''Varyag'' (also spelled ''Variag''; see

Varangian The Varangians (; non, Væringjar; gkm, Βάραγγοι, ''Várangoi'';Varangian
" Online Etymo ...

for the meaning of the name) (russian: кре́йсер «Варя́г») was a Russian

protected cruiser Protected cruisers, a type of naval cruiser of the late-19th century, gained their description because an armoured deck offered protection for vital machine-spaces from fragments caused by shells exploding above them. Protected cruisers re ...

. ''Varyag'' became famous for her crew's stoicism at the

Battle of Chemulpo Bay The Battle of Chemulpo Bay was a naval battle in the Russo-Japanese War (1904–1905), which took place on 9 February 1904, off the coast of present-day Incheon (then called Chemulpo), Korea. Background The opening stage of the Russo-Japanese W ...

Construction and design

In 1897, the Russian Admiralty, as part of a programme to reinforce the Imperial Russian Navy's Far East Fleet, published specifications for a fast

, capable of

commerce raiding Commerce raiding (french: guerre de course, "war of the chase"; german: Handelskrieg, "trade war") is a form of naval warfare used to destroy or disrupt logistics of the enemy on the open sea by attacking its merchant shipping, rather than en ...

. The ships were required to be armed with 152 mm (6-inch)

quick-firing gun A quick-firing or rapid-firing gun is an artillery piece, typically a gun or howitzer, which has several characteristics which taken together mean the weapon can fire at a fast rate. Quick-firing was introduced worldwide in the 1880s and 1890s a ...

s, and to have a speed of . Russian shipyards were already busy, and the Imperial Admiralty placed an order with the American shipyard

William Cramp & Sons William Cramp & Sons Shipbuilding Company (also known as William Cramp & Sons Ship & Engine Building Company) of Philadelphia was founded in 1830 by William Cramp, and was the preeminent U.S. iron shipbuilder of the late 19th century. Company hi ...

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...

on 11 April 1898 to build a single cruiser, ''Varyag'' against this specification. Single ships were also ordered from the German shipyards Germaniawerft () and

AG Vulcan Aktien-Gesellschaft Vulcan Stettin (short AG Vulcan Stettin) was a German shipbuilding and locomotive building company. Founded in 1851, it was located near the former eastern German city of Stettin, today Polish Szczecin. Because of the limited ...

() against these specifications. ''Varyag'' was

laid down Laying the keel or laying down is the formal recognition of the start of a ship's construction. It is often marked with a ceremony attended by dignitaries from the shipbuilding company and the ultimate owners of the ship. Keel laying is one o ...

in October 1898, was launched on 31 October 1899 and commissioned into the

Imperial Russian Navy The Imperial Russian Navy () operated as the navy of the Russian Tsardom and later the Russian Empire from 1696 to 1917. Formally established in 1696, it lasted until dissolved in the wake of the February Revolution of 1917. It developed from ...

on 2 January 1901, under the command of Captain Vladimir Behr. ''Varyag'' was long overall and

between perpendiculars Length between perpendiculars (often abbreviated as p/p, p.p., pp, LPP, LBP or Length BPP) is the length of a ship along the summer load line from the forward surface of the stem, or main bow perpendicular member, to the after surface of the ster ...

, with a beam of and a draught of at normal displacement. Design displacement was with full load displacement about . Thirty Niclausse

water-tube boiler A high pressure watertube boiler (also spelled water-tube and water tube) is a type of boiler in which water circulates in tubes heated externally by the fire. Fuel is burned inside the furnace, creating hot gas which boils water in the steam-gen ...

s fed steam to two sets of four-cylinder vertical triple expansion steam engines rated at which drove two 3-bladed propellers. As a protected cruiser, the main protection consisted of an arched armoured deck which protected the ship's engines and magazines. The deck was thick in the central horizontal portion, and thick in the sloping sections towards the ship's sides. The ship's

conning tower A conning tower is a raised platform on a ship or submarine, often armored, from which an officer in charge can conn the vessel, controlling movements of the ship by giving orders to those responsible for the ship's engine, rudder, lines, and gro ...

was protected by , with protecting the ammunition hoists and for the bow and stern torpedo tubes. The ship's main armament was twelve Obukhoff 152 mm (6-inch) L/45 guns, with two guns side by side on the ship's

forecastle The forecastle ( ; contracted as fo'c'sle or fo'c's'le) is the upper deck of a sailing ship forward of the foremast, or, historically, the forward part of a ship with the sailors' living quarters. Related to the latter meaning is the phrase " ...

, two side-by-side on the

quarterdeck The quarterdeck is a raised deck behind the main mast of a sailing ship. Traditionally it was where the captain commanded his vessel and where the ship's colours were kept. This led to its use as the main ceremonial and reception area on bo ...

, and the remaining eight on sponsons on the ship's upper deck. These guns could fire a shell to a range of , and at a rate of 6 rounds per minute. 2388 rounds of 152 mm ammunition were carried. Twelve 75 mm (2.95 in) L/50 QF guns defended the ship against torpedo boats, and could fire a shell to a range of at a rate of 10 rounds per minute. Close-in defence was provided by four Hotchkiss 47 mm revolving cannon on

fighting top The top on a traditional square rigged ship, is the platform at the upper end of each (lower) mast. This is not the masthead "crow's nest" of the popular imagination – above the mainmast (for example) is the main-topmast, main-topgallant-mast a ...

s, with four more on the upper deck, backed up by two 37 mm guns and two machine guns. Two Baranowski 64 mm landing guns were also carried for on-shore use by the ship's marines. Six 381 mm (15 inch) torpedo tubes were carried, two on each broadside and one in the bow and

stern The stern is the back or aft-most part of a ship or boat, technically defined as the area built up over the sternpost, extending upwards from the counter rail to the taffrail. The stern lies opposite the bow, the foremost part of a ship. Or ...

. During her construction, an assistant physician, Leo Alexandroff, left the ship's advance party on 20 April 1899, and applied for U.S. citizenship. He was arrested for desertion. His case reached the

United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...

, which ruled in '' Tucker v. Alexandroff'' that the ship, though not accepted for service in the Imperial Russian Navy, was a warship under the terms of the 1832 treaty between Russia and the United States; this meant that Alexandroff would be returned to Russian authorities. Vladimir Kosov

Service

During the

at the start of the

Russo-Japanese War The Russo-Japanese War ( ja, 日露戦争, Nichiro sensō, Japanese-Russian War; russian: Ру́сско-япóнская войнá, Rússko-yapónskaya voyná) was fought between the Empire of Japan and the Russian Empire during 1904 and 1 ...

, ''Varyag'' (under the command of Captain of the First Rank

Vsevolod Rudnev Vsevolod Fyodorovich Rudnev (russian: Все́волод Фёдорович Ру́днев; 31 August 1855 – 20 July 1913) was a career naval officer in the Imperial Russian Navy, noted for his heroic role in the Battle of Chemulpo Bay during th ...

) found itself in battle, engaged with the heavily superior Japanese squadron of Admiral Uriu, (one armoured cruiser, five protected cruisers and eight destroyers) in a heroic attempt to break out from Chemulpo (

Incheon Incheon (; ; or Inch'ŏn; literally "kind river"), formerly Jemulpo or Chemulp'o (제물포) until the period after 1910, officially the Incheon Metropolitan City (인천광역시, 仁川廣域市), is a city located in northwestern South Kore ...

) harbour 9 February 1904. Chemulpo was in neutral Korean waters. Admiral Uriu gave the Russian ships in harbor a written ultimatum to sail by 12:00 noon or be attacked in the harbor itself. Captain Rudnev sortied, accompanied by the gunboat '' Koreets''; having lost 31 men dead, 191 injured (out of 570) and outgunned, both ships returned to harbor by 1:00 p.m., the crew decided not to surrender, but to sink the ship. The crew was saved by transferring them to the British cruiser , the , and the ; the captain of the US gunboat declined doing so as a violation of U.S. neutrality.Port Arthur: Prologue
materials of publishing house "Alexander PRINT" In 1907,

(by that time dismissed from Russian naval service in the rank of rear admiral) was decorated with the Japanese

Order of the Rising Sun The is a Japanese order, established in 1875 by Emperor Meiji. The Order was the first national decoration awarded by the Japanese government, created on 10 April 1875 by decree of the Council of State. The badge features rays of sunlight f ...

for his heroism in that battle; although he accepted the order, he never wore it in public. ''Varyag'' was later salvaged by the Japanese and repaired. She served with the

Imperial Japanese Navy The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN; Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ' 'Navy of the Greater Japanese Empire', or ''Nippon Kaigun'', 'Japanese Navy') was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945, when it was dissolved following Japan's surrender ...

as the protected cruiser . During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

, Russia and Japan were allies and several ships were transferred by the Japanese to the Russians. She was repurchased by the

Vladivostok Vladivostok ( rus, Владивосто́к, a=Владивосток.ogg, p=vɫədʲɪvɐˈstok) is the largest city and the administrative center of Primorsky Krai, Russia. The city is located around the Golden Horn Bay on the Sea of Japan, ...

on 5 April 1916 and renamed back to ''Varyag''. In June, she departed for Murmansk via the

Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by ...

, arriving in November 1916. She was sent to

Liverpool Liverpool is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the List of English districts by population, 10th largest English district by population and its E ...

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It ...

for an overhaul by

Cammell Laird Cammell Laird is a British shipbuilding company. It was formed from the merger of Laird Brothers of Birkenhead and Johnson Cammell & Co of Sheffield at the turn of the twentieth century. The company also built railway rolling stock until 1929, ...

in February 1917, and was due to re-enter service with the Arctic squadron of the Russian Navy. However, following the Russian

October Revolution The October Revolution,. officially known as the Great October Socialist Revolution. in the Soviet Union, also known as the Bolshevik Revolution, was a revolution in Russia led by the Bolshevik Party of Vladimir Lenin that was a key mom ...

on 7 November 1917, crewmen who had remained onboard hoisted the red flag and refused to set sail. On 8 December 1917 she was seized by a detachment of British soldiers. Assigned to the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against Fr ...

in February 1918, she ran aground while under tow off of

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. Ireland is the s ...

, but was refloated and used as a hulk until 1919. She was then sold to a German firm in 1920 for scrap, but on 5 February 1920 ran aground on rocks near the Scottish village of

Lendalfoot Lendalfoot is a small village located on Carleton Bay, parish of Colmonell in the old district of Carrick, now South Ayrshire, about south of Girvan, Scotland. This is mainly a farming district, lacking in woodland, with a low population densi ...

() in the

Firth of Clyde The Firth of Clyde is the mouth of the River Clyde. It is located on the west coast of Scotland and constitutes the deepest coastal waters in the British Isles (it is 164 metres deep at its deepest). The firth is sheltered from the Atlantic ...

, while being towed to

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...

. She was scrapped in place from 1923 to 1925.Kowner, '' Historical Dictionary of the Russo-Japanese War'', p. 407-408.

Legacy

The stoicism of ''Varyag''s crew at Chemulpo has inspired the Austrian poet Rudolf Greinz to write a poem dedicated to Varyag. The Russian translation of this poem was put to music by A.S. Turischev. The result was the 1904 song that remains popular today:

(German original)
Auf Deck, Kameraden, all' auf Deck!
Heraus zur letzten Parade!
Der stolze Warjag ergibt sich nicht,
Wir brauchen keine Gnade!
(Russian poetic translation)
Наверх вы, товарищи, все по местам!
Последний парад наступает.
Врагу не сдается наш гордый “Варяг”,
Пощады никто не желает.
''(translation)''
Get up, you comrades, everyone to his place,
The final parade is at hand.
Our proud "Varyag" will not surrender to the enemy,
No one wants mercy.
Rudolf Greinz

Memorial to the Russian cruiser Varyag - geograph

On Sunday 30 July 2006 (Russian

Navy Day Several nations observe or have observed a Navy Day to recognize their navy. By country Argentina The Argentine Navy day is celebrated on May 17, anniversary of the victory achieved in 1814 in the Battle of Montevideo. Bahrain The R ...

), a memorial plaque to the cruiser was unveiled at

in a ceremony attended by senior Russian politicians and navy personnel, veterans and local dignitaries.Resting place of Russian cruiser ''Varyag''
South Ayrshire Council News On 8 September 2007 a monument in the form of a large bronze cross was unveiled as an addition to the Lendalfoot memorial, in a ceremony attended by former Nato Secretary General George Robertson, British and Russian navy officers and diplomats. The “Cruiser Varyag” Charity Foundation had organised a competition in Russia for the design of the monument. In 2010, as a gesture marking the 20th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Korea and Russia, the flag of ''Varyag'' was restored. The Japanese Navy recovered the flag when the ship was salvaged; and the Incheon Metropolitan Museum acquired them after Japan's defeat at the end of World War II. The return of the flag takes the form of a two-year renewable loan because of the Korean law protecting cultural assets. "Korea to Return Flag of Sunken Russian Warship,"
''Chosun Ilbo'' (ROK). November 11, 2010; retrieved 11 Nov 2010. In 2018, the Russian heavy metal band Aria in their album "Proklyatie Morey" ("Curse of the seas") included the song "Varyag", which recounts the engagement. File:Varyag Plaque Obverse 2014.jpg, Obverse of plaque at Varyag memorial at Lendalfoot, Scotland. File:Varyag Plaque Reverse 2014.jpg, everse of plaque at Varyag memorial at Lendalfoot, Scotland. File:Varyag Memorial Monument 2014.jpg, Obverse of monument at Varyag memorial at Lendalfoot, Scotland. File:Varyag Memorial Anchor 2014.jpg, Anchor at Varyag memorial at Lendalfoot, Scotland.

Notes

References

* * * Kowner, Rotem (2006). "Historical Dictionary of the Russo-Japanese War". Scarecrow. 620pp.
MPHK Catalogue of collectible silver coins 2012-13 p.38
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Varyag Cruisers of the Imperial Russian Navy Ships built by William Cramp & Sons 1899 ships Naval ships of Russia Russo-Japanese War cruisers of Russia World War I cruisers of Russia Shipwrecks in the Firth of Clyde Maritime incidents in 1904 Maritime incidents in 1920 1920 in Scotland 1925 in Scotland