The Battle of Korsakov, a
naval engagement
Naval warfare is combat in and on the sea, the ocean, or any other battlespace involving a major body of water such as a large lake or wide river. Mankind has fought battles on the sea for more than 3,000 years. Even in the interior of large la ...
of the
Russo-Japanese War
The Russo-Japanese War ( ja, 日露戦争, Nichiro sensō, Japanese-Russian War; russian: Ру́сско-япóнская войнá, Rússko-yapónskaya voyná) was fought between the Empire of Japan and the Russian Empire during 1904 and 1 ...
, was fought on 20 August 1904 off the southern coast of
Sakhalin
Sakhalin ( rus, Сахали́н, r=Sakhalín, p=səxɐˈlʲin; ja, 樺太 ''Karafuto''; zh, c=, p=Kùyèdǎo, s=库页岛, t=庫頁島; Manchu: ᠰᠠᡥᠠᠯᡳᠶᠠᠨ, ''Sahaliyan''; Orok: Бугата на̄, ''Bugata nā''; Nivkh ...
island. The battle foiled an attempt by the
Imperial Russian Navy
The Imperial Russian Navy () operated as the navy of the Russian Tsardom and later the Russian Empire from 1696 to 1917. Formally established in 1696, it lasted until dissolved in the wake of the February Revolution of 1917. It developed from ...
protected cruiser
Protected cruisers, a type of naval cruiser of the late-19th century, gained their description because an armoured deck offered protection for vital machine-spaces from fragments caused by shells exploding above them. Protected cruisers re ...
at escaping
Port Arthur to join the Russian
cruiser squadron
Squadron may refer to:
* Squadron (army), a military unit of cavalry, tanks, or equivalent subdivided into troops or tank companies
* Squadron (aviation), a military unit that consists of three or four flights with a total of 12 to 24 aircraft, ...
at
Vladivostok
Vladivostok ( rus, Владивосто́к, a=Владивосток.ogg, p=vɫədʲɪvɐˈstok) is the largest city and the administrative center of Primorsky Krai, Russia. The city is located around the Golden Horn Bay on the Sea of Japan, c ...
,
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...
, after the Russian
Pacific Squadron
The Pacific Squadron was part of the United States Navy squadron stationed in the Pacific Ocean in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Initially with no United States ports in the Pacific, they operated out of storeships which provided naval s ...
was scattered in the
Battle of the Yellow Sea
The Battle of the Yellow Sea ( ja, 黄海海戦, Kōkai kaisen; russian: Бой в Жёлтом море) was a major naval battle of the Russo-Japanese War, fought on 10 August 1904. In the Russian Navy, it was referred to as the Battle of 10 A ...
.
Preliminary moves
''Novik'' was part of the Imperial Russian Navy squadron
blockade
A blockade is the act of actively preventing a country or region from receiving or sending out food, supplies, weapons, or communications, and sometimes people, by military force.
A blockade differs from an embargo or sanction, which are leg ...
d in the harbor at Port Arthur,
Manchuria
Manchuria is an exonym (derived from the endo demonym " Manchu") for a historical and geographic region in Northeast Asia encompassing the entirety of present-day Northeast China (Inner Manchuria) and parts of the Russian Far East (Outer M ...
,
China, by
Imperial Japanese Navy
The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN; Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ' 'Navy of the Greater Japanese Empire', or ''Nippon Kaigun'', 'Japanese Navy') was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945, when it was dissolved following Japan's surrend ...
forces since the outbreak of the Russo-Japanese War in February 1904. When the Russian squadron finally tried to break out of Port Arthur and reach Vladivostok, Russia, where it could unite with a Russian cruiser squadron based there, it met defeat in the
Battle of the Yellow Sea
The Battle of the Yellow Sea ( ja, 黄海海戦, Kōkai kaisen; russian: Бой в Жёлтом море) was a major naval battle of the Russo-Japanese War, fought on 10 August 1904. In the Russian Navy, it was referred to as the Battle of 10 A ...
on 10 August 1904. The Russian squadron broke up during the engagement, with some ships returning to Port Arthur and others fleeing southward into the
Yellow Sea
The Yellow Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean located between mainland China and the Korean Peninsula, and can be considered the northwestern part of the East China Sea. It is one of four seas named after common colour ter ...
to seek refuge in Chinese ports. ''Novik'' was among the ships that fled south.
On 11 August, ''Novik'' encountered the Russian protected cruiser ''
Diana'' – whose
commanding officer intended to steam to
Saigon in
French Cochinchina
French Cochinchina (sometimes spelled ''Cochin-China''; french: Cochinchine française; vi, Xứ thuộc địa Nam Kỳ, Hán tự: ) was a colony of French Indochina, encompassing the whole region of Lower Cochinchina or Southern Vietnam fr ...
– and destroyer ''
Grozovoi'' in the Yellow Sea, and ''Novik''′s
commanding officer informed the other two Russian ships that he intended to take on
coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen.
Coal is formed when ...
and provisions at
Kiaochow in the German
Kaochow Bay concession in China and then steam around the east of Japan to Vladivostok. ''Diana''′s commanding officer believed that such a voyage would result in capture by Japanese forces, and he remained intent on steaming to Saigon.
[Corbett, p. 429.] ''Diana'' and ''Grozovoi'' put into port at
Shanghai
Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flowin ...
, China,
[ and ''Novik'' parted company with them and proceeded alone.
]
The Japanese had limited information on ''Novik''′s location until 14 August 1904, when they received reports that she had departed Kiaochow at dawn on 12 August and that a neutral
Neutral or neutrality may refer to:
Mathematics and natural science Biology
* Neutral organisms, in ecology, those that obey the unified neutral theory of biodiversity
Chemistry and physics
* Neutralization (chemistry), a chemical reaction in ...
merchant ship
A merchant ship, merchant vessel, trading vessel, or merchantman is a watercraft that transports cargo or carries passengers for hire. This is in contrast to pleasure craft, which are used for personal recreation, and naval ships, which are ...
had sighted a cruiser resembling ''Novik'' in the East China Sea halfway between Shanghai and Nagasaki
is the capital and the largest Cities of Japan, city of Nagasaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu in Japan.
It became the sole Nanban trade, port used for trade with the Portuguese and Dutch during the 16th through 19th centuries. The Hi ...
, Japan, at 10:15 on 13 August and that she apparently was bound for Van Diemen Strait (Ōsumi Strait) south of Kyushu. The Japanese initially ordered the protected cruisers '' Niitaka'' and '' Tsushima'' to proceed to Tsugaru Strait
The is a strait between Honshu and Hokkaido in northern Japan connecting the Sea of Japan with the Pacific Ocean. It was named after the western part of Aomori Prefecture. The Seikan Tunnel passes under it at its narrowest point 12.1 miles (1 ...
to catch ''Novik'' if she attempted to reach Vladivostok via that route, but then cancelled the order after determining that the two cruisers were needed in the Shanghai area to search for the Russian protected cruiser ''Askold
Askold and Dir (''Haskuldr'' or ''Hǫskuldr'' and ''Dyr'' or ''Djur'' in Old Norse; died in 882), mentioned in both the Primary Chronicle and the Nikon Chronicle, were the earliest known ''purportedly Norse'' rulers of Kiev.
Primary Chronicle ...
''. This decision afforded ''Novik'' the opportunity to steam northward to the east of Japan without interference. She passed south of Yakushima
is one of the Ōsumi Islands in Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. The island, in area, has a population of 13,178. Access to the island is by hydrofoil ferry (7 or 8 times a day from Kagoshima, depending on the season), slow car ferry (once or twic ...
in the Ōsumi Islands
The is an archipelago in the Nansei Islands, and are the northernmost group of the Satsunan Islands, which is in turn part of the Ryukyu Archipelago. The chain extends from the southern tip of Kyushu to Yakushima. Administratively, the group bel ...
at 05:30 on 14 August and entered the Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the contin ...
, turning north.[Corbett, Vol. I, p. 454.]
A Japanese merchant ship sighted ''Novik'' passing Yakushima early on 14 August,[ and when word of the sighting reached the Japanese naval command on the morning of 15 August, they finally were able to organize a pursuit.][ They ordered the protected cruisers '' Chitose'' and ''Tsushima'' under the overall command of the commanding officer of ''Chitose'' to proceed north with all speed to Tsugaru Strait and destroy ''Novik'' if she attempted to enter the ]Sea of Japan
The Sea of Japan is the marginal sea between the Japanese archipelago, Sakhalin, the Korean Peninsula, and the mainland of the Russian Far East. The Japanese archipelago separates the sea from the Pacific Ocean. Like the Mediterranean Sea, i ...
from the Pacific Ocean via that strait.[ ''Tsushima'' received the orders promptly, and unable to contact ''Chitose'', proceeded northward through the Sea of Japan on her own. ''Chitose'' did not receive the order until around sundown on 15 August, and was unable to follow ''Tsushima'' until 03:30 on 16 August.][
''Tsushima'' arrived at ]Hakodate
is a city and port located in Oshima Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan. It is the capital city of Oshima Subprefecture. As of July 31, 2011, the city has an estimated population of 279,851 with 143,221 households, and a population density of 412.8 ...
, Japan, on Tsugaru Strait around sunset on 17 August 1904, and ''Chitose'' met her there at about 13:00 on 18 August.[ They received orders to patrol in the Sea of Japan off the western side of Tsugaru Strait until 08:00 on 19 August. If ''Novik'' did not appear by that time, they were to split up, with ''Chitose'' continuing to watch Tsugaru Strait while ''Tsushima'' steamed north to investigate ]La Perouse Strait
LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States.
La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment Music
* La (musical note), or A, the sixth note
* "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on ''Figur ...
. When there was no sign of ''Novik'', they duly parted company as ordered.[Corbett, Vol. I, p. 455.]
About an hour after ''Tsushima'' headed north, word arrived that ''Novik'' had passed through Friza Strait between Uruppu
Urup ( ja, 得撫島, Uruppu-to; russian: Уру́п, Urúp, ain, ウルㇷ゚, Urup) is an uninhabited volcanic island in the Kuril Islands chain in the south of the Sea of Okhotsk, northwest Pacific Ocean. Its name is derived from the Ainu la ...
and Etorofu
, other_names = russian: Итуру́п; ja, 択捉島
, location = Sea of Okhotsk
, coordinates =
, archipelago = Kuril Islands
, total_islands =
, major_islands =
, area_km2 = 3139
, length_km = 200
, width_km = 27
, coastline =
, highest_moun ...
in the Kurile Islands
The Kuril Islands or Kurile Islands (; rus, Кури́льские острова́, r=Kuril'skiye ostrova, p=kʊˈrʲilʲskʲɪjə ɐstrɐˈva; Japanese: or ) are a volcanic archipelago currently administered as part of Sakhalin Oblast in the ...
and entered the Sea of Okhotsk.[ The Japanese surmised that ''Novik'' intended to pass through La Perouse Strait on her way to Vladivostok and would have to coal at Korsakov on the south coast of Sakhalin Island, and they ordered ''Chitose'' to join ''Tsushima'' in La Perouse Strait.][ ''Tsushima'' began searching the strait around 08:00 on 20 August 1904, and ''Chitose'' joined her at around 10:00.][ With no sign of ''Novik'', the commanding officer of ''Chitose'' ordered ''Tsushima'' to steam into ]Aniva Bay
Aniva Bay (Russian: Залив Анива (''Zaliv Aniva''), Japanese: 亜庭湾, Aniwa Bay, or Aniva Gulf) is located at the southern end of Sakhalin Island, Russia, north of the island of Hokkaidō, Japan. The largest city on the bay is Kors ...
and see if ''Novik'' was at Korsakov.[
''Novik'' had steamed at economical speed during her voyage east of Japan, but the Japanese were correct that she nonetheless required a coaling stop at Korsakov before she could proceed to Vladivostok.][ She arrived at Korsakov at sunrise on 20 August 1904, her commanding officer intending to take on coal and water before steaming through La Perouse Strait under the cover of darkness during the night of 20-21 August.][ During the day, however, ''Novik''′s wireless detected signs of nearby Japanese wireless activity, and during the afternoon, ''Novik''′s crew sighted ''Tsushima''′s smoke.][ Fearing he could be trapped at Korsakov, ''Novik''′s commanding officer decided during the early afternoon of 20 August to revise his plans, suspend coaling, and depart immediately for Vladivostok via La Perouse Strait.][
]
Battle
''Tsushima'' approached Korsakov at 16:00 on 20 August 1904 and observed smoke rising from the harbor, ascertaining that it was from ''Novik''.[ She then sighted ''Novik'' steaming south from Korsakov at 16:30 and opened fire on her.][ ''Novik'' replied, and a sharp but one-sided action took place over a little over a half an hour in which the more heavily armed ''Tsushima'' scored several hits on ''Novik'', five of them below the ]waterline
The waterline is the line where the hull of a ship meets the surface of the water. Specifically, it is also the name of a special marking, also known as an international load line, Plimsoll line and water line (positioned amidships), that indi ...
, which knocked half her boiler
A boiler is a closed vessel in which fluid (generally water) is heated. The fluid does not necessarily boil. The heated or vaporized fluid exits the boiler for use in various processes or heating applications, including water heating, centr ...
s out of action and flooded her steering compartment.[ ''Novik'' turned back for Korsakov with ''Tsushima'' in pursuit, but about a half an hour later, at 17:40, ''Novik'' scored a hit on ''Tsushima'' on the waterline which flooded two compartments and caused ''Tsushima'' to list so heavily that she had to abandon the chase and stop to make emergency repairs. ''Novik'' returned to the harbor at Korsakov.][Corbett, Vol. I, p. 456.]
While ''Tsushima'' repaired her damage, ''Chitose'' arrived on the scene.[ The two Japanese cruisers watched Korsakov throughout the night of 20-21 August in case ''Novik'' made another attempt to break out.][ ''Novik''′s steering gear had been damaged beyond repair, however, and her commanding officer, discerning from the play of ]searchlight
A searchlight (or spotlight) is an apparatus that combines an extremely bright source (traditionally a carbon arc lamp) with a mirrored parabolic reflector to project a powerful beam of light of approximately parallel rays in a particular direc ...
s to seaward during the night that the second Japanese cruiser had arrived, decided that she could not be saved.[ He ordered ''Novik'' to be ]scuttled
Scuttling is the deliberate sinking of a ship. Scuttling may be performed to dispose of an abandoned, old, or captured vessel; to prevent the vessel from becoming a navigation hazard; as an act of self-destruction to prevent the ship from being ...
in shallow water.[
At dawn on 21 August, ''Chitose'' entered the harbor to find ''Novik'' sunk on a sandbank with her boats and launches around her removing her crew and valuable gear. ''Chitose'' closed with ''Novik''′s wreck and opened fire on it at a range of 9,300 yards (8,500 meters). At a range of 4,400 yards (4,000 meters), she scored 20 hits.][ Continuing to close to a range of 2,700 yards (2,500 meters), ''Chitose''′s commanding officer decided that ''Novik'' was beyond salvage by the Russians and withdrew.][
]
Aftermath
''Chitose'' and ''Tsushima'' retired to the south.[ At the end of August 1904, the Japanese ]auxiliary cruiser
An armed merchantman is a merchant ship equipped with guns, usually for defensive purposes, either by design or after the fact. In the days of sail, piracy and privateers, many merchantmen would be routinely armed, especially those engaging in ...
s '' Hong Kong Maru'' and ''Nippon Maru
is a Japanese museum ship and former training vessel. She is permanently docked in Yokohama harbor, in Nippon Maru Memorial Park.Yokohama Visitors Guide''Nippon Maru''; retrieved 2012-6-28.
She was built by Kawasaki Shipbuilding Corporation ...
'' went north from Japan to patrol La Perouse Strait, and during these operations their crews stripped ''Novik''′s wreck of all removable gear and guns before returning to Japan, where they began operations from Hakodate
is a city and port located in Oshima Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan. It is the capital city of Oshima Subprefecture. As of July 31, 2011, the city has an estimated population of 279,851 with 143,221 households, and a population density of 412.8 ...
on 7 September 1904. Meanwhile, sixty members of ''Novik''′s crew were assigned to an Imperial Russian Army force of about 500 men based at Korsakov with orders to engage in guerrilla warfare against any Imperial Japanese Army
The was the official ground-based armed force of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945. It was controlled by the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff Office and the Ministry of the Army, both of which were nominally subordinate to the Emperor o ...
forces that landed on southern Sakhalin Island.[Corbett, Vol. II, p. 353.]
In August 1905, shortly before the conclusion of the Russo-Japanese War, a Japanese engineering team arrived at Korsakov to salvage ''Novik'' as a prize of war
A prize of war is a piece of enemy property or land seized by a belligerent party during or after a war or battle, typically at sea. This term was used nearly exclusively in terms of captured ships during the 18th and 19th centuries. Basis in inte ...
. After a lengthy effort to refloat her, the Japanese towed her to Yokosuka Naval Arsenal
was one of four principal naval shipyards owned and operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy, and was located at Yokosuka, Kanagawa prefecture on Tokyo Bay, south of Yokohama.
History
In 1866, the Tokugawa shogunate government established the ...
in Yokosuka
is a city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan.
, the city has a population of 409,478, and a population density of . The total area is . Yokosuka is the 11th most populous city in the Greater Tokyo Area, and the 12th in the Kantō region.
The city ...
, Japan, where she was repaired. On 20 August 1906, the second anniversary of the Battle of Korsakov, she was commissioned into the Imperial Japanese Navy as the ''aviso
An ''aviso'' was originally a kind of dispatch boat or "advice boat", carrying orders before the development of effective remote communication.
The term, derived from the Portuguese and Spanish word for "advice", "notice" or "warning", an ...
'' ''Suzuya''. Reclassified as a second-class coastal defense ship
Coastal defence ships (sometimes called coastal battleships or coast defence ships) were warships built for the purpose of coastal defence, mostly during the period from 1860 to 1920. They were small, often cruiser-sized warships that sacrifi ...
in 1912, ''Suzuya'' was sold for scrap in 1913.
In popular culture
The Battle of Korsakov is depicted in the novels ''Port Arthur'' (Порт-Артур) by Aleksandr Stepanov and ''Katorga
Katorga ( rus, ка́торга, p=ˈkatərɡə; from medieval and modern Greek: ''katergon, κάτεργον'', " galley") was a system of penal labor in the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union (see Katorga labor in the Soviet Union). Prisone ...
'' (Каторга) by Valentin Pikul
Valentin Savvich Pikul (russian: Валенти́н Са́ввич Пи́куль) (July 13, 1928 – July 16, 1990) was a popular and prolific Soviet historical novelist of Ukrainian-Russian heritage. He lived and worked in Riga.
Pikul's novels w ...
.
See also
*List of battles of the Russo-Japanese War
The following are known battles of the Russo-Japanese War, including all major engagements.
The Russo-Japanese War lasted from 1904 until 1905. The conflict grew out of the rival imperialist ambitions of the Russian Empire and the Japanese Emp ...
Notes
References
* Corbett, Julian S., ''Maritime Operations in the Russo-Japanese War, Volume I'', Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1994, .
* Corbett, Julian S., ''Maritime Operations in the Russo-Japanese War, Volume II'', Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1994, .
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Korsakov, Battle of
Conflicts in 1904
Battles and conflicts without fatalities
Naval battles of the Russo-Japanese War
Battles involving Japan
Battles involving Russia
August 1904 events