The Borodino class of 1913 was a project for the construction of four as a battlecruiser designated fast battleships for the Imperial Russian Navy , but none of the ships were completed. After the Borodino class of 1899, she was already the second class of ironclad to bear this name.
The funds for the four ships of this class were approved in 1912 as part of the program to rebuild the Baltic Fleet after the heavy losses suffered in the Russo-Japanese War . They were intended for use in the Baltic Sea and showed many characteristics that had already shaped the previous Gangut and Imperatriza-Marija classes . They too had the so-called Cuniberti line-up with four triplet towers, of which only the ones furthest fore and aft could fire to the right fore and aft, the other two stood amidships and could only be directed to the broadsides. In contrast to its predecessors, the heavy artillery was to consist of twelve 356 mm guns, and the three rear turrets pointed aft in the neutral position - this was apparently due to the intended propulsion system. The middle artillery was supposed to consist of twenty-four 130 mm guns in individual casemates, the two-story casemates near the command tower were conspicuous. For this purpose, four 63 mm anti-aircraft guns and two 47 mm salute guns were to kick. Six underwater mounted 457 mm torpedo tubes were provided as torpedo armament. In contrast to their predecessors, the new battle cruisers were not designed as smooth-deckers, but were given a significantly higher forecastle as a measure to improve seaworthiness due to the intended greater speed. With their relatively thick armor and moderately high speed, they looked much more like fast battleships than battlecruisers and are sometimes compared to the British Queen Elizabeth class . The ships were named after victorious battles.
Construction and whereabouts
All four ships were stacked on December 19, 1913 in the Admiralty Shipyard ( Borodino, Nawarin ) and the Baltic Shipyard ( Kinburn, Ismail ) in St. Petersburg. In order to speed up the construction, some of the machines were ordered abroad. With the outbreak of the First World War and the blockade of Russia by the Central Powers , new machines had to be ordered. The turbine sets ordered from AG Vulcan in Stettin were used in the construction of the fast mine cruisers Brummer und Bremse for the German Imperial Navy . Shipbuilding progressed slowly during the war years and came to a complete standstill with the outbreak of the revolution in 1917. Plans for the resumption of construction by the Soviet government never came to fruition, three of the ships were scrapped in Germany by 1923, only the most advanced ship, the Ismail , was only sold for demolition in 1931. The boilers intended for the Ismail were used in the 1930s to modernize the battleship Marat , and the 356 mm guns, which had already been completed, were used in coastal artillery or as railway guns.
