Russian and Soviet Battleships

Russian and Soviet Battleships
Author: Stephen Mclaughlin
Publisher: US Naval Institute Press
Total Pages: 496
Release: 2021-09-15
Genre: History
ISBN: 9781682477267

Russian and Soviet Battleships is the definitive English language overview of Russian and Soviet battleships, from the ironclad Petr Velikii of 1869 to Stalin's final projects. Meticulously researched, this work describes and illustrates the design histories, technical details, characteristics, and service histories of the forty seagoing battleships that served in the Russian and Soviet Navies. This is the first book about Russian battleships to draw from Russian language materials, including books and articles published since the collapse of the Soviet Union. Some one hundred drawings of ships and design studies, many specially commissioned for this book, are showcased, as well as one hundred photographs, many of them never published in the west. The author, Stephen McLaughlin, analyzes all aspects of battleship design, from the policy decisions behind their construction to details of fire control and gunnery. He evaluates their strengths and weaknesses compared with foreign contemporaries. In addition, McLaughlin outlines numerous projected battleships and conjectural studies. As he examines the active--and often tragic--careers of these ships, he reassesses many of the myths and misconceptions associated with Russian ships and the Russian navy.

Admiral Gorshkov

Admiral Gorshkov
Author: Norman C Polmar
Publisher: Naval Institute Press
Total Pages: 174
Release: 2019-03-15
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 1682473325

Admiral of the Fleet of the Soviet Union Sergei G. Gorshkov was the product of a tradition unlike those of his Western contemporaries. He had a unique background of revolution, civil war, world wars, and the forceful implementation of an all-controlling communist dictatorship. Out of this background of violence and overwhelming transformation came a man with a vivid appreciation of the role and value of navies, but with his own unique ideas about the kind of navy that the Soviet Union required and the role that navy should play in Soviet military and national strategy. Western naval observers have persisted in attempting to define Admiral Gorshkov in Western naval terms. Many of these observers have been baffled when they found that the man and his actions simply did not fit conventional narratives. This book lays out the tradition, background, experiences, and thinking of the man as they relate to the development of the Soviet Navy that Gorshkov commanded for almost three decades and that was able to directly challenge the maritime dominance of the United States—a traditional sea power. His influence persists to this day, as the Russian Navy that is at sea in the twenty-first century is, to a significant degree, based on the fleet that Admiral Gorshkov built.

Warships of the USSR and Russia, 1945-1995

Warships of the USSR and Russia, 1945-1995
Author: Aleksandr Sergeevich Pavlov
Publisher: US Naval Institute Press
Total Pages: 366
Release: 1997
Genre: History
ISBN:

Naval architect Pavlov is an enthusiast rather than a professional and so has access to official documents, but saw a vacuum in the literature and set out fill it. He produced a handbook of current Soviet warships in 1991 and updat it the next year. In 1995 he expanded his guide to cover the entire

Russian Battleships and Cruisers of the Russo-Japanese War

Russian Battleships and Cruisers of the Russo-Japanese War
Author: Mark Lardas
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Total Pages: 49
Release: 2019-10-31
Genre: History
ISBN: 1472835077

This book examines the major warships of the Imperial Russian Navy which participated in the Russo-Japanese War. The focus is on the battleships, coastal defence warships, and cruisers of the Pacific Squadron and Baltic Squadron that fought during the war. It discusses in detail their design and development between the years of 1885 and 1905, concentrating particularly on battleships and cruisers. The book explores, in depth, the mutually influential relationship between Russian and foreign warship design, as Russia progressed from a reliance on foreign designs and shipyards towards an ability to produce its own influential ships, such as the Novik. The title also outlines the gripping operational history of the Russian warships which participated in the Russo-Japanese war, tracing their activity before and during the combat, as well as the post-war fate of those ships which were bombarded, scuttled, captured, or salvaged. Packed with contemporary photography and full-colour illustrations, this title offers a detailed and definitive guide to the design, development, and destiny of the Russian warships which battled the Japanese in the Eastern seas.

Soviet Warship Development: 1917-1937

Soviet Warship Development: 1917-1937
Author: Siegfried Breyer
Publisher: Brassey's
Total Pages: 296
Release: 1992
Genre: Warships
ISBN:

The only comprehensive study of the development of Soviet warship design and construction from tsarist warship construction to Soviet construction programs through 1937.

An Illustrated Guide to the Modern Soviet Navy

An Illustrated Guide to the Modern Soviet Navy
Author: John Jordan
Publisher: Arco Pub
Total Pages: 159
Release: 1982
Genre: Sea-power
ISBN: 9780668055048

Discusses the organization of the Russian Navy and describes the development, armaments, and operations of its various types of warships

Warships of the Soviet Fleets 1939–1945

Warships of the Soviet Fleets 1939–1945
Author: Przemyslaw Budzbon
Publisher: Seaforth Publishing
Total Pages: 356
Release: 2022-10-30
Genre: History
ISBN: 1526751968

Seventy-five years after the end of the Second World War the details of Soviet ships, their activities and fates remain an enigma to the West. In wartime such information was classified and after a brief period of glasnost (‘openness’) the Russian state has again restricted access to historical archives. Therefore, the value – and originality – of this work is difficult to exaggerate. It sees the first publication of reliable data on both the seagoing fleets and riverine flotillas of the Soviet Navy, listing over 6200 vessels from battleships to river gunboats, and mercantile conversions as well as purpose-built warships. Divided into three volumes, this first covers major surface warships down to MTBs and armored gunboats, as well as submarines. For every class there is a design history analyzing strategic, tactical and technical considerations, and individual ship detail includes construction yard, key building dates, commissioning, fleet designations, relocations and ultimate fate. Once a closely guarded secret, the wartime loss of every ship and boat (over 1000) is described. Furthermore, the confusion caused by frequent name changes is clarified by indexes that run to 16,000 items. By following the ships through both their wartime and earlier history, the book reveals many aspects of Russian history that remain highly sensitive: clandestine co-operation with Weimar Germany and fascist Italy, the NKVD-enforced closure of Soviet borders, the ‘Gulag Fleet’, the faked Metallist sinking that excused the military occupation of Estonia, and the ill-conceived pact with Nazi Germany. Restrictions recently imposed on historical publications in Russia mean this book could certainly not have been published there – as proven by the fact that most of the authors' Russian collaborators preferred not to disclose their identities. This is undoubtedly one of the most important naval reference works of recent years and will be welcomed by anyone with an interest in warships, the Soviet Navy or wider maritime aspects of the Second World War.

"Friends in Peace and War"

Author: C. Douglas Kroll
Publisher: Potomac Books, Inc.
Total Pages: 174
Release: 2007
Genre: History
ISBN: 1612343457

Great friendship existed between the United States and Imperial Russia during the nineteenth century. The Old World Russian autocracy supported the young New World democracy because of the emerging U.S. role as a bulwark against Great Britain's ambitions, in Asia and in the North Pacific Ocean region especially. In fact, when the American Civil War threatened to divide the United States, Russia alone among the European great powers gave no aid or comfort to the seceding states. The surprise 1863 arrival of squadrons of Russian warships and thousands of Russian sailors in New York and San Francisco proved fortuitous, coming when the Union feared British and French intervention on the Confederacy's behalf. C. Douglas Kroll, using both Russian and U.S. documents, investigates why the Russian Pacific Squadron came to San Francisco, a port of departure for California and Nevada gold headed east; what happened during its nearly year-long visit; and how its presence influenced events. With the units of the U.S. Navy's small Pacific Squadron widely dispersed and Confederate commerce raiders on the loose, the Russians' arrival suggested to on-lookers that they intended to defend the Union against interference. Whether actively supporting the Union or training and refitting or both, the Russian officers and sailors endeared themselves to San Francisco's citizens. Parades and balls, as well as dinners hosted by both sides, helped San Franciscans overlook the various differences they had with their Russian visitors. Kroll gives us a thorough examination of the Russians' visit and its social, diplomatic, and military impact.

Soviet Cold War Guided Missile Cruisers

Soviet Cold War Guided Missile Cruisers
Author: Edward Hampshire
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Total Pages: 52
Release: 2017-01-26
Genre: History
ISBN: 1472817427

A fully illustrated study of the Soviet Navy's biggest and most powerful surface combatants of the Cold War. Heavily armed and formidable, guided missile cruisers formed the core of the Soviet Navy during the Cold War. From the last class of conventional Sverdlov-class cruisers through to increasingly complex and formidable missile cruisers, these ships ensured that NATO took the Soviet naval threat seriously. Soviet Cold War Guided Missile Cruisers covers all classes of these impressive warships, from the early Sverdlov through the Kynda, Kresta, Kara and Slava to the enormous Kirov classes. Together, these vessels marked the apogee of Soviet naval technology and capability and they remain today the largest non-aircraft carrier warships built since 1945. Containing material previously only available in Russian and fully researched from specialist defence journals, this comprehensive volume examines the design, development, and intended role of these impressive, hi-tech warships, and recounts their dramatic operational history as NATO and Soviet warships faced off against each other during the long Cold War at sea.