''Mirny'' (, ) was a 20-gun

sloop-of-war During the 18th and 19th centuries, a sloop-of-war was a warship of the Royal Navy with a single gun deck that carried up to 18 guns. The rating system of the Royal Navy covered all vessels with 20 or more guns; thus, the term encompassed all u ...

of 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 being dissolved in the wake of the February Revolution and the declaration of ...

, the second ship of the First Russian Antarctic Expedition in 1819–1821, during which

Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen Faddey Faddeyevich Bellingshausen or Fabian Gottlieb Benjamin von Bellingshausen ( – ) was a Russian cartographer, explorer, and naval officer of Baltic German descent, who attained the rank of admiral. He participated in the first Russi ...

(commander of the lead ship '' Vostok'') and Mikhail Lazarev (commanding ''Mirny'') circumnavigated the globe, discovered the continent of

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean (also known as the Antarctic Ocean), it contains the geographic South Pole. ...

and twice circumnavigated it, and discovered a number of islands and archipelagos in the

Southern Ocean The Southern Ocean, also known as the Antarctic Ocean, comprises the southernmost waters of the world ocean, generally taken to be south of 60th parallel south, 60° S latitude and encircling Antarctica. With a size of , it is the seco ...

and the

Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is bounded by the cont ...

.Шлюп "Мирный"
at sailhistory.ru

History

''Mirny'' was under construction in 1818 at Olonetskaya Shipyards, Lodeynoye Pole. It was initially named ''Ladoga'' (after

Lake Ladoga Lake Ladoga is a freshwater lake located in the Republic of Karelia and Leningrad Oblast in northwestern Russia, in the vicinity of Saint Petersburg. It is the largest lake located entirely in Europe, the second largest lake in Russia after Lake ...

), but when the need arose for a new ship for an Antarctic expedition, the decision was taken not to build a completely new one, but to refit ''Ladoga''. It was reconstructed under surveillance of its future commander Mikhail Lazarev. On ''Vostok'' under the captaincy of

Commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank as well as a job title in many army, armies. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countri ...

Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen, the leader of the expedition, alongside ''Mirny'' under the command of Lieutenant Commander Mikhail Lazarev left Kronshtadt and on reached the shore of

, which was sighted for the first time in history. After repair in

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

, the expedition explored the tropical parts of the Pacific, and on again turned to Antarctica. On the sloops reached the southernmost point of their voyage at 69° 53' S and 92° 19' W. On they returned to Kronshtadt. In 751 days they covered 49 723 miles (approx. 92 300 km). Apart from the discovery of the world's sixth continent,

, 29 islands were mapped and complex oceanographic works carried out. A medal was issued by the Russian Admiralty to commemorate the expedition.

Named in honor

* Mirny Rupes, a mountain chain on planet Mercury. * Mirny Peak, a prominent

peak Peak or The Peak may refer to: Basic meanings Geology * Mountain peak ** Pyramidal peak, a mountaintop that has been sculpted by erosion to form a point Mathematics * Peak hour or rush hour, in traffic congestion * Peak (geometry), an (''n''-3)-d ...

, 750 m, 4 nautical miles (7 km) northeast of Enigma Peak in the north part of Rothschild Island, presumably first seen from a distance in 1821 by the First Russian Antarctic Expedition. * Mirny Station, a Russian Antarctic research station on the coast of the

Davis Sea Davis Sea is an area of the sea along the coast of East Antarctica between West Ice Shelf in the west and the Shackleton Ice Shelf in the east, or between 82° and 96°E. The name "Davis Sea" appears in most leading geographically authoritati ...

, established on February 13, 1956 by the 1st Soviet Antarctic Expedition. * Mirny Peninsula, on which Mirny Station is located.Mirny Observatory
AARI

References

* Морской энциклопедический словарь. Л.: Судостроение, 1991.
Mirny, with model scheme
at hobbyport.ru {{Polar exploration, state=collapsed Ships of the Imperial Russian Navy Exploration ships Sloops 1819 ships