Tuesday, September 7, 2021

Russian Monitor Strelets

STRELETS

(1865-1900)  Like the Uragan and Tifon, not much is known about her career.  She was present when the American warships Miantonomah (double-turreted monitor) and Augusta visited Kronstadt in July-August  1866.  

On 21 July 1875, the Russian two-turret monitor Admiral Chichagov ran aground and the Strelets was sent to help her the following day.  While assisting with the rigging of a hawser between the Admiral Chichagov and the armored frigate Sevastopal, the hawser unexpectedly slid across the Strelet's deck, injuring the ship's executive officer and a bosun, who later died of his injuries.

Coal and equipment were removed from the grounded Admiral Chichagov, but it was not enough to refloat her.  Finally, several barges and a floating crane came out from Kronstadt and the Chichagov was pulled free on July 25.

The Strelets was reclassified as a coast-defense ironclad on 13 February 1892 and turned over to the port of Kronstadt for disposal  6 July 1900, although she was not stricken from the navy list until August 17.  It was converted into a floating workshop the next year and renamed the Plavmasterskaia No. 1.

She remained in service until the end of 1955.

The Strelets was discovered intact at St. Petersburg, Russia, in 2015.

Now, this last bit of information has piqued my interest a great deal.

--Old RussianMonitor


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