Last Minister of the Imperial Navy

The fate of Ivan Grigorovich - the naval commander, statesman and minister of the sea in the last government of the Russian Empire - was uneven. After his death, he was unfairly forgotten, almost did not remember all the Soviet years.

Ivan Konstantinovich became naval minister in 57 years. By that time, he was firmly “salted” - after swimming through the pricing account of 10 for the years needed to get the rank, he added the subsequent service on ships to them. Grigorovich also had diplomatic training, having spent almost two years as a marine agent in England. In Russian-Japanese commanded a squadron battleship "Tsesarevich", then became head of the Port Arthur port during the defense of the fortress. After the war - two years at the head of the port in Libau, second in importance on the Baltic after Kronstadt, proved to be a good business manager. So there was no widespread experience.

March 19, 1911, who had become vice-admiral Grigorovich by that time, was appointed naval minister and promoted to full admiral. And already in April, he presented in the highest name two documents of the highest importance for their subsequent significance: “The Law on the Imperial Russian navy”And“ The Baltic Fleet Shipbuilding Strengthening Program for 1911–1915 ”.

It should be noted that for the first time in stories of our country, the law regulated the development of the Navy for the long term. Thus, it was asserted that the fleet was building not only the maritime minister (today GC Navy), but the entire country under the direction, responsibility and control of the first person of the state. Subsequently, such laws were not adopted.

Under Grigorovich, the “brain” of the military fleet was improved — all the governing bodies were ordered. But the main thing is that the minister directed maximum efforts to the development of domestic shipbuilding. The fact that they were not in vain is evidenced by the best Gangut-type battleships, the Novik destroyers, the Bars submarines and the world's first submarine minelayer Crab. Fully complete the construction of all the series did not allow First imperialistic, which confirms the truth: the fleet is built in peacetime for further use.

The course on the development of shipbuilding justified itself one hundred percent: the combat units built the day before and during that war formed the main force of the fleets in the Great Patriotic War. The quality of the battleship "Gangut" ("October Revolution"), in which I had the opportunity to practice in the 1955 year, I can testify personally. According to veterans, only one of his main caliber 305 caliber millimeters weighing more than 400 kilograms broke the psychic attack of the Germans near Leningrad.

By order of the War Minister of the Provisional Government, Alexander Guchkov of March 31, 1917, Grigorovich was dismissed and dismissed. Since June, 1919 has become an archival worker. By that time, he wrote Memories of the Former Maritime Minister, which captured the events until February of the year 1917, without touching on political issues.

From the end of 1923, Ivan Konstantinovich sought to travel abroad for treatment and a year later went to the Cote d'Azur in the town of Menton, where he lived modestly, refusing the help of the governments of England and France. He died in 1930 year. Only in 2005 the urn with his ashes was delivered to St. Petersburg and buried in the family crypt at the Nikolsky cemetery of the Alexander Nevsky Monastery.

Today, as a tribute to the memory of the outstanding personality of Ivan Grigorovich, the lead frigate of the distant sea zone of the 11356 project is named in his honor. In fact, this is the last naval minister in Russian history, except for a two-year (1951 – 1953) tenure in a similar post by Nikolai Kuznetsov. And whether the navy will revive in full force without its ministry is a question.

Comments

[kipage]

A wonderful statesman.
I did a lot for the development of our fleet

[parusnik]

And already in April, he presented in the highest name two documents of the highest importance for their subsequent significance: “The Law on the Imperial Russian Fleet” and “The Program for Strengthening the Shipbuilding of the Baltic Fleet for 1911-1915”.

It was not possible to approve the law on the fleet in any way. Guchkov opposed. Behind him stood the interests of army suppliers. Guchkov disgusted and vilely opposed the appropriations. He lied and scared the expenses that no one asks and demanded money only for the army. But the bill was passed.

[Cat]

I have a desire to recall that in addition to the fleet, the last Minister of the Sea indirectly made an invaluable gift for the formation of railway artillery. The most paving railway guns of the Red Army were TM-14, with guns of unfinished 356mm battlecruisers.

[Curious]

"... the best at that time battleships of the Gangut type, Bars submarines
The question is, where were the indicated battleships and submarines the best?

[Cat]

Come on Viktor Nikolaevich, show leniency. It is necessary to read "the most balanced for the Baltic theater of operations at the time of laying", "the best submarines of the Russian imperial fleet!"
To be honest, I didn’t even criticize these "mistakes", sure that "bari ...., Viktor Nikolaevich will come by the nose of the Author ....."!

[Curious]

It is simply not clear why one cannot write a normal article about a person as he deserves it, without blunders, so as not to write that "the military units built the day before and during that war constituted the main force of the fleets in World War II."

[Monarchist]

V. N. in principle, I agree with you: they cannot do without colorful epithets. It happens that you start reading, and there 60% of the chatter: “beautiful, strongest, unsurpassed, wisest. As in the market:“ the freshest or most delicious ”, and in such cases I say, and who says:“ I have the worst ”

[mkpda]

A bit clumsy, but pretty much true. In fact, Leningrad and Sevastopol held 12 "guns of battleships and coastal batteries of the Grigorovich era. When the 30th and 35th batteries fell silent, Sevastopol fell.

[Andy]

yeah ... Hochma, not an article ... since when did the port commander and minister-naval commander ???

[mkpda]

In the Republic of Ingushetia, there was a post of the head of the port, senior naval officer in the port. For example, Admiral Makarov, before leaving for the Russo-Japanese War, was the head of the port of Kronstadt.

[Andy]

I repeat HOW can I call the head of the port (rear) FLOTSEMAN ?? Makarov was the fleet commander; Witgeft led the squadron into the battle; he was the naval commanders ... but not the minister. I recall that shortly after the outbreak of hostilities, the naval commander went ashore ...

[Monarchist]

"only one of his main caliber shells of 305 mm, weighing more than 400 kg, thwarted the psychic attack of the Germans near Leningradki" from now on, it is desirable to read more

[Curious]

This is also another blunder of the author.
The first time that during the battles for Luga near the village of Alekseyevka in September 1941, the Germans launched a “psychic attack” I read back in the seventies in the book
"Unconquered Leningrad. A brief outline of the history of the city during the Great Patriotic War," prepared by the Leningrad branch of the Institute of History of the USSR in 1970.
“In the battles in the Kingisepp area, a detachment of Baltic sailors became famous for their courage under the command of senior lieutenant Bokovni. Once, at the village of Alekseyevka, the Nazis launched a“ psychic ”attack on the Bokovni subunit. who remembered for a long time the brave Baltic people nicknamed them "black devils".
Later, already in the two thousandths, Beshanov's book Leningrad Defense was published. There this episode is described, I would say, more broadly.
“The Soviet troops repulsed the enemy’s attempts to overcome the Kingisepp site and the defense near Luga on the move. According to the Germans, the battles started here were heavy and cost them significant losses. In particular, the SS division, which launched a full-scale mental attack with deployed standards, lost up to 2000 purebred Aryans killed and wounded. The division commander, General Mülferstedt, who staged this idiotic performance, was also killed. "
In any case, there is no question of any shell, the victory was gained by the blood and then of the Soviet soldiers.

[domnich]

Quote: squeeze

I did a lot for the development of our fleet

Commemorative plaque at the entrance to the General Staff of the Navy



Paying tribute to the merits of I.K. Grigorovich in the Main headquarters of the Russian Navy retained his office:

[Nukesmoke]

I was always touched. They began to call ships the names of admirals. Fine!
But you can see no Spiridov, no Greig, no Senyavin, no Chichagov, Sukhotin, Cruz ... Okay, you can still forget Vitgeft - you think, he died on the bridge giving the best fight for the whole RVE, and after his death he was “criticized to the ears” by cabinet strategists . But isn’t there enough names besides a cunning apparatchik?

[Monarchist]

It will be more accurate to say: recreated with the use of authentic furniture.

[Antares]

One of the prominent people of RI
Born in the family of captain 1st rank Konstantin Ivanovich Grigorovich (1807-1902), a native of the noblemen of the Poltava province, and his wife Maria Egorovna (nee Baroness von der Hoven)
According to the novel, Port Arthur was filled up - as tricky, but knowing the matter. (They did not hesitate to call Kondratenko and Grigorovich a word forbidden on the site- "the name of a Ukrainian, initially derogatory, then humorous, familiar")
The admiral knew the matter.

[Nukesmoke]

He is a crook. Arranged a circus with the Ganguts. It is clear that their ships should be built correctly, but with the size of cost overruns and the difference in the power of cars - Gangut gave out 23-24 knots, Poltava barely squeezed 20. About the “leopards” - here the story is connected with the Bubnov brothers, another Bubnov with the rank of comrade minister and the Noblessner firm. As a result, the boats were not divided into compartments and with engines of different powers from Kolomna diesel engines to imported ones.
The Ishmaels turned out to be incomprehensible ships at all - they are superfluous for the Baltic, and there is no infrastructure for them to base somewhere else.

[Monarchist]

Quote: Nukesmoke

I was always touched. They began to call ships the names of admirals. Fine!
But you can see no Spiridov, no Greig, no Senyavin, no Chichagov, Sukhotin, Cruz ... Okay, you can still forget Vitgeft - you think, he died on the bridge giving the best fight for the whole RVE, and after his death he was “criticized to the ears” by cabinet strategists . But isn’t there enough names besides a cunning apparatchik?

You asked an interesting question: why are the FOUNDERS of the Russian Navy FORGOTTEN?
With Witgeft, not everything is clear and this was already on the site