The Pallada class cruisers were designed with the intention of strengthening the Russian fleet in the Far East.  Three ships of the class (Pallada, Aurora, and Diana) were constructed between 1897 and 1903.  The ships belonged to a class known as protected cruisers.  These ships were known for having belts of armor around strategic locations on the ship.

One of the first deployments of these ships occurred in 1903 when the Aurora was sent to the Far East with a cruiser detachment.  The group began the long journey to the Far East, but was recalled to the Baltic at the beginning of the Russo-Japanese war.  The Pallada remained with the Far East fleet.

The Aurora based at Libau, would later return to the Far East to serve with the 2nd Squadron of the Pacific fleet.  The ship would also see action during the battle of Tsushima, where she was damaged.  During the battle the ship took a hit to the bridge which killed the ship's captain and wounded all personnel in the area.  The Aurora then made for Manila in the Philippines along with a small group of Russian ships to avoid the Japanese.  The ship spent the remainder of the war interned in Manila.

The Pallada also suffered damage during the war.  She was struck by a torpedo, but was not badly damaged at the time.  The ship managed to make its way to Port Arthur where she was later sunk during the bombardment and siege that followed.  After the war the Japanese raised and returned many Russian ships, and she would serve her remaining years with the Japanese navy as the Tsugaru.

After the Aurora became a training ship and in 1907 she was redesignated as a cruiser (rather than the old cruiser 1st rate designation).  The ship made many voyages in the Baltic and Mediterranean between 1907 and 1911.  She even made visits to the Indian and Pacific Oceans and participated in the coronation ceremony of the king of Thailand in 1911.

When the Great War began both the Aurora and Diana were on station in the Baltic.  The Aurora spent most of its time on patrol and protecting minesweepers.  It also participated in the defense of Riga in the 1916 campaign.  In the Fall of 1916 the Aurora was put in port for modification and repair.  It was during this time that most of her weapons were changed.  While a wireless radio and sonar were also added.  Its crew was temporarily increased to over 700 men.

The Aurora was stationed in Petrograd when the revolution began.  The worsening social situation in Russia at the time led to a loss of confidence in the government by many of the sailors.  This led to a conflict between the sailors and officers of the ship.  In March 1917 the sailors revolted and sided with the revolutionaries.  The ship's captain was killed in the mutiny, and the ship raised the red flag for the first time.

That October the political situation again worsened and the sailors again sided with the revolutionaries.  It was during this revolt that the Aurora fired a blank round at the Winter Palace where the Provisional Government was located.  The Diana also saw limited action during the Revolution, but was laid up in 1918.  The Aurora continued to serve until 1918 were she was placed in reserve.  Her six inch guns were removed and sent to arm the Volga and Caspian flotillas.

When the Soviets decided to rebuild their fleet in 1922 the Aurora was to be repaired and used as a training ship.  The Diana was not so fortunate as was sold for scrap that same year.  In an unrelated development, the Pallada (in Japanese service) was also decommissioned in 1922.  The restoration of the Aurora would last from 1922-24.  During this restoration the main armament of the ship was to be changed.  The ship would now mount ten 130mm guns and two 4 inch anti-aircraft guns.

In its role as a training vessel the Aurora made many voyages between 1924 and 1930 with naval cadet crews.  Destinations included ports in Norway (Bergen and Trondheim), Sweden (Goteborg), Denmark (Copenhagen), and Germany (Kiel and Swinemunde).  On the 10th anniversary of the revolution the ship was awarded the Order of the Red Banner.

The ship was inspected in 1933 and it was found that a refit was in order.  Work began that year at the Marti shipyard in Leningrad.  The restoration only lasted two years before being suspended.  The Aurora was relegated to the role of static training ship, and as a submarine tender in the winter.  Plans to decommission the ship were discussed.

The German invasion put a halt to everything, and gave the Aurora a new lease on life.  It would see service during the Great Patriotic War during the defense of Leningrad.  Initially the ship was part of the anti-aircraft defense of Kronstadt naval base.  It also served as a submarine tender.  Many of the ship's crew were sent to other ships of the Baltic Fleet, to river flotillas, or to fight on land with the Red Army around Leningrad.  The ship's nine 130mm guns were used on land as conventional artillery.  On 30 September 1941 the ship was sunk in shallow water by German artillery.  The remaining ship's guns were dismounted and sent to the troops defending the city.

In 1944 it was decided to raise and restore the ship as a memorial to the revolution.  The restoration began in 1945 and lasted until 1947.  It was a difficult process and many of the ship's components had been removed or badly damaged and had to be remade according to their original specifications.  Other components were removed as they were not needed any longer.  One example of this was the propulsion system.  Most of it was removed, but a pair of boilers and a steam engine remained for training purposes.  

When the work was completed the ship had been restored to look as it did at the time of the revolution in 1917.  The interior had the most changes, as the ship was to serve as a training vessel for cadets of the Nakhimov Naval School. 

The ship began its career as a museum In 1961 when it was decided to retire the training ship from service.  The Aurora was assigned a five man historical staff, along with a detachment of some 50 sailors.  The sailors would provide security for the ship and assist in restoring and maintaining it.  The first restoration was carried out in 1958-59, with a second restoration taking place in 1966-68.  The ship was awarded the Order of the October Revolution in 1968.  A final restoration was carried out in 1984-87.  Today the ship can be seen on display in St. Petersburg as one of the few surviving examples of the pre-dreadnought era.

Tactical Use and Limitations

Coming Soon!

Deployment Chronology

Information about turn of the century warships is difficult for us to find, and as such we do not yet know what ship type the Aurora, Pallada, and Diana replaced or what ships eventually replaced them as the front line cruiser of the Russian fleet.  We believe that they replaced older Russian cruisers such as the Admiral Kornilov and Pamiat-Azova which were both made in the late 1880's.  It was possibly replaced in front line service by the cruisers of 1906 type such as the Rurik, Admiral Markarov, Pallada, and Bayan.   These later designs made better use of turreted armament than their predecessors and had better armor protection.

Sources Cited

Here are some of the most informative sources that we have used in compiling this information for you.  We hope you can find them as useful as we have.

• Jane's Fighting Ships 1906-1907 (reprint), published by Arco Publishing Company, New York, 1970

• Jane's Fighting Ships 1914 (reprint), published by Arco Publishing Company, New York, 1970

• Jane's Fighting Ships of World War One, Originally published by Jane's Publishing Company 1919; 1990 edition published by Military Press, New York, 1990

• The Illustrated History of Warships from 1860 to the Present, By David Miller, published by MBI Publishing Company, copyright Salamander Books Ltd., 2001