To a nation like ourselves, whose first line of defence is the Navy, I venture to think that these pages will give food for thought, as, besides enabling the reader to see the paralysing and awful effect of high explosives thrown on board a modern battleship in action, they supply us with a picture of what a losing engagement means to those who lose.
When first I took up the original volume I read it merely with a view to extracting information re fire effect, gun power, weather conditions, formations, and other factors complementary to the result of the battle. But the narrative appeared so realistic that the thought occurred to me to place the following translation before the public.
The speed maintained by the opposing fleets during the battle is shown in the diagram attached. Dates have been expressed according to the English calendar (which is thirteen days in advance of the Russian)—otherwise the writer’s own words and colloquial style have, as far as possible, been faithfully adhered to, to the detriment of literary style in translating.
It may be mentioned that this narrative comes as a supplement to the very interesting account by Politovsky of the voyage of the Baltic fleet to the Far East—recently translated by Major Godfrey and published by John Murray under the title “From Libau to Tsu-shima.”
Politovsky went down in the Suvoroff, and his story ends with the arrival of the fleet at Shanghai on 23rd May, the date on which he posted his last letter to Russia. The following narrative commences on 25th May, as the fleet swung out of Shanghai to meet its destiny.
A. B. L.
7th November 1906.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
| CHAPTER I | |
| PAGE | |
| Weather on leaving Shanghai—“Order of march”—Instructions for taking order of battle—Accident to Senyavin’s engines—Manœuvres on 26th May—Spoilt by 3rd squadron—Unpreparedness of Russian fleet—A forlorn hope—Comparison between Russian and Japanese ships—Feeling on Board the Suvoroff—Togo’s whereabouts—A discussion—Will he be misled?—Will the Russian fleet slip past?—Which course to follow?—Three possibilities | [1–24] |
| CHAPTER II | |
| Not yet discovered—Intercepting Japanese wireless messages—Night of 26th May—Doings in the Suvoroff—The engine-room—The ward-room—Reflections and ruminations—Commander V. V. Ignatzius—His opinion—A desperate adventure—Dawn on 27th May—The Sinano Maru runs into the hospital ships—The fleet discovered—Recall of the scouts—Four Japanese ships reported—Idzumi sighted 6.45 A.M.—And later the 3rd Japanese squadron—Russian fleet takes order of battle—11.20 A.M., opens fire—A mistake—Ship’s companies have dinner—The alarm—Japanese light cruisers—Russians manœuvre—Orders misunderstood—Result—Japanese main force sighted—The eve of battle—Rozhdestvensky enters the conning tower | [25–50] |
| CHAPTER III | |
| Movements of Japanese fleet—A dangerous manœuvre—Russians open fire—Enemy replies—“Portmanteaus”—Accurate shooting—Author wounded—Comparison with 10th August—Japanese fuses—Havoc and destruction—Gun power—A new explosive—In the conning tower—The enemy untouched—Russian ships on fire—Fighting the flames—A shell in the dressing station—Casualties and damage everywhere—Again in the conning tower | [51–80] |
| CHAPTER IV | |
| The enemy’s superior speed—His attempt to cross the Russian T—Suvoroff’s Captain wounded—A funnel shot away—Steering gear disabled—She leaves the line—Terrific shell fire—Japanese reports—Fore-bridge in flames—Demchinsky wounded—Spirit of the men—Fire in the dressing station—Attempts to extinguish it—Scene on the upper deck—Author again wounded—The hospital—Death and destruction in the conning tower—Necessity of abandoning it—Transfer to lower fighting position—Admiral wounded—Carried into a turret | [81–110] |
| CHAPTER V | |
| The Alexander leads the fleet—Attempt to pass astern of Japanese column—Enemy turns 16 points—Destruction in the Alexander—The Borodino on fire—Defeat inevitable—3.25 P.M., the Suvoroff heels over—Forward turret destroyed—Attacked by torpedo-boats—Work of one projectile—Rumoured damage to enemy—Effect on men’s spirits—Death of Commander Ignatzius—Torpedo-boats approach—Only two serviceable guns—A tour of inspection—Effect of Japanese gun fire—Their explosive—Kursel the Courlandian—Destruction of officers’ quarters—Author again wounded | [111–135] |
| CHAPTER VI | |
| 4 P.M., fleets lose each other—5 P.M., Russian fleet steams northwards—Passes the Suvoroff—The Borodino leads—The Alexander heeling over—Torpedo-boats ahead!—The Buiny—Admiral to be transferred—Attempts to collect the Staff—Death of all hands below—No boats available—Difficulty of the undertaking—Rozhdestvensky put aboard—The Buiny steams off—Description of the flag-ship—The Admiral’s condition—Nebogatoff in command—Sinking of the Alexander—Overtaking the fleet—Sinking of the Oslyabya—Also of the Borodino—End of the Suvoroff | [136–162] |
| Composition of the Opposing Fleets | [163] |
| Diagram of Movements | At end. |