Romanov loyalist:
{|{{Infobox ship begin}}
{{Infobox ship image
|Ship image=Nerpa1911-1917.jpg
|Ship caption=''Nerpa'' in 1915.
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=
|Ship country=[[Russian Empire]] and the [[Russian Provisional Government|Provisional Government]]
|Ship flag={{shipboxflag|Russian Empire|naval}}
|Ship name=''Nerpa''
|Ship namesake=
|Ship ordered=
|Ship builder=[[Mykolaiv|Nikolayev]] branch of the [[Baltic Yard]]{{sfn|Budzbon|1986|p=315}}
|Ship laid down=15 August 1913<ref name="flot">{{cite web |title=Нерпа |trans-title=Nerpa |lang=ru |url=https://flot.com/users/lapin/Imperial/nerpa.htm |work=Flot.com |publisher=Mil.Press |access-date=7 May 2024 }}</ref>
|Ship launched=15 August 1913<ref name="flot" />
|Ship completed=30 December 1914<ref name="flot" />
|Ship acquired=
|Ship commissioned=
|Ship decommissioned=
|Ship in service=
|Ship out of service=
|Ship struck=
|Ship homeport=
|Ship honours=
|Ship fate=Captured by the Bolsheviks in 1920 while under repair{{sfn|Budzbon|1986|p=315}}
|Ship notes=
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=
|Ship country=[[Russian SFSR]] and the [[Soviet Union]]
|Ship flag={{shipboxflag|Soviet Union|naval-1924}}
|Ship name=''Politruk'' (renamed in January 1923){{sfn|Budzbon|1986|p=315}}
|Ship namesake=
|Ship ordered=
|Ship builder=
|Ship laid down=
|Ship launched=
|Ship completed=
|Ship acquired=
|Ship commissioned=3 June 1922{{sfn|Budzbon|1986|p=315}}
|Ship decommissioned=
|Ship in service=
|Ship out of service=
|Ship struck=
|Ship homeport=
|Ship honours=
|Ship fate=Stricken on 3 November 1929, scrapped in 1931.<ref name="flot" />
|Ship notes=
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
|Hide header=
|Header caption={{sfn|Budzbon|1986|p=315}}{{sfn|Friedman|Noot|1991|pp=28–29}}
|Ship type= [[Submarine]]
|Ship displacement=* {{convert|630|LT|t}} surfaced
* {{convert|760|LT|t}} submerged
|Ship length= {{convert|67|m|ftin|abbr=on}}
|Ship beam={{convert|4.5|m|ftin|abbr=on}}
|Ship height=
|Ship draft={{convert|3.9|m|ftin|abbr=on}}
|Ship power=
|Ship propulsion=* [[Diesel-electric]]
* {{convert|500|hp|abbr=on|lk=in}} diesel engine
* {{convert|800|hp|abbr=on}} electric motor
*2 shafts
|Ship speed=* {{convert|10.8|kn|km/h}} surfaced
* {{convert|8|kn|km/h}} submerged
|Ship range= {{convert|2500|nmi|km|lk=in|abbr=on}}
|Ship endurance=
|Ship test depth=
|Ship complement=47
|Ship armament=*1 × [[QF 6-pounder Hotchkiss|{{convert|57|mm|in|abbr=on|0}}]] or [[QF 3-pounder Hotchkiss|{{convert|47|mm|in|abbr=on|0}}]] gun
*4 × {{convert|457|mm|in|0|abbr=on}} [[torpedo tube]]s
*8 × torpedoes in [[Drzewiecki drop collar|Dzhevetskiy drop collars]] (later removed)
|Ship armor=
|Ship notes=
}}
|}
The '''Russian submarine ''Nerpa''''' ({{lang-ru|Нерпа|lit=[[Baikal seal]]}}) was the second boat of the [[Morzh-class submarine|''Morzh''-class]] of submarines of the [[Imperial Russian Navy]]. It was laid down and launched on the same day in August 1913, and completed its sea trials in December 1914. Built for the [[Black Sea Fleet]], the submarine saw action during [[World War I]], and spent much of the war raiding Ottoman merchant shipping that transported coal from [[Zonguldak]] to [[Constantinople]]. ''Nerpa'' was credited with sinking 24 ships during the conflict for a total of {{GRT|2,443|disp=long}}, making it the fourth most successful Russian submarine in the Black Sea.
''Nerpa'' was undergoing major repairs at the shipyard in [[Mykolaiv|Nikolayev]] when the [[October Revolution]] occurred. During the [[Russian Civil War]] the city was occupied over time by several forces, including [[German Empire|Germany]], the [[Allied intervention in the Russian Civil War|Western Allies]], and the [[White Army]], before being taken by the [[Bolsheviks]] and becoming part of the [[Soviet Union]]. ''Nerpa'' was the only prewar Russian submarine in the Black Sea captured by the Bolsheviks, and it was commissioned into the [[Soviet Navy]] in June 1922, before being renamed '''''Politruk''''' ({{lang-ru|Политрук|lit=[[political commissar|political leader]]}}) in January 1923. The boat became part of the Detached Submarine Division of the Soviet Black Sea Fleet, along with four [[American Holland-class submarine|''"*****"''-class submarines]]. ''Politruk'' remained on active service until November 1929, when it was removed from the fleet, and it was scrapped in 1931.
==Design and construction==
After being defeated in the [[Russo-Japanese War]], the [[Russian Empire]] began rebuilding its [[Imperial Russian Navy|Navy]]. Initially the main focus of the naval arms programs was on the [[Baltic Fleet|Baltic]] and [[Pacific Fleet (Russia)|Pacific fleets]], but as tensions increased with [[Austria-Hungary]] due to the [[Bosnian crisis]] in 1908 and with [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman Turkey]] after the expansion of its [[Ottoman Navy|navy]], the [[Black Sea Fleet]] was given more attention. The 1911 naval program approved by the [[State Duma (Russian Empire)|State Duma]] included the order of six submarines for the Black Sea Fleet, which ended up being three ''Morzh''-class boats and three [[Russian Narval-class submarine|''Narval''-class]].{{sfn|Budzbon|1986|p=315}}{{sfn|Budzbon|1986|p=291}} The naval engineer [[Ivan Bubnov]] was the designer of the ''Morzh'' class and developed it from his earlier submarine {{ship|Russian submarine|Akula|1907|2}}, which was considered to be the most advanced of the Russian submarines at the time.{{sfn|Budzbon|1986|p=315}}{{sfn|Budzbon|1986|p=314}} In the years before the 1911 program, there was debate in the Imperial Russian Navy on whether to purchase and build the submarines designed by Ivan Bubnov, the chief submarine engineer of the [[Baltic Yard]], or a foreign inspired design, based on the popular [[General Dynamics Electric Boat|Holland type]], which became known as the ''Narval'' class. Bubnov was supported by the Naval General Staff, while the foreign type was favored by members of the Naval Technological Committee. In the end, a conference led by Navy Minister [[Stepan Voevodskiy]] settled the matter by ordering three submarines of each class.{{sfn|Westwood|1994|pages=108–112}}{{sfn|Westwood|1994|p=106}}
The ''Morzh''-class submarines were well-armed for the time, having one [[deck gun]], four internal [[torpedo tube]]s and eight [[Drzewiecki drop collar|Dzhevetskiy torpedo-launching collars]]. However, the vessel had numerous shortcomings. It suffered from having only a single hull, lacking bulkheads, having a slow diving time of {{fraction|3|1|2}} minutes due to poor [[ballast tank]] venting, and a diving depth of only {{convert|25|fathom|lk=in}}. An additional problem was that twin {{convert|1,140|hp|lk=in}} [[diesel engine]]s to power all three ''Morzh''-class boats had been ordered from [[German Empire|Germany]], but were not delivered by the time [[World War I]] broke out. They had to be replaced by severely underpowered engines from the [[Amur River]] gunboats, each of which delivered only {{convert|250|hp}}. This meant that the designed {{convert|16|kn|lk=in|adj=on}} surface speed could not be attained. The designed {{convert|12|kn|adj=on}} underwater speed also could not be attained due to a poorly designed hull shape, which was more like that of a surface vessel than a submarine.{{sfn|Friedman|Noot|1991|pp=28–29}}{{sfn|Budzbon|1986|pp=314–315}} The construction of all three submarines began on 25 June 1911 and took place at the [[Mykolaiv|Nikolayev]] department of the Baltic Yard, which was created specifically to build the ''Morzh''-class. Some of the components were made in [[Saint Petersburg]] before being sent to Nikolayev to be assembled.<ref name="morzh">{{Cite web |title=Подводные лодки типа "Морж": Очерк |trans-title=Submarine type "Morzh": Article |lang=ru |work=Flot.com |publisher=Mil.Press |url=https://flot.com/users/lapin/Imperial/type_morzh.htm |access-date=6 May 2024 }}</ref>
''Nerpa'' was laid down and launched in August 1913, and received its engines in November 1914, with the [[sea trial]]s taking place until the end of the following month. This made ''Nerpa'' the first of the ''Morzh''-class boats to enter service,<ref name="flot" /> and at the time were they considered to be the best submarines in the Black Sea Fleet.{{sfn|Halpern|1994|pages=232–233}}
==World War I service==
[[File:Nerpa submarine.jpg|thumb|left|''Nerpa'' during the war.]]
At the same time when ''Nerpa'' was undergoing sea trials and began active service, the Russian Black Sea Fleet was following a defensive strategy, but this changed in early 1915 when the [[Stavka of the Supreme Commander|Stavka]] ordered it to attack the [[Bosporus]] to support the [[Gallipoli campaign]] of the [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland|British]] and the [[French Third Republic|French]]. ''Nerpa'' carried out its first patrol near the Bosporus from 5 to 8 March 1915, becoming the first Russian submarine to do so. The patrol was uneventful.{{sfn|Halpern|1994|pages=223–230}} But by April, the Russian focus changed to stopping coal shipments along the Turkish coast from the area of [[Zonguldak]] to [[Constantinople]], and the submarines, working with destroyers, implemented a partial blockade of the Bosporus. It eventually had the effect of forcing the German ships in the Black Sea to limit their operations to save fuel. Initially it was ''Nerpa'' and its sister ship {{ship|Russian submarine|Tyulen||2}} working on this task, and they were later joined by the final boat of their class, {{ship|Russian submarine|Morzh||2}}.{{sfn|Halpern|1994|pages=232–233}} At first the two submarines took turns going on patrol, but they later began patrolling at the same time, with each taking a position on either side of the entrance to the strait.{{sfn|Breemer|1989|p=35}}
On 5 September 1915 the submarine ''Nerpa'', commanded by V. V. Vilken, worked together with the destroyers {{ship|Russian destroyer|Bystry|1914|2}} and {{ship|Russian destroyer|Pronzitelny||2}} to attack an Ottoman merchant ship convoy on its way to Constantinople from Zonguldak. It was escorted by the cruiser {{ship|Ottoman cruiser|Hamidiye||2}} and the destroyers {{ship|Ottoman destroyer|Nümune-i Hamiyet||2}} and {{ship|Ottoman destroyer|Muavenet-i Milliye||2}}. After spotting the submarine and the destroyers, the escorts abandoned the convoy and sped toward the Bosporus, while also sending a message to the battlecruiser {{SMS|Goeben||2}} for assistance. The coal transport ships beached themselves on the shore and were attacked by the destroyers.{{sfn|Graf|1923|pages=65–66}}<ref name="archive">{{Cite web |title=Первая Мировая война. Действия на Черном море. |trans-title=First World War. Actions on the Black Sea. |lang=ru |work=Russian State Archive of the Navy |access-date=7 May 2024 |url=https://rgavmf.ru/books/boevaya-let...vaya-mirovaya-voyna-deystviya-na-chernom-more }}</ref> ''Goeben'' arrived some time later and opened fire at ''Nerpa'' after spotting the submarine on the surface. ''Nerpa'' crash dived and was able to escape.{{sfn|Ballantyne|2018|p=189}}
[[File:Nerpa&Evstafiy-class1915Sevastopol.jpg|thumb|''Nerpa'' in a dry dock in 1915.]]
''Nerpa'' was attacked by the German submarine {{ship|SM|UB-7||2}} on 21 August 1916 while traveling on the surface near the Bosporus. Of the two torpedoes fired by ''UB-7'' one missed completely, while the second glanced off the stern but did not detonate, because its detonation mechanism did not work properly.<ref name="archive" />{{sfn|Ballantyne|2018|p=191}} By late 1916, there were seven Russian submarines carrying out patrols in the Black Sea in total, which included ''Nerpa'' and the other two ''Morzh''-class boats, the three boats of the ''Narval'' class, and the submarine minelayer {{ship|Russian submarine|Krab|1912|2}}.{{sfn|Breemer|1989|p=36}}
After the [[February Revolution]] in 1917, the [[Russian Provisional Government]] continued operations in the Black Sea, including the attacks on Ottoman coal shipping.{{sfn|Halpern|1994|pages=252–253}} On 24 April 1917 ''Nerpa'' was close to the entrance of the Bosporus when two transport ships left on their way to Zonguldak. They stayed close to the coast where they were protected by coastal artillery, but the submarine fired at it with its own deck guns, and then destroyed both of the transports.<ref name="archive" /> ''Nerpa'' was on patrol in that area again as of 26 June 1917, when the cruiser {{SMS|Breslau||2}} was returning to port after laying mines near the entrance of the [[Danube]] and was being pursued by several Russian warships. But the submarine was not close enough to make an attack and ''Breslau'' made it back.{{sfn|Halpern|1994|pages=252–253}}
Sometime after June 1917, the submarine underwent major repairs at the shipyard in Nikolayev, and that is where it was when the [[October Revolution]] occurred.<ref name="flot" /> During the war ''Nerpa'' was credited with destroying 24 ships for a total tonnage of {{GRT|2,443}}, making it the fourth most successful submarine of the Black Sea Fleet and one of the more successful ones in the Imperial Russian Navy overall.{{sfn|Dovzhenko|2021|p=85}}
==In the Soviet Navy==
[[File
olitruk1922-1930Sevastopol.jpg|thumb|''Nerpa'' as ''Politruk'' some time in the 1920s.]]
In the years after the October Revolution, the port of Nikolayev was controlled by several different factions. The [[Imperial German Army|German Army]] advanced into the territory of the [[Ukrainian People's Republic]], which it recognized on 9 February 1918, and occupied Nikolayev by 17 March 1918. After the surrender of Germany, the Western Allies were present in the area, along with elements of the Russian [[White Army]], but they withdrew and the Bolsheviks took over the area by the end of 1920. ''Nerpa'' was the only prewar submarine in the Black Sea that was in Bolshevik control by the end of the [[Russian Civil War]].{{sfn|Halpern|1994|pages=256–257}}{{sfn|Erikson|1977|p=213}}{{sfn|Breemer|1989|p=43}} It was commissioned into the [[Soviet Navy]] on 3 June 1922 and was renamed ''Politruk'' in January 1923.{{sfn|Budzbon|1986|p=315}} The Bolsheviks established the Naval Forces of the Black and Azov Seas (renamed the Naval Forces of the Black Sea in 1922), which included a Detached Submarine Division that was formed on 21 October 1920 in Nikolayev before being moved to Sevastopol. This division included ''Politruk'' along with four [[American Holland-class submarine|American Holland-type submarines]] that arrived in Russia in separate pieces and still had not been assembled by the time of the Revolution ({{ship|Russian submarine|"*****"-23||2}}, {{ship|Russian submarine|"*****"-24||2}}, {{ship|Russian submarine|"*****"-25||2}}, and {{ship|Russian submarine|"*****"-26||2}}).{{sfn|Erikson|1977|p=213}}{{sfn|Breemer|1989|p=43}}
''Politruk'' stayed in active service for several years and underwent another repair between 1925 and 1926. On 3 November 1929 the submarine was removed from the fleet, and it was scrapped in 1931.<ref name="flot" />
===Gallery===
<gallery>
"*****"-1930-1932-Odesa.jpg|''Politruk'' (first on the left) with the ''"*****"''-series boats.
Politruk1922-1930.jpg|''Politruk'' at the docks.
Politruk1920sYevpatoriya.jpg|The boat at sea.
</gallery>
==References==
===Citations===
{{reflist}}
===Works===
{{ref begin}}
* {{Cite book |last=Ballantyne |first=Iain |title=The Deadly Deep: The Definitive History of Submarine Warfare |year=2018 |publisher=Pegasus Books |isbn=978-1-68177-943-0 }}
* {{Cite book |last=Breemer |first=Jan S. |title=Soviet Submarines: Design, Development, and Tactics |year=1989 |publisher=Jane's Information Group |isbn={{Format ISBN|9780710605269}} }}
* {{cite book |chapter=Russia |last=Budzbon |first=Prezemyslav |editor-last=Gardiner |editor-first=Robert |editor-last2=Gray |editor-first2=Randal |name-list-style=amp |year=1986 |title=Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921 |publisher=Conway Maritime Press |location=London |isbn=0-85177-245-5 |pages=295–321}}
* {{Cite journal |last=Dovzhenko |first=V. |title=Черноморский флот России в первой мировой войне |trans-title=Black Sea Fleet of Russia in the First World War |lang=ru |journal=Морской сборник [Naval Review] |year=2021 |issue=3 }}
* {{Cite journal |last=Erikson |first=Rolf |title=The Subterfuge Submarines |editor-last=Fisher |editor-first=E. C. Jr. |journal=Warship International |volume=14 |issue=3 |year=1977 |pages=200–226 |jstor=44888103 }}
* {{cite book |last1=Friedman |first1=Norman |last2=Noot |first2=Jurrien |name-list-style=amp |year=1991 |title=Submarines of the Russian and Soviet Navies, 1718–1990 |publisher=Naval Institute Press |location=Annapolis, Maryland |isbn=0-87021-570-1 }}
* {{Cite book |last=Graf |first=Garald Karlovich |year=1923 |title=The Russian Navy in War and Revolution: From 1914 up to 1918 |publisher=R. Oldenbourg |location=Munich}}
* {{cite book |last=Halpern |first=Paul G. |title=A Naval History of World War I |year=1994 |location=Annapolis |publisher=Naval Institute Press |isbn=978-1-61251-172-6 }}
* {{cite book |last=Westwood |first=J. N. |title=Russian Naval Construction, 1905–45 |location=London |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan |year=1994 |isbn=978-1-349-12458-9 }}
{{ref end}}
{{Morzh-class submarines}}
[[Category:1913 ships]]
[[Category:Submarines of the Imperial Russian Navy]]
[[Category:Submarines of the Soviet Navy]]
[[Category:World War I submarines of Russia]]
[[Category:Ships built in Mykolaiv]]
Okumaya devam et...
{|{{Infobox ship begin}}
{{Infobox ship image
|Ship image=Nerpa1911-1917.jpg
|Ship caption=''Nerpa'' in 1915.
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=
|Ship country=[[Russian Empire]] and the [[Russian Provisional Government|Provisional Government]]
|Ship flag={{shipboxflag|Russian Empire|naval}}
|Ship name=''Nerpa''
|Ship namesake=
|Ship ordered=
|Ship builder=[[Mykolaiv|Nikolayev]] branch of the [[Baltic Yard]]{{sfn|Budzbon|1986|p=315}}
|Ship laid down=15 August 1913<ref name="flot">{{cite web |title=Нерпа |trans-title=Nerpa |lang=ru |url=https://flot.com/users/lapin/Imperial/nerpa.htm |work=Flot.com |publisher=Mil.Press |access-date=7 May 2024 }}</ref>
|Ship launched=15 August 1913<ref name="flot" />
|Ship completed=30 December 1914<ref name="flot" />
|Ship acquired=
|Ship commissioned=
|Ship decommissioned=
|Ship in service=
|Ship out of service=
|Ship struck=
|Ship homeport=
|Ship honours=
|Ship fate=Captured by the Bolsheviks in 1920 while under repair{{sfn|Budzbon|1986|p=315}}
|Ship notes=
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=
|Ship country=[[Russian SFSR]] and the [[Soviet Union]]
|Ship flag={{shipboxflag|Soviet Union|naval-1924}}
|Ship name=''Politruk'' (renamed in January 1923){{sfn|Budzbon|1986|p=315}}
|Ship namesake=
|Ship ordered=
|Ship builder=
|Ship laid down=
|Ship launched=
|Ship completed=
|Ship acquired=
|Ship commissioned=3 June 1922{{sfn|Budzbon|1986|p=315}}
|Ship decommissioned=
|Ship in service=
|Ship out of service=
|Ship struck=
|Ship homeport=
|Ship honours=
|Ship fate=Stricken on 3 November 1929, scrapped in 1931.<ref name="flot" />
|Ship notes=
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
|Hide header=
|Header caption={{sfn|Budzbon|1986|p=315}}{{sfn|Friedman|Noot|1991|pp=28–29}}
|Ship type= [[Submarine]]
|Ship displacement=* {{convert|630|LT|t}} surfaced
* {{convert|760|LT|t}} submerged
|Ship length= {{convert|67|m|ftin|abbr=on}}
|Ship beam={{convert|4.5|m|ftin|abbr=on}}
|Ship height=
|Ship draft={{convert|3.9|m|ftin|abbr=on}}
|Ship power=
|Ship propulsion=* [[Diesel-electric]]
* {{convert|500|hp|abbr=on|lk=in}} diesel engine
* {{convert|800|hp|abbr=on}} electric motor
*2 shafts
|Ship speed=* {{convert|10.8|kn|km/h}} surfaced
* {{convert|8|kn|km/h}} submerged
|Ship range= {{convert|2500|nmi|km|lk=in|abbr=on}}
|Ship endurance=
|Ship test depth=
|Ship complement=47
|Ship armament=*1 × [[QF 6-pounder Hotchkiss|{{convert|57|mm|in|abbr=on|0}}]] or [[QF 3-pounder Hotchkiss|{{convert|47|mm|in|abbr=on|0}}]] gun
*4 × {{convert|457|mm|in|0|abbr=on}} [[torpedo tube]]s
*8 × torpedoes in [[Drzewiecki drop collar|Dzhevetskiy drop collars]] (later removed)
|Ship armor=
|Ship notes=
}}
|}
The '''Russian submarine ''Nerpa''''' ({{lang-ru|Нерпа|lit=[[Baikal seal]]}}) was the second boat of the [[Morzh-class submarine|''Morzh''-class]] of submarines of the [[Imperial Russian Navy]]. It was laid down and launched on the same day in August 1913, and completed its sea trials in December 1914. Built for the [[Black Sea Fleet]], the submarine saw action during [[World War I]], and spent much of the war raiding Ottoman merchant shipping that transported coal from [[Zonguldak]] to [[Constantinople]]. ''Nerpa'' was credited with sinking 24 ships during the conflict for a total of {{GRT|2,443|disp=long}}, making it the fourth most successful Russian submarine in the Black Sea.
''Nerpa'' was undergoing major repairs at the shipyard in [[Mykolaiv|Nikolayev]] when the [[October Revolution]] occurred. During the [[Russian Civil War]] the city was occupied over time by several forces, including [[German Empire|Germany]], the [[Allied intervention in the Russian Civil War|Western Allies]], and the [[White Army]], before being taken by the [[Bolsheviks]] and becoming part of the [[Soviet Union]]. ''Nerpa'' was the only prewar Russian submarine in the Black Sea captured by the Bolsheviks, and it was commissioned into the [[Soviet Navy]] in June 1922, before being renamed '''''Politruk''''' ({{lang-ru|Политрук|lit=[[political commissar|political leader]]}}) in January 1923. The boat became part of the Detached Submarine Division of the Soviet Black Sea Fleet, along with four [[American Holland-class submarine|''"*****"''-class submarines]]. ''Politruk'' remained on active service until November 1929, when it was removed from the fleet, and it was scrapped in 1931.
==Design and construction==
After being defeated in the [[Russo-Japanese War]], the [[Russian Empire]] began rebuilding its [[Imperial Russian Navy|Navy]]. Initially the main focus of the naval arms programs was on the [[Baltic Fleet|Baltic]] and [[Pacific Fleet (Russia)|Pacific fleets]], but as tensions increased with [[Austria-Hungary]] due to the [[Bosnian crisis]] in 1908 and with [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman Turkey]] after the expansion of its [[Ottoman Navy|navy]], the [[Black Sea Fleet]] was given more attention. The 1911 naval program approved by the [[State Duma (Russian Empire)|State Duma]] included the order of six submarines for the Black Sea Fleet, which ended up being three ''Morzh''-class boats and three [[Russian Narval-class submarine|''Narval''-class]].{{sfn|Budzbon|1986|p=315}}{{sfn|Budzbon|1986|p=291}} The naval engineer [[Ivan Bubnov]] was the designer of the ''Morzh'' class and developed it from his earlier submarine {{ship|Russian submarine|Akula|1907|2}}, which was considered to be the most advanced of the Russian submarines at the time.{{sfn|Budzbon|1986|p=315}}{{sfn|Budzbon|1986|p=314}} In the years before the 1911 program, there was debate in the Imperial Russian Navy on whether to purchase and build the submarines designed by Ivan Bubnov, the chief submarine engineer of the [[Baltic Yard]], or a foreign inspired design, based on the popular [[General Dynamics Electric Boat|Holland type]], which became known as the ''Narval'' class. Bubnov was supported by the Naval General Staff, while the foreign type was favored by members of the Naval Technological Committee. In the end, a conference led by Navy Minister [[Stepan Voevodskiy]] settled the matter by ordering three submarines of each class.{{sfn|Westwood|1994|pages=108–112}}{{sfn|Westwood|1994|p=106}}
The ''Morzh''-class submarines were well-armed for the time, having one [[deck gun]], four internal [[torpedo tube]]s and eight [[Drzewiecki drop collar|Dzhevetskiy torpedo-launching collars]]. However, the vessel had numerous shortcomings. It suffered from having only a single hull, lacking bulkheads, having a slow diving time of {{fraction|3|1|2}} minutes due to poor [[ballast tank]] venting, and a diving depth of only {{convert|25|fathom|lk=in}}. An additional problem was that twin {{convert|1,140|hp|lk=in}} [[diesel engine]]s to power all three ''Morzh''-class boats had been ordered from [[German Empire|Germany]], but were not delivered by the time [[World War I]] broke out. They had to be replaced by severely underpowered engines from the [[Amur River]] gunboats, each of which delivered only {{convert|250|hp}}. This meant that the designed {{convert|16|kn|lk=in|adj=on}} surface speed could not be attained. The designed {{convert|12|kn|adj=on}} underwater speed also could not be attained due to a poorly designed hull shape, which was more like that of a surface vessel than a submarine.{{sfn|Friedman|Noot|1991|pp=28–29}}{{sfn|Budzbon|1986|pp=314–315}} The construction of all three submarines began on 25 June 1911 and took place at the [[Mykolaiv|Nikolayev]] department of the Baltic Yard, which was created specifically to build the ''Morzh''-class. Some of the components were made in [[Saint Petersburg]] before being sent to Nikolayev to be assembled.<ref name="morzh">{{Cite web |title=Подводные лодки типа "Морж": Очерк |trans-title=Submarine type "Morzh": Article |lang=ru |work=Flot.com |publisher=Mil.Press |url=https://flot.com/users/lapin/Imperial/type_morzh.htm |access-date=6 May 2024 }}</ref>
''Nerpa'' was laid down and launched in August 1913, and received its engines in November 1914, with the [[sea trial]]s taking place until the end of the following month. This made ''Nerpa'' the first of the ''Morzh''-class boats to enter service,<ref name="flot" /> and at the time were they considered to be the best submarines in the Black Sea Fleet.{{sfn|Halpern|1994|pages=232–233}}
==World War I service==
[[File:Nerpa submarine.jpg|thumb|left|''Nerpa'' during the war.]]
At the same time when ''Nerpa'' was undergoing sea trials and began active service, the Russian Black Sea Fleet was following a defensive strategy, but this changed in early 1915 when the [[Stavka of the Supreme Commander|Stavka]] ordered it to attack the [[Bosporus]] to support the [[Gallipoli campaign]] of the [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland|British]] and the [[French Third Republic|French]]. ''Nerpa'' carried out its first patrol near the Bosporus from 5 to 8 March 1915, becoming the first Russian submarine to do so. The patrol was uneventful.{{sfn|Halpern|1994|pages=223–230}} But by April, the Russian focus changed to stopping coal shipments along the Turkish coast from the area of [[Zonguldak]] to [[Constantinople]], and the submarines, working with destroyers, implemented a partial blockade of the Bosporus. It eventually had the effect of forcing the German ships in the Black Sea to limit their operations to save fuel. Initially it was ''Nerpa'' and its sister ship {{ship|Russian submarine|Tyulen||2}} working on this task, and they were later joined by the final boat of their class, {{ship|Russian submarine|Morzh||2}}.{{sfn|Halpern|1994|pages=232–233}} At first the two submarines took turns going on patrol, but they later began patrolling at the same time, with each taking a position on either side of the entrance to the strait.{{sfn|Breemer|1989|p=35}}
On 5 September 1915 the submarine ''Nerpa'', commanded by V. V. Vilken, worked together with the destroyers {{ship|Russian destroyer|Bystry|1914|2}} and {{ship|Russian destroyer|Pronzitelny||2}} to attack an Ottoman merchant ship convoy on its way to Constantinople from Zonguldak. It was escorted by the cruiser {{ship|Ottoman cruiser|Hamidiye||2}} and the destroyers {{ship|Ottoman destroyer|Nümune-i Hamiyet||2}} and {{ship|Ottoman destroyer|Muavenet-i Milliye||2}}. After spotting the submarine and the destroyers, the escorts abandoned the convoy and sped toward the Bosporus, while also sending a message to the battlecruiser {{SMS|Goeben||2}} for assistance. The coal transport ships beached themselves on the shore and were attacked by the destroyers.{{sfn|Graf|1923|pages=65–66}}<ref name="archive">{{Cite web |title=Первая Мировая война. Действия на Черном море. |trans-title=First World War. Actions on the Black Sea. |lang=ru |work=Russian State Archive of the Navy |access-date=7 May 2024 |url=https://rgavmf.ru/books/boevaya-let...vaya-mirovaya-voyna-deystviya-na-chernom-more }}</ref> ''Goeben'' arrived some time later and opened fire at ''Nerpa'' after spotting the submarine on the surface. ''Nerpa'' crash dived and was able to escape.{{sfn|Ballantyne|2018|p=189}}
[[File:Nerpa&Evstafiy-class1915Sevastopol.jpg|thumb|''Nerpa'' in a dry dock in 1915.]]
''Nerpa'' was attacked by the German submarine {{ship|SM|UB-7||2}} on 21 August 1916 while traveling on the surface near the Bosporus. Of the two torpedoes fired by ''UB-7'' one missed completely, while the second glanced off the stern but did not detonate, because its detonation mechanism did not work properly.<ref name="archive" />{{sfn|Ballantyne|2018|p=191}} By late 1916, there were seven Russian submarines carrying out patrols in the Black Sea in total, which included ''Nerpa'' and the other two ''Morzh''-class boats, the three boats of the ''Narval'' class, and the submarine minelayer {{ship|Russian submarine|Krab|1912|2}}.{{sfn|Breemer|1989|p=36}}
After the [[February Revolution]] in 1917, the [[Russian Provisional Government]] continued operations in the Black Sea, including the attacks on Ottoman coal shipping.{{sfn|Halpern|1994|pages=252–253}} On 24 April 1917 ''Nerpa'' was close to the entrance of the Bosporus when two transport ships left on their way to Zonguldak. They stayed close to the coast where they were protected by coastal artillery, but the submarine fired at it with its own deck guns, and then destroyed both of the transports.<ref name="archive" /> ''Nerpa'' was on patrol in that area again as of 26 June 1917, when the cruiser {{SMS|Breslau||2}} was returning to port after laying mines near the entrance of the [[Danube]] and was being pursued by several Russian warships. But the submarine was not close enough to make an attack and ''Breslau'' made it back.{{sfn|Halpern|1994|pages=252–253}}
Sometime after June 1917, the submarine underwent major repairs at the shipyard in Nikolayev, and that is where it was when the [[October Revolution]] occurred.<ref name="flot" /> During the war ''Nerpa'' was credited with destroying 24 ships for a total tonnage of {{GRT|2,443}}, making it the fourth most successful submarine of the Black Sea Fleet and one of the more successful ones in the Imperial Russian Navy overall.{{sfn|Dovzhenko|2021|p=85}}
==In the Soviet Navy==
[[File
olitruk1922-1930Sevastopol.jpg|thumb|''Nerpa'' as ''Politruk'' some time in the 1920s.]]In the years after the October Revolution, the port of Nikolayev was controlled by several different factions. The [[Imperial German Army|German Army]] advanced into the territory of the [[Ukrainian People's Republic]], which it recognized on 9 February 1918, and occupied Nikolayev by 17 March 1918. After the surrender of Germany, the Western Allies were present in the area, along with elements of the Russian [[White Army]], but they withdrew and the Bolsheviks took over the area by the end of 1920. ''Nerpa'' was the only prewar submarine in the Black Sea that was in Bolshevik control by the end of the [[Russian Civil War]].{{sfn|Halpern|1994|pages=256–257}}{{sfn|Erikson|1977|p=213}}{{sfn|Breemer|1989|p=43}} It was commissioned into the [[Soviet Navy]] on 3 June 1922 and was renamed ''Politruk'' in January 1923.{{sfn|Budzbon|1986|p=315}} The Bolsheviks established the Naval Forces of the Black and Azov Seas (renamed the Naval Forces of the Black Sea in 1922), which included a Detached Submarine Division that was formed on 21 October 1920 in Nikolayev before being moved to Sevastopol. This division included ''Politruk'' along with four [[American Holland-class submarine|American Holland-type submarines]] that arrived in Russia in separate pieces and still had not been assembled by the time of the Revolution ({{ship|Russian submarine|"*****"-23||2}}, {{ship|Russian submarine|"*****"-24||2}}, {{ship|Russian submarine|"*****"-25||2}}, and {{ship|Russian submarine|"*****"-26||2}}).{{sfn|Erikson|1977|p=213}}{{sfn|Breemer|1989|p=43}}
''Politruk'' stayed in active service for several years and underwent another repair between 1925 and 1926. On 3 November 1929 the submarine was removed from the fleet, and it was scrapped in 1931.<ref name="flot" />
===Gallery===
<gallery>
"*****"-1930-1932-Odesa.jpg|''Politruk'' (first on the left) with the ''"*****"''-series boats.
Politruk1922-1930.jpg|''Politruk'' at the docks.
Politruk1920sYevpatoriya.jpg|The boat at sea.
</gallery>
==References==
===Citations===
{{reflist}}
===Works===
{{ref begin}}
* {{Cite book |last=Ballantyne |first=Iain |title=The Deadly Deep: The Definitive History of Submarine Warfare |year=2018 |publisher=Pegasus Books |isbn=978-1-68177-943-0 }}
* {{Cite book |last=Breemer |first=Jan S. |title=Soviet Submarines: Design, Development, and Tactics |year=1989 |publisher=Jane's Information Group |isbn={{Format ISBN|9780710605269}} }}
* {{cite book |chapter=Russia |last=Budzbon |first=Prezemyslav |editor-last=Gardiner |editor-first=Robert |editor-last2=Gray |editor-first2=Randal |name-list-style=amp |year=1986 |title=Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921 |publisher=Conway Maritime Press |location=London |isbn=0-85177-245-5 |pages=295–321}}
* {{Cite journal |last=Dovzhenko |first=V. |title=Черноморский флот России в первой мировой войне |trans-title=Black Sea Fleet of Russia in the First World War |lang=ru |journal=Морской сборник [Naval Review] |year=2021 |issue=3 }}
* {{Cite journal |last=Erikson |first=Rolf |title=The Subterfuge Submarines |editor-last=Fisher |editor-first=E. C. Jr. |journal=Warship International |volume=14 |issue=3 |year=1977 |pages=200–226 |jstor=44888103 }}
* {{cite book |last1=Friedman |first1=Norman |last2=Noot |first2=Jurrien |name-list-style=amp |year=1991 |title=Submarines of the Russian and Soviet Navies, 1718–1990 |publisher=Naval Institute Press |location=Annapolis, Maryland |isbn=0-87021-570-1 }}
* {{Cite book |last=Graf |first=Garald Karlovich |year=1923 |title=The Russian Navy in War and Revolution: From 1914 up to 1918 |publisher=R. Oldenbourg |location=Munich}}
* {{cite book |last=Halpern |first=Paul G. |title=A Naval History of World War I |year=1994 |location=Annapolis |publisher=Naval Institute Press |isbn=978-1-61251-172-6 }}
* {{cite book |last=Westwood |first=J. N. |title=Russian Naval Construction, 1905–45 |location=London |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan |year=1994 |isbn=978-1-349-12458-9 }}
{{ref end}}
{{Morzh-class submarines}}
[[Category:1913 ships]]
[[Category:Submarines of the Imperial Russian Navy]]
[[Category:Submarines of the Soviet Navy]]
[[Category:World War I submarines of Russia]]
[[Category:Ships built in Mykolaiv]]
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