The cruiser Varyag participated in which war. The story of one defeat. Why was the Varyag crew declared heroes? Power plant and propellers

On May 10, 1899, at the Kramp & Sons shipyard in Philadelphia, the official laying ceremony for an armored cruiser of the 1st rank for the Russian fleet was held. The ship was experimental in many ways - in addition to the new Nikloss boilers, its design contained a large number of innovations. The Russian Admiralty, finally, on October 31, 1899, the Varyag was solemnly launched.The orchestra began to play, 570 Russian sailors from the crew of the new cruiser thundered: "Hurrah!", For a moment drowning out even the orchestral pipes. The American engineers, having learned that the ship would be baptized according to the Russian custom, shrugged their shoulders and opened a bottle of champagne. The one that, according to American tradition, should have been smashed against the hull of the ship. The head of the Russian commission E.N. Shchensnovich informed his superiors: “The descent went well. No deformations of the hull were found, the displacement coincided with the calculated one.” Did anyone of those present know that he was not only at the descent of the ship, but also at the birth of the legend of the Russian fleet?
There are shameful defeats, but there are also those that are more precious than any victory. Defeats that harden the military spirit, about which songs and legends are composed. The feat of the cruiser "Varyag" was a choice between shame and honor.

On February 8, 1904, at 4 pm, the Russian gunboat "Koreets" was fired upon by the Japanese squadron when leaving the port of Chemulpo: the Japanese fired 3 torpedoes, the Russians responded by firing from a 37 mm revolver cannon. Without becoming further involved in the battle, the "Korean" hastily retreated back to the Chemulpo raid.

The day ended without incident. On the cruiser "Varyag" the military council decided all night how to act in this situation. Everyone understood that war with Japan was inevitable. Chemulpo is blocked by the Japanese squadron. Many officers spoke out in favor of leaving the port under cover of night and breaking through in battle to their bases in Manchuria. In the dark, a small Russian squadron would have a significant advantage than in a daylight battle. But Vsevolod Fedorovich Rudnev, the commander of the Varyag, did not accept any of the proposals, waiting for a more prosperous development of events.
Alas, in the morning at 7 o'clock. 30 minutes the commanders of foreign ships: English - Talbot, French - Pascal, Italian - Elba and American - Vicksburg received a notice indicating the time of delivery of the notice from the Japanese admiral about the beginning of hostilities between Russia and Japan, and that the admiral suggested that the Russian ships leave the raid before 12 o'clock day, otherwise they will be attacked by a squadron in the raid after 4 hours. the same day, and foreign ships were asked to leave the raid for this time, for their safety. This information was delivered to the Varyag by the commander of the cruiser Pascal. At 9:30 am on February 9, on board HMS Talbot, Captain Rudnev received a notice from the Japanese Admiral Uriu announcing that Japan and Russia were at war and demanding that the Varyag leave the port by noon, otherwise, at four o'clock Japanese ships will fight right in the roadstead.

At 11:20 "Varyag" and "Korean" weighed anchor. Five minutes later they were given a combat alert. English and French ships greeted the passing Russian squadron with the sounds of an orchestra. Our sailors had to fight through a narrow 20-mile fairway and break out into the open sea. At half past eleven, the Japanese cruisers received an offer to surrender to the mercy of the winner, the Russians ignored the signal. At 11:45 the Japanese opened fire...

For 50 minutes of an unequal battle, the Varyag fired 1,105 shells at the enemy, of which 425 were large-caliber (although, according to Japanese sources, there were no hits on Japanese ships). It is hard to believe these data, because a few months before the tragic events of Chemulpo, the Varyag participated in the exercises of the Port Arthur squadron, where out of 145 shots it hit the target three times. In the end, the accuracy of the Japanese firing was also simply ridiculous - 6 cruisers achieved only 11 hits on the Varyag in an hour!

Broken boats burned on the Varyag, the water around it boiled from explosions, the remains of the ship's superstructures fell on the deck with a roar, burying Russian sailors under them. One after another, the wrecked guns fell silent, around which the dead lay. Japanese buckshot rained down, the deck of the Varyag turned into a terrible sight. But, despite the heavy fire and huge destruction, the Varyag still fired aimed at the Japanese ships from the remaining guns. The "Korean" did not lag behind him either. Having received critical damage, the Varyag described a wide circulation in the Chemulpo fairway and was forced to return to the raid in an hour.

Legendary cruiser after the battle

“... I will never forget this amazing sight that presented itself to me,” the commander of the French cruiser, who witnessed an unprecedented battle, later recalled, “the deck is covered in blood, corpses and body parts are lying everywhere. Nothing escaped destruction: in places where the shells exploded, the paint was charred, all the iron parts were pierced, the fans were knocked down, the sides and bunks were burned. Where so much heroism had been shown, everything was rendered useless, smashed to pieces, riddled; the remains of the bridge hung mournfully. Smoke was coming from all the holes in the stern, and the roll to the port side was increasing ... "
Despite such an emotional description of the Frenchman, the position of the cruiser was by no means so hopeless. The surviving sailors selflessly put out fires, emergency teams put a patch under a large hole in the underwater part of the port side. Of the 570 crew members, 30 sailors and 1 officer were killed. The gunboat "Korean" had no casualties among the personnel.

Squadron battleship "Eagle" after the Battle of Tsushima

For comparison, in the Tsushima battle, out of 900 people, the squadron battleship team " Alexander III"no one was saved, but out of 850 people of the team squadron battleship"Borodino" was saved only 1 sailor. Despite this, respect for these ships remains in military circles. "Alexander III" for several hours led the entire squadron under furious fire, skillfully maneuvering and periodically knocking down the sight of the Japanese. Now no one will say who competently controlled the battleship in the last minutes - whether the commander, or one of the officers. But the Russian sailors fulfilled their duty to the end - having received critical damage in the underwater part of the hull, the flaming battleship turned over at full speed, without lowering the flag. Not a single person from the crew escaped. A couple of hours later, his feat was repeated by the squadron battleship Borodino. Further, the Russian squadron was led by the Eagle. The same heroic squadron battleship, which received 150 hits, but partially retained its combat capability until the very end of the Tsushima battle. Here is such an unexpected remark turned out. Blessed memory of the heroes.

Nevertheless, the position of the Varyag, which received 11 hits from Japanese shells, remained serious. The cruiser's controls were damaged. In addition, the artillery was seriously damaged, of the 12 six-inch guns, only seven survived.
V. Rudnev, on a French steam boat, went to the English cruiser Talbot to arrange for the transportation of the crew of the Varyag to foreign ships and report on the alleged destruction of the cruiser right on the roadstead. Bailey, the commander of the Talbot, objected to the explosion of the Russian cruiser, motivating his opinion by the large crowding of ships in the roadstead. At 13 o'clock. 50 min. Rudnev returned to the Varyag. Hastily gathering nearby officers, he informed them of his intention and obtained their support. They immediately began to transport the wounded, and then the entire crew, ship's documents and the ship's cash register to foreign ships. The officers destroyed valuable equipment, smashed the surviving instruments, pressure gauges, dismantled the locks of the guns, throwing parts overboard. Finally, the kingstones were opened, and at six o'clock in the evening the Varyag lay down on the bottom on the port side.

Russian heroes were placed on foreign ships. The English "Talbot" took on board 242 people, the Italian ship took 179 Russian sailors, the rest was placed on board the French "Pascal". The commander of the American cruiser Vicksburg behaved absolutely disgustingly in this situation, categorically refusing to place Russian sailors on his ship without official permission from Washington. And without taking a single person on board, the "American" limited himself to sending a doctor to the cruiser. French newspapers wrote about this: "Obviously, the American fleet is still too young to have those lofty traditions with which all the fleets of other nations are inspired."

Crew gunboat"Korean" blew up his ship

The commander of the gunboat "Koreets", captain II rank G.P. Belyaev turned out to be a more decisive person: despite all the warnings of the British, he blew up the gunboat, leaving the Japanese only a pile of scrap metal as a keepsake.

In spite of immortal feat the crew of the Varyag, Vsevolod Fedorovich Rudnev, after all, should not have returned to the port, but should have flooded the cruiser in the fairway. Such a decision would greatly complicate the use of the port by the Japanese, and made it impossible to lift the cruiser. Most importantly, no one would have been able to say that the Varyag was retreating from the battlefield. After all, now many "democratic" sources are trying to turn the feat of Russian sailors into a farce, because. supposedly the cruiser died not in battle.

In 1905, the Varyag was raised by the Japanese and introduced into the Japanese Imperial Navy under the name Soya, but in 1916 the Russian Empire bought the legendary cruiser.

Finally, I want to remind all "democrats" and "truth seekers" that after the armistice, the Japanese government found it possible to reward Captain Rudnev for the feat of "Varyag". The captain himself did not want to accept an award from the opposite side, but the Sovereign personally asked him to do so. In 1907 Vsevolod Fedorovich Rudnev was awarded the order Rising sun.

The bridge of the cruiser "Varyag"

Map of the battle at Chemulpo from the logbook "Varyag"

In the history of the Russo-Japanese war, the Varyag cruiser, which entered into an unequal battle with much superior enemy forces, entered its heroic page. His feat, as well as the feat of the "Korean" will forever remain in the hearts of people.

Russian sailors withstood an unequal battle with the Japanese, did not surrender to the enemy, sinking their ship and not lowering the flag. This legendary battle with six enemy cruisers and eight destroyers made an indelible impression not only in Russia, but also abroad. We will talk about the history of the Varyag cruiser today.

background

Considering the history of the cruiser "Varyag", it would be appropriate to refer to the events preceding it. The war between Russia and Japan (1904 - 1905) was fought between the two empires for control over the territories of Manchuria, Korea, and also over the Yellow Sea. After a long break, it became the first major military conflict in which such new weapons as long-range artillery, battleships and destroyers were used.

The issue of the Far East at that time was in the first place for Nicholas II. The main obstacle to Russian dominance in the region was Japan. Nicholas foresaw the inevitable clash with her and prepared for it both from the diplomatic side and from the military side.

But there was still hope in the government that Japan, fearful of Russia, would refrain from a direct attack. However, on the night of January 27, 1904, without declaring war, the Japanese fleet unexpectedly attacked the Russian squadron at Port Arthur. There was a naval base here, which Russia rented from China.

As a result, several of the strongest ships belonging to the Russian squadron went out of order, which ensured the landing of the Japanese military in Korea in February without any obstacles.

Attitude in society

The news that the war had begun left no one indifferent in Russia. At its first stage, the patriotic mood prevailed among the people, the awareness of the need to repulse the aggressor.

in the capital, as well as in other big cities unprecedented manifestations took place. Even revolutionary-minded youth joined this movement, singing the hymn "God Save the Tsar!". Some circles of the opposition for the duration of the war decided to suspend their activities and not put forward demands to the government.

Before moving on to the story of the feat of the Varyag cruiser, let's talk about the history of its construction and characteristics.

Construction and testing

The ship was laid down in 1898 and built in the United States, in Philadelphia. In 1900, the Varyag armored cruiser was transferred to the Russian Navy, and since 1901 it has been in service. Ships of this type were common at the turn of the XIX-XX centuries. The protection of their mechanisms, as well as gun magazines, was made up of an armored deck - flat or convex.

This deck was a covering of the ship's hull, located horizontally in the form of a flooring of armor plates. It was intended to protect against bombs, shells, debris and fragments falling from above. Ships such as the armored cruiser "Varyag" were the most numerous part of the cruising crew of most maritime powers at the turn of the century.

The base of the ship was Port Arthur. Although some researchers have claimed that it had poor boiler design and other construction defects that resulted in a significant reduction in speed, tests have shown otherwise. On tests conducted in 1903, the ship developed a high speed, almost equal to the speed of the initial tests. The boilers served well for many years on other ships.

State of War

In 1904, in early February, two ships from Russia arrived on a diplomatic mission in the port of Seoul, the capital of Korea. These were the cruiser "Varyag" and "Korean", a gunboat.

Japanese Admiral Uriu sent a notice to the Russians that Japan and Russia were at war. The cruiser was commanded by Rudnev V.F., captain of the 1st rank, and the boat was commanded by the captain of the second rank Belyaev G.P.

The admiral demanded that the Varyag leave the port, otherwise the battle would be fought right on the roadstead. Both ships weighed anchor, a few minutes later they gave a combat alert. In order to break through the blockade of the Japanese, the Russian sailors had to fight through the narrow fairway and go out to the open sea.

This task was almost impossible. The Japanese cruisers handed over the offer of surrender to the mercy of the winner. But this signal was ignored by the Russians. The enemy squadron opened fire.

Fierce fight

The battle between the cruiser Varyag and the Japanese was fierce. Despite the hurricane attack carried out by ships, one of which was heavy, and the other five were light (and also eight destroyers), Russian officers and sailors fired at the enemy, laid holes and extinguished the fire. The commander of the cruiser "Varyag" Rudnev, despite the injury and shell shock, did not stop leading the battle.

Ignoring the great destruction and heavy fire, the Varyag crew did not stop aimed fire from those guns that were still intact. At the same time, the "Korean" did not lag behind him.

According to Rudnev's report, the Russians sank 1 destroyer and damaged 4 Japanese cruisers. The losses of the Varyag crew in battle were as follows:

• It was killed: officers - 1 person, sailors - 30.
• Among those who were wounded or shell-shocked, there were 6 officers and 85 sailors.
• Approximately 100 more people were slightly injured.

Critical damage inflicted on the cruiser "Varyag" forced him to return to the roadstead of the bay in one hour. After the severity of the damage had been done, those guns and equipment that remained after the battle were, if possible, destroyed. The ship itself was sunk in the bay. The "Korean" did not suffer human losses, but was blown up by its crew.

Battle of Chemulpo, beginning

On the roads near the Korean city of Chemulpo (now Incheon) there were ships of Italians, British, Koreans, as well as Russians - "Varyag" and "Koreets". The Japanese cruiser Chiyoda was also moored there. The latter on February 7, at night, withdrew from the raid without turning on the identification lights and set off for the open sea.

Around 4 p.m. on February 8, the Korean, leaving the bay, met with the Japanese squadron, which consisted of 8 destroyers and 7 cruisers.

One of the cruisers, called Asama, blocked the way for our gunboat. At the same time, the destroyers fired 3 torpedoes at her, of which 2 flew past, and the third sank a few meters from the side of the Russian boat. Captain Belyaev was given the command to go to a neutral harbor and hide in Chemulpo.

Development of events

• 7.30. As mentioned above, the commander of the Japanese squadron, Uriu, sends a telegram to the ships standing in the bay about the state of war between the Russians and the Japanese, where it was indicated that the neutral bay would be forced to attack them at 16 o'clock if the Russians did not appear on the high seas by 12 o'clock.
• 9.30. Rudnev, who was on board the British ship Talbot, becomes aware of the telegram. A short meeting takes place here and a decision is made to leave the bay and give battle to the Japanese.
• 11.20. "Korean" and "Varyag" go to sea. At the same time, on the ships of foreign powers that observed neutrality, their teams were lined up, who greeted the Russians going to certain death with cries of "Hurrah!"
• 11.30. The Japanese cruisers were in combat formation near Richie Island, covering the exits to the sea, behind them were the destroyers. "Chyoda" and "Asama" laid the foundation for the movement towards the Russians, followed by "Niitaka" and "Naniva". Uriu offered the Russians to surrender and was refused.
• 11.47. As a result of accurate Japanese strikes, the deck on the Varyag is on fire, but it is possible to put it out. Some of the guns were damaged, there were wounded and killed. Rudnev was contused and seriously wounded in the back. The helmsman Snigirev remains in the ranks.
• 12.05. On the "Varyag" steering mechanisms are damaged. A decision is made to surrender full back, while not ceasing fire on enemy ships. At Asama, the aft tower and bridge were disabled, repair work began. Guns were damaged on two more cruisers, 1 destroyer was sunk. The Japanese had 30 killed.
• 12.20. The "Varyag" has two holes. A decision is made to return to Chemulpo Bay, correct the damage and continue the battle.
• 12.45. Hopes for the correction of most of the ship's guns are not justified.
• 18.05. By decision of the team and the captain, the Russian cruiser Varyag was flooded. The gunboat, having been damaged by the explosions, was also flooded.

Captain Rudnev's report

It seems that it will be interesting to get acquainted with the content of excerpts from Rudnev's report, the meaning of which boils down to the following:

• The first shot was fired from the Asama cruiser with an 8-inch gun. It was followed by the fire of the entire squadron.
• After the sighting was made, they opened fire on the Asama from a distance equal to 45 cables. One of the first Japanese shells destroyed the upper bridge and set fire to the navigator's cabin. At the same time, the rangefinder officer Count Nirod - midshipman, as well as the rest of the rangefinders of the 1st station, were killed. After the battle, they found the count's hand, which held the rangefinder.
• After inspecting the Varyag cruiser, making sure that it was impossible to engage in battle, at a meeting of officers they decided to sink it. The rest of the team and the wounded were taken to foreign ships, which expressed their full consent in response to a request to do so.
• The Japanese suffered heavy casualties, there were accidents on ships. The Asama, which went to the dock, was especially badly damaged. The cruiser Takachiho also suffered a hole. He took on board 200 wounded, but on the way to Sasebo his plasters burst, bulkheads broke, and he sank at sea, while the destroyer was in battle.

In conclusion, the captain considered it his duty to report that the ships of the naval detachment that was entrusted to him had exhausted all possible means for a breakthrough, prevented the Japanese from winning a victory, inflicted many losses on the enemy, supporting with dignity the honor of the Russian flag. Therefore, he petitioned for the award of the team for the valiant performance of duty and selfless courage shown at the same time.

honors

After the battle, Russian sailors were received by foreign ships. An obligation was taken from them that they would not participate in further hostilities. The sailors returned to Russia through neutral ports.

In 1904, in April, the crews reached St. Petersburg. Tsar Nicholas II welcomed the sailors. All of them were invited to the palace for a gala dinner. Dinnerware was specially prepared for this event, which were then handed over to the sailors. And also the king gave them a nominal watch.

The battle at Chemulpo vividly demonstrated the miracles of heroism of people who are capable of going to inevitable death in order to preserve honor and dignity.

In honor of this brave and at the same time desperate step of the Russian sailors, a special medal was established. The feat of sailors over the years has not been forgotten. So, in 1954, on the 50th anniversary of the battle at Chemulpo, N. G. Kuznetsov, commander of the naval forces Soviet Union, awarded 15 of his veterans with medals "For Courage".

In 1992, a monument was erected to the commander of the cruiser Rudnev in the village of Savina, which is located in the Zaoksky district of the Tula region. It was there that he was buried in 1913. In the city of Vladivostok in 1997, a monument was erected to the heroic cruiser Varyag.

In 2009, after lengthy negotiations with representatives of Korea were successfully completed, relics related to the feat of two Russian ships were delivered to Russia. Previously, they were kept in Icheon, in the museum storerooms. In 2010, the mayor of Icheon, in the presence of Dmitry Medvedev, who was then president Russian Federation, handed over to our diplomatic workers the guis (bow flag) of the Varyag cruiser. This solemn ceremony took place in the capital South Korea, at the Russian Embassy.

Speech of Nicholas II addressed to the heroes of Chemulpo

Tsar Nicholas II delivered a heartfelt speech in honor of the heroes in the Winter Palace. In particular, it stated the following:

• He called the sailors "brothers", declaring that he was happy to see them safely returned to their homeland and in good health. He noted that, having shed their blood, they thereby committed an act worthy of the exploits of our ancestors, fathers and grandfathers. They wrote a new heroic page in the history of the Russian fleet, leaving in it forever the names "Varangian" and "Korean". Their feat will become immortal.
• Nikolai expressed confidence that each of the heroes until the very end of his service would be worthy of the award he received. He also emphasized that all the inhabitants of Russia read about the feat accomplished near Chemulpo with trembling excitement and love. The Tsar heartily thanked the sailors for maintaining the honor of the St. Andrew's flag, as well as the dignity of Great and Holy Russia. He raised his glass to the future victories of the glorious fleet and to the health of the heroes.

The further fate of the ship

In 1905, the Japanese raised the Varyag cruiser from the bottom of the bay and used it for training purposes, calling the ship Soya. During World War I, Japan and Russia were allies. In 1916, the ship was bought out and included in the Navy. Russian Empire under the previous name.

In 1917, the Varyag went to the UK for repairs. There it was confiscated by the British, as the newly formed Soviet government did not pay for repairs. After that, the ship was resold to Germany for scrapping. While being towed, it was caught in a storm and sank off the coast of the Irish Sea.

In 2003, they managed to find the place of the death of the cruiser "Varyag". Next to him, on the shore, in 2006, a memorial plaque was installed. And in 2007, they established a fund to support the navy, giving it the name "Cruiser" Varyag ". One of his goals was to raise the money needed to build and install a monument in Scotland dedicated to the legendary ship. Such a monument was opened in the city of Lendelfoot in 2007.

Our proud Varyag does not surrender to the enemy

This well-known song is dedicated to the event of the Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905) described by us, which has become the most famous - the feat of the Varyag and the Korean, who entered into an unequal battle in the Chemulpo Bay with the forces of the Japanese squadron that were much superior to them.

The text of this song was written in 1904 by the Austrian poet and writer Rudolf Greinz, who was greatly impressed by the feat of Russian sailors. First, a poem called "Varangian" was published in one of the magazines, and soon after that several Russian translations of it were made.

The most successful was the translation by E. Studentskaya. It was set to music by AS Turishchev, a military musician. For the first time, the song was performed at a gala reception in the Winter Palace, which was described above.

There is another song dedicated to the legendary cruiser - “Cold waves are splashing”. In the newspaper "Rus" 16 days after the "Varyag" and "Koreets" were flooded, a poem by Y. Repninsky was placed, the music for which was later written by Benevsky V. D. and Bogoroditsky F. N. The song also has an unofficial the name given by the people is "Korean".

On February 9, the Varangian and the Korean accomplished their feat. How it was

Up, comrades, all in their places!
The last parade is coming!
Our proud Varyag does not surrender to the enemy,
Nobody wants mercy!

AT that day, "Varyag" and "Korean" took an unequal battle with the Japanese squadron.
It became known to the whole world as a battle with the Japanese squadron near the port of Chemulpo, after which the Russian sailors sank their ship, but did not surrender to the enemy. The feat was accomplished in front of sailors from all over the world. It is in this case that you understand the validity of our saying "In the world and death is red." It was thanks to these numerous witnesses and the press of their countries that this battle became known.

The feat of the Russian cruiser Varyag and its commander V.F. Rudnev. Having withstood an unequal battle with the Japanese squadron and not lowering the flag in front of the enemy, the Russian sailors themselves sank their ship, deprived of the opportunity to continue the battle, but did not surrender to the enemy.

The cruiser "Varyag" was considered one of the best ships of the Russian fleet. In 1902, the Varyag became part of the Port Arthur squadron.

It was a four-pipe, two-masted, armored cruiser of the 1st rank with a displacement of 6500 tons. The cruiser's main battery artillery consisted of twelve 152-mm (six-inch) guns. In addition, the ship carried twelve 75 mm guns, eight 47 mm quick-firing guns, and two 37 mm guns. The cruiser had six torpedo tubes. He could reach speeds up to 23 knots.

The ship's crew consisted of 550 sailors, non-commissioned officers, conductors and 20 officers.

Captain 1st rank Vsevolod Fedorovich Rudnev, a native of the nobility of the Tula province, an experienced naval officer, took command of the cruiser on March 1, 1903. It was a difficult and stressful time. Japan was intensively preparing for a war with Russia, creating a significant superiority in forces here.

A month before the start of the war, the tsar's governor on Far East Admiral E.I. Alekseev sent the Varyag cruiser from Port Arthur to the neutral Korean port of Chemulpo (now Incheon).

On January 26, 1904, a Japanese squadron of six cruisers and eight destroyers approached Chemulpo Bay and stopped in the outer roadstead in a neutral port: At that time, Russian ships were in the inner roadstead - the cruiser "Varyag" and the seaworthy gunboat "Koreets", as well as cargo-passenger steamer "Sungari". There were also foreign warships.

On February 8, 1904, the Japanese squadron under the command of Rear Admiral Uriu (2 armored cruisers Asama and Chiyoda, 4 armored cruisers Naniwa, Niitaka, Takachiho, Akashi; 8 destroyers) blocked Chemulpo, having the purpose of covering the landing (about 2 thousand people) and preventing the intervention of the "Varyag". On the same day, the "Korean" went to Port Arthur, but upon leaving the port was attacked by destroyers (two fired torpedoes did not hit the target), after which he returned to the raid.

Early in the morning on January 27, 1904 V.F. Rudnev received an ultimatum from Japanese Rear Admiral S. Uriu demanding to leave Chemulpo before 12 noon, otherwise the Japanese threatened to open fire on Russian ships in a neutral port, which was a gross violation of international law.
V.F. Rudnev announced to the crew that Japan had begun military operations against Russia and announced the decision to break through with battle to Port Arthur, and in case of failure, blow up the ships.

Commander's cabin Varyag.

The Varyag weighed anchor and headed for the exit from the bay. In the wake was the gunboat "Korean" (commander Captain 2nd Rank G.P. Belyaev). On the ships, a combat alarm was sounded.

At the exit from the bay, there is a Japanese squadron that outnumbers the Varyag by more than five times in artillery weapons, and seven times in torpedoes. She reliably blocked the Russian ships from entering the open sea.

The plans of the Japanese and their squadron

Japanese ships: Asama in 1898

Akashi on the roads in Kobe, 1899

Naniwa in 1898

The Japanese side had a detailed battle plan, brought by Uriu's order to the commanders of the ships at 9:00 on February 9. It provided for two scenarios for the development of events - in the event of an attempt to break through the Russian ships and in the event of their refusal to break through. In the first case, given the tightness of the fairway, Uriu identified three lines of interception of Russian ships, each of which had to operate its own tactical group:

Asama was assigned to the first group
in the second - Naniwa (flagship Uriu) and Niitaka
in the third - Chiyoda, Takachiho and Akashi.

Asama, as the most powerful ship of the detachment, played a major role. In the event that the Russian ships refused to break through, Uriu planned to attack them in the port with torpedoes by the forces of the 9th detachment of destroyers (if the neutral ships had not left their anchorages), or by artillery and torpedoes by the forces of the entire squadron.

If until 13:00 on February 9, Russian ships do not leave the anchorage, then all ships take up positions next to the flagship.
- if the ships of the neutral powers remain at the anchorage, then a torpedo attack is made in the evening;
- in the event that only Russian ships and a small number of foreign ships and vessels are at the anchorage, then an artillery attack is carried out by the forces of the entire squadron.

Battle progress

Six Japanese cruisers - "Asama", "Naniva", "Takachiho", "Niitaka", "Akashi" and "Chyoda" took their starting positions in the bearing formation. Eight destroyers loomed behind the cruisers. The Japanese offered the Russian ships to surrender. V.F. Rudnev ordered that this signal be left unanswered.

The first shot was fired from the armored cruiser Asama, followed by the entire enemy squadron opening fire. "Varangian" did not answer, he was moving closer. And only when the distance was reduced to a sure shot, V.F. Rudnev ordered to open fire.

Varangian and Korean go to the last battle. Rare photo.

The fight was brutal. The Japanese concentrated all the force of fire on the Varyag. The sea boiled with explosions, splashing the deck with shell fragments and cascading water. Every now and then there were fires, holes opened. Under heavy enemy fire, sailors and officers fired at the enemy, brought down the plaster, patched up holes, and put out fires. V.F. Rudnev, wounded in the head and shell-shocked, continued to direct the battle. Many sailors fought heroically in this battle, among whom were our countrymen A.I. Kuznetsov, P.E. Polikov, T.P. Chibisov and others, as well as the ship's priest M.I. Rudnev.

Well-aimed fire from the Varyag brought results: the Japanese cruisers Asama, Chiyoda, and Takachiho were seriously damaged. When the Japanese destroyers rushed towards the Varyag, the Russian cruiser concentrated its fire on them and sank one destroyer.

Hit 6-inch guns - XII and IX; 75 mm - No. 21; 47-mm - No. 27 and 28. The combat mainsail was almost demolished, the rangefinder station No. 2 was destroyed, guns No. 31 and No. 32 were knocked out, and a fire was made in the lockers and in the armored deck, which was soon extinguished. During the passage of the traverse of the island of Iodolmi, one of the shells was broken by a pipe in which all the steering gears pass, and at the same time, fragments of another shell that flew into the conning tower, the cruiser commander was shell-shocked in the head, his bugler and drummer standing on both sides were killed on the spot, wounded in the back near the steering foreman (who did not declare his wound and remained at his post throughout the battle); at the same time, the commander's orderly was wounded in the arm. Management was immediately transferred to the tiller compartment on the manual steering wheel. With the thunder of shots, orders to the tiller compartment were hard to hear, and it was necessary to control mainly machines, despite this, the cruiser still obeyed poorly.

At 1215 hours, wanting to get out of the sphere of fire for a while, in order to fix the steering gear if possible and put out the fires, they began to turn around with cars, and, since the cruiser did not obey the steering wheel well and, due to the proximity of the island of Iodolmi, reversed both cars (the cruiser set to this position at the time when the steering gear was interrupted with the left steering wheel). At this time, the Japanese fire intensified and the hit increased, since the cruiser, turning around, turned its port side towards the enemy and did not have high speed.

At the same time, one of the serious underwater holes was received on the left side, and the third stoker began to quickly fill with water, the level of which approached the fireboxes; brought the patch and began to pump out water; then the water level subsided somewhat, but nevertheless the cruiser continued to heel rapidly. A shell that passed through the officer’s cabins, destroyed them and pierced the deck, ignited flour in the provision department (the fire was extinguished by midshipman Chernilovsky-Sokol and senior boatswain Kharkovsky), and another shell smashed the bed nets on the waist above the infirmary, and the fragments fell into the infirmary, and the grid caught fire, but was soon extinguished. Serious damage forced them to leave the sphere of fire for a longer time, which is why they went at full speed, continuing to shoot back with the port side and stern guns. One of the shots of the 6-inch gun No. XII destroyed the aft bridge of the Asama cruiser and set off a fire, and the Asama stopped firing for a while, but soon opened again.

Its stern turret was apparently damaged, since it was no longer active until the end of the battle. Only when the cruiser passed to the anchorage and when the fire of the Japanese could be dangerous for foreign ships, did they stop it, and one of the cruisers chasing us returned to the squadron that remained in the fairway behind the island of Iodolmi. The distance increased so much that it was useless for us to continue the fire, and therefore the fire was stopped at 12 hours 45 minutes day.

Battle results

During the battle, which lasted for one hour, "Varyag" fired 1105 shells at the enemy, "Korean" - 52 shells. After the battle, the losses were counted. On the Varyag, out of a crew of 570 people, 122 were killed and wounded (1 officer and 30 sailors were killed, 6 officers and 85 sailors were wounded). In addition, more than 100 people were slightly injured.

The wounded but not defeated "Varyag" (higher in the photo "Varangian" after the battle) returned to the port to make the necessary repairs and again go for a breakthrough.

According to the report of the Varyag commander, one Japanese destroyer was sunk by cruiser fire and the Asama cruiser was damaged, and the Takachiho cruiser sank after the battle; the enemy allegedly lost at least 30 men killed.

In this battle, it is customary to forget about the "Korean". I read some interesting information in one of the documents. Before the battle, the commander of the ship, captain of the 2nd rank G.P. Belyaev ordered the ship's masts to be shortened. It was a military trick. He knew that the Japanese knew the detailed characteristics of our ships and understood that rangefinders would measure the distance to the Korean by the height of the masts. Thus, all the shells of the Japanese ships flew safely over the Russian ship.

Korean with masts before and after the battle.

Meanwhile, during the battle, the "Korean" fired 52 shells at the enemy, and the only damage was the ram compartment pierced by a fragment of a Japanese shell. There were no losses at all.

"Varangian" also heeled aboard, the machines were out of order, most of the guns were broken. V.F. Rudnev made a decision: to remove the teams from the ships, to flood the cruiser, and to blow up the gunboat so that they would not get to the enemy. The council of officers supported their commander.

After the team was brought to neutral ships, the Varyag was flooded by opening the kingstones, and the Korean was blown up (the explosion of the Korean is above in the photo). The Russian steamer Sungari was also sunk.

"Varangian" after flooding, at low tide.

Russian heroes were placed on foreign ships. The English "Talbot" took on board 242 people, the Italian ship took 179 Russian sailors, the rest was placed on board the French "Pascal".

The commander of the American cruiser Vicksburg behaved absolutely disgustingly in this situation, categorically refusing to place Russian sailors on his ship without official permission from Washington.

And without taking a single person on board, the "American" limited himself to sending a doctor to the cruiser.

French newspapers wrote about this: Obviously, the American navy is still too young to have those lofty traditions with which all the navies of other nations are inspired."

After the Russo-Japanese War, the Japanese government created a museum in memory of the Varyag heroes in Seoul and awarded Rudnev with the Order of the Rising Sun.

The sailors of the "Varyag" and "Koreets" returned to their homeland in several echelons, where they were enthusiastically received by the Russian people.

General Baron Kaulbars greets the sailors "Varyag" and "Korean" upon their arrival in Odessa.

The sailors were warmly welcomed by the residents of Tula, who filled the station square late at night. Large celebrations in honor of the heroes-sailors were held in St. Petersburg.

The crews of the "Varyag" and "Korean" were awarded high awards: the sailors were awarded St. George's crosses, and the officers were awarded the Order of St. George of the 4th degree. Captain 1st rank V.F. Rudnev was awarded the Order of St. George 4th degree, the rank of adjutant wing and was appointed commander of the 14th naval crew and the squadron battleship "Andrei the First-Called" under construction in St. Petersburg. The medal “For the Battle of the Varyag and the Korean” was established, which was awarded to all participants in the battle.

In November 1905, for refusing to take disciplinary measures against the revolutionary-minded sailors of his crew, V.F. Rudnev was dismissed with a promotion to rear admiral.

He left for the Tula province, where he settled in a small estate near the village of Myshenki, three versts from the Tarusskaya station.

July 7, 1913 V.F. Rudnev died and was buried in the village of Savino (now the Zaoksky district of the Tula region).

The further fate of the cruiser "Varyag"

In 1905, the cruiser was raised by the Japanese, repaired and commissioned on August 22 as a 2nd class cruiser under the name "Soya" (jap. 宗谷).

During the First World War, the Russian Empire and Japan became allies. In 1916, the Soya cruiser (together with the battleships Sagami and Tango) was bought by Russia.

On April 4, the Japanese flag was lowered and on April 5, 1916, the cruiser was transferred to Vladivostok, after which, under the former name "Varyag", it was included in the flotilla of the Arctic Ocean (made the transition from Vladivostok to Romanov-on-Murman) as part of the Detachment of Special Purpose Ships under the command of Rear Admiral Bestuzhev-Ryumin.

In February 1917, he went to the UK for repairs, where he was confiscated by the British, since the Soviet government refused to pay the debts of the Russian Empire.

In 1920, it was resold to German firms for scrapping. In 1925, while being towed, the ship got into a storm and sank offshore in the Irish Sea. Part of the metal structures was then removed by local residents. Was subsequently blown up.

In 2003, the first Russian expedition to dive into the area of ​​the wreck took place, some small details were recovered. The grandson of captain Rudnev, who lives in France, took part in the dive ...

After the feat of the crew of the cruiser "Varyag", the Austrian writer and poet Rudolf Greinz wrote a poem "Der "Warjag"" dedicated to this event. The full story of the song and the original test can be read

"Song about the feat of the Varyag" (to the translation of Greinz's poems) became the anthem of Russian sailors

On October 29, 1955, the battleship Novorossiysk exploded and capsized in Sevastopol Bay, killing hundreds of sailors. Recalls a veteran of the Armed Forces of the USSR, retired officer M. Pashkin: “ Below, in the armored womb of the battleship, the sailors immured and doomed to death sang, they sang the Varyag. On the bottom it was not audible, but, approaching the speaker, one could make out the barely audible sounds of the song. It was a stunning experience, I have never experienced such a state. No one noticed the tears, everyone looked down at the bottom, as if trying to see the sailors singing below. Everyone stood without hats, there were no words».

April 7, 1989 the submarine K-278 "Komsomolets" sank due to a fire on board after a 6-hour crew struggle for the ship's buoyancy. Sailors in the icy water of the Norwegian Sea said goodbye to their commander and ship by singing the song "Varangian"...

Infa and photo (C) different places on the Internet ... I supplemented my post last year with new photos and corrected it.

Battle at Chemulpo

Opponents

Side force commanders

Side forces

The last battle of the cruiser "Varyag"- took place at the beginning of the Russo-Japanese War, near the city of Chemulpo in Korea between the Russian cruiser "Varyag", the gunboat "Koreets" under the overall command of Captain 1st Rank Vsevolod Rudnev and the Japanese squadron of Rear Admiral Sotokichi Uriu. During the battle, the Varyag received a number of damages and, together with the Koreyets, returned to the port, where the Russian ships were subsequently destroyed by their teams, who switched to neutral ships.

The position of forces before the battle

Chemulpo, view of the bay

coast map

Chemulpo (the obsolete name of the city of Incheon) is a strategically important port in Korea; warships of the leading world powers were constantly located here. The political situation in Korea was highly volatile and the military presence was necessary condition upholding by different states of their interests in the region. In preparation for the war with Russia, the Japanese command developed several options for attack plans. All of them assumed the capture of Korea, as a springboard for a further offensive. Under pressure ground forces the Japanese landing was to take place in Chemulpo Bay, as the most convenient and closest harbor to Seoul.

Preparing for war

Japan in a future war relied on the surprise and speed of deployment of troops. Japanese troops were stationed in Korea both openly (security forces based on international agreements) and covertly, living under the guise of civilians. They prepared the infrastructure for the future landing operation in advance, built food warehouses, communication points and barracks, and unloaded coal, boxes and bales with various cargoes from transport ships arriving at the port. All this was done with the tacit consent of the Korean authorities, who believed that all these were peaceful concerns of local Japanese residents, of whom there were more than 4,500 people in Chemulpo.

Cap. 1 p. Rudnev reported to Port Arthur about the arrangement by the Japanese of food warehouses in Chemulpo and Seoul. According to reports, the total amount of all Japanese provisions already reached 1,000,000 pounds, and 100 boxes of cartridges were delivered. At the same time, scows, tugboats and steam boats were openly delivered to Chemulpo by the Japanese, which, as the commander of the cr. "Varyag" clearly indicated extensive preparations for landing operations. Along railway Seoul-Fuzan, the Japanese set up officer stages, connected by separate telegraph and telephone lines to a common telegraph line. All these preparations clearly pointed to the inevitable occupation of Korea by the Japanese.

In January, Japan completed training on the formation of the landing corps, transport ships, landing craft and logistics. The Japanese fleet has trained the ships assigned to participate in the operation. That did not go unnoticed for Russia.

But no action was taken by the Russian command. The underestimation and neglect of intelligence data had a serious impact on the course of hostilities at the beginning of the war. On the contrary, in order not to provoke the Japanese, St. Petersburg forbade the command and commanders of the ships any manifestation of the initiative.

On February 7, ships carrying the Japanese Expeditionary Force lay adrift off the coast of Korea in Asanman Bay. Having received fresh intelligence, Rear Admiral Uriu adjusted the landing plans.

The incident with the "Korean"

On January 26, the gunboat Koreyets, having received the mail, weighed anchor, but at the exit from the raid she was blocked by the squadron of Rear Admiral S. Uriu, consisting of the armored cruisers Asama and Chiyoda, the cruisers Naniwa, Takachiho, Niitaka and Akashi, as well as three transports and four destroyers. The destroyers attacked the gunboat with two (according to another version, three) torpedoes, but unsuccessfully. Not having an order to open fire and not knowing about the start of hostilities, the commander of the "Korean" Captain 2nd Rank G.P. Belyaev ordered to turn back.

Our detachment, like a giant snake, crawled along the fairway to Incheon, and when half of its body had already rounded Hachibito, the “Korean” appeared to meet us. We had to maintain a peaceful look until the end of the landing of troops, but when we saw the enemy, the thought flashed through everyone - “wouldn’t we capture him here, next to the island, since nothing will be visible from Incheon?” But we continued to move, and a few minutes later a small skirmish ensued between the "Korean" and two of the four destroyers. Uriu, of course, was somewhat disturbed by this, but at the same time, being on the bridge and watching the skirmish, he remarked with feigned indifference: "I see no point in this."

During the trial, Commander Takachiho denied a mine attack on the Russian boat, and the actions of the destroyers, according to him, were dictated by the protection of transports from the attack of the Korean. As a result, the incident was presented as a misunderstanding. All night the Japanese landed troops. And in the morning, Russian sailors learned that the war between Russia and Japan had begun.

Ultimatum

Rear Admiral Uriu sent messages to the commanders of the warships of neutral countries located in Chemulpo (the English cruiser Talbot, the French Pascal, the Italian Elba and the American gunboat Vicksburg) with a request to leave the raid in connection with possible actions against the Varyag and the Korean. After a meeting on the English cruiser, the station commanders agreed to leave the harbor if the Russian ships did not leave it.

At the meeting of the commanders, various combinations were discussed, then, in a secret meeting from me, they decided: if I stay on the roadstead, they will leave, leaving me with the Korean and the Sungari steamer. Together with this, they decided to send a protest to the admiral against the attack on the raid. When asked by the commanders about my opinion, I replied that I would make an attempt to break through and accept the battle with the squadron, no matter how large it was, but I would never give up, and also fight on a neutral raid

VF Rudnev, who was the commander of a detachment of Russian ships, decided to go to sea and try to break through to Port Arthur with a fight. The officers of "Varyag" and "Korean" at the military councils unanimously supported this proposal.

Characteristics of the parties involved

Takachiho with flags at half-staff on the occasion of the death of Empress Mother Eisho, 1897

"Varyag" in 1901

"Korean" before the last battle, the masts were cut down to make it more difficult for the enemy to aim

Japan

On the part of Japan, they took part in the battle armored cruisers Asama and Chiyoda armored cruisers Naniwa, Takachiho, Niitaka, Akashi and three destroyers of the 14th squad (Hayabusa, Chidori and Manazuru). The detachment was heterogeneous, in the ranks were both veterans of the Sino-Japanese war with extensive experience in combat operations, and unfired newcomers.

IJN Asama

After that, the Russian cruiser, unexpectedly for the Japanese, dropped the course and began to circulate to the right, turning to the opposite course (according to Russian data, the turn began at 12:15 / 12:50, according to Japanese - 10 minutes earlier). According to Rudnev's report, one of the Japanese shells broke the communication pipe with the drives to the steering gear, but the examination of the Varyag after raising the traces of hits in the area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe passage of the pipe and combat damage to the steering did not reveal. The turn of the cruiser was motivated by his commander's desire to temporarily get out of the enemy's sphere of fire, put out the fires and correct the steering.

During the passage of the traverse of Iodolmi Island, one shell broke the pipe in which all the steering gears pass, and at the same time, fragments of another shell (exploded at the foremast), which flew into the passage at the conning tower, were shell-shocked in the head of the cruiser commander ... The control of the cruiser was immediately transferred to the manual steering wheel in the tiller compartment, since the steam pipe to the steering machine was also broken. With the thunder of shots, orders to the tiller compartment were hard to hear, cars had to be controlled, and the cruiser did not obey well, being, moreover, in a strong current. At 12 o'clock. 15 m., wanting to get out of the sphere of fire for a while to correct, if possible, the steering drive and extinguish the fires that arose in different places, they began to turn around with cars and, since the cruiser did not obey the helm well and, due to the proximity of the island of Iodolmi, reversed (the cruiser was put into disadvantageous position relative to the island at the time when the steering gear was broken with the left rudder put). The distance to the enemy decreased, his fire intensified and the hit increased; Around this time, a large-caliber projectile pierced the port side under the water, water gushed into a huge hole, and the third stoker began to quickly fill with water, the level of which approached the fireboxes. The stoker quartermasters Zhigarev and Zhuravlev closed up the coal pits, which filled with water.

According to Japanese data, in a short period from 12:05/12:40 to 12:06/12:41, the Varyag received a large number of hits - one 203-mm projectile between the bow bridge and the tube, and five to six 152-mm shells in the bow and central part of the ship. The last hit was recorded at 12:10/12:45 - a 203-mm shell exploded in the stern of the Russian cruiser.

A very fast current was observed in the battle area, which made it difficult to control the ship, and it was impossible to keep a constant course. ... At 12:35 at a distance of 6800 m, an 8-inch projectile hit the enemy in the area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe stern bridge, where a strong fire immediately broke out. At 12:41 at a distance of 6300 m, an 8-inch projectile hit between the bow bridge and the pipe, and 3-4 6-inch projectiles hit the central part of the Varyag's hull. At 12:45 an 8-inch shell hit the deck behind the aft bridge. There was a strong fire, the foremast topmast hung over the starboard side. The Varyag immediately turned, increased its speed and took cover behind the island of Phalmido in order to get out of the fire, and began to extinguish the fires. At this time, the "Korean" came out to the north of the island of Phalmido and continued to fire. At 13:06, the Varyag turned left, opened fire again, then changed course and began to retreat towards the anchorage. The Korean followed him. At that moment, I received a signal from the flagship - "Chase!"

Until 11:59/12:34, only Asama fired at the Varyag, then until 12:13/12:48, all Japanese cruisers fired at varying intensity. After that, Asama and Niitaka fired until the end of the battle. According to Rudnev’s report, during the circulation period, the Varyag experienced difficulties in managing, as a result of which, in order to prevent a collision with the island of Yodolmi (Pkhalmido), it was necessary to reverse for a short time, some sources claim that the Varyag still ran aground, but got off it in reverse.

At 12:13/12:48, the Varyag completed its circulation and, together with the Korean, moved back to the anchorage, pursued by the Japanese cruisers Asama and Niitaka. At 12:40/13:15, due to the approach of Russian ships to the anchorage, which, if the battle continued, created a threat to neutral ships, the Japanese cruisers ceased fire and retreated. Five minutes later, due to the increased distance to the enemy, the Russian ships also completed firing, and at 13:00/13:35 they anchored in their parking lots.

Results of the battle

The Japanese cruisers fought in three battle groups: Asama and Chiyoda, Naniwa and Niitaka, Takachiho and Akashi. The destroyers were located 500-600 m from the non-shooting Naniwa side and did not actually take part in the battle. The battle was complicated by the narrowness of the fairway, which made it difficult for the Japanese to simultaneously bring all the ships into battle, a strong current that made it difficult to maintain the course, as well as the periodic hit of the Varyag on target with Phalmido Island, which forced individual Japanese ships to temporarily cease fire. During the battle, Japanese ships actively maneuvered, while developing a speed of up to 18 knots. The battle was fought at a distance of 4800 to 8000 m.

Asama, Chiyoda and Niitaka took the most active part in the battle. The rest of the Japanese cruisers fired an insignificant number of shells.

Consumption of shells of Japanese cruisers

	asama	Chiyoda	Niitaka	Naniwa	Takachiho	Akashi	Total
203 mm	27						27
152 mm	103		53	14	10	2	182
120 mm		71					71
76 mm	9		130				139

The consumption of shells in battle by Russian ships remains a subject of discussion. According to Rudnev's report, the Varyag fired 425 152-mm shells, 470 - 75-mm, 210 - 47-mm, that is, significantly more than all Japanese ships combined. However, the calculation of the shells remaining on it, made by the Japanese after the cruiser was lifted, does not confirm this information and gives significantly lower figures for the consumption of ammunition by the Varyag in battle. According to the calculation, the cruiser fired no more than 160 shells of 152 mm caliber and about 50 of 75 mm caliber. The consumption of shells by the "Korean", according to the report of his commander, was: 203 mm - 22, 152 mm - 27, 107 mm - 3.

During the battle on Japanese ships, shells hit the Varyag: 203 mm from Asama - 3, 152 mm - 6 or 7 (4-5 from Asama and one each from Naniwa and Takachiho). Chiyoda also reported one alleged hit on the Koreets, which caused a fire, which is not confirmed by Russian data.

In the Varyag logbook and Rudnev's reports, a number of hits were recorded, including one in the underwater part of the ship, which caused the flooding of some of the coal pits and a noticeable roll of the ship to the port side. Two hits were noted in the stern of the cruiser, which caused fires, and in one case, artillery powder charges, the deck and the whaleboat burned, and in the second, officer cabins were destroyed and flour was set on fire in the provision department (this fire was never completely extinguished). Other hits destroyed the rangefinder station No. 2, damaged the main top and chimney No. 3, and knocked out a number of guns. The explosion of one of the shells, the fragments of which flew into the conning tower, shell-shocked the cruiser commander, killed and wounded several more people. An inspection after the battle revealed damage to five 152-mm, seven 75-mm and all 47-mm guns.

From the Varyag team, 1 officer and 22 lower ranks died directly during the battle (after the battle, 10 more people died within a few days). In a short battle, the cruiser lost about a quarter of the entire crew killed and wounded, the exact number of wounded remains debatable, since various figures appear in the sources. The cruiser's watch log indicates that one officer and 26 lower ranks were seriously wounded, "wounded less seriously" - the cruiser commander, two officers and 55 lower ranks, all the wounded are listed by name. Rudnev’s report to the head of the Naval Ministry indicated that one officer and 85 lower ranks were seriously and moderately injured, two officers and more than a hundred lower ranks received minor injuries, the report to the governor Rudnev gives other figures - one officer and 70 lower ranks were seriously injured, easily - two officers, as well as many lower ranks, received minor wounds from shell fragments. The official sanitary report on the results of the Russo-Japanese War gives a figure of 97 wounded, and finally, according to the historical journal HMS Talbot, a total of 68 wounded were taken to neutral ships (four officers and 64 lower ranks), several of whom subsequently died. The gunboat "Koreets" had no losses in the crew, and the damage was limited to one fragmentation hole in the ram compartment.

Scheme of damage to the "Varyag" (from the report of Rear Admiral Arai Yukan)

During the rise of the Varyag, the Japanese studied the cruiser and described in detail the damage found. In total, traces of 9 combat damages were found in the hull and superstructures (masts and pipes were dismantled during lifting), as well as one damage that occurred after the ship was sunk:

1. A hole measuring 0.6 × 0.15 m on the front bridge on the starboard side and next to it are several small holes
2. A hole measuring 3.96 × 1.21 m and next to it 10 small holes on the deck on the starboard side in the area of ​​​​the forward bridge
3. A hole measuring 0.75 × 0.6 m and next to it three small holes in the bulwark on the starboard side, between the first and second chimneys
4. A hole measuring 1.97 × 1.01 m in the port side at the waterline (the lower edge of the hole went 0.8 m below the waterline), between the second and third chimneys
5. An underwater hole measuring 1.99 × 0.15 m in the port side, behind the fourth chimney, resulting from the pushing of the side by stones after the ship was sunk
6. 12 small holes in the central part of the upper deck, near the main mast
7. A hole measuring 0.72 × 0.6 m in the port side, 1.62 m above the waterline, under the 152-mm gun No. 10
8. A very large (3.96 × 6.4 m in size) hole on the upper deck on the port side, in the area of ​​​​152-mm guns No. 11 and 12, there was also a big fire
9. Six small holes on the starboard side at the aft end behind the 152 mm guns
10. Hole measuring 0.75 × 0.67 m on the upper deck at the aft end

Taking into account the hits on the dismantled structures, A. Polutov comes to the conclusion that there were 11 hits on the Varyag. According to V. Kataev, damage No. 5 arose as a result of the cruiser landing on stones near Phalmido Island, and damages No. 8, 9 and 10 are not of a combat nature and are the result of a fire and an explosion of ammunition that occurred in Chemulpo on a ship abandoned after the evacuation of the team.

As a result of the survey of the ship by the Japanese, it was also found that 1⁄6 of the ship was damaged by fires, the deck in the stern was especially damaged. The power plant and mechanisms of the propeller-steering group did not have any combat damage and were in good condition. All 152-mm guns, as well as at least six 75-mm and two 47-mm Varyag guns, were recognized by the Japanese as fit for use after examination.

According to Russian sources (reports of Rudnev and Belyaev, logbooks of the ships), there was a hit in the stern bridge of Asama with a fire and the sinking of one of the destroyers. According to information received by Rudnev from various sources (including rumors), the cruiser Takachiho sank after the battle when crossing to Sasebo, the cruisers Asama and Naniwa were docked to repair damage, the Japanese brought 30 dead to the shore. However, Japanese historical and archival sources claim that there were no hits on the ships of the Japanese squadron, as well as any damage and losses. At present, the fate of the ships of the Japanese fleet is well known; in particular, the Takachiho cruiser was lost already during the First World War during the siege of Qingdao, the destroyers of the 9th and 14th detachments were excluded from the lists of the fleet in 1919-1923 and scrapped.

The shooting of Russian ships was assessed by Uriu as "erratic" and having "extremely low accuracy." The inefficiency of the firing of Russian ships is explained by the poor training of gunners (for example, during training firing at the shield on December 16, 1903, out of 145 shells fired by the Varyag, only three hit the target), errors in determining the distance to enemy ships (including those associated with the failure in the battle of rangefinder stations), the destruction of the fire control system.

Destruction of Russian ships

The explosion of the gunboat "Korean"

"Varyag" after flooding, at low tide

After anchoring, the officers and crew of the Varyag proceeded to inspect the ship and repair the damage. At 13:35, Rudnev went to the Talbot, where he announced to his commander his intention to destroy the Varyag and transport the team to neutral ships. Having received Bailey's consent, Rudnev returned to the cruiser at 13:50 and informed the officers of his decision, who supported the commander at the general council (it should be noted that the decision of the officers was not unanimous, in particular, the senior officer of the Varyag V. Stepanov was not invited on advice, and Rudnev's order to leave the ship came as a complete surprise to him).

I voted for a breakthrough from Chemulpo to the sea, and this opinion was supported by all the officers who were in the wheelhouse. Damage to the steering gear, apparently, forced to change the proposed plan, and the commander, I believe, to correct the damage, went to the raid in order to get out of the enemy’s sphere of fire. The captain of the 1st rank V. F. Rudnev, after the battle with the Japanese to anchor the cruiser in the Chemulpo roadstead, having informed all the damage received by the cruiser during the battle, went on a French boat with the commander of the Talbot cruiser, Captain Belly, as a senior on the roadstead. Upon returning from the cruiser Talbot, the commander made known his decision to sink the cruiser and transport people to foreign ships in the roadstead. Prior to the trip to the cruiser Talbot, the commander of the council did not collect and did not express a definite decision. I cannot say how and in what form Captain 1st Rank VF Rudnev announced the decision to the officers. I was not invited to the council. From the moment the cruiser left the enemy’s sphere of fire, he was busy with orders for the manufacture of a ship to new meeting with the enemy. I did not expect at all that we should leave our cruiser.

Boats from foreign ships with doctors began to arrive at the Varyag, who began to transport first the wounded, and then the rest of the ship's crew, to the English, French and Italian cruisers. The commander of the American gunboat, having no instructions from the leadership, refused to accept Russian sailors, in connection with which Rudnev sent her boat with a doctor. By 15:50, the transportation of the cruiser's crew was completed, at the request of the commanders of foreign ships, who feared damage to their ships in the explosion (which took place according to Rudnev's report), it was decided to limit the flooding of the Varyag by opening valves and kingstons, while no measures were taken to to bring weapons and equipment of the cruiser into disrepair. The team took a minimum of things, the bodies of the dead were not evacuated and were left on the ship. At 18:10, the Varyag, having a continuing fire at the stern, capsized on the port side and lay down on the ground.

At 15:30, the commander of the "Koreyets" gathered the officers, informed them of Rudnev's decision and offered to discuss further fate gunboat. All officers, starting with the youngest, spoke about the senselessness of a new battle due to the overwhelming superiority of the enemy and the impossibility of inflicting any damage on him. In this regard, it was decided to blow up the "Korean" and bring the team to neutral ships. Due to the haste of the evacuation, the team did not take things, and secret documents were burned in the presence of a special commission. The last boat left the boat at 15:51, and at 16:05 the gunboat was blown up and sank. At the same time, the ship "Sungari" was set on fire, after a while it landed on the ground.

The fate of the teams

Officers and crews of Russian ships were placed on the French cruiser Pascal (216 people), the English cruiser Talbot (273 people) and the Italian cruiser Elba (176 people). Given the high overcrowding and the lack of conditions for caring for the wounded (of which 8 people soon died), it was decided to bring 24 seriously wounded ashore to the Japanese Red Cross hospital. At the same time, negotiations were underway through diplomatic channels on the status of Russian sailors, the Japanese agreed to return them to their homeland, provided they gave an obligation to no longer participate in the war, which required the highest permission.

On February 27, Nicholas II gave his consent to the conditions of the Japanese, but the export of the crews of Russian ships began earlier, under the obligations of foreign governments. On February 16, Pascal left for Shanghai and then for Saigon, where he landed Russian sailors. The English and Italian cruisers left for Hong Kong, where the teams of Russian ships on Talbot were transported via Colombo to Odessa (where they arrived on April 1), and sailors from Elba to Saigon. On April 23, sailors arrived in Sevastopol from Saigon via Crete and Odessa. After a solemn meeting in St. Petersburg, the ship teams were disbanded and distributed to different fleets, except for the Pacific (in accordance with an agreement with the Japanese on the non-participation of teams in hostilities).

The remains of the dead sailors were transferred to Vladivostok in 1911 and buried in a mass grave at the city's Marine Cemetery. Above the grave there is an obelisk made of gray granite.

"Varyag", raised by the Japanese from the bottom of the bay

The Japanese army was given the opportunity for strategic deployment in the north of the Korean Peninsula, and not in the south, as previously determined. The swift occupation of Seoul was important both militarily and politically. On February 12, the Russian envoy left Seoul, thereby losing the last opportunity for Russia to influence the policy of the Korean imperial court and government.

The landing of the 12th Division, dubbed the "Operation to Pacify Korea", in two weeks brought Japan what it had long and unsuccessfully sought in the course of diplomatic negotiations with Russia - complete control of Korea. On February 23, 1904, a Japanese-Korean agreement was signed in Seoul, which established a Japanese protectorate over Korea, which allowed Japan to operate freely throughout Korea during the war with Russia, use its ports, land communications, administrative, human and material resources.

In 1905, the Varyag was raised by the Japanese, repaired and commissioned on August 22 as a 2nd class cruiser IJN Soya (in honor of the Japanese name for the La Perouse Strait). For more than seven years it was used by the Japanese for training purposes. It is widely believed that, as a sign of respect for the Russian sailors, the Japanese left the old name of the ship on the stern. However, according to the testimony of the former sailor "Varyag" Snegirev, who served in the First world war the Japanese were forced to leave the Russian state emblem - the double-headed eagle - and the name "Varangian" by the Japanese, as they were constructively embedded in the aft balcony. The Japanese hieroglyphs of the new name were fixed on the lattice of the balcony.

Assessment by contemporaries

The actions of the Japanese side in contemporary sources rated as competent and professional. They made it possible to fulfill all the assigned tasks - to ensure the landing of troops and neutralize Russian ships without incurring losses. It is noted that the victory was achieved by the Japanese primarily due to the overwhelming superiority in forces and features of the battle area, which deprived the Russian ships of freedom of maneuver. The decision to engage Russian ships in battle against vastly superior enemy forces is assessed as heroic, including by the Japanese side.

The reaction to the death of the Varyag was not unequivocal. Part of the naval officers did not approve of the actions of the Varyag commander, considering them illiterate both from a tactical point of view and from a technical one. At the same time, it is noted that the provisions of the "Naval Charter" did not leave Rudnev any other option than accepting a battle - surrendering the ship to the Japanese or sinking it without a fight would qualify as an official crime. According to a number of authors (in particular, V.D. Dotsenko, as well as Major General A.I. Sorokin), the commander of the Varyag made a number of serious mistakes:

• was not used to break through the night before the battle;
• going for a breakthrough, the "Varyag" tied himself to the slow-moving "Korean", not using his advantage in speed (this mistake was also noted by the naval historian and theorist V. A. Belli);
• after the battle, the Varyag was not blown up, but flooded in shallow water, which allowed the Japanese to raise it and put it into operation.

Rudnev's decision to return to Chemulpo instead of continuing the battle is criticized, as well as the inefficient use of artillery by Russian ships, as a result of which the Japanese ships did not suffer any damage.

Given the unsuccessful start of the war, the tsarist government decided to widely use the battle for propaganda purposes, which came as a surprise to some participants in the battle (according to the memoirs of the Varyag navigator E. Berens, returning to Russia, they believed that they would be put on trial).

Solemn meetings of the participants in the battle were arranged in Odessa, Sevastopol and St. Petersburg, and in the capital - with the participation of Emperor Nicholas II. Without exception, all participants in the battle were awarded - officers, as well as civilian ranks (including officials and doctors) of both ships received the Order of St. George of the 4th degree or other orders, the lower ranks received the insignia of the Military Order of the 4th degree. Two sailors received the insignia of the Military Order of the 3rd degree, since they already had the 4th degree award. Moreover, the officers of the "Korean" were even awarded twice - in addition to the Order of St. George, they also received regular orders with swords. All participants in the battle were awarded a specially established medal "For the battle of "Varangian" and "Korean"".

Such a massive awarding of high awards was an unprecedented event for the Russian fleet. Already in Soviet time, in 1954, to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the battle, its surviving participants by that time were awarded medals "For Courage". It is noteworthy that for the first time doctors and mechanics were awarded the St. George Crosses along with line officers. The unprecedented awarding of the highest military awards to all members of the crews of the ships was ambiguously received among the officers:

The St. George Cross ... gives great official advantages and is appointed only for outstanding military feats, moreover, by the verdict of a thought composed of cavaliers of this order ... However, they also managed to discredit the George Cross. At the very beginning of the war, under the first impression of the "feat" of the "Varyag" and "Korean", all the officers, doctors and mechanics who were on them were awarded, by special order of the Highest, in addition to the thought, St. George's crosses. Such a massive award, in connection with the unheard-of honors rendered by the crews of these ships in Russia, made a very unfavorable impression on the army. It was clear to everyone that if some determination was required from the commander of the ship in order to meet the enemy, who was superior in strength, then from the other ranks, one presence on the ship (maybe involuntary) in itself did not constitute yet a merit worthy of being awarded the highest military order. . The dissatisfaction among the officers became even stronger when it later turned out that in general, in the indicated battle, the crew of the Varyag did not accomplish any feat, and there were almost no losses on the Koreyets ...

Image in art

As a result of the patriotic upsurge caused by the feat of Russian sailors, several works were born: the march "Varangian", written by A. Reiderman, the song "Varangian goes to accomplish his glorious feat", written by Caesar Cui, "Heroic feat" by A. Taskin, the poem " Varyag" by the Riga amateur poet Yakov Repninsky (which was subsequently set to music by a student of Yuryev University, Fyodor Bogoroditsky, resulting in the song "Cold Waves Splash"). But the most popular was the song "Varangian".

The author of the poems was the Austrian writer and poet Rudolf Greinz, who wrote about the life and traditional way of Tyrol. Often he collaborated with the Munich magazine "Jugend" (Jugend), where he published his satirical notes on the topic of the day. On the pages of the 10th issue of the magazine "Jugend" dated February 25, 1904, the poem "Der "Warjag"" was published. The magazine strictly observed the anti-militarist and anti-imperial position, which Greinz shared, that along with the fact that the poem is placed next to humorous and satirical materials, without any introductory remarks, according to some historians, indicates that the poem was originally a pamphlet in verse - "The text, decorated with expressive adjectives, was quite naturalistic in order, perhaps, to show the absurdity of the act of those who went to real death for some abstract ideas."

The poem was translated into Russian by N. K. Melnikov and Evgenia Mikhailovna Studenskaya (nee Shershevskaya), who published her translation in the April 1904 New Journal of Foreign Literature, Art and Science. According to one version, on the wave of patriotism that swept over the entire Russian society, musician and graduate of the 12th Astrakhan Grenadier Regiment Alexei Sergeevich Turishchev wrote music for the translation of Studenskaya.

The song "Our proud Varyag does not surrender to the enemy", having sounded for the first time at the imperial reception on the occasion of the awarding of sailors from the Varyag and the Koreyets, became especially beloved among naval employees, however, among the civilian population there were also many of her fans.

In 1946, the Soviet film studio Soyuzdetfilm filmed the feature film Cruiser Varyag, where the "made-up" cruiser Aurora, directed by Viktor Eisymont, was filmed as the Varyag.

Cruiser "Varyag". - 2nd ed., Revised. and additional . - L.: Shipbuilding, 1983. - 288 p.

Dotsenko V.D. Myths and legends Russian fleet. Ed. 3rd, rev. and additional. - St. Petersburg: Polygon, 2002. - 352 p. -

By the beginning of the 20th century, all the leading world powers had entered the phase of imperialism. Growing empires sought to take control of as much territory and significant points on the world map as possible. China was weakened by internal and foreign wars, which led to the emergence on its territory of spheres of influence of the great powers, including Russia. For the Russian Empire, control over the northern part of China, as well as the retention of Port Arthur, was part of the allied obligations that Russia assumed in 1896 under an agreement with China. Russia, with its land and sea forces, was supposed to protect the integrity of China from Japanese encroachments. In order to isolate Russia in the Far East, Japan turned to Great Britain with a request to conclude an alliance treaty; as a result of not long negotiations, such an agreement was signed in 1901 in London. England sought to weaken Russia, since the interests of these empires clashed throughout Asia: from the Black Sea to the Pacific Ocean.

In early February 1904, two Russian ships on a diplomatic mission arrived in the port of the capital of Korea, Seoul: the cruiser Varyag under the command of Captain 1st Rank Vsevolod Fedorovich Rudnev and the gunboat Koreets under the command of Captain 2nd Rank G.P. Belyaev.

NO ONE WANTS MERCY

Upstairs, you comrades, all in their places!
The last parade is coming!
Our proud Varyag does not surrender to the enemy,
Nobody wants mercy!

All the pennants curl and the chains rattle
Anchors are raised up.
Prepare for battle guns in a row,
Shining ominously in the sun!

The words of this famous song are dedicated to the most famous event of the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905. - the feat of the cruiser "Varyag" and the gunboat "Koreets", who entered into an unequal battle with the superior forces of the Japanese squadron in the Korean Chemulpo Bay. The text of this song, being impressed by the feat of the cruiser, was written in 1904 by the Austrian poet Rudolf Greinz. The poem was published in one of the magazines, and soon its Russian translations appeared, the most successful of which was the translation of E. Studenskaya. Musician of the 12th Astrakhan Grenadier Regiment A.S. Turishchev set these poems to music. The song was first performed at a gala reception hosted by Emperor Nicholas II in honor of the officers and sailors of the Varyag and the Korean.

The feat of the sailors "Varyag" and "Korean" forever entered the history of the Russian fleet, being one of the heroic pages of the unsuccessful Russian-Japanese war of 1904-1905 for us. Having withstood an unequal battle with the Japanese squadron and not lowering the flag in front of the enemy, the Russian sailors did not surrender to the enemy and sank their ship themselves.

On the night of January 27 (February 9), 1904, Japanese destroyers, without declaring war, attacked the Russian squadron on the outer roadstead of Port Arthur, a naval base leased by Russia from China. The Japanese attack had grave consequences: the battleships Retvizan, Tsesarevich and the cruiser Pallada were damaged. On the same day, in the neutral Korean port of Chemulpo (now Incheon), the Japanese squadron, consisting of 1 armored cruiser, 5 light cruisers and 8 destroyers, blocked the Varyag cruiser and the Korean gunboat.

Captain Rudnev received a notice from the Japanese Admiral Uriu, announcing that Japan and Russia were at war and demanding that the Varyag leave the port, otherwise the Japanese ships would fight right in the roadstead. "Varyag" and "Korean" weighed anchors. Five minutes later they were given a combat alert. English and French ships greeted passing Russian ships with the sounds of an orchestra.

In order to break through the blockade, our sailors had to fight through a narrow 20-mile fairway and break out into the open sea. The task is impossible. At half past eleven, the Japanese cruisers received an offer to surrender to the mercy of the winner. The Russians ignored the signal. The Japanese squadron opened fire ...

The fight was brutal. Under heavy fire from the enemy (1 heavy and 5 light cruisers, 8 destroyers), sailors and officers fired at the enemy, made a band-aid, patching up holes, and extinguished fires. Rudnev, wounded and shell-shocked, continued to lead the battle. But, despite heavy fire and huge destruction, the Varyag still fired aimed at the Japanese ships from the remaining guns. The "Korean" did not lag behind him either.

According to the report of the Varyag commander, one destroyer was sunk by cruiser fire and 4 Japanese cruisers were damaged. Losses of the Varyag crew - 1 officer and 30 sailors were killed, 6 officers and 85 sailors were wounded and shell-shocked, about 100 more people were slightly injured. There were no losses on the "Korean".

However, critical damage forced the Varyag an hour later to return to the roadstead of the bay. After assessing the severity of the damage, the remaining guns and equipment on it were destroyed, if possible, and it itself was flooded in the bay. "Korean" was blown up by the crew.

PROGRESS OF THE BATTLE

Italian, American, Korean and English ships, as well as the Japanese cruiser Chiyoda, stood on the Chemulpo raid. On the night of February 7, this cruiser, without lighting the identification lights, withdrew from the raid and went out to sea. The next day, the gunboat "Koreets" left the bay at about 1600, where it met the Japanese squadron consisting of 7 cruisers and 8 destroyers. The cruiser "Asama" blocked the path of the "Korean" to the open sea, and the destroyers fired three torpedoes at the gunboat (2 passed by, and the third sank a few meters from the side of the "Korean"). Belyaev decided to enter a neutral harbor and hid in Chemulpo.

On February 9, at 7.30 am, the commander of the Japanese squadron, Admiral Urio Sotokichi, sent a telegram to the captains of the ships stationed in Chemulpo about the state of war between Russia and Japan, in which he said that he was forced to attack the neutral bay at 16.00 if the Russian ships did not surrender or go to open sea by noon.

At 9.30 this telegram became known to Captain 1st Rank Rudnev aboard the English ship Talbot. After a short meeting with the officers, it was decided to leave the bay and give battle to the Japanese squadron.

At 11.20 minutes "Korean" and "Varyag" left the bay. On the foreign ships of the neutral powers, all the teams were built and saw off the Russian heroes with a loud "Hurrah!" to certain death. On the Varyag, the orchestra played the national anthems of those countries whose sailors saluted the bravery of Russian weapons.

Japanese cruisers were located in battle formation near about. Richie, covering both possible exits to the sea. Destroyers were located behind the Japanese cruisers. At 11:30 a.m., the Asama and Chiyoda cruisers began moving towards the Russian ships, followed by the Naniwa and Niitaka cruisers. Admiral Sotokichi offered the Russians to surrender, neither the Varyag nor the Korean responded to this offer.

At 11:47 a.m., on the Varyag, due to accurate hits by Japanese shells, a fire starts on the deck, which can be extinguished, several guns are damaged. There are dead and wounded. Captain Rudnev is shell-shocked, seriously wounded in the back, but the helmsman Snigirev remains in the ranks.

At 12.05 on the Varyag, the steering gears were damaged. It was decided to give a full back, continuing to fire on Japanese ships. The Varyag managed to disable the stern tower and the bridge of the Asama cruiser, which was forced to stop and start repair work. The guns on two other cruisers were also damaged, and one destroyer was scuttled. In total, the Japanese lost 30 people killed, the Russians 31 people killed, 188 wounded.

At 12.20 "Varyag" received two holes, after which it was decided to return to Chemulpo, repair the damage and continue the battle. However, already at 12.45, hopes to repair the damage to most of the ship's guns did not come true. Rudnev decided to flood the ship, which happened at 18.05. The gunboat "Koreets" was damaged by two explosions and also flooded.

REPORT OF RUDNEV

“... At 11 hours 45 minutes, the first shot from an 8-inch gun was fired from the Asama cruiser, after which the entire squadron opened fire.

Subsequently, the Japanese assured that the admiral made a signal to surrender, to which the commander of the Russian ship responded with disdain, without raising any signal. Indeed, I could see the signal, but I did not find it necessary to answer it, since I had already decided to go into battle.

After that, having fired, they opened fire on the Asama from a distance of 45 cables. One of the first shells of the Japanese, hitting the cruiser, destroyed the upper bridge, starting a fire in the navigational cabin, and killed the fore-shrouds, and the rangefinder officer midshipman Count Nirod and all the rangefinders of station No. 1 were killed (but at the end of the battle, one hand of Count Nirod was found, holding a rangefinder) ...

... Convinced after inspecting the cruiser that it was completely impossible to engage in battle and not wanting to give the enemy the opportunity to defeat the dilapidated cruiser, the general meeting of officers decided to sink the cruiser, taking the wounded and the remaining crew to foreign ships, to which the latter expressed their full consent due to my request ...

... I especially present a petition for rewarding officers and crews for their selfless courage and valiant performance of duty. According to information received in Shanghai, the Japanese suffered heavy losses in people and had accidents on ships, the cruiser Asama, which went into the dock, was especially damaged. The cruiser Takachiho, which received a hole, also suffered; the cruiser took 200 wounded and went to Sasebo, but the plaster burst on the road and the bulkheads could not withstand, so the Takachiho cruiser sank in the sea. The destroyer sank during the battle.

Reporting on the foregoing, I consider it my duty to report that the ships of the detachment entrusted to me with dignity supported the honor of the Russian flag, exhausted all means for a breakthrough, did not allow the Japanese to win, inflicted many losses on the enemy and saved the remaining team.

Signed: commander of the cruiser 1st rank "Varyag" captain 1st rank Rudnev

HONOR TO HEROES

Sailors from Russian ships were accepted on foreign ships and, having given an obligation not to take part in subsequent hostilities, returned to Russia through neutral ports. In April 1904, the crews of the ships arrived in St. Petersburg, the Sailors welcomed Nicholas II. All of them were invited to a gala dinner at the palace, where special dinnerware was prepared for this occasion, which after the celebration were given to the sailors. All the sailors of the Varyag were presented with nominal watches as a gift from Nicholas II.

The battle at Chemulpo showed the heroism of Russian sailors and officers who were ready to face certain death for the sake of honor and dignity. The brave and desperate step of the sailors was marked by the establishment of a special award for sailors “Medal for the battle of the Varyag and the Korean on January 27, 1904 at Chemulpo”, as well as the immortal songs “Our proud Varyag does not surrender to the enemy” and “Cold waves are splashing” .

The feat of the sailors of the cruiser was not forgotten. In 1954, in honor of the 50th anniversary of the battle at Chemulpo, Commander-in-Chief of the USSR Navy N.G. Kuznetsov personally awarded 15 veterans with medals "For Courage".

On August 9, 1992, a monument was unveiled to the commander of the cruiser V.F. Rudnev in the village of Savina (Zaoksky district of the Tula region), where he was buried after his death in 1913. In the summer of 1997, a monument to the cruiser Varyag was erected in Vladivostok.

In 2009, after lengthy negotiations with the Korean side, relics related to the feat of the cruiser "Varyag" and the gunboat "Koreets" were brought to Russia, which were previously stored in the storerooms of the Icheon Museum, and on November 11, 2010, in the presence of the President of the Russian Federation D. BUT. Medvedev, the mayor of Icheon handed over to the Russian diplomats the guis of the cruiser. The ceremony was held at the Russian Embassy in Seoul.

NICHOLAS II - TO THE HEROES OF CHEMULPO

Tsar's speech in the Winter Palace

“I am happy, brothers, to see you all healthy and safely returned. Many of you, with your blood, entered into the annals of our fleet a deed worthy of the exploits of your ancestors, grandfathers and fathers, who performed them on the Azov and Mercury; now you have added by your feat new page in the history of our fleet, they added the names "Varyag" and "Korean" to them. They will also become immortal. I am sure that each of you will remain worthy of the award that I gave you until the end of your service. All of Russia and I read with love and quivering excitement about the exploits that you showed near Chemulpo. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for supporting the honor of St. Andrew's flag and the dignity of Great Holy Russia. I drink to the further victories of our glorious fleet. To your health, brothers!

FATE OF THE SHIP

In 1905, the cruiser was raised from the bottom of the bay and used by the Japanese as a training ship called Soya. During World War I, Russia and Japan were allies. In 1916, the cruiser was bought out and included in the Russian Navy under the same name. In February 1917, the Varyag went to the UK for repairs, where it was confiscated by the British, since the new Soviet government refused to pay for its repairs, and then was resold to German firms for scrap. While being towed, the ship was caught in a storm and sank offshore in the Irish Sea.

It was possible to find the place of death of the legendary cruiser in 2003. In July 2006, a memorial plaque in his honor was installed on the shore near the place of death of the Varyag. In January 2007, a support fund was established Navy Cruiser Varyag. Its purpose, in particular, was to raise funds for the construction and installation of a monument to the legendary ship in Scotland. A monument to the legendary Russian cruiser was unveiled in September 2007 in the Scottish town of Lendelfoot.

"VARANGIAN"

... From the pier we are going into battle,
Towards the death that threatens us,
For the Motherland in the open sea we will die,
Where the yellow-faced devils await!

Whistles and rumbles and rumbles all around,
The thunder of cannons, the hiss of the projectile, -
And our fearless, our faithful "Varangian" became
Let's look like hell!

Bodies tremble in death throes,
All around the rumble and smoke, and moaning,
And the ship is engulfed in a sea of ​​fire, -
It's time to say goodbye.

Farewell, comrades! With God, cheers!
Into the boiling sea below us!
We did not think yesterday with you,
That now we will fall asleep under the waves!

Neither stone nor cross will tell where they lay down
To the glory of the Russian flag,
Only sea waves will glorify forever
The heroic death of the Varyag!