Gangut class battleship

"MK-3-12" on the "Sevastopol" battleship

Battleship Gangut in World War I

The Gangut-class were the first "dreadnought" battleships built for the Imperial Russian Navy. The ships were authorised by the duma (Russian Parliament) in 1908. Because of lack of experience the Russians asked several foreign yards for design advice. A convoluted design history involving Italian, German (Blohm & Voss) and British (John Brown and Company) companies ensued. The ships were ordered in 1909. Four ships were built. Two were named after victorious battles of Peter the Great in the Great Northern War, two were named after battles in the Crimean War. Three of the ships replaced similarly named ships of the Petropavlovsk-class lost in the Russo-Japanese War.

General characteristics

From Conway's All The World's Fighting ships 1906-1921

• Displacement: 25,850 tons full load
• Length:180 m (590 ft)
• Beam: 26.6 m (87 ft)
• Draught of 9.2 m (30 ft)
• Machinery: 4 shaft parsons type steam turbines, 25 mixed fired Yarrow boilers, 42,000 hp
• Speed:  knots ( km/h)
• Range:  nautical miles ( km) at  knots ( km/h). 1170 tons oil and 3000 tons coal
• Armament :
  • 12 × 12 inch guns in four triple turrets,
  • 16 × 120 mm guns,
  • 4 × 47 mm guns
  • 4 ×  inch ( mm) torpedo tubes.
• Armour:
  • 9 inch belt,
  • 8 inch turrets,
  • 3 inches main deck.
• Crew: 1,126.

In the 1930s the three operational ships (i.e., all but Poltava) were extensively reconstructed with new oil-fired machinery and new anti-aircraft guns. British radar was added during World War II.

Ships

Gangut (Гангут)

Gangut was built by Admiralty Shipyard, St.Petersburg, laid down 1909, launched in October 1911, and completed in December 1914. Originally named after the 1714 naval Battle of Gangut outside the Hanko Peninsula (Hangö udd in Swedish), renamed Oktyaborskaya Revolutsia (October Revolution) in 1918, the ship served in the Baltic Fleet during World War II and was scrapped in 1959.

Petropavlovsk (Петропавловск)

Petropavlovsk was built by Baltic Yard, St.Petersburg, laid down 1909, launched in November 1911, and completed in December 1914. Originally named after the battle of Petropavlovsk of the Crimean war. Sunk at her moorings by British HM Coastal Motor Boat 4 ( Augustus Agar) but salvaged and repaired. Renamed Marat after the French revolutionary leader Jean-Paul Marat in 1921, the ship served in the Baltic during the World War II Siege of Leningrad. She was sunk at her moorings by German Stuka bombers on 23 September 1941. The wreck continued in action as a floating battery for the remainder of the siege. She was raised in 1950 and served as a the Training ship Volkhov until being scrapped in 1953.

Sevastopol (Севастополь)

Sevastopol, built by Baltic Yard, St.Petersburg, was laid down 1909, launched in October 1911, and completed in November 1914. Originally named after the city of Sevastopol in the Crimea, renamed Parizhskaya Kommuna after the Paris Commune of 1871, she was transferred to the Black Sea Fleet in 1929, because all of the Black Sea Dreadnoughts were lost during the Revolution and subsequent Russian Civil War. The ship fought in World War II, was renamed Sevastopol in 1943, and was scrapped in 1957.

Poltava (Полтава)

Poltava was built by Admiralty Shipyard, St.Petersburg, laid down 1909, launched in July 1911, and completed in December 1914. Named after the Battle of Poltava (1709), the ship survived World War I in such a bad state that she was never repaired. In 1925 she was renamed Frunze, after the revolutionary leader Mikhail Frunze, and converted into a training hulk. She was sunk by German artillery during the siege of Leningrad in 1941, the wreck was raised and scrapped in 1950.

See also

• Vladimir Yourkevitch
• Imperatritsa Mariya class battleships

References

• M. Whitley, Battleships of World War II, Cassell 1998
• Conways All the Worlds Fighting Ships 1906-1921

External links

• Battleship "Sevastopol" from Russian/Soviet Black Sea fleet (with photos)
• Article in Russian
• web.ukonline.co.uk

Gangut-class battleship
Imperial Russian Navy / Soviet Navy
	Gangut / October Revolution | Petropavlovsk / Marat | Poltava / Frunze | Sevastopol / Parizhskaya Kommuna
List of naval ships of Russia List of ships of the Soviet Navy

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