Russian battleship Imperator Aleksander III (1901)

The "Imperator Alexander III" (Russian: Император Александр III) was a sclass|Borodino|battleship, the first ship of its class to be completed. It was named after Tsar Alexander III.

ervice

"Imperator Alexander III" was part of the Russian Second Pacific Squadron at the Battle of Tsushima. On 27 May 1905, after Japanese bombardment, she was sunk. When the Russian flagship at Tsushima, "Suvarov" was temporarily disabled, Alexandr III turned to port and withstood concentrated fire from 3000 yards. Turning southeast, she led the Russian line, until forced to stop to make repairs. By 6:00 PM her fires were out and she rejoined the fight.

With her sister ships "Borodino" and "Orel" she was again shelled at 7000 yards, and the flooding became impossible to control. She capsized and sank, leaving four survivors.

References

*Antony Preston, "World's Worst Warships", 2002, Conways Maritime Press
*Tomitch, V. M., "Warships of the Imperial Russian Navy Volume 1, Battleships", 1968
*Corbett, Julian, Sir. "Maritime Operations in the Russo-Japanese War 1904-1905." Originally classified Secret/Confidential until the 1950s. Published in (1994) in two volumnes. ISBN 1557501297.
*Semenov, Vladimir, Capt. "The Battle of Tsushima". E. P. Dutton & Co. (1912).
*Pleshakov, Constantine. "The Tsar's Last Armada: The Epic Voyage to the Battle of Tsushima." (2002). ISBN 0-46505-792-6