After the defeat in the Russo-Japanese War, the headquarters of the imperial fleet began a serious modernization of naval warships. Particular attention was paid to the Black Sea basin - it was there that in the event of a world war, hostilities could flare up. The squadron battleship "Emperor Nicholas I" is one of the ships prepared by military engineers for large-scale naval battles.
Ship development
At the end of 1913, the Main Directorate of Shipbuilding began to develop new principles for booking and distributing the combat load. Reinforced armor protection of the middle deck was provided - up to 63 mm of metal, conning towers and bevels. Measures were taken to strengthen the armor of deck artillery - the metal layer on it in vulnerable parts exceeded 300 mm. As a result of the modernization of the vessel project, its total displacement increased to almost 28 thousand tons, linear dimensions increased, driving characteristics improved - the Emperor Nicholas I (battleship) could reach speedup to 21 nodes. These and other improvements were reflected in the project, which was submitted on March 12, 1914 to the Minister of the Navy for approval.
Nikolaev shipyards
In the early spring of 1914, approved drawings of a warship with draft specifications went to Nikolaev. In those days, the Russian Shipbuilding Joint Stock Company was engaged in the construction of large civil and military ships. A cover letter was attached to the technical documentation, in which shipbuilders were asked to determine the time of construction of the ship and the total amount of costs. After a series of approvals, "Emperor Nikolai 1", a battleship, was valued at 32.8 thousand rubles, and three years were allotted for its construction. True, the battleship received its final name a little later.
In the process of reviewing the submitted drawings by ship engineer V. I. Yurkevich proposed some changes that lowered the bow wave and helped reduce the load on engine installations. Subsequently, Yurkevich emigrated to France, where he was directly involved in the design of the French liner Moggaps Ne. Many components of this ship were developed by engineers of the Russian Admir alty.
Bookmark battleship
On April 15, 1914, a ceremonial laying of a new warship took place at the open slipway of the Nikolaev shipyard. Nicholas II himself took part in the ceremony. The preliminary name of the ship was "Ioann the Terrible". For the Emperor's approv altwo names were proposed - "Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Prince Vladimir" and "Emperor Nicholas 1". The battleship was named after the ancestor of the reigning king - this was the decision the emperor made. Perhaps this decision was dictated by the need to increase the morale of their own fleet.
In the documents, the "Emperor Nicholas I", the battleship, appeared only on June 2 of the same year. By this, the logical sequence was somewhat violated - after all, it is impossible to enroll in the fleet a ship that has just been laid down. Such a violation was dictated by the need to obtain funds for its construction.
War and ships
The First World War made its own adjustments and significantly postponed the launching of a warship. "Emperor Nicholas I" (battleship) needed various imported components, but their delivery was delayed or stopped altogether. Hopes were pinned on domestic machines and mechanisms. But their installation required a revision of some components of the warship. An additional bulwark was introduced into the project from the first turret installation to the very nose. This contributed to the improvement of the ship's seaworthiness. The final improvements were taken into account, and the ship was completed on domestic stocks with an additional bulwark. At the same time, the name of the ship was finally approved - "Emperor Nicholas I".
1916 is the height of the world war. Despite the difficult situation on the fronts, shipbuilders managed to complete the construction of the vessel - on October 5, the battleship left the stocks and moored atfactory walls. At that time, the readiness of the vessel was 77.5%. The work was carried out intermittently throughout 1917, but in early 1918 the Provisional Government was forced to freeze their completion, and the "Emperor Nikolai 1" (battleship) was never completely completed.
The fate of the ship in the 1920s
After the civil war and foreign intervention, soldiers of the Red Army entered Nikolaev. Several attempts to complete the construction of a warship ended in vain - the workers and peasants did not have the knowledge to build a modern ship, just as there were no ideas about such a science as military affairs. "Emperor Nicholas I", a battleship designed for military victories in the Black Sea Fleet, did not enter a single battle. Subsequently, he was towed to the shipyard of Sevastopol, where he was cut into scrap metal.
Spawn ship
Interest in military combat ships of the past has increased significantly since the release of World of Warships. The ship with a difficult fate has collected many achievements of Russian engineering at the beginning of the 20th century. "Emperor Nicholas I", a battleship in full combat gear, occupies the fourth level of research of the Russian (Soviet) branch of warships
The characteristics of the battleship are as close to real as possible. Its speed and armament correspond to the level of military equipment of the beginning of the 20th century. And now "Emperor Nikolai 1", the battleship - is a magnificent example of Russian military engineering,takes part in virtual naval battles of players from all over the world.
