German ship was sunk. ships 05/30/06/11/1917 in the Norrköpping area or died 06/2/14/1917 as a result of a mine explosion near the south. coast of the island Gotland.

A hundred years ago, one of the largest naval battles in the history of mankind took place in the waters of the North Sea - the Battle of Jutland, when the fleets of Great Britain and Germany met. This battle became the crown of the naval race of the early 20th century, during which a new type of ship appeared - the dreadnought.

Fischer is not crazy

Admiral Sir John Arbuthnot Fisher, First Sea Lord of Britain in 1904-1910, was an unpleasant person, but he had a completely lethal combination of intelligence, will, efficiency, wild imagination, a sharp tongue and that quality of nature, which in modern slang is called “frostbite.” Fischer said at every corner that the problem of the growing German fleet must be solved in the only way - to destroy it with a surprise attack at the base, for which he eventually received the highest resolution from King Edward VII: “God, Fischer, you must be crazy?!”

It is not surprising that this man became one of the largest reformers of the Royal Navy - he managed to bend the “state-forming” corporation, whose inertia, served under the sauce of following traditions, had already become a joke by that time. “I don’t advise you to interfere with me,” he snapped, meeting resistance from the admirals. “I will crush anyone who dares to stand in my way.”

The photo is not exactly from that era, but it perfectly conveys the character.

Fisher’s merits in freeing the fleet from old ships, restructuring the officer training and basing system can be listed for a long time, but today we are interested in only one: the construction of the battleship Dreadnought, which launched the naval “dreadnought” race in the world.

By the early 1900s, a “de facto standard” for battleships had emerged in the world: a combat unit with a displacement of 14-16 thousand tons with a full speed of about 18 knots and an armament of four 305-mm guns and 12-18 medium-caliber guns ( usually 12-14 six-inch).

The development of heavy artillery ships had actually reached a dead end: further it was possible to either increase the displacement, or roll back to a smaller main caliber (203-254 millimeters), increasing the number of guns. For some time, hopes were pinned on combinations of large 305-mm and intermediate calibers (for example, 234 millimeters on the British battleships of the King Edward VII and Lord Nelson types, 240 on the French Dantons, or 203 on the Russian Andrei First-Called” and “Eustathia”), but this option also did not work.

The main reason for abandoning this decision was the insignificant power of such projectiles in comparison with heavy ones. There is a rough rule according to which the weight, and therefore the effectiveness of armor-piercing shells, can be estimated through the ratio of caliber cubes. As a result, the efficiency of the fire dropped significantly, and the installations still took a disproportionate amount of the top weight. In addition, combat distances grew, and at them the accuracy of heavy projectiles was higher.

The All-Big-Gun concept was drawn up: battleship, armed only with heavy caliber. An analysis of the Battle of Tsushima finally summed up the fascination with rapid-firing six-inch guns on battleships. Despite the wave of medium-caliber shells that rained down on the ships of both sides on May 14, 1905, critical damage was inflicted mainly by 305-millimeter shells.

Fischer didn't come up with anything new. The Italian Vittorio Cuniberti in 1903 published an article entitled “The Ideal Battleship for the British Navy,” in which he proposed building ships with a displacement of 17 thousand tons, a speed of 24 knots, armed with twelve 305 mm guns. During the same period, overseas, in Washington, the project of a ship of the Michigan class (17 thousand tons, 18 knots, 8x305) was melancholy discussed. The situation was close to new class The ships were called "Michigans" and not "dreadnoughts", but the speed of decision-making and their implementation differed significantly: the Americans laid down the first such ship almost after the British, but put it into operation only by January 1910.

As a result, in the fall of 1905, Britain began to build the battleship Dreadnought (21 thousand tons, 21 knots, 10x305 in five two-gun turrets, main belt 279 millimeters). The ship was completely devoid of medium caliber (only “mine-resistant” 76mm), and its power plant was turbine.

Britain immediately began serial construction of ships of this concept. The idea of ​​a ship was transformed into a homogeneous fleet of a fundamentally new type: one dreadnought meant little, but a fleet of dreadnoughts radically changed the balance of power at sea.

First, three ships of the Bellerophon class went into action, then (until 1910) the Royal Navy received three more battleships of the St. Vincent class, one of the Neptune class, and two of the Colossus class. All of them were similar to the Dreadnought, carried five two-gun 305 mm mounts and had a main armor belt of 254 or 279 mm.

At the same time, Fisher created another technical innovation, inventing a battle cruiser: a ship in the size of a dreadnought, with similar weapons, but much weaker armored - due to this, its speed was sharply increased. The task of these ships was to conduct squadron reconnaissance, finish off the enemy’s “wounded wounded” after the main forces had been dumped, and fight the raiders.

Subsequently, they were also given the task of forming a maneuver wing during the general battle, and what came out of this was well shown by the tragic fate of the first generation of British battlecruisers in Jutland. Oscar Parkes, a historian of the British navy, noted in this regard that the admirals' reflexive tendency to place Battlecruisers in the battle line led to the fact that they lost their superiority in speed and were damaged due to their thin armor.

Together with the Dreadnought, three ships of the Invincible type (20.7 thousand tons, 25.5 knots, 8x305 in four towers, main belt 152 millimeters) were laid down at once. In 1909-1911, the fleet received three more similar ships of the Indefatigable type.

Sea alert

The second military mind of Kaiser Germany after his namesake Schlieffen. If he was more interested in France, then Tirpitz challenged Britain's naval dominance.

Ships German school different from the British ones. “Mistress of the Seas” built its battleships for generalized combat in any available theater (which immediately set the requirements for autonomy and range). On the other side of the strait, Alfred von Tirpitz created a “counter-British” fleet, adjusted for the need for preferential action on its shores - in poor visibility conditions characteristic of the North Sea.

As a result, the German fleet regularly received ships with a short range, formally weaker artillery (by generation: 280 millimeters versus 305; 305 millimeters versus 343), but much better protected. The advantage of the heavier British guns at short ranges was partially offset by the flat trajectory and speed of the lighter German shells.

Germany responds to Fischer with a series of four Nassau-class battleships (21 thousand tons, 20 knots, 12x280 in six towers, main belt 270-290 millimeters), commissioned in 1909-1910. In 1911-1912, the Kaiserlichmarine received a series of four Helgolands (24.7 thousand tons, 20.5 knots, 12x280 in six towers, main belt 300 millimeters).

In the same period (1909-1912), the Germans also built three battlecruisers: the non-serial "Von der Tann" (21 thousand tons, 27 knots, 8x280 in four towers, main belt 250 millimeters) and the same type "Moltke" with "Goeben" (25.4 thousand tons, 28 knots, 10x280 in five towers, main belt 280 millimeters).

The school's approach is clear from the characteristics of Invincible's German rivals. The “grosserkreuzers” had a different tactical niche - they were immediately created with the expectation of participating in linear combat, hence greater security and increased attention to survivability. Again, the misadventures of the Seydlitz, mutilated in Jutland, which hobbled to the base in a half-submerged state, speak for themselves: in fact, they were not so much cruisers as the forerunners of a new class of high-speed battleships.

Britain was not left out. Having received information about the German program of 1908, the British press went into hysterics with the slogan “We want eight and we won’t wait.” As part of this “sea alarm”, some ships with 305-mm guns from the list given above were laid down.

However, the designers looked ahead. The emergency shipbuilding program of 1909 provided for the development of “super-dreadnoughts” - battleships with a 343-mm main gun. It was this “hardware” that became the basis of the British battle fleet in the First World War: four “Orions” and four “King George V” (26 thousand tons, 21 knots, 10x343 in five towers, main belt 305 millimeters) and four “Iron Dukes” (30 thousand tons, 21 knots, 10x343, main belt 305 millimeters) - all of them were put into operation from 1912 to 1914.

The second generation of battlecruisers, introduced between 1912 and 1914, was represented by two ships of the Lion class, one of the Queen Mary class (31 thousand tons, 28 knots, 8x343 in four turrets, main belt 229 mm) and one of the Tiger class "(34 thousand tons, 28 knots, 8x343 in four towers, main belt 229 millimeters). The series received the unofficial nickname Splendid Cats (“Magnificent Cats”), which, given the times and morals, smacked of some obscenity, because the two cruisers were called “Princess Royal” and “Queen Mary”.

The Germans responded to this by switching to a caliber of 305 millimeters. In 1912-1913, five Kaiser-class dreadnoughts appeared (27 thousand tons, 21 knots, 10x305 in five towers, main belt 350 millimeters), in 1914 - four König types (29 thousand tons, 21 knots, 10x305 in five towers, main belt 350 millimeters). In 1913, the transitional battle cruiser Seydlitz with 280 millimeters was completed, and then a series of three new ships of the Derflinger type began (31 thousand tons, 26 knots, 8x305 in four towers, main belt 300 millimeters).

Life is everywhere

In the Mediterranean, local tasks to strengthen the fleet faced France, Italy and Austria-Hungary.

The Italians, following the non-serial Dante Alighieri, introduced five more ships of the Conte di Cavour and Caio Duilio type. All of these were standard dreadnoughts with 305 mm artillery (already in the 1920s they would receive 320 mm artillery and new power plants).

The Austrians responded to their enemies with four ships of the Viribus Unitis class, also with 305 mm artillery. These ships were notable for the fact that for the first time in history they combined three-gun turrets with a linearly elevated layout.

The French, relying more on the land theater in confronting Germany, first built four of the same “305-mm” dreadnoughts of the Courbet type, but during the war they managed to introduce three much more advanced ships of the Bretagne type (26 thousand tons, 20 knots, 10x340, main belt 270 millimeters).

After the defeat at Tsushima, Russia found itself in a difficult situation: it was necessary to join the dreadnought race and at the same time increase the main strength of the destroyed Baltic Fleet.

In 1909, Russia laid down the first dreadnought of the Sevastopol type in the Baltic (25 thousand tons, 23 knots, 12x305 in four towers, main belt 225 millimeters). All four ships were commissioned by December 1914. In 1915-1917, three ships of the Empress Maria type appeared on the Black Sea (the fourth was never completed). They took the Sevastopol as a basis, strengthening its protection and increasing its cruising range by reducing the speed to 21 knots.

Russian battleships were a very specific type of warship with a linear, single-level artillery arrangement, designed for combat at the Central Mine and Artillery Position (a giant minefield blocking the Gulf of Finland). Soberly assessing the capabilities of the German fleet, the Russian military saw the task of these ships as attacking enemy forces trying to cross minefields. However, it would be premature to demand heroism from the Sevastopols in the vast ocean.

Before the war, some countries, including Turkey and Latin American states, tried to enter the dreadnought race, but did so at the expense of orders from foreign shipyards. In particular, the British voluntarily and forcibly acquired two Turkish and one Chilean dreadnought after the start of the war, and completed another “Chilean” after the war, turning it into the Eagle aircraft carrier.

Beyond the oceans

In the Western Hemisphere, meanwhile, two future rivals were resolving their issues: Japan and the United States.

The Americans were rather sluggish in implementing the breakthrough idea with the Michigans, despite all the efforts of Theodore Roosevelt. By the way, the Michigans were initially distinguished by a more progressive linear-elevated armament layout - in contrast to the British and German first-generation dreadnoughts, which demonstrated various exotic features such as rhombic and diagonal placement of turrets.

Following the Michigan and South Caroline, in 1910-1912 they built two Delaware, two Florida and two Wyoming - standard dreadnoughts with 10-12 305 mm guns. American school It was distinguished by a rather conservative design, which required powerful armor with a fairly modest power plant. Washington was not keen on battlecruisers.

Observing the pre-war hysteria unfolding in Europe, the States decided back in 1908 to switch to a caliber of 356 millimeters - this is how two New Yorks and two Nevadas appeared, which, with a displacement of about 27-28 thousand tons, carried 10x356. "Nevada" became an innovation in the approach to design, receiving the so-called "all or nothing" armor scheme: a heavily armored central citadel with unprotected ends.

After them, already in 1916, the fleet received two “Pennsylvania”, and by 1919 three “New Mexico” - both types with a displacement of 32-33 thousand tons, a speed of 21 knots, with weapons of 12x356 in four towers, with a main belt 343 millimeters.

The Japanese have been fascinated by “semi-dreadnoughts” for a long time, experimenting with combinations of 305 and 254 mm guns. Only in 1912 did they introduce two Kawachi-type dreadnoughts with 305 mm (and then two different ballistics), and then immediately switched to 356 mm caliber and began building future heroes of World War II. In 1913-1915 they built four battlecruisers of the Kongo type (27 thousand tons, 27.5 knots, 8x356, main belt 203 millimeters), and in 1915-1918 - two battleships of the Ise type and two Fuso types "(both approximately 36 thousand tons with 12x356 and a belt of 305 millimeters).

Heading towards Jutland

An analysis of what was happening in the USA and Japan prompted the British to build an improved version of the Duke Iron with 343mm, which everyone liked. This is how this “neither hot nor cold” battleship would have been born if the personal factor had not intervened again.

In 1911, Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill, still relatively young by the standards of big politics, but already very daring, became First Lord of the Admiralty. This brilliant amateur, who did everything in his life (from journalism and fiction to managing a superpower in a difficult war), left a mark on British shipbuilding - and such that it lasted for 30 years.

The two understood each other well.

Churchill, having talked with Fisher and some artillery officers, demanded to be proactive: to lay the ship under 381-mm main caliber. “They will sweep away everything they see to the horizon,” Fisher succinctly commented on this choice, who then held the modest post of head of the Royal Commission on the transfer of the fleet to oil power, and in fact worked as the “eminence grise” of the entire shop.

The subtlety was that at the time the order for the construction of battleships was issued, such guns simply did not exist. The risk in this adventure was considerable, but the prize was worth it, but no one wanted to take responsibility. Churchill took it.

To understand the significance of these guns and the pace of progress demonstrated in the seven years since the laying of the first “ship of a new type,” we will simply present the main characteristics. The 305mm Dreadnought Mk X, like most guns of this caliber at the time, used a 385kg projectile. 343mm - shells weighing 567 or 635 kilograms. The weight of the 381-millimeter projectile already reached 880 kilograms. An increase in caliber of only 25 percent increased the weight of the salvo almost threefold.

As a result, in 1913-1915, Britain received perhaps its best battleships - five ships of the Queen Elizabeth class (33 thousand tons, 24 knots, 8x381 in four towers, main belt 330 millimeters). They became the first pure representatives of the “fast battleship” class, resulting from the merging of the dreadnought and battlecruiser classes. After modernization, the “Queens” served the British Empire in World War II - unlike most of the other heroes of Jutland, who went “on the gramophone needles.”

Just before the war, the British urgently laid down five R-class battleships (Rivenge or Royal Sovereign), which were a slower version of the Queen. After the start of the war, two more “extraordinary” battlecruisers were laid down - “Repulse” and “Rinaun” (32 thousand tons, 31 knots, 6x381 in three towers, main belt 152 millimeters). And in 1916, they began to build the battle cruiser Hood, which is already known from the events of World War II.

The German response to this serial construction looked much paler: four Bayern-class battleships were laid down (32 thousand tons, 21 knots, 8x380 in four towers, main belt 350 millimeters), of which two were commissioned, but they were already in Jutland didn’t have time (unlike “Queens”). They also laid down four “grosserkreuzers” of the Mackensen type (35 thousand tons, 28 knots, 8x350 in four towers, main belt 300 millimeters), but were never completed. Battlecruisers with 380-millimeter paper were also planned, but only one of them was formally laid down in July 1916 (Ersatz York, that is, the “deputy” of the cruiser York sunk in 1914), and the feasibility of completing construction of such ships at the end of the war left much to be desired. During the war, new ships were designed and laid down by France (four Normandie-class battleships with 12x340), Italy (four Francesco Caracciolo with 8x381) and Austria (four Ersatz Monarchs with 10x350), but they were not completed or even laid down.

Head out, gentlemen.

Jutland is Jutland, but Show must go on: after a gigantic positional battle in the North Sea, the race continued. In the United States, two Tennessee-class ships with 356-millimeter guns were built, commissioned by 1921, and the next three Colorado-class battleships already carried four twin-gun turrets with 406-millimeter guns. At the same time, the Japanese introduced a pair of Nagato-class battleships (46 thousand tons, 26 knots, 8x410, main belt 305 millimeters).

Then the race becomes more and more on paper. The Japanese laid down the Tosa-class battleships and the Amagi-class battlecruisers, and also designed the Kii-class battleships. All of these were ships with a displacement of 44-47 thousand tons with 410 graph paper, and ahead there were already four numbered orders for high-speed battleships of the next class: 30-knot, with 8x460.

The British drew battleships of the N-3 type and battlecruisers of the G-3 type - with a displacement of 50 thousand tons or more and 457 graph paper. A separate article needs to be written about what they were doing in the States at that time - the key words for those interested are “Tillman battleships” or maximum battleships. We will only point out that among the proposed options was a ship with a capacity of 80 thousand tons with 24x406 in six-gun (!) turrets.

The project of battleships of the South Dakota type, 47 thousand tons, 23 knots and 12x406 in four towers, which grew out of this frenzy, looked more realistic; six such ships were laid down in 1920-1921, but abandoned. In parallel, the first six US battlecruisers of the Lexington class (45 thousand tons, 33 knots, 8x406) were to be built.

In 1916-1917, Russian engineers already had drawings on their boards with ships with a displacement of 40-45 thousand tons, armed with 8-12 guns of 406 mm caliber. But this line of development no longer had a place in the reality of the collapsing empire, just as there was no place for the fantasies of Admiral Fisher, who by that time had already crossed the line separating the bold thinking of a visionary from outright madness. We are talking about the project of the battle cruiser “Incomparable” (51 thousand tons, 35 knots, 6x508 in three towers, main belt 279 millimeters).

What Fisher did achieve was the construction during the war of the so-called light battlecruisers: “Corages” with “Glories” (23 thousand tons, 32 knots, 4x381 in two towers, main belt 76 millimeters) and “Furies” ( 23 thousand tons, 31 knots, 2x457 in two towers, main belt 76 millimeters). Some people consider this the overtures of an old senile person, others consider it a consistent embodiment in metal of the pure idea of ​​​​the original “Invincible”: a squadron reconnaissance fighter, a fighter against cruisers and a cleaner of the leftovers of a general battle.

After the war, they were rebuilt into aircraft carriers, like a significant part of the heavy artillery ships already laid down in the USA and Japan. Many aircraft carriers of the beginning of World War II were essentially werewolves: the British trio of light battleships, the battlecruisers Lexington, Saratoga and Akagi, the battleships Kaga and Bearn.

The heavy curtain of the Washington Naval Agreement of 1922, which created the maximum type of treaty battleship (35 thousand tons with a caliber of no more than 406 millimeters) and introduced quotas for the tonnage of battle fleets, ended the race of dimensions and guns. Great Britain, which before the war strictly followed the “two-power standard” (the Royal Navy was supposed to be the first in the world and at the same time no weaker than the second and third combined), agreed to equalize tonnage quotas with the United States.

The countries exhausted by the First World War breathed a sigh of relief, deciding that a new arms race (already between the victors of Germany) had been prevented and an era of prosperity lay ahead. Reality, however, is Once again refused to comply with the plans of politicians, but this no longer had anything to do with the battlefleets.

Warships of the world

Publication of the almanac “Ships and Battles”

St. Petersburg 1997

Warships of the world

On pages 1-4 of the cover there are photographs of light cruisers: “Munich” (1st page), “Bremen” 1906 (2nd page), “.Magdeburg” (3rd page) and “Hamburg” (4th page). I p).

Popular scientific publication

Those. editor S. N. Rednikov

Lit. editor E. V. Vladimirova

Proofreader S. V. Subbotina

Development of German light cruisers during the First World War

IN late XIX century, Germany challenged England, which had been the strongest naval power for two hundred years. To counter the British fleet, a powerful battle fleet was required. But a battle fleet without reconnaissance is blind, and therefore the need arose for high-speed reconnaissance cruisers. In addition, Germany had already acquired remote colonies, and cruisers were also needed to serve in them. But Germany did not have suitable ships for these purposes. There were either giant armored cruisers of the Hertha type, or weakly armed and poorly protected advice notes.

Thus, a new difficult task arose before the creators of the German fleet. Unlike Britain, where two types of cruisers developed in parallel

– cruisers for servicing the squadron

– “Scouts” and cruisers for service in the colonies, in Germany they decided to take the path of creating a universal cruiser. There were two reasons for this. Firstly, it turned out to be economically profitable to concentrate efforts on the development of cruisers of one type, and secondly, German officers and the designers were well aware of the shortcomings of reconnaissance cruisers.

Light cruiser "Konigsberg"

The Russian cruiser Novik, which was built in Germany, was considered the founder of the Scouts. German experts considered this ship to be weak in combat terms, which was not compensated even by its high speed. The first series of German universal cruisers were the Gazelle-class cruisers. They were followed by several more constantly improving series. Very soon, water-tube boilers and turbines appeared on cruisers. Improvement of turbines, reduction of steam and fuel consumption made it possible to achieve a long cruising range and high speed, which increased over the period 1908-1912. from 25 to 28 knots.

Another major technical improvement that was introduced on these ships was the transition to liquid fuel. Initially, oil was used as an additional fuel for coal-fired boilers, as well as for the operation of auxiliary boilers. Thanks to the use of liquid fuel, it was possible to achieve enormous savings in weight and, as a result, an increase in interior space.

The armor of the ships gradually improved. On cruisers of the Magdeburg type, a side belt appeared for the first time. True, in this respect the German cruisers were inferior to the British, but at the same time they had better horizontal protection.

By the beginning of the First World War, the German cruisers had their only weak point - their artillery caliber, which was 105 mm, while the British cruisers were armed with 152 mm guns. German admirals hoped that the smaller caliber could be compensated by better combat training of personnel, due to which they would be able to achieve a greater number of hits and a higher rate of fire. The experience of the war showed that these calculations did not come true.

For example, the Emden was the first to score hits in the battle near the Cocos Islands, but the multiple superiority of the cruiser Sydney in artillery did its job (the Sydney's broadside was 295 kg, and the Emden's was 72 kg). The British retained their advantage in artillery and newer cruisers. Thus, the weight of the Bristol salvo, built in 1910, was 161 kg, and the Karlsruhe, built in 1912, was only 95 kg.

After the first battles in Germany, they immediately developed a program to rearm cruisers with 150 mm guns. During the war, some of the obsolete German cruisers were withdrawn from the fleet, and by 1917, Admiral R. Scheer noted with satisfaction: “Both reconnaissance groups of light cruisers now consisted of approximately equivalent high-speed and modern ships.” But it was already too late. The well-armed light cruisers did not manage to do anything noteworthy.

After the war, the famous German specialist Professor Evers assessed the experience of using German light cruisers in combat as follows: “Old ships of this type, armored only in the underwater part, turned out to be poorly protected even from hits from medium and small artillery shells. In many cases, the surface part of the ship turned out to be completely destroyed by the explosion of shells and shrapnel impacts. The fires partially disabled the guns, making it impossible to maintain them. The fire often destroyed the shells lying ready for firing near the guns. The underwater part of the ships, on the contrary, was well protected from shells thanks to the armor.

Thus, the light cruiser Leipzig, during a five-hour battle near the Falkland Islands, received, in addition to countless hits from 102 mm guns, no less than 40 hits from the 152 mm guns of the armored cruisers Cornwell and Kent. The shells caused heavy destruction and fires on the ship's surface, but probably only penetrated the armored deck once. While the heavily armored (100 mm) conning towers turned out to be quite reliable, the armored shields of the guns could not protect the servants from heavy losses, mostly due to the action of fragments. Newer cruisers, which had 50-75 mm of armor on the waterline and surface, showed greater endurance, withstanding heavy fire from medium-caliber guns at close range, as was the case during the night phase of the Battle of Jutland.

Black Sea Fleet was not affected Russian-Japanese war. It had 8 squadron battleships, 2 cruisers and 4 mine cruisers.

The reconstruction of naval forces remained one of the priority problems for Russia. Prominent domestic shipbuilders A.N. were involved in its solution. Krylov, N.N. Kuteynikov, I.G. Bubnov and others. A voluntary fundraiser has been announced among the population for the needs of the fleet. A “Committee to strengthen the fleet using voluntary donations” was established. Over five years, the Committee collected a substantial amount - 17 million rubles. With these funds, it was decided to build 20 destroyers of the General Kondratenko and Ukraina type. They laid the foundation for a new fleet. In 1913, a significant event occurred in the development of the class of domestic destroyers. On September 4, in St. Petersburg, the Putilov plant handed over to the fleet the lead destroyer Novik, which brought well-deserved glory to Russian military shipbuilding. For several years, Novik was the fastest ship in the world (37.5 knots).

The Novika project was created in accordance with the technical specifications developed by the Marine Technical Committee under the leadership of A.N. Krylova, I.G. Bubnova, and G.F. Schlesinger.

The lead one was followed by the construction of serial ships with some elements of improvement. They were built by three factories in St. Petersburg, as well as factories in Revel, Riga and Nikolaev. By the beginning of the First World War, all Russian fleets had 75 destroyers of various types and 11 were being completed. In addition, the fleets had 45 destroyers of earlier construction. Total for 1913-1917 17 Novik-class destroyers entered the Baltic Fleet, and 14 Novik-class destroyers entered the Black Sea Fleet.

The experience of the war with Japan showed the important role of cruisers in squadron battles. It became clear that there was a need to increase their speed and maneuverability in every possible way, as well as to strengthen artillery weapons. A subclass of battlecruisers has appeared in foreign fleets. In Russia, their construction began only in 1913-1915, when the cruisers “Izmail”, “Kinburn”, “Borodino” and “Navarin” were laid down, but the outbreak of the World War did not allow them to be completed.

And immediately after the end of the Russo-Japanese War, cruisers were built at domestic and foreign shipyards for the Russian fleet, the prototype of which was Bayan, which had proven itself well in the role of a squadron cruiser and showed high survivability of combat and technical means. Thus, the cruiser “Admiral Makarov” was built in France, the new “Bayan” and “Pallada” - in St. Petersburg, the cruiser “Rurik”, built in England, differed from the cruiser “Bayan” in the main caliber (instead of two 203-mm guns, four 254 mm guns).

In 1913, 6 light cruisers of the Svetlana type were laid down with a displacement of 6800-7800 tons, armed with fifteen 130 mm guns. Of these, only three cruisers (Svetlana, Admiral Nakhimov and Admiral Lazarev) were completed (during the Soviet period).

By the beginning of the war, the Russian fleet included 14 cruisers of various types.

England was the first to draw a conclusion from the defeat of the Russian fleet in the Battle of Tsushima, and, above all, from the circumstances and causes of the death of the squadron battleships. Already at the end of 1905, English shipbuilders began building the original armored ship “Dreadnought” with a displacement of about 13,000 tons, with steam turbines, classified as a battleship. The main caliber artillery on the Dreadnought consisted of ten 305 mm guns located in two-gun turrets. Four turrets, controlled from one central post, could simultaneously participate in a battleship's broadside. The side of the ship was fully armored.

Russian shipbuilders built dreadnought battleships according to the design of I.G. Bubnov and with the participation of A.N. Krylov, which surpassed the English prototype in many respects. In 1909, the battleships “Sevastopol”, “Gangut”, “Poltava” and “Petropavlovsk” were laid down at the St. Petersburg shipyards.

The linear arrangement of twelve 305-mm guns, placed in three-gun turrets, made it possible to fire from any side simultaneously with all barrels. If the weight of a salvo of one of the first English dreadnoughts “Vengard” was 3003 kg, then on “Sevastopol” it reached 5650 kg. In one minute, the domestic battleship produced up to 11.5 tons of metal and explosives. The main armor belt had a thickness of 225 mm. For the Black Sea in Nikolaev in 1915-1917. the dreadnought battleships “Empress Maria”, “Emperor” were also built Alexander III” and “Catherine II”. The fourth battleship, Emperor Nicholas 1, laid down in 1915, was not completed.

In connection with the construction of battleships, the Russian Maritime Ministry noted that the results of testing these ships showed the full readiness of our factories, which were the first to build ships of such a significant displacement, as well as very powerful turbine-type mechanisms.

Pre-dreadnought battleships “Andrei Pervozvanny” and “Imperator Pavel 1”, laid down during the Russian-Japanese War, became part of the Baltic Fleet in 1912. During their construction, a number of significant changes were made to the original project, taking into account the experience of the past Russian- Japanese war.

The use of mine weapons in the Russian-Japanese war and its further development required the fleet to take effective measures to ensure mine defense. First of all, the fleet needed ships equipped with sweeping devices. Such ships were included in the small shipbuilding program. The world's first specially built minesweepers "Minrep" and "Vzryv" were laid down at the Izhora plant in 1909. In accordance with the tactical and technical requirements, the minesweepers had a displacement of 150 tons. The main armament of the ship were Schultz trawls (snake and boat). There was also one 57 mm gun. The ships entered service in 1911. Before the First World War and during the war, minesweepers of slightly larger displacement such as “Cluse” (190 tons) and “Capsul” (248 tons) were built.

In 1909-1910 two ships specially designed for laying mines entered service. These are minelayers “Amur” and “Yenisei” with a displacement of 2926 tons. They could take 324 mines on board. Artillery included five 120 mm guns and two 75 mm anti-aircraft guns.

For the Caspian and river flotillas, gunboats with a displacement of 600-400 tons with artillery of 120-152 mm caliber were built.

Submarine shipbuilding also gained momentum. The first combat boat “Dolphin”, designed under the leadership of I.G. Bubnova, entered service in 1904. I.G. Bubnov also designed the submarine “Akula”, which was built at the Baltic Shipyard (1910). The submarine was armed with eight torpedo tubes.

After the Akula, the Russian fleet included submarines of the Kalmar type (according to the American design), Lamprey (displacement 123/150 tons) and Walrus (displacement 630/790 tons).

However, the main core of the Russian submarine fleet was made up of Bars-class submarines - also designed by I.G. Bubnova. Their construction began in 1913-1914. in St. Petersburg and Revel. The surface displacement of the Bars was 650 tons, the underwater displacement was 782 tons. Two diesel engines with a total power of 3000 hp. allowed the submarine to develop a surface speed of 18 knots, its cruising range was within 2250 miles. In a submerged position, the full speed reached 9.6 knots. It was ensured by the operation of two electric motors with a power of 900 hp. At this speed, the submarine could travel 25 miles underwater. The working depth of immersion was limited to 50 m, the maximum -100 m. The armament consisted of four torpedo tubes (two each in the bow and stern) and two guns of 57 mm and 37 mm calibers.

A special place in the domestic submarine shipbuilding industry is occupied by the world’s first underwater minelayer “Crab” designed by M.P. Naletova. Developments on its creation, begun by the designer back in Port Arthur, were interrupted by the Russian-Japanese War. However, after the war, work was continued at the Nikolaev shipyards, and in August 1912 the ship was launched, and in June 1915 it was accepted into the Black Sea Fleet. Up to 60 minutes were taken on board the “Crab”. The armament includes two bow torpedo tubes and a 76-mm gun.

In July 1915, “Crab” made its first military campaign. Near the Bosphorus they laid a minefield, on which the enemy cruiser Breslau was blown up.

The underwater minelayers “Ruff” and “Forel” were built for the Baltic Fleet according to the “Crab” type, and three minelayers of smaller displacement were also laid down. By the beginning of the First World War, the Russian fleet had 15 combat submarines.

The main naval theaters of combat for Russia during the First World War were the Baltic and Black Seas. From the beginning of the war, the Baltic Fleet equipped the central mine and artillery position Nargen - Porkkala-Udd in order to prevent the enemy from breaking through into the Gulf of Finland. The entrance to the Gulf of Riga was covered by another mine and artillery position. With the help of mine laying in the southern part of the Baltic Sea, enemy sea communications were disrupted and damage was caused to the German fleet. It was especially important to limit the functioning of the sea route along which strategic raw materials were transported from Sweden to Germany.

The mine threat created by the Russians in the Baltic proved so effective that the Germans, having lost a large number of warships and transport vessels, at the end of 1914 they abandoned naval warfare for a long time. During the First World War, the Baltic Fleet deployed about 40 thousand mines. An important task of the fleet was also to assist groupings of ground forces on the coastal flanks, which it successfully accomplished.

In 1915, the Black Sea Fleet was inferior in combat power to the Turkish fleet, reinforced by the German battle cruiser Goeben and the cruiser Breslau. However, later, replenished with new battleships, it was able to block the German-Turkish fleet in the Bosphorus and sharply reduce the enemy’s maritime transport. Operating on the coastal flanks. The Black Sea Fleet provided significant assistance to the army with artillery fire, supported it with landings, and provided transportation of troops and equipment. During the war years, his ships deployed more than 13 thousand mines.

During the First World War in major naval battles, similar to Jutland, the Russian fleet did not participate. At the same time, there were numerous military clashes with the enemy of individual formations and ships of the Baltic and Black Sea fleets (battles at Cape Sarych and Gotland Island, the Moonsund operation, etc.).

Created in September 1916, the flotilla of the Northern Arctic Ocean provided sea transportation with the allies, fought against enemy submarines and mine danger. After the October events of 1917, Russia withdrew from the war.

On March 3, 1918, a peace treaty was concluded between Soviet Russia on the one hand and Germany, Austria-Hungary, Turkey and Bulgaria on the other. According to the agreement, all Russian ships were subject to transfer to domestic ports or disarmament on the spot. The ships and vessels of the Baltic Fleet located in Finland were supposed to remain there until navigation began. Thus, there was a threat of loss of naval forces in this naval theater, the main core of which was concentrated in Helsingfors.

The leadership of Soviet Russia decided, despite the difficult ice situation in the Gulf of Finland, to transfer all ships to Kronstadt.

During March-April 1918, the legendary Ice Campaign of the ships of the Baltic Fleet took place. 226 ships and vessels were saved for Russia, including 6 battleships, 5 cruisers, 59 destroyers and destroyers, 12 submarines. In addition, two brigades were taken out by ships and vessels air fleet, various military equipment.

In May 1918, the German command, threatening to disrupt the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, demanded that Russia surrender its ships of the Black Sea Fleet. To prevent this, by order of V.I. Lenin in June 1918, in the areas of Novorossiysk and Tuapse, a battleship that came here from Sevastopol was sunk “ Free Russia”(formerly “Ekaterina II”), 11 destroyers and destroyers, 6 transports.

With the outbreak of the civil war and foreign intervention, the revolutionary-minded part of the sailors, junior commanders, officers and admirals of the fleet went over to the side of the new government, the other part, primarily admirals and officers, went over to the side of the White Army. Former commander of the Black Sea Fleet, Admiral A.V. Kolchak in November 1918 self-proclaimed himself the Supreme Ruler of Russia, leading the counter-revolutionary struggle in Siberia. Most ports and bases domestic fleet ended up in the hands of interventionists from the Entente countries and Japan. The Russian naval forces practically ceased to exist. To assist ground forces command of the warring parties civil war The parties created river and lake flotillas that conducted active combat operations. The flotillas, as a rule, included gunboats converted from steamships, armed with two to four 75-130 mm guns, as well as armed tugs, floating batteries, messenger ships and boats. In some cases, flotillas were replenished with ships transferred from fleets along inland waterways. The flotillas attacked the flanks and rear of the enemy, ships and vessels, defended or destroyed crossings, landed troops, and provided transportation.

After the defeat of the White Army, Lieutenant General P.M. Wrangel in the Crimea in 1920, the bulk of the ships and vessels of the Black Sea Fleet (33 pennants) under the command of Vice Admiral M.A. Kedrov went to the French naval base of Bizerte (Tunisia).

St. Andrew's flags on these ships were lowered on October 24, 1924 after the recognition of the USSR by the French government. Russian sailors switched to the status of refugees.

Indefatigable

The battlecruiser Indefatigable became the first British ship to die in the Battle of Jutland. During a duel between battlecruisers, the ship was hit by heavy shells from the German battlecruiser Von der Tann, which caused an explosion of ammunition. Of the team of 1019 people, only two were saved, picked up by a German ship.

Queen Mary

The second English battlecruiser to die in the Battle of Jutland was the Queen Mary, which died just over 20 minutes after Indefatigable. The ship received a combined salvo from the battlecruisers Derflinger and Seydlitz, which also caused an explosion in the artillery magazines. Out of a team of 1275 people, 9 were saved.

Invincible

This battlecruiser was Admiral Hood's flagship at the Battle of Jutland. When Beatty's force, which had already lost two battle cruisers in the battle with the Germans, was retreating to the main forces of the British fleet, Hood's detachment was the first to come to its aid. The fire from Invincible heavily damaged the German light cruiser Wiesbaden, which later sank. But then the lighting changed, and the ship became clearly visible to the gunners of the German battle cruisers. At 18.31 the ship was hit in the main caliber turret, causing an explosion in the magazines. The explosion broke the ship in half, and since it sank at a depth of less than 30 meters, each half rested on the bottom, and the stern and bow remained sticking out above the water. For several years after the war, fishermen could see this terrible monument, until a storm overturned both parts of the skeleton. Admiral Hood, Captain 1st Rank E. L. Clay and more than 1,000 people were killed; 6 survivors from the cruiser were picked up by the destroyer Badger.

The German cruiser Blucher was a transitional ship between armored and battlecruisers. Due to a shortage of ships, she often took part in operations alongside newer battlecruisers. While at the Dogger Bank on January 24, 1915, with the British battle cruisers, the Blucher, which was the last in the German detachment, received several heavy hits and lost speed. The British preferred to finish off the lagging German ship and let the rest leave. Having received from 70 to 100 hits from a shell, and then several torpedoes, the cruiser capsized and sank. Crew losses amounted to 792 people, 281 sailors were picked up by British ships.

The French battleship was part of the Allied squadron that tried to break through Turkish fortifications in the Dardanelles on March 18, 1915. The duel between coastal batteries and ships turned out to be fatal for the latter. The Bouvet received several hits, destroying its bow gun turret and one of its masts. Then the battleship came across a mine, the explosion of which caused the detonation of ammunition. The ship sank within two minutes. Out of a crew of 710 people, only about 50 were rescued.

Odeishes
One of four ships of the King George V class. The first dreadnought in history to die during combat operations. On October 27, 1914, the Odeisches, on its way to conduct artillery training, at 08:05 ran into a mine laid by the German auxiliary minelayer Berlin. The captain tried to bring the sinking ship to the shore and throw it aground, but at 10:50 the engine room was flooded and the Odeisches lost speed. At 21:00 "Odeyshes" capsized, exploded and sank. A shrapnel killed the sergeant major on the cruiser Liverpool, which was located more than 700 meters from the explosion site. This is the only human casualty in the sinking of the Odeyshes.

Irresistable

The battleship Irresistable was one of a series of eight British ironclads built in the early 20th century. While participating in the attack by the allied Dardanelles squadron on March 18, 1915, the ship hit a mine and lost speed. The current carried him to the Turkish batteries, which finished him off and three hours later the ship sank to the bottom. The team's losses amounted to about 150 people. In total from this series of battleships, except for the Irresistable in the First world war two more ships were lost.

The battlecruiser Inflexible picks up the crew of the cruiser Gneisenau

The armored cruisers Scharnhorst and Gneisenau were the core of the German East Asia Squadron based in Qingdao, China. With the outbreak of the First World War, the German squadron went to sea so as not to be destroyed by superior enemy forces in the port. Off the coast of Chile, she defeated the English squadron of Admiral Craddock sent to search for her, sinking two old armored cruisers, but near the Falkland Islands she came across a much stronger enemy - Stradie's squadron, which consisted of an armadillo, 2 battleships, 3 armored cruisers and 2 light cruisers. In an unequal battle, both German armored ships and 2 light cruisers were sunk. The Scharnhost died along with the entire crew and Admiral Count Spee, and 680 of the Gneisenau crew died and 187 people were rescued.

St. Stephen

The battleship Szent István (St. Stephen) was part of a series of four dreadnoughts of the Austria-Hungary Viribus Unitis class. Most He spent his service at the base of the Austrian fleet in Pole. On June 15, 1918, the main forces of the Austrian fleet went to sea to attack Allied anti-submarine forces in the Otranto area. The operation failed, and Szent István received two torpedoes from the Italian torpedo boat MAS-15 at 3.25. The ship received a strong list to starboard. Attempts to take it to shore and run it aground were unsuccessful, and at 6.05 the ship capsized and sank. Of the 1,094 crew members, 89 drowned along with the dreadnought; the rest were picked up by escort ships. After the war, the Italians placed the MAS-15 boat on public display in Rome's Museo di Risorgimento, where it remains to this day.

Viribus Unitis

October 31, 1918, during the collapse of Austria-Hungary as single state, flags were lowered on the decks of ships of the former Austro-Hungarian Fleet, after which the fleet came under the jurisdiction of the Yugoslav National Council. On the same day, the flagship of the former fleet, the Viribus Unitis, sank in the harbor of Pola as a result of sabotage carried out by Italian combat swimmers R. Rosetti and R. Paolucci, who laid mines on the side of the battleship. Janko Vukovich Podkapelski, captain 1st rank, concurrently commander of the new Yugoslav fleet, refused to leave the ship and died along with it, sharing the fate of almost 400 crew members. The question of whether the Italians knew that they were actually going to blow up not an enemy battleship, but a ship of a completely different fleet, remains open to this day