Cruiser "Aurora": from legend to scandal. The cruiser "Aurora" - the history of the ship of the "revolution" Cruiser in art
Navy ship number one returned after repairs at the Kronstadt Marine Plant to its eternal mooring at Petrogradskaya Embankment in St. Petersburg. All work on it has been successfully completed. The pride of the Russian fleet, the favorite of the Northern capital, has restored its former architectural and historical appearance. And this is an important sign that we are finally beginning to cherish the relics of our own history, regardless of the turns of the ideological situation. The ship, which in Soviet times personified the start of the victorious October Revolution, after completion of reconstruction returns to the center of St. Petersburg to decorate the sea capital and provide rich food for thought and a reason for pride to representatives of various generations and cultures.
The number one ship of the Russian Navy was handed over to him in the presence of Deputy Commander-in-Chief Vice Admiral A.N. Fedotenkov and towed to St. Petersburg. The acceptance certificate based on the results of the repair of the Aurora was signed on July 15, 2016 in a solemn ceremony at the Kronstadt Marine Plant.
The operation to return the ship to its eternal mooring was carried out at night, when the water level in the Neva is at its highest. The cruiser "Aurora" left the Kronstadt Marine Plant at 21.00.
The cruiser was escorted to its eternal mooring by five tugboats, one of which is assigned to the Leningrad Naval Base, a diving boat and a firefighting boat.
“Aurora” was the first to begin the planned bridge construction from July 15 to 16. All other ships entering and leaving the Neva missed the legendary cruiser. The schedule for the ship's night passage along the Neva was agreed in advance with the schedule for the construction of the Blagoveshchensky, Dvortsovoy and Troitsky bridges.
In the dead of night, the ship, with full illumination, approached its mooring site, where a complex operation was carried out to unroll it and move it to its mooring site between four installed barrels, install mooring lines and install a gangway bridge weighing 17 tons. All these actions were completed by the morning of July 16.
For the return of the cruiser, special watercraft from the Leningrad naval base prepared its mooring area. Measurements carried out by naval hydrographs and navigator's calculations showed that the depth reserve under the keel of the Aurora at Petrogradskaya Embankment would be 1.75 meters. This, according to the sailors, guarantees the safety of the anchorage of a ship of the first rank. While the Aurora was not on site, the city reconstructed the Petrogradskaya embankment and inspected the communications to which the cruiser was connected.
Tactical and technical characteristics of the cruiser "Aurora"
"Aurora" is a Diana-class armored cruiser of the first rank of the Baltic Fleet. Built at the New Admiralty in St. Petersburg in 1903.
The cruiser Aurora was armed with 42 cannons of four different calibers and three torpedo tubes. Its total displacement is 7130 tons, and the armor thickness is from 63.5 mm on the deck to 152 mm on the wheelhouse. It could travel at a speed of 19.2 knots, and its maximum range was 4,000 nautical miles. The cruiser's crew consisted of 570 people, including 20 officers. The length of the cruiser is 126.8 meters, width - 16.8 meters, and draft depth - 6.4 meters.
Service history of the cruiser "Aurora"
The Aurora received its baptism of fire during the Russo-Japanese War - it was one of two Russian ships that survived the Battle of Tsushima in May 1905. After the war in 1906, the cruiser returned to St. Petersburg and became a training ship on which practice for cadets and midshipmen of the Naval Corps. The small-caliber artillery was partially removed from the ship, and two 152 mm guns were added.
With the outbreak of the First World War in 1914, the cruiser became part of the 2nd Brigade of Cruisers of the Baltic Fleet, conducted artillery firing and carried out patrol duty. By the summer of 1914, fourteen 152 mm guns and four 75 mm anti-aircraft guns were installed on the Aurora.
After the October Revolution
On November 7 (October 25, O.S.), 1917, the ship found itself at the center of revolutionary events: it is believed that the Aurora’s blank shot was the signal for the Bolsheviks to seize the Winter Palace. However, according to the testimony of a number of eyewitnesses of the events, the assault then began without a signal from the ship.
Cruiser "Aurora": the pride of the Russian fleet
After the revolution, the cruiser was in the fleet reserve; its guns were removed and transferred to the Volga Flotilla. In 1922, it was decided to restore the Aurora as a training ship.
In this capacity, the cruiser received ten new 130 mm guns and became part of the Baltic Fleet Naval Forces.
With the beginning of the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945. The Aurora's personnel and guns took part in the defense of Leningrad, and the ship itself, located in Oranienbaum, was included in the Kronstadt air defense system, receiving new anti-aircraft guns. After being hit by several artillery shells on September 30, 1941, the ship grounded in Oranienbaum harbor.
Training base and museum ship
In October 1948, after restoration repairs, the Aurora was permanently parked near the Petrogradskaya embankment in Leningrad. Until 1956, the cruiser was a training base for the Leningrad Nakhimov School. On July 5, 1956, the Ship Museum was opened on the ship by personnel and veterans as a branch of the Central Naval Museum. In 1960, by decree of the Council of Ministers of the USSR, the ship was taken under state protection as a historical and revolutionary monument and became one of the symbols of the 1917 revolution and Leningrad. In particular, his image was placed on the Order of the October Revolution; the cruiser itself was awarded this order in 1968.
In the first half of the 1980s. The Aurora hull fell into disrepair, and repair and restoration work began in 1984. On August 16, 1987, the cruiser was returned to its mooring site.
On July 26, 1992, the St. Andrew's naval ensign, returned to the Russian Navy, was hoisted on the ship.
In the 1990s - 2000s. The museum on the cruiser Aurora was visited annually by about 500 thousand people, and more than 2 thousand excursions were conducted. Over a thousand historical exhibits and documents were stored on board the ship. The exhibition includes 10 flags and banners of the ship, 14 orders and 24 medals, which were awarded to members of the cruiser’s crew over the years. An exhibition of gifts from government, military and public organizations of different countries was opened. During the museum's operation, it was visited by over 30 million people from more than 160 countries.
On December 1, 2010, by order of the Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation, the cruiser was withdrawn from the Navy's combat service and transferred to the balance of the Naval Museum. The military unit serving on the ship was disbanded. On February 6, 2012, Aurora was included in the federal state institution of culture and art “Central Naval Museum” of the Ministry of Defense as a branch.
History of repairs of the cruiser "Aurora"
The historical armored cruiser "Aurora", which operated as part of the Russian Imperial and then the Soviet Baltic Fleet, repeatedly underwent repairs at the docks of the Kronstadt Marine Plant and other factories in St. Petersburg-Petrograd-Leningrad. The results of the latter can be seen today.
"Aurora" in a concrete jacket. Renovation from 1945 to 1947.
The ship met the Great Patriotic War at the wall in the harbor of Oranienbaum (now Lomonosov) on the southern shore of the Gulf of Finland. In the second half of September 1941, during massive German air raids, the cruiser received holes and shells exploded in the hold. Having taken on board thousands of tons of water, the ship sat on the ground and remained in a semi-submerged state almost until the end of the war.
In 1944, it was decided to restore the cruiser as a monument to the revolution. In the summer of 1945, the Aurora was raised, the water was pumped out, and the holes were repaired. The Aurora's condition was serious: after emergency repairs, the cruiser sprang a leak and sat down on the ground again. The ship was towed to Kronstadt, where it was docked at the Marine Plant.
In the fall of 1945, the cruiser was transferred to Leningrad, where repair and restoration work continued until the end of 1947.
During the overhaul, the ship's appearance changed, closer to what it had in 1917. The Aurora's superstructure was restored, including the complete replacement of the chimneys, which were badly damaged during the war. They installed weapons of the same type as those installed in 1917, but on coastal installations. The bow bridge was restored, and the wooden flooring of the upper deck was made of pine. Significant changes have also occurred inside the ship. The worn-out boilers were removed from the Aurora, replaced with two new ones, two of the three main steam engines were dismantled, the armored shafts of the engine and boiler rooms, and part of the auxiliary mechanisms were cut and removed. In total, about a thousand tons of various mechanisms were unloaded from the cruiser.
The changes especially affected the underwater part of the hull. A survey carried out in 1945 showed that she was in a condition allowing her further operation afloat. They decided to achieve water resistance by internally concreting the cladding.
Repairing hull damage with concrete was considered the most effective and durable in those years. The sealing work was carried out by workers of the Sudobetonverf plant afloat, simultaneously with other work carried out on the surface of the hull. Concreting was preceded by labor-intensive surface cleaning. Then steel reinforcement from rods with a diameter of 6–8 mm was welded to the set, forming a mesh with cells of 70x70 mm, and concrete of high grade cement was poured into it. Reinforced concrete cladding was carried out along the entire internal surface of the outer skin to approximately a height of one meter above the waterline. The result was a waterproof concrete “jacket” with a thickness of 50 to 90 mm and a weight of about 450 tons.
In November 1947, the ship was placed on the Bolshaya Nevka near Petrogradskaya Embankment (now Petrovskaya Embankment). For many years, the Aurora served as a training base for cadets of the Nakhimov Naval School.
The museum at Aurora began to be created in 1950 by personnel, veterans and enthusiasts. Since 1956, the museum exhibition of the cruiser has become a branch of the Central Naval Museum.
Stay afloat. Renovation from 1984 to 1987
By the end of the 1970s, the problem reappeared: the outer underwater part of the hull was corroded, the inner concrete “jacket” cracked in many places and lost its seal. The ship began to take on water, which had to be pumped out using pumps. The issue of repair arose with new urgency.
The corresponding work from 1984 to 1987 was carried out by the Leningrad Shipyard named after. A.A. Zhdanov () according to the project. The repair was preceded by survey and design work. At the Central State Archives of the Fleet, specialists studied about 6,000 files from 13 funds, more than 500 drawings, descriptions, documents, albums on mechanical installation and artillery weapons.
According to the developers of the repair project, the cruiser was an engineering structure that lived by the laws and traditions of naval service. This means that when preserving it, it was necessary to consider such qualities as strength, unsinkability, fire safety and resistance to aggressive environmental factors.
“It was decided to restore the ship not in the form of a frozen monument, but as a living reality of the historical days of the Great October Revolution, to keep the cruiser afloat under the flag of the USSR Navy while preserving and updating the museum,” wrote the scientific director of the restoration and preservation of the Aurora, Viktor Burov . However, this approach implied strict requirements for the condition of the hull, mechanisms and installations.
The concept of the Aurora as a monument ship afloat in the fleet was diametrically at odds with the concept defended by numerous opponents.
In short, their proposals boiled down to gentle repairs and careful restoration of the hull, equipment and mechanisms.
Several options for protection from the effects of the external environment were proposed: from placing the cruiser on an underwater pedestal to creating a floating underwater dock.
As a result, the arguments of the developers of the repair project were accepted - the collapsing underwater part up to 1.2 m above the waterline was considered unsuitable for repair and was cut off. The new underwater part was made from modern materials. The wooden and copper parts of the hull plating were not recreated. The new underwater and old surface parts of the hull were connected by welding.
The surface part was divided into four sections installed on the new underwater part. A boiler room was created in the engine room, placing museum exhibits there - models of two boilers of the Belleville-Dolgolenko system and elements of stoker equipment.
They cleaned up and installed the stern main machine. The carapace deck was re-made. Most of the old armor plates were returned to her.
But the most important task was to recreate the external architectural and historical appearance and internal structure of the ship on the eve of the October Revolution.
All upper-deck structures and equipment were restored: artillery installations, deckhouses, bridges, radio station, boat and searchlight weapons, emergency and mooring devices, cargo equipment, etc. Significant work was required to recreate the interior spaces associated with the combat activities of the cruiser. The cruiser's pipes and masts were rebuilt. However, those that stood before the renovation were also not original - they were installed in the late 40s. It was decided to leave the guns on coastal installations.
Almost all of the ship's interior has been redesigned. The battery deck housed a museum compartment with an exhibition and work areas for employees, a crew catering unit with a galley, an officers' living quarters, a wardroom and a commander's salon. Below, on the living deck, are the crew’s living quarters, equipped in accordance with the habitability requirements of a modern Navy. Communications, electricity, and fire extinguishing systems have been modernized.
According to the developers of the repair, the technology used made it possible to use genuine body parts to the maximum extent. For example, the contours and such unique designs as the bronze cast stem and archpost with rudder blade were completely preserved.
The task of reviving to the greatest extent possible the appearance of the historical cruiser and the details of its design, weapons, and equipment from the time of 1917 was considered completed. After repair and restoration work that lasted three years, the Aurora was returned to its parking lot in August 1987 - on the Petrogradskaya embankment near the Nakhimovsky VMU.
The results of the repairs were received ambiguously by specialists and the public.
The main complaint of opponents is that, in their opinion, the work carried out was a rework, not a restoration.
Many drew attention to the loss of many valuable elements of equipment and mechanisms of the historical Aurora during the repair; the decision to leave the cruiser afloat was also criticized, whereas it could have been installed on an underwater pedestal or in a special floating dock.
The decision to cut off the entire underwater part and attach a new welded part is still particularly objectionable, especially since the old cut part was treated truly barbarously. It was not dismantled or disposed of, but, together with many surviving parts of the equipment, was left to rust in one of the bays near St. Petersburg. To this day, the huge, more than a hundred-meter-high remains of the historical Aurora peek out from the waters of the Gulf of Finland. This gives many reasons to call the current Aurora a dummy or mock-up of an old cruiser.
Rumors do not subside that there are two “Aurora” - the fake current one and the drowned real one. In any case, according to estimates, no more than 40% of the historical Aurora remains.
However, while many of the criticisms are true, it must be taken into account that over the hundred years of its existence, the ship was rebuilt, modernized and re-equipped more than once. That is, by 1984 it was far from the original, launched in 1900.
Repair of the museum ship 2014–2016
The cruiser was towed for repairs to the Kronstadt Marine Plant on September 21, 2014. According to the Aurora Board of Trustees, the cost of repairing the cruiser amounted to about 840 million rubles, which were used to update the ship’s hull and to create a new exhibition for the branch of the Central Naval Museum operating on the Aurora.
The shipbuilders carried out the most significant amount of work in the interior of the Aurora. The museum exhibition was updated, the cruiser's crew quarters were restored, and modern video monitoring and fire extinguishing systems were installed. According to experts, in the future the Aurora will need to dock once every 5-10 years to assess the thinning of the hull over time.
The repair work of the Aurora at the Kronstadt Marine Plant in 2014–2016, unlike all previous repairs, did not involve any intervention in the structure of the ship, rebuilding the hull, or radical re-equipment of the interior. The repair concept is based on the perception of the historical cruiser as an active ship of the fleet, a monument ship afloat.
In the fall of 2014, the cruiser underwent dock repairs. Particular attention was paid to a thorough examination of the condition of the hull, especially its underwater part, and the mechanisms in contact with the external environment. An ultrasonic examination of the hull has established that over the years since the last repair, the dynamics of corrosion of the hull is practically absent.
An examination of the bottom-side fittings led to the decision to completely replace them. During the dock repairs, the ship's outer hull, underwater and surface parts were cleaned and painted. In addition, tanks, tanks and a number of other mechanisms were repaired, pressure testing was carried out and the tightness of the junction of the bronze stems and the steel body was checked. Despite the fact that the stems were made during the construction of the ship, no damage was found. An examination of the hull connections made in 1987 revealed their quality.
The re-docking of the Aurora was carried out in the spring of 2016. Among the major repair tasks, one should highlight the survey of power cable routes, replacement of the electrical network, repair of decks, masts and all life support systems of the ship, installation of spars, replacement of rigging, repair of boat devices, boats, lifeboats, restoration of the superstructure, hull structures and practical items.
During the renovation, not only the ship itself was updated, but also its life support systems. In particular, it is equipped with the latest domestic “water fog” fire extinguishing system. It extinguishes fires with finely sprayed high-pressure water, or so-called water mist, with a droplet size of less than one hundred microns and is not inferior in performance to the best foreign models. The new video surveillance system of 52 cameras almost completely eliminates the possibility of undetected penetration of the ship.
The main work was carried out by specialists from the Marine Plant.
Museum ship
In 1956, it was decided to establish a museum of naval and revolutionary glory on board the legendary cruiser, and in the exposition of this unusual cruiser museum to store exhibits that will help trace its glorious history in detail: documentary photographs, ship objects and documents that represent considerable historical value.
In 1960, Aurora became one of the state-protected monuments. In 1968, she was awarded the Order of the October Revolution, on which she herself was depicted. Since 2013, the cruiser has been returned to the Navy. A branch of the Central Naval Museum is located on board the cruiser.
During the renovation, which was completed in July 2016, the historical appearance of the flagship cabin was restored, the design project of which was approved by the Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy. The crew quarters and wardroom have undergone cosmetic repairs.
In addition to docking work and updating the ship's equipment, the museum part was redone. Updated teak deck,
During the renovation, a new museum exhibition was created on board the Aurora. It is expanded, and its character is changed. If earlier the museum talked about the Aurora primarily as a cruiser of the October Revolution, now it presents the ship as a veteran of three wars: the Russo-Japanese 1904-1905, the First World War and the Great Patriotic War.
A new part of the exhibition was the medical block, where X-ray equipment was used for the first time in Russia.
The exhibition space is provided with lighting, air conditioning systems, etc. The exhibition has been increased from 6 to 9 halls. Exhibitions rich in multimedia equipment have been created.
The stern of the Aurora was decorated with a new order flag, developed by the heraldic service of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation.
The ship is an object of cultural heritage of the Russian Federation. The cartoon “Aurora” was made about him, and he was also shown in the film “Cruiser “Varyag””. A number of songs are dedicated to “Aurora”; she is depicted on many postage stamps, both Soviet and foreign. In addition, the image of the cruiser was minted on the 1967 anniversary coins in denominations of 10, 15 and 20 kopecks.
Photo report about the repair of the cruiser "Aurora" at the Kronstadt Marine Plant (part of the United Shipbuilding Corporation).
On July 5, 1956, according to the directive of the Commander-in-Chief of the Navy, a branch of the Central Naval Museum (TsVMM) was created on the Aurora.
By a resolution of the Council of Ministers of the RSFSR dated August 30, 1960, the cruiser "Aurora" was included in the number of monuments protected by the state.
In 1961, in connection with the reorganization of the Nakhimov Naval School, the cruiser Aurora was transferred to the Leningrad Naval Base.
In 1968, the ship was awarded a second order - the Order of the October Revolution. He received his first award - the Order of the Red Banner - in 1927.
In 1984-1987, the cruiser underwent major repairs and restoration. Its bottom was completely replaced with a new one. At the same time, the unique cast bronze stem and sternpost with rudder blade were preserved. During the repair of the ship, all upper-deck equipment was preserved, and the appearance was restored as of 1917. After repair and restoration work, the Aurora was returned to its mooring site on August 16, 1987.
Since 1992 the ship. On December 1, 2010, the decision of the Ministry of Defense and the General Staff of the Russian Navy to disband the ship's crew and replace it with qualified museum workers came into force. The ship was withdrawn from the Russian Navy and transferred to the management of the Central Naval Museum.
In May 2013, the cruiser Aurora was returned to the Navy. June 4, 2013 - the Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation approved the terms of reference for the repair of the ship to restore the technical condition of the cruiser Aurora for use as a museum ship. During the renovation, the museum exhibition was dismantled and transferred for storage to the Central Naval Museum.
On September 21, 2014, the cruiser "Aurora" was sent for repairs to the Kronstadt Marine Plant, where dock repairs to the ship's hull were carried out, during which the crack above the waterline was welded. The cruiser was equipped with new fire extinguishing and alarm systems, the hull was painted, the historical interior of the ship's interior was restored, and a new video surveillance system was installed.
After the completion of repairs on July 16, 2016, the cruiser "Aurora" is permanently moored near the Petrogradskaya embankment.
On the cruiser-museum, the number of exhibition halls of the ship's museum was increased from six to nine. The renovated ship now has a medical office, a priest's corner, and an officers' office, where the interiors of the early 20th century were recreated. In total, six thematic exposition blocks were created on the cruiser for visitors. Among the topics they cover are the history and fate of the Aurora, the service and life of personnel on ships of the Russian fleet, the historical periods of the cruiser's service during the First World War, the October Revolution and the Civil War.
On board the cruiser is under the control of the Culture Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation.
The ceremony at the Aurora took place on Russian Navy Day, July 31, and the museum opened for visitors on August 3, 2016.
The cruiser "Aurora" today is a ship afloat, on which systems and mechanisms operate that ensure its life activity for 20 days in autonomous mode. Having become a museum ship, it retained a number of functions of an active warship. The ship has a military crew led by a commander who ensures the operation of the cruiser and its proper technical condition.
The material was prepared based on information from RIA Novosti and open sources
The cruiser "Aurora" has become one of the main symbols of St. Petersburg, and the history of its service is covered in myths and legends.
The Russian naval commander, Admiral Z.P. Rozhestvensky loved a non-standard approach to standard processes. Among the admiral’s favorite quirks was the habit, which amused the sailors, of arbitrarily giving out “nicknames” to the warships under his command. Thus, the battleship “Sisoy the Great” became “Invalid Shelter”, the yacht “Svetlana” - “Maid”, the cruiser “Admiral Nakhimov” was called “Idiot”, and “Aurora” was awarded the title “Prostitute Podzabornaya”.
We are not responsible for Rozhdestvensky, but if only he knew what kind of ship he called it!
The emergence of a legend
Despite the patriotic role of the ship in the history of the country, there is an opinion that the famous cruiser was built abroad. In fact, the miracle of shipbuilding arose in the same place where it ended its glorious journey - in St. Petersburg. The development of the project began back in 1895, but only in July 1897 was a contract signed with the Society of Franco-Russian Factories for the manufacture of machines, boilers and all mechanisms listed in the specification. Such a late date for reaching an agreement was due to the reluctance of management to share drawings with the Baltic Plant, and over the next six years, the Admiralty Izhora and Aleksandrovsky Iron Foundries, the Ya. S. Pullman Plant, the Obukhovsky, Metallic Plant and the Motovilikha Cannon Plants worked on the creation of the Aurora. Perm. In total, four ship builders, officers of the Corps of Naval Engineers, were directly supervised in the construction of the cruiser from September 1896 until the end of sea trials, that is, almost eight years. Unfortunately, the author of the cruiser project is still unknown - different sources name two names: K.M. Tokarevsky and De Grofe, and officially the construction was carried out at the New Admiralty plant, under the leadership of the society of Franco-Russian factories.
Battle glory
To many contemporaries, the Aurora is known only for the ambiguous fact of its naval biography, as the ship whose guns gave the signal for the assault on the Winter Palace. But the cruiser participated in no less than four wars and two revolutions. Emperor Nicholas II himself, after the Battle of Tsushima, telegraphed to the crew: “I heartily thank you, the commanders, officers and crew of the cruisers Oleg, Aurora and Pearl for their unrequited, honest service in a difficult battle. May the consciousness of a sacredly fulfilled duty comfort you all.” "Nicholas the Second". In 1968, by Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, the cruiser "Aurora" for the outstanding services of the Aurora sailors in the Great October Socialist Revolution and the defense of its gains, fruitful work in promoting military and revolutionary traditions and in connection with the 50th anniversary of the Soviet Armed Forces was awarded the Order October Revolution, and during the harsh years of the Great Patriotic War, the sailors of the Aurora took an active part in the heroic defense of Leningrad on the Duderhof Heights, as one of the paintings exhibited in the museum on the Aurora tells.
Revolutionary character of the ship
The mutinous ship is not famous for its single shot. A few years before the historical events of 1917, in 1905, the disarmed Aurora stood in the port of Manila under American control after the Battle of Tsushima. The Philippine islands turned out to be a prison for the miraculously surviving sailors, forced to eat rotten food, unable to contact their relatives, and seized by a brewing outburst of anger. They managed to raise an international signal on the mast, symbolizing the outbreak of a riot, which led to the arrival of local police and port officials on board. The Aurors put forward their ultimatum - improved nutrition and the immediate distribution of letters addressed to the sailors. The conditions were accepted by the Americans, but immediately led to a new outbreak of rebellion - opened envelopes and read letters finally alerted the sailors to the horrors of “Bloody Sunday.” Upon returning to Russia, most of the sailors were written off from the ship - thus the tsarist government sought to separate the established combat crews in order to avoid revolutionary sentiments. The attempts were unsuccessful, and in the future it was the sailors, including recruits, who formed the revolutionary backbone of Russia.
Historical shot
The salvo, which became the signal for the assault on the Winter Palace on October 25, 1917, is one of the most colorful legends about the cruiser. They say that the sailors not only did not drive away the beauty who boarded the ship, despite the well-known saying about a woman on a ship, but did not even dare to disobey. A pale-faced, tall and slender girl of unearthly beauty gave the order “Fire!” and then disappeared from sight. At the moment, it is not known for certain who dared to become the ghost of “Aurora,” but most historians are inclined to believe that it was the famous journalist, Soviet writer and revolutionary Larisa Reisner. They say that she was not sent to the Aurora by accident; they calculated purely psychologically that no sailor would refuse such a beautiful woman. And the shot, according to historians, was fired at 21:40, while the assault began after midnight, which, alas, does not confirm the theory of the Aurora’s signal function in the capture. However, the Cruiser Aurora is depicted on the Order of the October Revolution, which itself was awarded in 1967.
Explosions and drunken sailors
Where would we be without myths about alcohol and its consequences? Recently, interesting information has appeared from various sources about the participation of drunken revolutionary sailors of the Aurora in the explosion of Fort Paul in 1923. They even say that drunken sailors started a fire at a mine warehouse located there. In July 1923, several sailors from the battleship Paris Commune (formerly Sevastopol) sailed here on a boat. The sailors' "rest" ended with a big fire. Cadets from the cruiser Aurora tried to extinguish a burning mine set on fire by sailors from the Paris Commune. There was a rumble at the fort for several days, and they say that there was not a single intact piece of glass left in all of Kronstadt. According to one of the members of the cruiser's current crew, four sailors died during the fire, and many were awarded medals for their heroic assistance in extinguishing the fire. The authors of the brochure “Forts of Kronstadt” were among the first to voice a version of the cause of the explosion. In Soviet books this issue was avoided; one could only think that the evil counter-revolution was to blame.
Star life of a cruiser
Every schoolchild planning to visit St. Petersburg definitely strives to visit the legendary ship, which served faithfully in so many battles and is now a branch of the Central Naval Museum. In fact, in addition to military merits and excursion programs, the Aurora was not spared the path of show business: in 1946, the cruiser played the role of an equally famous brother of the Varyag in the film of the same name. To match, the “make-up artists” had to do some work: they installed a fake fourth funnel and several guns on the ship, built a commander’s balcony at the stern and remade the bow. These two ships are completely different from each other, but for the undemanding viewer the “fake” went unnoticed. At the same time, the hull of the Aurora was reinforced with concrete, which already meant that the ship could not be restored, which determined the future fate of the vessel.
Ship or model
It is believed that the Aurora is the only domestic ship that has preserved its original appearance to this day. The legendary cruiser was placed in an “eternal mooring” opposite the St. Petersburg Hotel, however, this is not half the same ship that rumors continue to be heard about: the ship itself was towed to the village of Ruchi near the coastal strip of the Gulf of Finland, sawn into pieces, flooded and stolen by patriots of the 80s. During the reconstruction in 1984, most of the main part and superstructures of the unforgettable Aurora were replaced; the current museum ship uses the technology of welded seams on the new hull instead of the rivets that distinguished the original. The batteries, which included the guns removed from the cruiser, were lost on the Duderhof Heights; another gun was installed on the Baltiets armored train. About the historical gun that ushered in the “new era of the proletarian revolution,” the senior midshipman, with a sly wink at us, said: “Read the sign on the shield carefully, it says that a historic shot was fired from the bow gun of the cruiser. But it is not said anywhere that they fired specifically from this weapon.”
The life of ships is short and their end is usually sad: the seabed or the wall of a shipyard, where they are cut into scrap metal. However, there are a few exceptions - these are famous ships, which, after the end of their service, become monuments or museums. You can count such cases on your fingers: “Queen Mary” and “Missouri” in the USA, “Mikasa” in Japan, “Cutty Stark” and “Victoria” in the UK. Russia also has a legendary ship that changed the course of not only domestic but also entire world history. Of course, this is the famous cruiser Aurora.
Most of our compatriots primarily associate the cruiser Aurora with a blank shot, which became the signal for the storming of the Winter Palace in October 1917. But this is not very fair: the cruiser was a participant in the most fateful events in the history of Russia of the last century. And revolution is just one of them.
The Aurora managed to survive the hell of the Tsushima battle, escaped destruction during the First World War and was restored after being sunk during the Leningrad blockade. Fate clearly protected the cruiser. Today this ship is one of the most famous museums in St. Petersburg; up to half a million tourists visit it annually. Currently, the cruiser is undergoing regular repairs; city authorities promise that the Aurora will return to its rightful place on July 16.
Ship history
At the beginning of the last century, the Russian navy grew rapidly and was replenished with new pennants. In 1900, a new Diana-class cruiser was launched at the Admiralty Shipyards in St. Petersburg. The Russian Navy has long had a tradition of naming new ships after famous ships in the past, so the cruiser was named “Aurora” in honor of the frigate that distinguished itself during the Crimean War.
Russian Emperor Nicholas II was present at the ship's launching ceremony.
"Aurora" belonged to the first class cruisers or the so-called armored cruisers, whose deck had armor protection against mounted fire from enemy artillery. It cannot be said that the new ship was distinguished by outstanding combat qualities: it could develop a speed of 19 knots (the newest battleships of that time gave 18), its eight sixteen-inch guns also did not impress with their firepower. But he was quite capable of conducting reconnaissance, destroying enemy transport ships and protecting battleships from destroyers.
The geopolitical situation at the beginning of the last century was complex. Russia was in a state of real Cold War with Great Britain, and Germany was rapidly gaining strength in Europe. A conflict with Japan was brewing in the Far East.
After the Japanese attack on Port Arthur, the Aurora became part of the 2nd Pacific Squadron, which, under the command of Admiral Rozhestvensky, was supposed to travel from St. Petersburg to the Far East to come to the aid of the besieged Russian fortress.
This idea initially looked like a gamble, but it ultimately led to the defeat of Tsushima - the heaviest defeat in the history of the Russian fleet. During the battle, "Aurora" carried out the admiral's order - it guarded the transports. The cruiser was hit by eighteen enemy shells of various calibers, the ship was seriously damaged, and about a hundred crew members were wounded or killed. The cruiser commander died in the battle.
After the artillery duel ended, the Russian warships were attacked by Japanese destroyers. It was they who inflicted the most serious damage on the Russian squadron. The cruisers were supposed to guard their battleships, but instead they abandoned their main forces and headed for the Philippines, where they were disarmed and remained until the end of the war.
The order to flee the battlefield was given by Rear Admiral Enquist, who commanded a detachment of cruisers. After the ships returned to their homeland, the military leadership did not know what to do with the admiral: reward him for saving the ships or put him on trial for cowardice and indecision. In the end, they simply gave up on him.
The Aurora returned to St. Petersburg in 1906, after which the ship underwent repairs; in 1915, the cruiser was modernized and acquired a familiar appearance. The cruiser's artillery was strengthened, and the number of main caliber guns was increased to fourteen.
During the First World War, the Aurora operated in the Baltic Sea, the ship was part of the second brigade of cruisers. They chased German cruisers, destroyed enemy minesweepers and minelayers, and conducted patrol duty in the Gulf of Finland.
Already in 1914, in the Baltic, the Germans began to use a new weapon for that time - submarines. In October of the same year, the German submarine U-26 collided with two Russian cruisers: the new Pallada (the old one died near Port Arthur) and the Aurora. The submarine captain chose the more modern Pallada as the target for the attack. The torpedo hit detonated the ship's ammunition, and the cruiser went under water in a matter of seconds. There were no survivors. "Aurora" managed to take refuge in the skerries. So, thanks to chance, the ship escaped destruction for the second time.
The revolutionary events of 1917 are well known to everyone; hundreds of books and articles have been written about it. It can be noted that the threat to open fire on the Winter Palace was an outright bluff - the ship was undergoing regular repairs, and the ammunition was unloaded from it.
After the revolution, the Aurora turned into a training ship: it made several cruises and participated in maneuvers. In 1933, the cruiser was turned into a non-self-propelled floating training base.
During the Great Patriotic War, the main caliber guns were removed from the cruiser; they defended the approaches to the city. The Germans bombed and fired at the ships of the Baltic Fleet many times, but they were not too interested in the veteran cruiser, deprived of artillery. Despite this, the Aurora received its fair share of enemy shells. On September 30, 1941, as a result of artillery shelling, the ship received serious damage and sat on the ground.
After the siege was lifted from the city, Aurora was reanimated. She was picked up and sent for another repair. It was decided to make the Aurora a museum ship. All the boilers, mechanisms and propellers were removed from the cruiser, and the artillery that was on it in 1915 was installed. In the post-war years, “Aurora” turned into a symbol of the revolution, into a kind of fetish for the entire population of a huge country.
The image of this ship could be found everywhere, on postcards, stamps, and coins. His role in revolutionary events was extolled in every possible way. The silhouette of the cruiser has become the same symbol of St. Petersburg as St. Isaac's Cathedral and the Bronze Horseman. Books were written about Aurora, songs were composed, films were made.
The last major overhaul of the cruiser was carried out in the mid-80s. Its cause was the severe deterioration of the body; in many places it simply rotted. Pumps were constantly running in the holds, bailing out several tens of tons of water every day. It became clear that without major repairs the ship would simply sink.
It is with this renovation that rumors are associated that the current Aurora is not real.
The work was carried out at the Northern Shipyard. Workers had to cut off the entire underwater part of the cruiser and replace it with a new one. The surface part of the vessel underwent no less serious alterations. A reconstruction of the interior was also carried out, to which they tried to give its original appearance. Some units and machines of the ship were replaced by mock-ups.
There are different assessments of the work carried out, but many historians believe that in 1987 the “remake” returned to the ship’s eternal mooring site. Too little of the current cruiser Aurora remains from the ship that left the stocks in 1900.
After repairs, the underwater part of the cruiser was not cut for scrap metal, but was towed to the village of Ruchi (not far from St. Petersburg) and scuttled there.
In 2010, the Aurora was withdrawn from the Russian Navy and transferred to the Central Naval Museum. In 2013, Shoigu said that the cruiser was awaiting another overhaul, during which it would be equipped with a diesel-electric installation. That is, the ship will become seaworthy again.
In recent Russian history, the cruiser Aurora has been repeatedly mentioned in connection with a number of high-profile scandals that have received wide resonance in society. The fact is that representatives of the city elite (including the governor of St. Petersburg) chose the museum ship to celebrate corporate events and other VIP parties.
Planned renovations began in 2014 and should be completed this year. So, at least, the authorities of St. Petersburg promised. The Aurora's return is scheduled for July 16. However, there is every reason to believe that when the cruiser returns to its place, it will resemble even less the ship whose launching was blessed by the Russian Emperor himself.
Description
"Aurora" belongs to the class of cruisers of the 1st rank. Its total displacement is 6731.3 tons, maximum speed is 19.2 knots. The ship could travel at an economical speed (10 knots) a distance of 4 thousand nautical miles.
The ship's main power plant consisted of three vertical triple expansion steam engines and 24 steam boilers. Its total power was 11,610 hp. With.
The ship moved due to the rotation of three screws.
The maximum supply of coal that the cruiser could take on board was 1 thousand tons.
The cruiser's crew is 570 people, including 20 officers.
In 1903, the Aurora had the following artillery armament: eight 152 mm Kane main caliber guns, twenty-four 75 mm Kane guns, eight 37 mm Hotchkiss guns and two 63.5 mm Baranovsky landing guns.
Torpedo armament was represented by one surface and two underwater torpedo tubes. The mine armament included 35 mines of 254 mm caliber. Since 1915, the cruiser was armed with 150 mines of the 1908 type.
The cruiser's deck had armor of 38-63.5 mm, and the conning tower had armor of 152 mm.
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Hello, dear Karopchans!I present to your attention a complete, working model of the light English cruiser "Aurora" in 1/300 scale from the St. Petersburg company Modelist. The box contained a set of sprues with parts for assembling one floating model with a microelectric motor and various spare parts for the electrical part, lubricant, gearbox, metal shafts, screws, instructions. The sprues have a lot of marks from the pushers, some parts are washed out. Model length is about 52 cm. Additional information:
Light cruiser Aurora, Great Britain, entered service in 1937. The name “Aurora” has been traditional for English ships since the 18th century; this is not the same “Aurora”, the shot from which served as the signal for the storming of the Winter Palace))). The cruiser Aurora became the last ship in a series of English light cruisers of the Arethusa class, built in the 1930s. and gained wide fame thanks to successful military operations in the Mediterranean during the Second World War. Cruisers of this type were intended for squadron service, had lighter and thinner armor and some unique layout. With the outbreak of World War II, the Aurora carried out routine service as part of the Home Fleet: escorting convoys in the Norwegian Sea and the North Atlantic and hunting for German submarines. At the end of 1941, the Aurora was transferred to Malta, where it participated in the interception of German convoys from Italy to North Africa, and the British achieved great success in this. During the war, English sailors gave the cruiser the nickname “Silver Ghost”. After the end of the war in 1948, the cruiser was sold to China.
Tactical and technical characteristics of the light cruiser "Aurora":
Displacement: standard 5220 t, full 6665 t, length 154.23 m, width 15.56 m, draft 4.88 m, side height 9.14 m. Reservation: belt - 57 mm; traverses - 25 mm; deck - 25 mm; cellars - 51...76 mm; towers - 25 mm; barbettes - 19 mm. Engines: 4 TZA Parsons, power of the power plant operating on four propeller shafts 64,000 hp. (47 MW). Speed 32.25 knots (60 km/h). Cruising range 12,000 miles at 10 knots. Crew of about 500 people. Armament: Artillery 3 × 2 - 152 mm universal guns, 4 × 2 - 102 mm universal guns. Anti-aircraft artillery 2 × 4 - 40-mm anti-aircraft guns "pom-pom", 3x2 - 20-mm anti-aircraft guns "Oerlikon", 2x1 - 20-mm anti-aircraft guns Mk.III, 2x3 533-mm torpedo tubes, 1 bomb launcher Mk. VII. Throughout World War II, the cruiser's equipment and anti-aircraft weapons changed many times.
Model assembly:
The process of assembling the model itself took about three months; the only advantage of the kit is that the cruiser's hull is made of one piece. The paper instructions are a bit confusing. Some parts and their installation location are not reflected in the instructions, although you can guess what and how. Having looked into the box, I decided to assemble a working model, since the casting already had places for attaching the microelectric motor and batteries. But then His Majesty Chance intervened - a neighbor brought a broken Chinese radio-controlled toy. Having collected parts from the toy, I then took it to a friend, who, with the help of a soldering iron and obscene language, brought it all into working order). Having estimated the dimensions of the cruiser and its volume, we had to remove everything from the model’s body and make special compartments for batteries and a control unit, as well as place two microelectric motors. The entire deck had to be made removable and secured with six screws, except for the bow. The stern rudder is operational and its area has been increased by almost half. Of the four screws, only two operate through the gearbox. While I was assembling the above-deck superstructures, I twice broke the front mast and flagpoles, oh those crooked handles, it was glued crookedly(. The cruiser turned out to be “heavy”, having stuffed all the “stuffing” into the cruiser’s hull, the maximum width of its hull is only about 5 cm, I discovered that the cruiser became sluggish, the draft increased significantly and the waterline dropped by 3-5mm. I painted the model with acrylic from Zvezda JSC, without priming. Taking my friend to help, I went to the nearest lake, where I solemnly launched the cruiser, even “heavy.” The “settled” cruiser walked well through the water, its speed was almost the same as that of a real one). But the management leaves much to be desired. Having made a couple of laps in the local lake, the model delighted the local children). But the mud hung treacherously on the propellers, after which the cruiser practically lost speed. At this point, sea trials had to be stopped. Currently, the cruiser stands on a stand at my house, next to last year’s “nine”; the collection is growing).
P.S. For a large ship - a large torpedo). Ready for an artillery duel and bombing!)))