The Aurora, named for the Greek goddess of dawn, was the third and most famous of Russia's Pallada class cruisers, built at the Baltic Works, Petersburg. Her two identical sisters, named for the Greek goddesses Diana and Pallas Athena, were serving with the First Pacific Squadron at Port Arthur while Aurora was completing and working up as a crack ship in European waters. Both her sisters were knocked out of action in the Far East, but Aurora then undertook the voyage of vengeance that set out from Libau to relieve Port Arthur. In this desperate enterprise she was a unit of the First Cruiser Squadron, commanded by the nonentity Adm. Enquist. As described elsewhere, she absented herself from the fight along the remaining squadron, finding amnesty in Manila.

As mentioned above, both the Diana and Pallada were stationed at Port Arthur -- the former with the war's chronicler, Lt. Vladimir Semyenov, aboard as a communications officer. Aurora was not the first in her class to run for safety in the face of the enemy; Diana escaped the mèlée at the Battle of the Yellow Sea and fled to Saigon, where she was interned for the duration (right) but later rejoined the Baltic fleet. Her sister's fate was crueler: while lying at anchor, Pallada was sunk in the shallows of Port Arthur's East Port by Japanese siege artillery. She was captured there by the Japanese on the fortress' surrender. The ship was raised and refurbished and served for many years in the Japanese fleet under the name Tsugaru. But to enjoy the ships' fine design and historic highlights, scroll down to BBB's dedicated Pallada class gallery.

Plans and Specifications

Specifications for the Pallada class:
Dimensions: 416' x 55'1" x 24'   Displacement: 6,731 tons std, 7,600 tons deep laden. Armament (as built): (8) 6"/45 and (24) 3" 12-pdr guns; (9) 37 mm MG; (3) 18" torpedo tubes. Armor: 3"/2" protective deck, 4" engine hatch, 2" shields. Fuel capacity: 960 tons of coal std; 1,430 tons maximum, plus unspecified qty fuel oil. Propulsion: (24) coal-fired Belleville boilers; (3) horizontal 3-cyl triple expansion engines developing 11,600 HP, shafted to triple screw. Speed: 20 kts. Crew: 578.

By the time of her star turn in the October Revolution, the ship's armament had been augmented to fourteen 6" guns, four 3" mm AA guns, and assorted machine guns. During WWII she became an antiaircraft gunship until sunk by Nazi aircraft.

Ships in class: Pallada · Avrora · Diana

Metric specifications:
Dimensions: 126.8m x 16.8m x 7.32m   Displacement: 6,731 tons std, 7,600 tons deep laden. Armament (as built): (8) 152 mm/45 and (24) 75 mm 12-pdr guns; (9) 37 mm MG; (3) 450-mm torpedo tubes. Armor: 76/50 mm protective deck; 100 mm engine hatch; 50 mm shields. Fuel capacity: 960 tons of coal std; 1,430 tons maximum, plus unspecified qty fuel oil. Propulsion: (24) coal-fired Belleville boilers; (3) horizontal 3-cyl triple expansion engines developing 8,650 kW, shafted to triple screw. Speed: 20 kts. Crew: 578.

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A Pallada Gallery
Source: Anatoly Odaynik Archive - All.

The Pallada in a builder's photo from trials, 1902.