| Grigory Ivanovich Butakov | |
|---|---|
| Born | October 9, 1820 Riga |
| Died | May 9, 1882 (aged 61) Sevastopol |
| Buried at | St. Vladimir's Church, Sevastopol |
| Allegiance | Russian Empire |
| Service/branch | Russian Navy |
| Years of service | 1837–1881 (44 years) |
| Rank | Admiral |
| Commands held | Black Sea Fleet (1856) Baltic Practical Propelled Ships Squadron (1860) |
| Awards | Demidov Prize Order of St. George IV Degree |
| Other work | New Principles of Steamboat Tactics (1863) Rules of Boat Race (c. 1860-1881) |
Grigory Ivanovich Butakov (9 October 1820 – 31 May 1882)[1] was a Russian admiral who fought in the Crimean War. Grigory is widely credited as being the father of steam-powered ship tactics during the 19th century. He was involved in the first battles of the Crimean War, which includes the first sea battles involving steam-powered ships. Grigory wrote of his experiences in his book: New Principles of Steamboat Tactics (1863), which won him the Demidov Prize. In 1881 Grigory assumed the role of Commander-in-Chief of the Port of St. Petersburg. He was also made a member of the State Council in March 1882.[2] Shortly after gaining both titles however, Grigory fell seriously ill, and died on 31 May 1882, aged 62.
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Grigory Ivanovich Butakov was born 9 October 1820 in Riga; a large city in Latvia. (Then part of the Russian Empire.) Grigory's father was a distinguished naval officer who fought in the War with Turkey. He captained the battleship Tsar Constantine, in which he commanded during several naval operations around Crete and in the [[Battle of the Dardanelles (1807)|Blockade of the Dardanelles. Grigory was inspired by his father's success as a naval officer, so in May 1831 at eleven years old, Grigory decided to join a Naval Academy in St. Petersburg. Grigory spent six years in the Naval Academy. He graduated in 1837 and was immediately assigned to serve as a flag officer aboard the Russian vessel Silistria. The Silistria was under the personal command of the then Chief Commander of the Black Sea Fleet: Admiral Mikhail Lazarev.[3]
In May 1838, Grigory took part in a landing operation near Abkhazia against Turkish positions. Grigory was awarded several decorations for bravery during the operation.[4] From September 1838 to August 1840, Grigory patrolled the Aegean Sea aboard the schooner Lastochka, and in 1844, he patrolled the Mediterranean Sea aboard the Vestnik. The following August, Grigory was promoted to the rank of lieutenant. Not long after his promotion, Grigory became interested in improvements to the Navy in the field of Naval Science. Grigory developed a completely new system of fog signals, and invented a new version of windlass.[3] Grigory's Admiral, Mikhail Lazarev was pleased with Grigory's new technologies and had the inventions placed in the model room of the Admiralty. In the Autumn of 1846, Grigory was appointed Captain of the cutter Pospeshny and promoted to the rank of Lieutenant-Commander, and given a diamond ring. The Russian Empire was the first naval power to pioneer the construction of steam warships. On the 3rd December 1852, Lieutenant-Commander Grigory Butakov was made captain of the steam-ship Vladimir, considered the best steam-powered warship in the Black Sea Fleet.
When the Crimean War began in October 1853,[5] Grigory Butakov was sent with to the Black Sea aboard the steamship Vladimir. The battle in which Grigory Butakov aboard the steam-ship Vladimir, fought and captured the Turkish steam-ship Pervaz Bahri was historically important on two accounts: Firstly, it was the very first battle of the Crimean War, and secondly, it was the first battle involving only steam-ships, marking a new age of naval warfare.[2] The battle occurred on 5 November 1853, on the Black Sea. Grigory sailed the Vladimir towards the region of Penderakli, on the way the crew of the Vladimir saw a unfamiliar vessel sailing towards them. As the Vladimir got closer to the unidentified ship, the crew realized the ship was Turkish. It was a 10-gun steam-ship called the Pervaz Bahri [6]
The 10-gun Turkish steamship that was steadily nearing the Vladimir had no bow or stern artillery. This made it an attractive target for any Russian war ship. Once the Ottoman ship was in range, Grigory maneuvered the Vladimir into advantageous positions for an attack. Grigory would take up a position from behind the Pervaz Bahri 's stern, and rake the ship with cannon fire. This maneuver was successful due to the Ottoman ship not having any stern artillery. Every time the Pervaz Bahri tried to employ side artillery upon the Vladimir, Grigory would repeatedly take up an advantageous position behind enemy stern, and bombard the ship with cannon shot.
Despite Grigory's successful tactics in attacking the Ottoman ship, the battle was taking more time than expected. Grigory's superiors then ordered him to speed up the sinking or capture of the Turkish vessel. Grigory then gave an order to pick up speed, and at a distance of 100 meters, he opened canister fire from all ship's the guns. The Pervaz Bahri then surrendered to the crew of the Vladimir, ending a three hour long battle which took many Turkish casualties. This was a major victory for Grigory because it was Russia's first steam-powered sea battle victory. On the 7 November, the newly captured ship was bought to the port of Sevastopol, where it underwent major repairs. The ship was renamed: Kornilov,[7] and was commissioned into the Russian navy.
Grigory Butakov's commanding officers thought very highly of him, particularly after the victory over the Pervas Bahri. The naval officer, Vladimir Alexeyevich Kornilov, whom the captured ship was renamed after, commented on Grigory's skill as a commander: "He behaves and gives commands as if it were just maneuvers or war games". After the battle, Grigory was promoted to Captain Second Rank, and was awarded the Order of St. George IV Degree. Kornilov, in particular valued Grigory’s service greatly; when Kornilov wrote his name on a list of naval officers, he added the words: "Much respected and loved by the officers".
In September 1854, British, Ottoman and French troops laid siege to Sevastopol, the main base of the Black Sea Fleet. Grigory Butakov provided substantial cannon support during the siege by sailing into favorable positions and bombarding the British, French and Ottoman fortifications, which surrounded the port. The Russian garrison at Sevastopol was low during the siege; only 36,600 men were fit for action,[8] while the number of Allied troops totaled 175,000 men.[9] Because of the low amount of manpower, many sailors volunteered to leave their ships, and fight as infantry on the ground. Butakov also volunteered to leave the Vladimir, and fight as a infantryman. However, his offer was immediately refused by a senior naval officer; Pavel Nakhimov, he said to Grigory: "I can not do that, such people like you are to be preserved for the future of the fleet".
Throughout the Siege of Sevastopol, Grigory stayed aboard the Vladimir, repulsing enemy counter attacks and bombarding fortified positions. In August, Grigory was sent with several steamships to protect the left flank on eastern shore of Killen-balka from Allied attacks. Grigory sailed the Vladimir so close to the shore that he actually made his ship inaccessible to the French battery, while maintaining a clear line of sight of the enemy cannons, he then ordered his ships to fire upon the French battery, causing major damage. A sailor in the fleet commented on Grigory's calmness during the conflict: "[he] was the first to set his crew an example of remarkably cool behavior, self-control and fearlessness. Everyone would be just enraptured and stunned by his coolness and the way he gave orders; he did this as if there were no cannonballs and bullets flying around him, as if there were not any possibility for him to be killed any minute".
In August 1855, Admiral Novonilsky ordered 15 Russian ships to be scuttled, and their cannons be used to help defend the port. Grigory's flagship Vladimir was one of the 15 ships, Grigory and her crew were secreted back to Russia, and would be transferred to the Baltic Fleet. The scuttled ships were: Grand Duke Constantine, City of Paris (both with 120 guns), Brave, Empress Maria, Chesme, Yagondeid (84 guns), Kavarna (60 guns), Konlephy (54 guns), steam frigate Vladimir, steamboats Thunderer, Bessarabia, Danube, Odessa, Elbrose and Krein. The guns and several crew members from the ships were used to defend Sevastopol. On 9 September the port fell to allied forces, marking the beginning of the eventual defeat of Russia in the Crimean War.[10] The siege of Sevastopol claimed many lives on both sides; the Russians lost 102,000 killed and wounded,[11] while the number of British, French and Ottoman casualties numbered 128,387 deaths. Soon after the Siege, the Crimean War was over, ending in Russia's defeat.
When the Crimean War ended on February 1856, Grigory Butakov was promoted to Rear Admiral. By this time he was 36 years old, and had spent 25 of those years in the Imperial Russian Navy. Grigory was also appointed High Chief of the naval unit in Nikolayev and also the Naval Governor of Nikolayev and Sevastopol. Throughout his time serving in these positions, Grigory kept studying the field of Naval Science. In early 1854, Grigory compiled descriptions of "evolutions" in steam warship design, such advantageous turns and maneuvering of the ships in line that would be necessary for taking up the most advantageous position during battle. Butakov wrote of his improvements: "I happened to develop a rather simple yet ingenious idea, namely, two simple geometric lines – a circle and a tangent to it – should be considered the basis for steamship evolutions".[3] Grigory also found solutions to some tactical problems, drew up illustrative tables of courses and movements of ships in the fleet, and outlined three basic detachment formations. Butakov would compile his ideas in his book; New Principles of Steamboat Tactics. According to Grigory, he managed to solve the very essence of the problem of developing the steam-powered tactics in a more radical, fundamental way, not just superficially.
Grigory Butakov was transferred to the Baltic Fleet in 1860. In 1863, Grigory compiled all of his notes on tactical strategies of steamboats, and wrote about them in a book called: New principles of Steamboat Tactics. The book gained immense interest both in Russia, and many countries in Western Europe. The book was translated into English, French, Italian and Spanish. Recognizing Grigory's success as an accomplished naval scientist, the Chairman of the Naval Science Committee, Rear Admiral Zeleny, awarded Grigory with the Demidov Prize. On 28 October 1866, Grigory was promoted to the rank of Vice-Admiral. By this time, Grigory was enjoying world-wide fame, both for his Naval Science knowledge, and his commanding abilities. His reputation as an Admiral at the time was considered to be the best in the Russian Navy.[3] On 6 February 1867, he was appointed the Chief of the Baltic armored ships squadron.
Whilst serving in the Baltic Fleet, Grigory Butakov paid much attention to artillery preparation of his squadron, he knew that although the Russian navy excelled in steamboat warfare, the cannons aboard the ships were seriously outdated. Grigory also knew that recent advancements in the form of 'Ironclad' ship armor, would mean that cannons had to be improved in order to penetrate the armor. The problem was solved by replacing smooth-bore guns of a relatively small caliber, with rifled guns of bigger calibers which included 12-inch ones, the rifled guns were particularly successful because of their armor - penetrating qualities. Grigory also developed a system which included; first, firing from one ship at a fixed shield, then at a towed one, and finally, firing at a moving target. This system proved successful against armored ships.
Throughout his naval career, Grigory Butakov extensively enjoyed boat racing, and adopted the sport as his chief pastime while on leave from the navy. Grigory enjoyed races involving both steamboats and sailboats. He believed that boat racing was not only a good pastime for sailors, it was also good for their training and military skill. He said: "I believe [boat racing] is by far one of the best and most appropriate means available for our young sailors to try their wings, start strengthening their will, nerves and stamina, train their faultless eye and prepare themselves to face any unforeseen circumstances which are so frequent throughout our service…Besides, the boat race is a wonderful and effective way to find out what metal each of us is made of".
Grigory was so passionate about boat racing, he secured annual allocations of 1500 rubles in prize money for young sailors in boat racing competitions. Grigory published a book on the subject called; Rules of Boat Race. At the end of every race Grigory would analyze the mistakes made by his sailors while steering and praised those distinguished themselves in competitions. He once fired six - gun salute in honor of a midshipman's crew for their team - spirit and excellence in racing in a "steering without wheels" race.
From 1867 to 1877, Grigory served aboard an Armoured Ship Squadron in the service of the Baltic Fleet. While in the squadron, Grigory paid much attention to the improvement of sea - mine weaponry. In 1867, Grigory conducted the first experiments of sea - mines, which were engaged in experiments on laying galvanised mines under old ships and testing mine fields.[4] In 1874, the armored frigate Petropavlovsk was first equipped with anti-torpedo artillery. During the Russian-Turkish war of 1877-1878 Grigory developed the guidelines and maps for laying mines on the fairways, which he put into practice while organizing the mine defense of Kronstadt. Following Grigory's experiments, the Officers Mine Class and Mining School for the Lower Ranks was opened.
On 16 October 1878, Grigory Butakov was promoted from Vice - Admiral to Admiral, and was appointed Chief Commander of the Sveaborg coast. At the beginning of 1881, he was appointed the Chief Commander of the St. Petersburg port. In March 1882, Grigory Butakov was elected a member of the State Council. He took this assignment as the end of his life’s work. Soon after that he fell seriously ill and died of apoplexy on 31 May 1882. He was buried in Sevastopol at the church of St. Vladimir.[4]