Russian cruiser Pallada (1899)

For other ships of the same name, see Russian cruiser Pallada (1911).

Pallada
Career
Name:	Pallada
Builder:	Admiralty Shipyard, Saint Petersburg, Russia
Laid down:	1 December 1895
Launched:	August 1899
Fate:	Sunk, 8 December 1904
Career	Japanese Navy Ensign
Name:	Tsugaru
Acquired:	by Japan as prize of war, 1905
Decommissioned:	1922
Fate:	Expended as target, 1924
General characteristics
Type:	Protected cruiser
Displacement:	6,731 long tons (6,839 t)
Length:	126.8 m (416 ft)
Beam:	16.8 m (55 ft 1 in)
Draught:	7.3 m (24 ft)
Propulsion:	3-shaft VTE; 26 Belleville boilers; 13,000 hp (9,700 kW)
Speed:	19 knots (22 mph; 35 km/h)
Complement:	578
Armament:	• 8 × 152 mm (6 in) guns • 24 × 75 mm (3 in) guns • 8 × 37 mm (1.5 in) guns • 3 × 380 mm (15 in) torpedo tubes
Armour:	Deck: 50–62 mm (2.0–2.4 in) Conning tower: 150 mm (5.9 in)

The RUS Pallada was the lead ship in the Pallada-class of protected cruisers in the Imperial Russian Navy. It was built in Admiralty Shipyard, Saint Petersburg, Russia. The new class was a major improvement on previous Russian cruisers, although the armor protection was light.

Background

The Pallada-class consisted of three cruisers built expressly with the intention of strengthening the Russian fleet in the Far East. Pallada and Diana were both laid down in December 1895 but Pallada was launched first in August 1899, followed by Diana in October 1899. The Aurora, which survives in St Petersburg as a museum ship, was laid down in June 1897 and was not launched until May 1900. Soon after commissioning, both the Pallada and the Diana were assigned to the Russian First Pacific Squadron at Port Arthur, Manchuria.

Operational history

In the initial Japanese attacks on Port Arthur on the night of 8 February 1904, the Pallada was torpedoed on the port side amidships, but despite a fire in its coal bunker, it was not seriously damaged.

In August 1904 at the Battle of the Yellow Sea, after being struck by a torpedo, the Pallada managed to make its way back to Port Arthur, and was thus unable to break through the Japanese blockade along with a number of other Russian cruisers. Thereafter, Pallada was trapped in the harbor. Its guns were removed to help strengthen the land defenses and most of its crew was reassigned to serve as infantry. The Pallada was sunk by Japanese 11-inch siege howitzers on 8 December 1904.

For the record of the Pallada after being captured by Japan, see Japanese cruiser Tsugaru.

After the end of the war, the wreck of the Pallada was raised and towed to Japan, where it was repaired and commissioned into the Imperial Japanese Navy as a prize of war. Renamed the Tsugaru, it served as a training vessel and later as a minelayer until decommissioned in 1922 and sunk as a target in 1924.

References

• Chesneau, Roger and Eugene M Kolesnik, eds. Conway's All The World's Fighting Ships 1860-1905. Conway Maritime Press (1979). ISBN 0 85177 133 5
• Howarth, Stephen. The Fighting Ships of the Rising Sun: The Drama of the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1895-1945. Atheneum; (1983) ISBN 0689114028
• Jentsura, Hansgeorg. Warships of the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1869-1945. Naval Institute Press (1976). ISBN 087021893X

External links

• Photos of the Pallada-class ships