In 1636, a warship was built in Russia, called "Frederick", but it belonged to another state - Schleswig-Holstein (land in northern Germany, capital - Kiel). Therefore, the Oryol ship, built in 1667-1669, is considered the firstborn of Russian military shipbuilding.
Reasons for building the first shipyard
The background of its construction is as follows. Under Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, who ruled Russia from 1645 to 1676, trade relations with neighbors, including Persia (modern Iran), developed intensively. There was a need to establish navigation in the Caspian Sea. The times were turbulent, and in the trade agreement signed by the Russian Tsar and the Persian Shah, a special clause stipulated the need to protect trade routes by military courts. The Orel was born out of this agreement.
Responsible behavior
In 1667, on the Oka, just below the confluence of the Moskva River, in a village called Dedinovo, they began to build a small shipyard. It was intended to build oneship, boat, yacht and two boats. That was the original plan. For this purpose, shipmasters were sent from Holland and other countries - Gelt, Minster and Van den Streck. In addition to them, Colonel Van-Bukovets, captain and feeder Butler were invited to directly supervise and organize the construction of warships. 30 carpenters, 4 blacksmiths and 4 gunners were recruited from the surrounding villages. The general leadership of the process of the birth of the Russian navy was entrusted to the boyar A. L. Ordyn-Nashchokin, one of the most educated and intelligent tsarist dignitaries. He also owned the idea of acquiring Russia's own Navy.
Seriousness of intentions
Obviously, due to such a serious government approach, the Eagle ship was built in a surprisingly short time - less than a year. They began to build it on November 14, 1667, and already on May 19, 1668, it was launched. What did he represent? A double-deck, three-masted with a bowsprit sailing ship of the Western European type was a kind of Dutch pinnace - a sailing and rowing vessel for general purposes. The parameters possessed by the Eagle ship are as follows: the length of the vessel was 24.5 meters, the width was 6.5 meters, the draft depth reached 1.5 meters. The money for the construction of the sailboat was received from the predecessor of the Admir alty of Peter I - the Order of the Great Parish. The total cost was 2221 rubles. The frigate was built by Russian shipbuilders Stepan Petrov and Yakov Poluektov according to the design of the aforementioned Cornelius van Bukoven. The warship "Eagle" had the following weapons - 22 squeaks (guns) with a caliber of six to two feet, 40 muskets, 40 pistols, hand grenades. The crew was to consist of 56 people - the captain, 22 sailors (according to other sources, 20 sailors and 2 officers), 35 archers.
Cradle of the Russian Navy
It should be noted that the place for the construction of the shipyard was chosen sensibly. The village of Dedinovo stretches along both banks of the Oka. There were also oak forests, which are an excellent building material. A squadron of a frigate, a yacht and two sloops along the Volga arrived in Astrakhan in 1669. The yacht was armed with two six-foot guns, each sloop had one squeaker of the same caliber. Why did the convoy reach Astrakhan only in 1669? The delay was due to a lack of finishing materials, and the Oryol warship was forced to spend the winter on the Oka. The emergence of the shipyard marked not only the birth of the domestic navy, but also contributed to the emergence of the Ship Charter and the maritime commercial flag of Russia. "34 article articles" received before the departure of a squadron of four ships, led by the galliot "Eagle", became the prototype of the Charter of the Navy. The tricolor, according to some reports, was also invented here for launching the Orel, although, according to other sources, Peter I drew it with his own hand, came up with the colors, sequence and direction of the stripes. The first ship "Eagle" got its name in honor of the coat of arms of Russia. On April 25, 1669, a decree was issued giving the ship this name.
A sad end
In August, the frigate under the command of Captain Butler and other ships anchored in the Astrakhan roadstead. The city had already been captured by the rebellious peasants led by Stepan Razin. According to some reports, the ships were burned by the Razin Cossacks, according to others, the first ship "Eagle" stood idle for many years in the Kutum channel until it became completely unusable. Such a sad fate befell the frigate. He was not destined to accompany merchant ships to Persia, crossing the Khvalyn (Caspian) Sea. But it will forever remain the first Russian warship. Peter I repeatedly visited the first Russian shipyard and noted that the first frigate, although it did not fulfill its mission, it was from him that all maritime business began. They say that the boat on the spire of the Admir alty is very reminiscent of the glorious Russian ship Oryol.
