PHOTO: the image of Emperor Nicholas II, the founder of the Russian
submarine fleet, depicted on on the Soviet submarine K-21

Russia marks the ‘Day of the Submariner’ on 19th March. The date was not chosen by chance – it was on this day in 1906 that Emperor Nicholas II issued a decree, on the classification of a new category of ships for the Russian Imperial Navy – submarines. .

In 2019, the Double-Headed Eagle Society honoured the memory of the founder of Russia’s first submarine fleet, by depicting his image on the Soviet submarine K-21. This honour would have the Bolsheviks and Soviets spinning in their graves!

Launched in 1939, the Soviet submarine K-21 was a K-class submarine of the Soviet Navy during World War II. In the spring of 1981, she was moved to the city of Polyarny, Murmansk Oblast to be converted into a museum ship. After renovations, she was eventually moved to Severomorsk, Russia. The museum was opened in 1983. In the late 1990s, the boat underwent some general repairs. From 2008 to 2009, the museum was further renovated.

Emperor Nicholas II receives the report of the commander of Russia’s first combat-capable submarine «Дельфин» [Delphin], Captain Mikhail Nikolaevich Beklemishev (1858-1936) at the Baltic Shipyard. St. Petersburg, 1903.

PHOTO: Emperor Nicholas II inspecting the submarine «Нарвал» [Narval]. The battleship «Император Александр III» Emperor Alexander III can be seen in the background. St. Petersburg, 1915

Many historians and writers continue to argue that Nicholas II was “not a progressive Tsar”, and yet his record of reforms speaks for itself. For instance, not only was Nicholas II a naval enthusiast, he played a significant role in the rebuilding and modernization of the Imperial Russian Navy before the First World War. In 1906 he ordered the establishment and development of the Russian submarine fleet.

The Imperial Russian Navy continued to expand during the reign of Nicholas II, regaining its position as the third largest fleet in the world after Britain and France.  It had a revival in the latter part of the century, but lost most of its Pacific Fleet along with the Baltic Fleet, both of which were sent to the Far East and subsequently destroyed in the disastrous Russo-Japanese of 1904. The second phase of Nicholas II’s military life was marked by his participation in the reorganization of the navy after the catastrophic Russo-Japanese War. 

Today, more than a century after his death, post-Soviet Russia recognizes the contribution of the last Russian Emperor to the development of the country’s underwater fleet.   

On 19th (O.S. 6th) March 1906, by decree of Emperor Nicholas II, the Maritime General Staff was organized with the Main Naval Staff, which assumed the functions of the operational body of the Imperial Navy. At first, attention was directed to the creation of mine-laying and a submarine fleet.  

Unfortunately, the name of the last emperor in this area of Russia’s military history is unjustly forgotten, thanks to Soviet dogma. From 1903 to 1917, Nicholas II ordered the construction of a total of 78 submarines – including the purchase of 11 foreign made submarines.

PHOTO: this icon painted in St. Petersburg, by order of modern day submariners of the Russian Federation is dedicated to the founder of the Russian submarine fleet, the Holy Sovereign Emperor Nicholas II.

FURTHER READING

The Imperial Russian Navy Under Nicholas II 1894-1917, which includes 2 videos + photographs

© Paul Gilbert. 19 March 2019 – UPDATED on 19 March 2026