In 1905, the Japanese raised the "Varyag" and introduced them into their fleet under the name "Soya". During World War I, in 1916, Russia bought out the Varyag from its former enemies, along with other captured ships of the First Pacific Squadron.
“WHEN DAWN BROKEN, a difficult picture appeared to the eyes of the Arthurians: two of our best battleships and the armored cruiser Pallada, blown up by Japanese mines, stood helplessly near Tigrovka ... Alas, only now doubts about the inevitability of war have disappeared," Japanese War on the night of January 26-27, 1904 in the collection historical research "Defense of Port Arthur" (St. Petersburg, 1910). The treacherous attack by the Japanese on the ships of the enemy (who did not yet know that he was the enemy, because the war had not been declared) - such is the style of the instigator, who was striving to ensure dominance in the future theater of operations with one blow. Disabling two of the seven battleships and one of the four cruisers of the 1st rank of the Pacific squadron entailed the entire chain of events, dramatic for Russia: the complete seizure of the initiative by the Japanese fleet, the landing of Japanese infantry on the mainland, the 11-month heroic defense and the fall of Port Arthur. But the most tragic moments of the Russo-Japanese war are written on the lead pages of the Pacific waves: the death of the destroyer "Guarding", the defeat of the Russian squadron at Tsushima, the legendary heroic battle of the cruiser "Varyag" and the gunboat "Koreets" with the Japanese squadron on the roadstead of the Korean port of Chemulpo.
Russia missed the war with Japan and lost. Monstrous distances between the rear and the front - eight thousand miles on a single and still unfinished Trans-Siberian railway, and even a fantastic quartermaster robbery. What are the mere supplies to the army of boots with cardboard soles! The rearmament was not completed. However, Russia was never ready for any war. Her war machine, with the constant underestimation of the enemy, as always in our history, knocked together on the go. The Japanese have been preparing their fleet for military operations for eight years, sparing no money for it, and our sailors practically did not conduct exercises.
Here's how the situation in the Pacific Fleet described in his book “Port Arthur - the eyewitness diary” Captain 2 rank Vladimir Semenov: “As a result of ... credit cuts ... the ships sailed no more than 20 days a year, and the rest of the time was portrayed ... floating barracks. The arrival of the popular admiral (Stepan Makarov. - V.A.) ... could have helped the team learn, in the shortest possible time, about what they missed in peacetime. But nothing, no effort could make up for the irretrievably missed practice of swimming ... Men dressed in sailor shirts ... it was possible to turn into heroes, but to make them experienced sailors, and to turn a bunch of floating barracks into a combat squadron - this required long years ... Admiral, who took command of the fleet in order to lead him into battle, was forced to teach him to perform simple maneuvers ... "
Dagger in the back victory
The feats of the defenders of Port Arthur and the crew of the Varyag cruiser, celebrated in many songs, were not performed on Russian soil and not in Russian waters: Port Arthur and Dalniy were located on the Kvantunsky Peninsula, leased by Russia from China for 25-year terms. The Russian-Japanese war, which was conducted not on Russian and not on Japanese, but on Chinese territory with the indifference of its true master, the Chinese imperial Qing dynasty, is marked in the history of Russia by mediocre command and selfless heroism of soldiers and sailors. But the main thing (and this situation was repeated in 1917 on the fronts of the First World War) was that the army received, as the right-wing archives were saying, a “dagger in the back of victory” from the liberal intelligentsia. It was her efforts, combined with the efforts of the Japanese, and the “efforts” of the quartermaster thieves that led to the defeat of Russia.
“If we are distressed and ill at heart about our failures and heavy losses, we will not be embarrassed. In them the Russian power is being renewed, in them the Russian power is growing stronger, growing. With all of Russia, I believe that the hour of our victory will come, and that the Lord God will bless my dear troops and fleet with a friendly onslaught to break the enemy and support the honor and glory of our Motherland. ” When Nicholas II signed this order to the army and navy, promulgated by 1 January 1905, he did not yet know what new losses were waiting for Russia. Ahead was Tsushima. If Port Arthur, during the defense of which about 27 thousands of Russians were killed and wounded, cost the Japanese thousands of people in 110, the squadron of Vice Admiral Zinovy Rozhdestvensky, who arrived in the Pacific Ocean only six months after the surrender of the fortress, was quietly and methodically shot by the Japanese , almost no loss for the enemy.
The final bitter chord of the war was the Portsmouth Peace Treaty, in which Russia ceded Japan the right to lease Port Arthur and Dalny with the adjacent territories and the southern part of Sakhalin.
There are shameful defeats, but there are also such ones that are more precious than any victory. Defeats that temper the military spirit, which are composed of songs and legends. The feat always involves a free choice between life and death. Between shame and honor. The Soviet classic inspired us that "the most precious thing for a person is life." But the Russian military tradition speaks of something else: the most precious thing for a man is honor. The heroic death of "Varyag" is proof of this.
Any negotiations are unnecessary ...
On the night of January 27, the Japanese squadron of Admiral Togo suddenly attacked the Russian squadron in Port Arthur, in the morning another squadron, Rear Admiral Uriu, attacked the cruiser Varyag and the gunner Korean in the Korean port Chemulpo.
"Varyag" appeared in the Korean port as a stationary of the Russian state, ensuring the normal operation of its embassy in the neighboring country. The ship of the new (American) construction of the 1901 of the year had a displacement of 6500 t, a good speed of travel - 24 knot (44 km / h). Crew - 570 man. Armament: twelve 152-mm guns, twelve 75-mm, eight 47-mm, two 37-mm guns and 6 torpedo tubes.
The cruiser was commanded by captain 1 of the rank of Vsevolod Fedorovich Rudnev, an officer trained in the best traditions of the Russian fleet, whose naval charter for three centuries demanded that the honor of the Russian name and the dignity of the Russian flag be strengthened in every way. On the evening of January 23, the commanders of foreign ships stationed in Chemulpo reported to Rudnev that Japan had severed relations with Russia. The inevitability of the attack was also confirmed by the night-time departure from the anchorage of the Japanese stationer — the cruiser Chiyoda.
On January 26, the Russian envoy in Seoul allowed Rudnev to send the gunboat "Koreyets" with an alarming dispatch to Port Arthur. Before entering the neutral Chemulpin raid, the Japanese attacked the Russian gunboat. However, three torpedoes fired did not hit the target. The fourth Korean torpedo attack attack commander, Koreans captain 2 of the rank of Grigory Belyaev ripped off, taking his small ship to the ram of a Japanese destroyer. He turned away without firing a torpedo. The commander of the Koreyts delivered to the port a disappointing message: the enemy had more than a dozen pennants.
On the same day, the Japanese squadron entered the Chemulpo raid. At Varyag and Korey, they prepared for the battle: they hatched the hatches, handed projectiles and cartridges from the cellars, checked the fire hoses. Japanese destroyers from a distance of two cables (about 360 m) sent their torpedo tubes to Russian ships, where the gunners were on duty at the guns all night, ready to immediately open fire. The commander of the enemy squadron, Rear Admiral Uriu, did not dare to attack the Russians in the raid, but he completed half of the task ahead. A landing party was landed from the Japanese transports on the Korean coast. Since there was no declaration of war, the Russians did not hinder this.
On the morning of January 27 (February 9) 1904, the Japanese admiral addressed the Russians with the threat of attacking Russian ships in the raid if they did not leave it before noon. In the port there were stationary cruisers in Britain, France, Italy and the USA. Rudnev decided to attempt to break through in Port Arthur and not to fight in the roadstead so that foreign ships of the neutral powers would not suffer, as he warned their captains. Historical objectivity demands that the commanders of the military courts of England, France and Italy sent a protest to the Japanese admiral (the commander of the American advice "Vicksburg" refused to sign it) demanding peace talks. Uriu received a protest, but found it possible to answer it only after the battle: “In view of the decision made by the brave Russian commander, any negotiations are unnecessary.” These were probably the features of Japanese military diplomacy — first attack, then negotiate.
Battle Chronicle:
"Upstairs, you comrades ..."
27 January in 9.30 on the cruiser began to breed a pair. The commander of the "Varyag" announced the officers of the start of hostilities. A unanimous decision is taken - to go for a breakthrough, and in case of failure - to blow up the ship, but not to give it to the enemy.
In 10.45, the cruiser commander addressed the crew on deck. He reported on the received Japanese ultimatum and said: "There can be no talk about surrender - we will not surrender to them the cruiser, nor ourselves, and we will fight to the last opportunity and to the last drop of blood." By tradition, all sailors were disguised as clean shirts, sober and ready for death. It was believed that before the battle, as before communion, sin to drink vodka.
The team sounded in 11.10: “Everything is upstairs, to be removed from the anchor”. Ten minutes later, "Varyag" was removed from the anchor. "Korean" followed in the wake of the wilderness. Teams of foreign ships, built to the front on the decks, paid tribute to the courage of the sailors of Russia, marching into a hopeless battle. Brass orchestras of foreign fleets played the anthem of Russia. Subsequently, foreigners talked about the greatness of this moment. Acknowledged that they had survived a difficult moment, seeing off people who were going to die. According to foreigners, to accept the challenge to fight with the squadron is many times the strongest - this is a feat that few people will decide. “Varyag” was also doomed because the small move of the “Korean” linked the speed of its maneuvers, and the guns of the old system did not reach the goal and turned out to be practically useless.
Two ships under the flag of St. Andrew followed a narrow channel abounding in rocks and shoals. There was no question of maneuvering in the upcoming battle. The Japanese squadron was waiting for the Russians at the exit to the open sea: the armored cruiser “Asama”, the armored cruisers “Naniwa”, “Takachiho”, “Niytaka”, “Akashi”, “Chiyoda”, eight torpedo boats and an armed messenger ship.
In 11.45, after the Varyag responded to the Japanese signal for surrender with a proud silence, the first shots from the Asama began to thunder. With the "Varyag" hit the right side guns. "Korean" while silent. Large-caliber, obsolete gunboat cannon boats were short-lived, and half of the battle they had to do nothing. A barrage of artillery fire fell upon the Varyag. He fired armor-piercing shells against his main adversary, the Asama, and very successfully. Russian commanders fired from the upper deck guns that did not have armor protection. It was here that we had the most losses.
In 12.05 cruiser commander
He gave the order to turn to the right, in order to introduce the weapon of the port side. And at this time, two large-caliber shells hit the ship. "Varyag" lost control of the wheel. Wounded Rudnev. The Japanese reinforce the shelling. Varyag received an underwater hole through which water poured into the coal pits of the boilers. Foci of fire flashed here and there on the cruiser ... The sailors were exhausted, fighting with fire.
The crew of the Varyag put all their fury into the volleys from the guns of the left side. Asama received several direct hits. On the flagship of Admiral Uriu, the stern artillery tower was disabled. "Korean", changing course, covered with fire waste wounded cruiser. In 12.45, with the approach of the Russian ships to the Chemulpo raid, the battle stopped.
The return of the heroes - the defeat sung in the songs
The French cruiser commander Victor Sanos, who arrived at the Varyag, writes in his diary: “I will never forget this amazing spectacle that presented itself to me: the deck is covered with blood, corpses and body parts are everywhere. Nothing escaped destruction: in places where shells were torn, paint was charred, all iron parts were punched, fans were knocked down, the sides and cots were burned. Where there was so much heroism, everything was rendered unusable, broken into pieces, riddled; the remains of the bridge hung pitiably. Smoke came from all the holes in the stern and the list on the port side increased. " In an unequal sea battle the cruiser lost its combat capability. Nearly half of the upper deck gunners died. Several underwater holes deprived Varyag of its usual course.
The fate of "Varyag" and "Koreans" was resolved. The commanders of the ships decided not to surrender the ships to the enemy. The Koreon gunboat was blown up by the crew, the team opened the Kingston in 15.30 on the Varyag. In 18.10 "Varyag" lay on board and after a moment disappeared under the water. The French cruiser Pascal, the English cruiser Talbot and the Italian cruiser Elba raised the surviving remnants of Russian ship crews onto their decks. The commander of the American ship refused to take part in rescue operations.
The Japanese suffered no less losses. The Varyag inflicted heavy damage on 2 cruisers - especially the flagship of the Assam hit, and the destroyer 1 sank. Vsevolod Rudnev informed Admiral Yevgeny Alekseev, Tsarist governor in the Far East: “The ships of the detachment supported the honor of the Russian flag with dignity, exhausted all means for the breakthrough, prevented the Japanese from winning, caused many losses to the enemy and saved the rest of the team.” The Varyag team has lost 122 people killed and wounded. The surviving sailors "Varyag" and "Koreyets" returned to Russia through neutral ports and were awarded St. George's crosses.
The first solemn meeting of the heroes took place in Odessa. From there, the sailors were warmly welcomed by ordinary people all the way to St. Petersburg. And on April 16 the sailors of “Varyag” and “Koreyets” accompanied by the music of the guards orchestras marched along Nevsky Prospect. In the Winter Palace after the prayer service, Emperor Nicholas II gave a dinner in honor of the heroes of Chemulpo. Vsevolod Rudnev was appointed commander of the battleship “Andrey Pervozvanny” under construction - the most powerful ship of the Russian fleet at that time.
In 1905, Varyag was raised by the Japanese and enlisted in a fleet called “Soya”, but in April 1916 was bought by Russia from Japan, and in November under the former name he came to the Kola Bay, where he was included in the Northern Fleet. Arctic Ocean. In February, 1917, the ship went to repair in England, but until the end of World War I was not repaired and then was sold for scrap.
Fulfilled prophecy
Yes, Russia lost in the 1905 year, but according to a fair remark by the great Russian philosopher Ivan Solonevich: “Russians sometimes lost the first battles, but so far have not lost any of the last.” Many blame the tsarist autocracy for all our troubles, but Winston Churchill wrote about this after World War I. “The idea of the tsarist regime as narrow-hearted and rotten answers the superficial statements of our day. By the blows that the Russian Empire survived, by the catastrophes that fell on it, we can judge its strength ... Nicholas II was neither a great leader nor a great king. He was only a sincere, simple man with average abilities ... Justice requires recognition of all that he has achieved. Let him blacken his actions and insult his memory - but let them say: who else was more suitable? There was no shortage of talented and brave people. But on the verge of victory, Russia fell to the ground, devoured alive by worms. ” Unfortunately, these “worms” devoured the empire already before the start of the Russian-Japanese war.
The prophecy of Nicholas II - “the hour of our victory will come” - has come true ... in forty years. 22 and 23 August 1945 of the year Soviet paratroopers freed Dalny and Port Arthur from the Japanese invaders, who later with good reason passed under Chinese sovereignty under their historical names Dalian and Lushun. During the battles from August 18 to September 1, after the complete defeat and surrender of the Kwantung Army, South Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands were released and returned to Russia.
In 1996, a new ship appeared in the Pacific - the Varyag Guards missile cruiser. It was built in 1983 at the Nikolaev Shipyard and was incorporated into the Black Sea Fleet under the name Chervona Ukraine. In 1996, he was transferred to the Pacific Ocean, where, in memory of the legendary cruiser, he was renamed Varyag and was awarded the Guards banner. On the days of the 300 anniversary celebration of the Russian fleet, at the beginning of February 1996, the Varyag rocket cruiser arrived at the Korean port of Chemulpo, to the place of the death of its ancestor, to give memorable honors to the dead seamen. By the order of the Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy, the place of the Varyag and Koreyets death was declared the coordinates of combat glory, and all Russian warships lowered flags here. For success in combat training by order of the Pacific Fleet commander in 1998, the missile cruiser Varyag became the flagship of the Pacific Fleet. And in December 2003, the small anti-submarine ship (MPK-222) of the Pacific Fleet was named Korean.