Cruiser Aurora

The ship was constructed in Saint Petersburg New Admiralty in 1897-1903 under the program of strengthening of the Russian sea forces at the Far East. On the 8th of November, 1903 AURORA was sent to the Far East together with the cruiser detachment under the flag of Rear Admiral A.A.Virenius. She had made the voyage on a route: Kronstadt - Portland (U.K.) - Algeria - Specia (Italy) - Bizerta (Tunis) - Peraeus (Greece) - Port Suez - Gibuti. However the detachment was withdrawn on Baltic Sea owing the beginning of Russo-Japanese war.

Lying in Petrograd the Cruiser had appeared at the centre of events of Russian Revolution 1917. Being in close contact to the workers of a plant, the cruiser's seamen were involved in revolutionary propaganda. This was promoted by general situation in Russia, which was put on a verge of catastrophe by the war. Russian army, fatiged, bloodless, insufficiently armed, suffered tremendous losses and went from defeat to defeat. The national economy had come in decline: there were starvation, lack of bread, meat, kerosene, goods of the primary needs. There was obvious an inability of imperial government to cope with a crisis situation. The mutual relations between AURORA's officers and team became extremely strained. On 12th of March the crew had required commanding officer to release under the arrest a three imprisoned workers-propagandists. In order to disperse this mass-meeting commanding officer Captain 1-st rank M.I.Nikolskiy and Senior officer P.P.Ogranovich opened pistol fire; there were wounded. When on March 13, 1917 at the Cruiser it had become known about the occured Revolution, sailors together with the workers hoisted the Red flag over the ship. Commanding officer was killed, senior officer was wounded, most part of crew landed and joined the revolt.

Soon the Ship Committee was elected in realization of democratic rights of sailors. As a result of secret voting it was decided, that democratic republic must be a form of government in Russia. Later AURORA blank-fired a forecastle gun to bringing moral pressure to defenders of Winter Palace, where the Provisional Government was.


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