Who doesn’t like a good ol’ fashioned road trip? You grab your favourite snacks, pack up the car, crank your dope tracks, and hit the bricks early enough to beat the traffic. You’re cruising along, pointing out every stupid horse, trying to find weird license plates (“Ooooo what’s an ‘Idaho’ doing here?”), and playing twenty questions or whatever.
Damn, now I want to plan a road trip. Nothing too crazy. A six or seven hour drive is probably the sweet spot. Stop halfway through for lunch and a coffee. Maybe crack a couple road beers when you’re getting close to your destination. That’s the fucking dream.
But you know who didn’t love the idea of a road trip? The Russian Baltic Fleet in 1904, that’s who.
What’s that? Did you forget this was a history blog for a second? You thought maybe I was going to talk about my favourite road trip destinations or something? Well, think again. No one’s forcing you to read this. I’ll never even know if you stopped right now. It’s a victimless crime. Think about how good it would feel to hit that back button and go to TikTok or YouTube.
…
Still here? Alright, let’s get on with the fucking hilariously depressing 29,000 kilometre journey of a rag-tag group of Russian ships.
Why are we doing this again?
If you’re a loyal reader of mine then you might remember I briefly mentioned the journey of this fleet in my entry about the Russo-Japanese War. I’ll wait here if you need a moment to go back and refresh your memory.
All good?
I’m still going to give a brief summary of the conflict because that’s the responsible thing to do. Basically, in 1904 Russia and Japan went to war because they both wanted to hold sway over the Korean Peninsula and Manchuria (modern-day parts of Northern China and the Russian Far East) and the only way to solve it was, obviously, through violence.
This was a pretty big deal because an Asian country had never really stood up to a major European power before. It was in February 1904 that Japan launched a surprise naval attack against the Russian fleet at Port Arthur (in Korea), sank some ships, killed Russia’s best admiral (he’ll come up again later), and blockaded the port. Japan also landed an army in Korea, won some battles, sank some more ships, and, I’ll be damned, are they actually going to pull this off?
It was around this time that Tsar Nicholas II (then-leader of Russia) was starting to get mighty embarrassed over this whole thing. You see, back then everyone was incredibly racist (not like today…right?) and saw the Japanese as a “yellow peril”. White Europeans were obviously the only thing standing in the way of their brutality so losing a war against them wasn’t exactly great for their image.
Lest you think I’m favouring the Japanese, they were also far from tolerant and had a long history of oppressing and dehumanizing other Asian populations. Their treatment of Korean and Chinese people, in particular, was nothing short of horrendous.
The 2nd Pacific Squadron
“But there will be no victory! I am afraid we will lose half the squadron on our way to the Far East. If this does not happen the Japanese will annihilate us. Their ships are better and they are real sailors. I can promise you one thing: we will all die…”
– Captain Nikolai Bukhvostov of the battleship Alexander III which would later be sunk with all hands
In the summer of 1904, it was decided by Nicholas II and his advisors that they needed to reinforce their Pacific fleet, break the blockade of Port Arthur, kick some Japanese ass, and gain the initiative in the war. The problem? The closest reinforcements were in the Baltic Sea and if you’re unaware that isn’t exactly around the corner.
That’s the approximate 29,000 kilometre journey that the bulk of the Russian Baltic Fleet (now renamed the 2nd Pacific Squadron) would take to reach Port Arthur. Some of you might be wondering why they wouldn’t take the faster route through the Suez Canal instead of going all the way around Africa. After all, going through the canal, which connects the Mediterranean Sea to the Indian Ocean, would cut the distance in half.
The official reason was that canal wasn’t deep enough for the newer Russian battleships so they had no choice but to go around. The unofficial reason is that Russians didn’t trust the British. See, at this time, the Brits essentially owned the Suez Canal and they were also allies of the Japanese. To be clear, the Brits weren’t involved in the fighting but they sure as hell weren’t obligated to make things easy for Russia. It was therefore decided to avoid the canal lest the British decide to trap the Russian fleet.
In the end, the Russians sent most of their warships around Africa while the older, slower ships went through the canal. I guess they figured the older ones weren’t really worth protecting.
Speaking of these ships…
Some of these ships fucking sucked
So, the biggest assets of the 2nd Pacific Squadron were five modern battleships. These bad-boys were new, powerfully-armed, well-armoured and could travel speeds of up to 18 knots. The Russians also had four modern cruisers which were equally fast. And…that’s about it. Don’t get me wrong, the Russians had other ships but they weren’t exactly in tip-top shape.
Accompanying the squadron would be two old battleships that were lucky to make 15 knots and would be outclassed by their Japanese equivalent. Continuing with the vintage-theme, it was decided that a twenty-one year old cruiser well past its prime should make the trip as well.
It was also determined that two royal yachts (basically toys for the rich) would join the fleet even though they had literally no armour to speak of. Five light cruisers described as “…hardly anything more than just fast steamers with several random guns added” would round out the fleet along with nine torpedo boats to provide security.
And I would also like to point out that the bulk of the Japanese fleet was modern, having been built within the previous ten years, and very well trained.
Who’s in charge of this shit-show?
“One has to order five times to do some most trivial thing and then check five times more whether they have forgotten the order or not…This is a miserable fleet.”
– Rozhestvensky in a message to his wife
The poor bastard who Nicholas II bestowed the “honour” of leading the 2nd Pacific Squadron around the world and into battle did not want the job. He would later say that the higher-ups “had decided to get rid” of him when he was given the command.
Who is this happy-camper? Rear Admiral Zinovy Petrovich Rozhestvensky. And, honestly, I kind of really like this guy. He had a temper (his flagship carried 50 extra pairs of binoculars because he had a habit of chucking them in the ocean out of frustration) but he seemed to genuinely care about the sailors under his command and, for the most part, did the best he could. And as much as he really didn’t want to be in charge all signs indicate that he was one of the best naval commanders the Russians had.
And I’d be remiss for not mentioning this next little anecdote. Remember I mentioned that Russia’s best admiral had been killed at Port Arthur earlier in the war? The name of that admiral was Stepan Makarov. Rozhestvensky and him were colleagues and actually ended up becoming pretty good friends. Isn’t that nice? It’s a little unfortunate that Rozhestvensky was fucking Makarov’s wife the whole time.
Yeah.
Bear in mind that Rozhestvensky was also married.
But don’t worry, his horniness gets even better.
Amongst the fleet making the trip to Port Arthur was a hospital ship named Orel. It carried the only women in the squadron who had volunteered to come along as nurses. And, you guessed it, Rozhestvensky was fucking the head nurse for the entire journey.
The other issues
Oh, did you think Japan winning the early stages of the war, the old ships, an angry commander who may have had a sex addiction, and an incredibly long journey were the only issues the Russians would face? Buckle up, dear reader, it’s list time!
1. The sailors
Prior to this conflict, Russia had seen relative peace since the the late 1870’s. Normally I’d say that’s a great but it meant that very few sailors in the Russian fleet had any sort of combat experience. Even Rozhestvensky himself hadn’t commanded a ship in battle for twenty-six years.
Also, most of the best ships and crews were either bottled up in Port Arthur or had already been killed/captured by the Japanese. As a result, the Russians were forced to assemble peasant farmers, some of whom had never even seen electricity let alone a fucking battleship, to man the squadron. They also recruited men from prisons in St. Petersburg because they still didn’t have enough sailors.
Some of these battleships had crews of nearly 1000 men but they had next to no time for proper training because Nicholas II wanted them headed to Port Arthur as soon as possible. Rozhestvensky convinced himself that there would be plenty of time for practices and drills while en route.
2. There would be no training while en route
Yeah, about that. The Russians didn’t have enough ammunition for the fleet to both practice firing their main guns and then actually fight the Japanese so…they would have little to no practice. Let’s reiterate that one of the major reasons for having warships is to, you know, shoot at and sink enemy warships. If your crews haven’t been properly trained then they aren’t going to be much use in a fight.
One of the reasons the fleet didn’t have enough ammunition was because every ship was loaded down with extra coal instead of extra ammo. Now, why would that be the case?
3. No one likes the Russians
Ships of this time used coal to heat boilers to create steam to run propellers…or something close to that. Unfortunately, coal is dirty, dusty, heavy, and is generally a pain in the ass to use. The working conditions in boiler rooms were also super fucking dangerous and hot as hell.
A fleet of this size going on such a long voyaged required a shit-ton of coal, far more than they could possibly carry on their own. Normally, ships would just stop when they needed supplies, however, during times of war, no neutral power would allow the Russians to stop at their ports. As a result, the Russians had to strike a deal with an independent German shipping company to essentially follow them with and top them up with coal.
A very rough start
“It is absolutely vital for your government to send a chivalrous and apologetic message which alone can avert a crisis…Just think for a minute; tomorrow morning an English Squadron may very well receive instructions to open fire on your ships.”
– French Foreign Minister Theophile Declasse to Russian Ambassador Alexander Nelidov
Okay, it took a while but we’re finally ready to start our journey. Months of planning haven’t really eased Rozhestvensky concerns but I’m sure there won’t be any major problems right off the hop. There’s no way the Russians will very nearly start a war with Britain due to sheer incompetence and the aforementioned lack of training, right?
When exiting the Baltic Sea, the Russians heard rumours that the Japanese had fast torpedo boats waiting to ambush them somewhere around the British Isles. This rumour resulted in what would come to be known as the Dogger Bank incident. On the night of October 21, 1904, the 2nd Pacific Squadron mistook a group of British fishing boats for a Japanese attack and opened fire. Two British fishermen were killed and one fishing boat was sunk.
The Russians also suffered two deaths due to friendly-fire (one of which was a fucking priest) and damaged a number of their own ships. One Russian battleship fired 500 shells without hitting a single target (good thing they’ve got plenty of spare ammo) so all that lack of training seems to have had a silver-lining.
This incident outraged the British who ordered their home fleet, consisting of 28 battleships, to prepare for action. However, diplomatic means prevailed after the Russians accepted responsibility, financially compensated the fishermen, and charged a number of their officers.
Seriously…how does this happen?
Following Dogger Banks some of the Russians ships became separated from the main fleet. But not to worry! Prior to the incident Rozhestvensky had given orders for everyone to meet at Tangiers, Morocco. This was one of the few ports they were actually able to stop at and resupply.
One ship, Kamchatka, which was no more than a supply ship with some small guns bolted on top, was out of contact for a number of days. When it finally arrived in Tangiers its captain claimed to have engaged three Japanese ships and fired over 300 shells. It turns out these ships were actually a Swedish merchant, a German trawler, and a French schooner.
To top it all off, when the fleet weighed anchor to leave Tangiers one ship somehow snagged an underwater cable. Rozhestvensky, who was already incredibly agitated, ordered the cable to be cut so they could be on their way. As luck would have it, the cable turned out to be a very important telegraph line. When it was cut, communication between Europe and Africa was severed for four fucking days.
It was also at this point that the 2nd Pacific Squadron split into two groups. Rozhestvensky would lead the one around Africa while the other, smaller group would travel through the Suez Canal. They would all meet up again off the coast of Madagascar.
Heat, more heat, and no supplies
“We are going to the tropics and we need a refrigerator,” the admiral cheerfully replies, “Refrigerator! You will find yourself on the bottom of the sea anyway and you will not need it there!”
– Captain Lebedev of Donskoi which would later be scuttled
So, Russia is known for being pretty cold, right? I know the temperatures can rise in the summer but the heat around the equator is on an entirely different level. For most of the Russian sailors the sweltering heat of the southern oceans was completely alien and nearly unbearable. The humidity made everything damp to the touch and kept the men tired and sluggish. There was a strict rationing of the water so everyone (except the officers, of course) was always thirsty.
Small luxuries such as soap and cigarettes were becoming scarce. Oh, and other things like, you know, fresh meat and vegetables were an uncommon sight. This was mostly due to squadron only having one refrigeration ship that was constantly malfunctioning and causing the food to spoil in the heat, Sure, sometimes when the fleet stopped they were able to take on fresh provisions but it was never guaranteed.
While we’re on the subject of “stopping” let’s not forget that plenty of the ships in the squadron were old as shit and had a tendency to breakdown at inopportune moments. The Russians couldn’t just leave behind a vital supply ship that developed an engine problem or (god-for-fucking-bid) the hospital ship carrying Rozhestvensky side piece. Delay after delay extended the journey far longer than anyone anticipated.
The fall of Port Arthur
“Will be able to hold out just for a dew more days. Have almost no artillery shells. Will take measures to prevent slaughter on the streets…I have just 10,000 men capable of carrying rifles and all of them are sick.”
– Message from General Stressel, Russian commander at Port Arthur, shortly before surrender
So, remember the whole point of this shit-show was to relieve the Russian ships bottled up in Port Arthur? Well, a couple days before the 2nd Pacific Squadron reached Madagascar, the port and all Russian forces inside it surrendered to the Japanese.
Lovely.
But hold your horses, we’ve got plenty of more bad news! The Russians had decided to create a 3rd Pacific Squadron from their remaining ships in the Baltic Sea. It would be made up of ships that Rozhestvensky had deemed too shitty to join his already shitty fleet.
Rozhestvensky was ordered to wait for the 3rd Pacific Squadron before proceeding to the Russian port of Vladivostok north of Port Arthur, combine with the forces there, and then bring the Japanese to battle.
And so he waited. For two fucking months. Sixty goddamn days of his men getting angrier, more exhausted, hungrier, and catching diseases before the 3rd Squadron finally arrived.
The fleet would not reach Vladivostok.
The end
At this point I’m honestly getting bummed out. And in case you haven’t been picking up on the clues: this story does not have a happy ending.
The plucky Russians don’t band together to defeat the superior Japanese forces. This isn’t a Disney movie.
The two fleets would meet on May 27, 1905 in the Straits of Tsushima between Korea and southern Japan. Predictably, superior Japanese training, preparedness, and weaponry dominated the weary Russians who had just endured seven horrible months at sea.
21 Russian ships were sunk, seven more were captured and over 5000 sailors were killed in the ensuing battle.
The Japanese suffered 117 casualties and lost three small ships.
The Battle of Tsushima was one of the most decisive victories in naval history and the war itself would end shortly thereafter with Russia forced to the negotiating table. This complete Japanese victory would have serious repercussions in the Pacific region for the next 40 years.
Admiral Rozhestvensky would survive the battle and be taken prisoner by the Japanese. He was met with shame upon his return to Russia. He faced a court-martial but his punishment was commuted. He died in 1909 of a heart attack.
And so we come to the end. As it was predicted by pretty much everyone before it even began, the Russian voyage from the Baltic to the Pacific ended in complete and utter failure.
Based in the basement 