"Emperor Nicholas 1" - battleship of the Russian Empire

After the defeat in the Russo-Japanese War, the headquarters of the Imperial Navy began to seriously modernize naval warships. Particular attention was paid to the Black Sea basin - it was there in the event of a world war that hostilities could erupt. The battleship "Emperor Nicholas I" is one of the ships prepared by military engineers for large-scale sea battles.

Development of ships

At the end of 1913 the General Directorate of Shipbuilding began to develop new principles for booking and distribution of combat load. Provided increased protection of the armor of the middle deck - up to 63 mm of metal, combat deckhouse and bevels. Steps were taken to strengthen the deck artillery armor - the metal layer on it in vulnerable parts exceeded 300 mm. As a result of the modernization of the vessel project, its full displacement increased almost to 28 thousand tons, the linear dimensions increased, the running characteristics improved - "Emperor Nicholas I" (battleship) could speed up to 21 knots. These and other improvements were reflected in the draft, which on March 12, 1914, was submitted for approval to the Minister of the Sea.

Mykolayiv shipyards

In the early spring of 1914, the approved drafts of a military ship with a draft specification went to Nikolaev. At that time, the construction of large civil and military vessels was carried out by the Russian Shipbuilding Joint Stock Company. The technical documentation was accompanied by a cover letter, in which the shipbuilders were asked to determine the time the ship was built and the total cost. After a number of approvals, "Emperor Nicholas 1," battleship, was estimated at 32.8 thousand rubles, and its construction was given three years. True, his final name was received later.

In the process of examining the submitted drawings ship engineer VI. Yurkevich proposed some changes that lowered the bow wave, helped reduce the load on the machine installations. Subsequently, Yurkevich emigrated to France, where he was directly involved in the design of the French liner "Moggaps Ne". Many parts of this ship were developed by engineers of the Russian Admiralty.

Bookmark battleship

On April 15, 1914, the solemn laying of a new warship was held on the open slipway of the Nikolayev shipyard. Nicholas II himself took part in the ceremony. The preliminary name of the vessel was "Ivan the Terrible". For approval, the Emperor was offered two names - "Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Prince Vladimir" and "Emperor Nicholas 1". Battleship was named after the ancestor of the ruling king - this is the decision the emperor took. Perhaps this decision was dictated by the need to improve the morale of their fleet.

In documents, however, "Emperor Nicholas I," battleship, appeared only on June 2 of the same year. This logical sequence was somewhat broken - you can not enroll the ship that was just laid in the fleet. Such a violation was dictated by the need to receive funds for its construction.

War and ships

The First World made its own corrections and significantly delayed the launching of a military ship. "Emperor Nicholas I" (battleship) needed different import components, but their delivery was postponed or stopped altogether. Hopes were placed on domestic machinery and mechanisms. But their installation required revision of some units of the warship. An additional bulwark was added to the project from the first tower installation to the very nose. This contributed to improving the seaworthiness of the vessel. Final improvements were taken into account, and the ship was completed on domestic stocks with an additional bulwark. Then the name of the ship - "Emperor Nicholas I" was finally confirmed.

1916 - the time of the height of the world war. Despite the difficult situation at the fronts, the shipbuilders managed to complete the construction of the ship - on October 5, the battleship left the stocks and moored at the factory wall. At that time, the readiness of the vessel was 77.5%. Work was carried out intermittently throughout 1917, but at the beginning of 1918 the Provisional Government was forced to freeze their completion, and the "Emperor Nicholas 1" (battleship) was never finalized.

The fate of the ship in the 1920s

After the civil war and foreign intervention, the Red Army soldiers entered Nikolayev. Several attempts to complete the construction of the warship were completed in vain - there was no knowledge for building a modern vessel among workers and peasants, as there were no ideas about such a science as military science. "Emperor Nicholas I," a battleship designed for military victories in the Black Sea Fleet, never entered into one battle. Subsequently, he was towed to the shipyard of Sevastopol, where he was cut to scrap metal.

Revival of the ship

Interest in the military warships of the past has increased significantly after the release of the game World of Warships. The ship with a difficult fate gathered in itself many achievements of Russian engineering thought of the beginning of the XX century. "Emperor Nicholas I", a battleship in full combat equipment, occupies the fourth level of research of the Russian (Soviet) branch of warships The characteristics of the battleship are as close as possible to the real ones. Its speed and armament correspond to the level of military equipment of the early 20th century. And now "Emperor Nicholas 1", the battleship is a magnificent example of Russian military engineering thought, takes part in virtual sea battles of players from all over the world.