https://unsplash.com/photos/eMP4sYPJ9x0What conclusions were drawn from the analysis of the Battle of Tsushima?
First of all, the design displacement, precipitation, and initial stability were finally recognized as the most important characteristics of the ship, along with weapons and armor, and must now be consistently observed in the construction process. The ships should have abandoned the location of the artillery of the anti-mine caliber below the upper deck, and to strengthen the combat stability of the roll to make an armor belt of sufficient thickness at the level of the main armor deck. As it turned out, the great danger for the ship was the loss of stability from the accumulation of water in extinguishing fires. Therefore, it was necessary to quickly remove the outside water to maintain the stability of the ships. During the construction, it was necessary to sharply limit the use of combustible materials. There is also a need to create a central bilge post under the lower armored deck to organize the struggle for the vitality of the ship and control all systems under the guidance of bilge mechanical engineer, who must make decisions on leveling the bank and trim, flooding and drying the premises, piercing, firefighting, etc.
- During the Russian-Japanese war, Russia lost almost the entire Baltic Fleet. It includes only the outdated battleship "Emperor Alexander II", a relatively new squadron battleship "Caesarevitch" and the newly commissioned battleship "Slava", which did not have time to become part of the 2nd Pacific Squadron. The old battleship Peter the Great was transformed into a training ship.
On the slipway of the Baltic factory and Galerny Island were two squadrons of the battleship "Emperor Paul I" and "Andrew the First-Called". The project of these ships, the development of which was completed in 1903, representing a further development of the project of squadron battleships such as "Borodino", but with increased displacement and increased armament Since 1907, the battleships "Andrew the First-Called" and "Emperor Paul I" were enrolled in the class of battleships. The Ministry of Transport decided to take into account some results of the preliminary generalized experience of the Russian-Japanese war in the projects of new ships, to the extent that their readiness allowed. This mainly explains the protracted construction of the battleships "Andrew the First-Called" and "Emperor Paul I", laid in 1903, which came into operation only in 1912. Thanks to the changes introduced into the project, the tactical and technical character of these ships were significantly improved: their rhythms, which made it possible to consider them as a transitional type of 6 battleships in the development of the battleship fleet of squadron carriers.
The composition of the weapons has also been reviewed. Instead of the 152-mm artillery, which was ineffective at increased battle distances, fourteen 203-mm guns of 50 calibers in length were installed in two-arm towers (eight) and casemates (six). The anti-mine artillery of 47-mm and 75-mm caliber was replaced by a dozen 120-mm cannons installed on the battery deck in the upper casemate due to the increase in the displacement of destroyers. The artillery of the main caliber remained the same as on the armadillos of the Borodino type, but due to the use of a folding visor in the tower the angle of the guns' rise was increased. The electric part of tower installations was considerably simplified due to the reduction of a number of contact connections, the reliability of the electric elements which were a part of the scheme of electric equipment was increased. For the first time, the Metal Works, which manufactured tower installations for the battleship "Andrei Pervozvannyi", guaranteed the charging speed of no more than 40 s instead of 66-70 s, as was the case with armored carriers of the "Borodino" type. In order to increase the rigidity of the construction, it was decided to fasten a rigid drum, which served as an innovation of the tower, to the armored decks. The hull of the tower with all mechanisms, tools and rotating armor was completely balanced against the center of rotation. Metal mammary-which caused jamming of the tower in case of damage, was replaced with leather. Such a design of the tower most fully met the new requirements developed by the Ministry of Transport and Communications in view of the experience of the Russo-Japanese war.
The reservation system has undergone significant changes.
It was based on the principle of providing combat stability, put forward by A. N. Krylov: in case of damage to the hull the ship must sink without overturning. The armor belt was extended to the rods in the horizontal direction and to the upper deck vertically. The largest thickness of the lower armor belt was 216 mm, the upper one - 127 mm. Decks, upper and lower casemates, including the roof, were fully reserved. The above-water side of the ship did not have a single window. The total weight of the armor was 35 water displacements of the ship. Significantly improved the construction of armored slabs fastening, abandoning wooden gaskets. The system of armored deckhouse reservation was completely revised. Specially equipped inter-bottom compartments ensured quick straightening of the ship at the roll caused by flooding through the hole of one of the engine rooms.
- Linear ships "Andrew the First-Called" and "Emperor Paul I" could be considered vulnerable to 305-mm artillery of that time at all combat distances. At the same time, they retained a number of features typical of the "dreadnoughts": the ramming of the stem, the different caliber of artillery weapons, the rhombic location of the 203-mm artillery towers, piston mechanisms, etc.
The construction of battleships of the "Andrei Pervozvannyi" type made it possible for Russian designers and shipbuilding industry to move on to the creation of battleships that were not inferior to the best examples of the world shipbuilding.