The ship "Eagle" - the first Russian military frigate

In 1636 a military ship was built in Russia, called "Frederik", but it belonged to another state - Schleswig-Holstein (the land in the north of Germany, the capital - Kiel). Therefore, the ship "Eagle", built in 1667-1669, is considered the firstborn of Russian military shipbuilding.

The reasons for the construction of the first shipyard

The prehistory of its construction is as follows. Under Tsar Aleksei Mikhailovich, who ruled Russia from 1645 to 1676, trade relations developed intensively with neighbors, including Persia (modern Iran). There was a need to establish navigation on the Caspian Sea. The times were troubled, and in a signed trade agreement between the Russian tsar and the Persian shah, a special clause stipulated the need to protect trade routes by military vessels. The ship "Eagle" arose as a result of this agreement.

Responsible approach

In 1667, on the Oka River, just below the confluence of the Moscow River, a small shipyard was set up in a village called Dedinovo. It was intended for the construction of one ship, a boat, a yacht and two boats. This was the original plan. For this purpose, the masters - Gelt, Minster and Van den Streck, were discharged from Holland and other countries of naval affairs. In addition to them, Colonel Van Bukovets, captain and foreman Butler, was invited to direct the management and organization of the building of warships. From the surrounding villages, 30 carpenters, 4 blacksmiths and 4 gunners were recruited. The general leadership of the process of the birth of the Russian Navy was entrusted to boyar AL Ordyn-Nashchokin, one of the most educated and intelligent royal dignitaries. He also owned the idea of establishing Russia's own navy.

Severity of intentions

Obviously, due to such a serious state approach, the ship "Eagle" was built in a surprisingly short time - less than a year. They began to build it on November 14, 1667, and already on May 19, 1668, it was launched. What was he like? A two-deck, three-masted bowsprit sailing ship of the West European type was a variation of the Dutch pinas-a sailing-rowing vessel of wide use. The parameters that the ship "Eagle" possessed are as follows: the length of the vessel was 24.5 meters, the width was 6.5 meters, the depth of the sediment reached 1.5 meters. The money for the construction of the sailboat was obtained from the predecessor of the Admiralty Peter I - the Order of the Great Parish. The total cost was 2221 rubles. The frigate was built by Russian shipwrights Stepan Petrov and Yakov Poluektov on the project of the above-mentioned Cornelius Van Bukoven. The Eagle warship had the following armament - 22 peeps (guns) in caliber from six to two feet, 40 muskets, 40 pistols, hand grenades. The crew was to consist of 56 people - the captain, 22 sailors (according to other sources, 20 sailors and 2 officers), 35 streltsy.

Cradle of the Russian Navy

It should be noted that the place for the construction of the shipyard was chosen sensibly. The village of Dedinovo stretches along both banks of the Oka River. There were also oak forests, which are excellent building material. A squadron of frigate, yacht and two sloops along the Volga in 1669 arrived in Astrakhan. The yacht was armed with two six-foot cannons, each sloop had one squeak of the same caliber. Why only in 1669 did the convoy get to Astrakhan? The delay was due to a lack of finishing materials, and the Eagle warship was forced to winter on the Oka. The appearance of the shipyard marked not only the birth of the national military fleet, but also contributed to the emergence of the Ship's Charter and the commercial flag of Russia. "34 articles of articulation", received before the sailing of a squadron of four ships headed by a galiot "Eagle", became the prototype of the Charter of the Navy. Tricolor, according to some information, was also invented here for launching the "Eagle", although, according to other sources, Peter I personally drew it, came up with colors, sequence and direction of the bands. The first ship "Eagle" got its name in honor of the coat of arms of Russia. April 25, 1669 issued a decree on the appropriation of the ship this name.

Sad end

In August, the frigate under the command of Captain Butler and other vessels dropped anchors in the Astrakhan raid. The city has already been captured by insurgent peasants under the leadership of Stepan Razin. According to some reports, the ships were burned by razinsky Cossacks, on the other, the first ship "Eagle" defended for many years in inactivity in the Kutum Canal until it came to complete disrepair. Such a sad fate befell a frigate. He was not destined to accompany merchant ships to Persia, crossing the Khvalynsk (Caspian) Sea. But he will forever remain the first Russian warship. Peter I repeatedly visited the first Russian shipyard and noted that the first frigate, though not fulfilling its mission, but it was from him that all the naval work went. They say that the boat on the Admiralty's steeple looks very much like the glorious Russian ship "Eagle".