The Potemkin underway |
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| Career (Russia) | |
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| Name: |
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| Namesake: |
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| Builder: | Nikolayev shipyard |
| Laid down: | 8 October 1898[1] |
| Launched: | 9 October 1900[1] |
| Commissioned: | 1904 |
| Decommissioned: | 1919 |
| Fate: | Destroyed at Sevastopol in 1919; wreck scrapped, 1922[1] |
| General characteristics | |
| Displacement: | 12,500 tonnes standard, 13500 tonnes full load |
| Length: | 115 m (377 ft 4 in) |
| Beam: | 22.3 m (73 ft 2 in) |
| Draught: | 8.2 m (26 ft 11 in) |
| Propulsion: |
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| Speed: | 16 knots (30 km/h) |
| Complement: | 18 officers and 763 men |
| Armament: |
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| Armour: |
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The Potemkin (Russian: Князь Потёмкин Таврический, Kniaz Potemkine Tavritchesky, ‘Prince Potemkin of Tauris’) was a pre-dreadnought battleship (Bronenosets) of the Imperial Russian Navy's Black Sea Fleet. The ship was made famous by the Battleship Potemkin uprising, a rebellion of the crew against their oppressive officers in June 1905 (during the Russian Revolution of 1905). It later came to be viewed as an initial step towards the Russian Revolution of 1917, and was the basis of Sergei Eisenstein's silent film The Battleship Potemkin (1925).
Following the mutiny in 1905, the ship's name was changed to Panteleimon after Saint Pantaleon, but restored to Potemkin in 1917, before a final rename to Boretz za Svobodu (Fighter for Freedom) later in that year.
The ship was laid down at the Nikolayev shipyard in October 1898, launched in October 1900, and commissioned in 1904. She was named in honour of Grigori Aleksandrovich Potemkin, a military figure of the 18th century. The vessel was built based on the prototype of the Russian battleship Tri Sviatitelia and a modernized version of Peresviet-class battleships (see Oslyabya). The armour scheme was designed after HMS Majestic.
Several innovations were incorporated in the design. This was the first Russian battleship with liquid fuelled boilers (although these were replaced by coal fired boilers after a fire during trials) and centralised fire control.
During the Russo-Japanese War (1904–1905) the Imperial Russian Navy had deployed and lost two of its three battleship fleets; the Baltic and the Pacific squadrons, later redesignated as the 1st and 2nd Pacific Fleets. The remaining Black Sea Fleet had been blocked by treaty from exiting the Black Sea to participate in the war. However, many of the Black Sea Fleet's most experienced officers and men had been transferred to the war zone in the Pacific to replace losses from that war.[2] This left primarily raw recruits and less capable officers within the fleet. With the news of the disastrous battle of Tsushima in May 1905, coupled with the aspect that the Black Sea Fleet might be next, morale dropped to an all time low and only needed a spark to set off a major catastrophe. On 27 June 1905, a month after the battle of Tsushima, that "spark" was supplied, in the form of a complaint about bad food being fed to the men.[2] Earlier, the Central Committee of the Social Democratic Organization of the Black Sea Fleet had started preparations for a simultaneous crew uprising on all of the ships of the fleet to take place some time in the autumn of 1905. However, at the time of planning Potemkin was away for firing exercises at Tendra Island, and the rebellion broke out on its own on 27 June [O.S. 14 June] 1905, spontaneously and prematurely.
The uprising was triggered when Ippolit Giliarovsky, the second in command of the battleship, allegedly threatened to punish crew members for their refusal to eat meat found to contain maggots when it was delivered to the warship. Reportedly he mustered the crew on the quarterdeck near where a tarpaulin was laid out and armed marines were drawn up. The sailors assumed that a group execution was pending and rushed the marines (themselves sailors), calling on them not to shoot. The actual events sparking the mutiny remain uncertain and have been overshadowed by the version depicted in the famous Sergei Eisenstein film The Battleship Potemkin. It is known that discipline in the Imperial Navy was harsh; morale dropped lower following the disastrous news from the Battle of Tsushima on 27 May 1905. Before this a group of sailors dedicated to revolution had formed. The group, called Tsentralka, plotted in secret a massed mutiny of the Black Sea Fleet that would support revolutionary groups on land.
The mutineers killed seven of the Potemkin's eighteen officers, including Captain Evgeny Golikov and Giliarovsky. The surviving officers were placed under arrest, as were those of an accompanying torpedo-boat, the Ismail torpedo boat N267. One sailor, Grigory Vakulinchuk, was fatally wounded during the fight. The seamen organized a Ship's Commission led by Afanasi Matushenko.
In the evening of that same day, the rebellious battleship came to Odessa flying a red flag. A general strike had been called in Odessa and there was some unrest, for which the arrival of the battleship provided a focus and incentive. However, the representatives of the contact commission of the Odessa Social Democratic parties were not able to convince the battleship crew to land armed sailors and help workers to get weapons and act together. There was division and confusion amongst both sailors and strikers.
On 29 June [O.S. 16 June] 1905, Vakulenchuk’s funeral turned into a political demonstration. Demonstrators crowded on the flight of steps leading from the port area to the centre of the city were reportedly fired on by dismounted cavalry, a scene that forms the dramatic highpoint of the film Battleship Potemkin. There is some controversy over whether the encounter on the Odessa Steps actually occurred but The Times of London correspondent and the resident British Consul reported a number of clashes between demonstrators and troops throughout the city and heavy loss of life. The evening of the following day Potemkin fired two shells at the part of the city containing the headquarters of the imperial military authorities. One civilian was killed and the city suffered limited damage. The Imperial military sent reinforcements to Odessa in order to suppress the civil disorder. The government issued an order either to force the Potemkin crew to give up or sink the battleship. Two squadrons of the Black Sea Fleet were sent for this purpose. They gathered at the Tendra Island on 30 June [O.S. 17 June] 1905. Potemkin faced the joint squadron and—refusing to give up—sailed through the centre of it. This “silent battle” ended victoriously for Potemkin: the crews of the joint squadron refused to fire at the battleship and one of the battleships—Georgii Pobedonosets—joined Potemkin. The joint squadron went to Sevastopol. The three rebellious warships headed for Odessa. However, the recently mutinied battleship Saint George soon turned against the Potemkin by means of a counter-mutiny, and ran aground on the shores of Odessa.
The Central Committee of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party tried to provide support for the Potemkin uprising. However, Mikhail Vasilyev-Yuzhin, who came to Odessa at the request of Vladimir Lenin to lead the uprising, found the battleship had left the port.
Tsentralka (revolutionary sailors' organisation) meet at Malakhov hill east of Sebastopol to plan a mutiny of the Black Sea Fleet.[4]
40 revolutionary sailors are removed from the Potemkin, only one leader caught. It's announced they will be leaving for gun testing at Tendra island.[5]
Tsentralka agrees that the Potemkin, not the Rostislav, should start the mutiny. The ship leaves Sebastopol in the afternoon.[5]
The Potemkin arrives at Tendra. Its torpedo boat Ismail gets supplies from Odessa where a General strike is occurring. Among the cargo is a supply of maggot-ridden beef.[6]
The mutiny starts. 4am-the Ismail returns with the rotten meat. The furious sailors notice the maggots and the revolutionaries start a boycott of the Borscht made with the meat. The sailors are assembled on deck and ordered to eat it, only 12 sailors obey. The rest are threatened with 20 armed marines, the sailors dispersed. Second-in-command Gilyarovsky calls for tarpaulin so he can execute 30 sailors who did not flee, and not soil the decks. 30 revolutionaries steal rifles from the armoury, and take over the signal and engine rooms. They rush aboard, the marines do not fire. Stoker Nikishkin fires the first shot.[7] The captain flees to his cabin. Gilyarovsky shoots Grigory Vakulinchuk then orders the guards to fire, they flee, he is shot. They stop torpedo boat Ismail from escaping with officers who jumped overboard.[8] 7 officers are killed, 12 arrested. 25 sailors are elected to a committee with Matyushenko chairing. They make ensign Alekseyev captain. They raise the red flag and toss the Tsar's portrait into the sea. At 10pm they arrive at Odessa.
40 sailors escort the body of Vakulenchuk to the steps [9](one would betray the mutiny to the gendarmes). 10,000 people assemble. Three port officials and 50 cossacks are driven off. Social democrats arrive but fail to convince the sailors to attack. Two Mensheviks and one Bolshevik are allowed to stay. Martial law is declared, 1,260 people (die?/are wounded?) and 15 million roubles in damage are caused in the fighting on the Richelieu steps.[10] Three battleships, a destroyer and torpedo boat are sent in pursuit.
6pm: the military transport Vekha is easily captured once the four officers are tricked onboard the Potemkin.[11]
Three officers choose to stay (one, Dr Golenko, would later betray them), the rest are set ashore.[12]
16:00 Vakulenchuk is buried, the funeral is ambushed and three sailors are caught/shot.[13]
18:35 Hearing of an officer's meeting at the theatre, the crew tried to destroy it but the treacherous committee member, Frederick Vedenmeyer, fed them fake coordinates so they overshot. He then claimed to see a white flag of surrender from soldiers ashore when in fact they were revolutionaries signalling encouragement.[14]
The battleships Tri Sviatitelia, Dvenadsat Apostolov, and Georgii Pobedonosets arrive in Odessa. Meant to capture the mutineers, they flee instead.[15] 12:05 The Potemkin advances in between the battleships, Matyushenko hopes to goad the officers into firing on them and provoke a mutiny. The Dvenadsat Apostolov tries to ram them but sympathetic sailors reverse the engines. Captain Kolands then tried to blow his own ship up but revolutionaries have severed the detonating wires.[16] As the squadron retreated a second time, the crew of the Georgii Pobedonosets (616 crew) rebel. Tsentralka member Dorofey Koshuba breaks into the armoury, arms the sailors and arrests Captain Guzevich. The takeover is bloodless except for the second in command who shoots himself. A 10 member committee is set up.[17] Matyushenko takes the officers to the Potemkin, then ashore.
10:00 Unrest on the St George: Dr Golenko was sent to maintain the crew's allegiance, instead he turned them against the Potemkin by claiming all their petty officers would be arrested and Odessa would be bombarded.[18] A port official distracted the Potemkin's leaders while the petty officers took over the engine room and disabled the rifles. They deliberately run the St George aground, fearing the Potemkin's guns. The Vekha also abandons the revolutionaries.[19]
The fifth mutiny occurs. The Prut was a training ship with 22 officers and over 600 sailors, two-thirds of which were machinists.
9:30 Tsentralka member Aleksandr Petrov and 50 others break into the armoury and kill three officers. Their priest holds a cross up to repel the rebels, and one cuts his hand with a bayonet saying:
"The devil himself would not have allowed what you have allowed to go on here."[20]
16:00 The Prut arrives at Odessa only to find the Potemkin has left. Potemkin arrives at Constanţa[21]
2:00 The destroyer Stremilteny is mainly manned by officers and is pursuing the Potemkin. It failed to capture the Prut since when they met, they were unaware of the mutiny.
3:00 The Prut is captured by the torpedo boat Zhutky.[22]
7:30 Constanţa's officials refuse to sell the sailors supplies, they leave for Feodosiya (Ukraine).[23]
8:00 Potemkin arrives at Feodosiya. The port's officials give them all the supplies they request, except for coal or water.[24]
Refused water and coal again, 30 sailors led by Matyushenko try to take some coal barges. They are ambushed by two companies of soldiers, only eight sailors return.[25]
12:00 They leave Theodosia. The Ismail's crew attempted to take the helms and return to Sebastopol. This counter-mutiny was defeated, and the Ismail was towed to Constanta.[26]
23:00 The Potemkin reaches Constanţa.[27]
The Potemkin surrenders while the Ismail is allowed to return to Sebastopol. Matyushenko orders the seacocks opened, after which the Potemkin half sinks. The people of Constanţa cheer the sailors.[28]
In the evening of 1 July [O.S. 18 June] 1905, the battleship sailed for Constanţa (Romania) together with the torpedo boat N267 for fuel and supplies (by that time, Georgiy Pobedonosets had surrendered to the authorities). On 3 July [O.S. 20 June] 1905, the Ship’s Commission issued appeals “To all civilized world” and “To all European powers”, proclaiming the crew’s firm decision to fight against the Tsarist regime. Romanian authorities refused to permit supplies to be sent to the battleship. The same happened in the then Russian (now Ukrainian) port of Feodosiya on 5 July [O.S. 22 June] 1905 where a landing party from the warship was fired on by troops. On 8 July [O.S. 25 June] 1905, Potemkin returned to Constanţa and its crew handed the ship over to the Romanian authorities.
The Romanian government then returned the battleship to the Russian navy. In October 1905 it was renamed Panteleimon (Пантелеймон).
In April 1917 the ship was renamed Potemkin-Tavricheski (Потёмкин-Таврический) once again, however, in May they changed it to Borets za svobodu (Борец за свободу – Freedom Fighter). In 1918 it was captured by the Germans, then recaptured by the White Russians. In April 1919, the interventionists scuttled the ship in Sevastopol, to prevent her falling into Bolshevik hands. After the Russian Civil War, the wreck of the Potemkin was raised from the bottom of the sea and dismantled because of irreparable damage.
The majority of the mutineers chose to remain in Romania after 1905, at least until the revolution of February 1917. Of those who returned to Russia in the immediate aftermath of the mutiny, seven men were executed as ringleaders while fifty-six crewmen were sentenced to varying terms of imprisonment. A number of petty officers from the Potemkin were able to successfully argue that they had acted only under duress, while the crew of the Viekha, a support vessel caught up in the mutiny when it encountered the Potemkin, were acquitted after it was established that they had successfully argued for the release of their own officers.
Amongst the six hundred former crewmen of the Potemkin who remained in Romania in 1905 and generally merged into the local population, was the leader Afanasy Matushenko. Together with four colleagues Matushenko returned to Russia under promise of an amnesty in 1907. He was however arrested and hanged. Another leader, Joseph Dymtchenko, fled Romania in 1908 with thirty-one other sailors and settled in Argentina. At least one sailor, Ivan Beshoff, made it to Ireland via Turkey and London (where he allegedly met Lenin). He set up Beshoff's fish and chips in Dublin, Ireland. He died on October 25, 1987, aged 102, likely to be the last survivor of the crew.[29]
Lenin wrote that the Potemkin uprising had had a huge importance in terms of being the first attempt at creating the nucleus of a revolutionary army, especially since a part of the Imperial armed forces had sided with the revolution. Lenin called Potemkin an "undefeated territory of the revolution." The Potemkin uprising had a significant influence on the revolutionizing process in the Russian army and fleet in 1917.
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