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The naval guards crew - from court oarsmen to the present day... Naval Guards crew - from court rowers to the present day... Participation in the Guards coups

Well, our Russellenburg is great! Last time we visited abandoned barracks. But they are not alone in our city. If on New Year’s Eve we “went to the Semyonovites”, simultaneously exploring the history of their regimental parade ground, now we will visit the Marine Guards crew. Memory lives here. Yes, such that these buildings and this place in general need to be protected, honored and shown to tourists. But no one needs this memory.

Reader, we have returned to Kolomna. This is a very beautiful place: we admire the intricate interweaving of rivers and canals, the graceful design of numerous bridges, St. Nicholas Cathedral with an elegant bell tower and the Church of St. Isidore of Yuryevsky. It was while examining it that we went out onto Rimsky-Korsakov Avenue.

But what's ahead? A completely different green color, so different from the color of church domes. The notorious green grid. Torn, dirty, similar to swamp mud - it has clearly been hanging for a very long time. What a contrast compared to the shining crowns after fresh restoration!

What different “greens”!

Yes, here it is, our next facility - the Barracks of the Naval Guards Crew, which has been abandoned for twenty years. Rimsky-Korsakov Avenue, 22/Griboyedov Canal Embankment, 133. The canal winds like a brisk snake at a distance, merging a little further with the Kryukov Canal. As a result, the barracks complex has two addresses. There could have been a third one, but the wedge-shaped section is separated from the Kryukov Canal by a school. We go around the complex where possible.

From the side of the avenue, everything is tightly closed and walled up. A shabby blue fence blocks the path, interferes with inspection and looms intrusively in the frame. We see two buildings here: one is a little simpler, the other is decorated a little more magnificently. What is less simple is Gascoigne's house. Its history dates back to the 18th century: the building was erected in the 1780s according to the design of an unknown architect. The first owner was Charles Gascoigne (1739 – 1806), a famous engineer from Scotland who worked in Russia at the Tsar’s invitation. In his homeland, he was the owner of a metallurgical company and became famous for the invention of a short-barreled naval gun, which was soon adopted by many countries. People in Russia wanted to see him for a long time and called him more than once. And so he finally deigned to be welcomed to begin large-scale construction here and be the director of the Izhora factories. " In May 1786, after repeated invitations, he came to Russia, where he built and reconstructed several factories. The first order of Empress Catherine II was the restructuring of the Olonets plants in Petrozavodsk using European technologies: the Alexander Cannon Plant and the Konchezersky Iron Smelting Plant.

In 1789, Gascoigne built an iron foundry in Kronstadt, which was transferred in 1801 to the capital at the 4th verst of the Peterhof road (today the famous Kirov plant begins its history from this enterprise). In the mid-1790s, the master, at the request of Count P. A. Zubov, supervised the exploration of iron ore and coal deposits in Ukraine. The result was the founding of a city-forming foundry in Lugansk, which until the 70s of the 19th century remained the only mining plant in the south of Russia.

In St. Petersburg, Charles Gascoigne (in Russia they began to call him Karl Karlovich) reconstructs production facilities in Sestroretsk and the Admiralty Izhora factories in Kolpino, and builds the Bank Mint. The Kolpino project was the last in Gascoigne's life. He died in Kolpino in 1806 and, according to his will, was buried in Petrozavodsk. The grave has not survived to this day.", writes about him. His address was simple: Malaya Kolomna, his own house. And everyone knew this house. After the death of “Karl Karlovich,” his daughter Anna Haddington did not want to live at the “hereditary address” and sold the house to the Maritime Department. The case “On the purchase of a house left after the active state councilor Gascoigne” is located in the Russian State Archive of the Navy.

“On June 4, 1808, the chief architect of the Admiralty, Andrian Zakharov, examined the mansion and found it quite suitable for housing a naval printing press. He reported that the good-quality house was built at the end of the 18th century, consisting of a three-story main building, a two-story outbuilding, and a one-story barn. In the garden, which, as they say, overlooked the canal to the St. Nicholas Church, there are stone greenhouses. On August 19, 1808, Emperor Alexander I allowed the Admiralty Department to buy a house from the heiress for 110 thousand rubles for a printing house.
A description of Gascoigne’s house was found in S. Ogorodnikov’s historical essay about the naval printing house: “... the house, built to suit the lord’s needs, was stone, two-story with fifteen windows along the facade, with a mezzanine and two side wings. Round columns with cast-iron bases gave the main middle building an elegant appearance, and a cast-iron grand staircase with matching mahogany railings and handrails led to the inner apartments. At the house there was an orchard and greenhouses, which were then placed at the disposal of the Minister of the Navy. In the courtyard there were two stone two-story outbuildings.”(ibid.).

His house is now, of course, ruined. It is unlikely that the apartments, garden and valuable stairs inside have already been preserved. But no mesh can hide the splendor of the facade. The house is still very beautiful, and I’m just scared for it.

Gascoigne's house.

I wonder why such a significant person settled in a rather “simple” part of the city - Kolomna? It's simple - it's the Empress's reward. In 1795, Catherine II granted Gascoigne the rank of state councilor, the Order of St. Vladimir, III degree, and donated a plot of land. Even then, this was a site of the Marine Regimental Yard, where officials of the Naval Department settled. A little later, the military will also settle here (this will be the territory of a maritime settlement). Then Rimsky-Korsakov Avenue was called Ekateringofsky.

And it all started like this. In 1736 there was a fire here that destroyed almost all previous buildings. A year later, the site was transferred for the construction of the Naval Guards Crew Barracks. And by 1742, the area was finally drained and the first regimental barracks were built on the embankment side. But we have not yet reached it - we are on Ekateringofsky Prospekt, we have just admired Gascoigne’s house.

And the next building is already laconic. No columns, no figured platbands. Now this is a barracks. But you, reader, would know whose it is!..

The barracks building from the avenue.

The site, as we know, is wedge-shaped. By the way, it is also interesting because it had this form almost from the very beginning and did not change this form. It so happened: this fact is due to the geographical location (you can look at the old plans).

Let's go back. We pass the barracks and go around Gascoigne's house. We stop a little at the corner. Since the area has a unique shape, the corner is effectively beveled.
And here we are on the Griboyedov Canal (formerly Ekaterininsky).


Barracks complex, view from the embankment.

What an original shape this building has! The building is long, but not at all monotonous. It goes along ledges, reminiscent of a military fortress. This “fortress” is closed by gates. Amazingly, there is someone on the territory of the abandoned complex! And these are clearly not homeless people: some people are trying to drive us away from these gates. We rightly object that in our city we can photograph whatever our heart desires. And citizens would be better off keeping an eye on the buildings entrusted to them or preparing for seizure (it’s high time). We still get this shot - a view of the “fortress” from the courtyard. As you can see, the “non-ceremonial” facades are as simple as possible, and have neither “ledges” nor other expressive elements. And again the broken windows are striking - the almost complete lack of conservation, limited only to hanging a mesh and a false facade from the side of Rimsky-Korsakov Avenue.


Courtyard facades from the side of the Griboyedov Canal.

So, no one can forbid us to photograph the monument. According to current legislation, we generally have the right of access. However, for some reason this legislation does not apply. And it is not yet possible to photograph the remaining buildings of the complex: they are not visible from the street.

We have to “act secretly.” For the photographer Olga Rodionova managed to elude the guards and penetrate the “impregnable fortress.” Olga generously agreed to provide her photographs for publication in our publication. This is what she saw inside:

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Barracks inside (photo by Olga Rodionova).

As you can see, there are practically no interiors left in the building. Everything has been taken out. Either during previous renovations, or at a time when the military was leaving the complex. Only one beautiful hall has survived. The rest is a typical “settlement” landscape: dirt, dust, old documents, wet portraits of military leaders and members of the Politburo, newspaper photos of party congresses, and other household items in disarray. Perhaps there is less destruction - they still protect it. But the balustrade on one of the stairs is no longer there.

But what can we say about respect for the monument, if even with its protective status there was a real leapfrog going on! “Let’s listen” to the most experienced journalist and urban defender Tatyana Likhanova: “ The significance of this complex, built at the end of the 18th-19th centuries. on the corner site formed by the rays of Ekateringofsky (Rimsky-Korsakov) Avenue and the Ekaterininsky Canal (Griboyedov), it was recognized in 1993 - by the decision of the small council it would be taken under protection as a monument of local significance. Then a leapfrog will begin with a revaluation of values ​​- in 1995, by decree of the President of the Russian Federation, the complex of barracks of the Guards crew was assigned the status of a monument of federal significance, in 1999 it was excluded from this register by order of the government of the Russian Federation, the next year, by order of the governor of St. Petersburg, the status of a regional monument was secured, attributing to the protected elements of the complex, barracks buildings for combatants and single lower ranks, a headquarters and chief officer's house with two service buildings, a bathhouse and a reception area».

Tatyana Ivanovna wrote the text “Abandoned and Forgotten” for the bicentennial anniversary of the War of 1812. Since then, absolutely nothing has changed here: the text is still as fresh as from today’s newspaper.

What does war have to do with it?

Moreover, dear reader, these are not just barracks. These are the barracks of the heroes of 1812! "AND The history of the Sea Guards crew goes back to Peter the Great, who in 1710 assembled a team of royal rowers from among the “Pereslavl amusements” in order to “entrust himself to them in traveling on water.” Many of them will become heroes of very serious battles - the capture of Azov, Noteburg, Nyenskans - and will become involved in the founding of the new Russian capital. An independent naval unit of the guard would be established by decree of Alexander I in 1810. Both officers and lower ranks were transferred to the Guards crew only for special merits known personally to the emperor or on the special recommendation of their superiors. They were trained not only in combat skills, but also in artillery - the uniqueness of this unit was the combination of naval service itself on court rowing vessels, yachts and ships and coastal service as an infantry battalion of the Guards Corps of the Russian Imperial Army. During the Patriotic War of 1812 they performed the functions of engineering troops“- continues Likhanova (ibid.). Further in its text you can learn about the greatest merits of, as they now say, “an elite military unit.” The author of these systems will only have to add that the chiefs of this unit were emperors and princes, and the commanders were such personalities as Abaza, Klokachev and Apraksin (lists of personalities and). But, despite this, the buildings were “debunked”: memorial plaques disappeared from the facade, and something is not visible inside, on the stairs, military relics and trophies embedded in the wall: the Turkish coat of arms and a marble plaque from the main gate of the Turkish fortress of Rushchuk in Bulgaria, taken by the guards as a trophy (information gleaned from ).


Barracks in the pre-revolutionary period (photo from the Citywalls website).

The “fortress building” overlooking the canal was built in 1797. Before this, there was a section of the Regimental Court, the house of the merchant Anuriev and the house of the merchant U. Ivanov (ibid.). Whether Gascoigne had one neighbor or two is unknown. Either it was a single plot that passed from one owner to another, or there were two owners. History is silent. But, one way or another, in 1797 the construction of the barracks of the Naval Guards crew began here, and in 1819 it continued (already from the canal side). In the same year, sailors moved here (before that, the Guards naval crew lived in the Galernaya harbor area, and then in the Lithuanian castle).

And in 1825, on December 14, the Decembrists who served here raised all units of troops and, led by Nikolai Bestuzhev, went to Senate. So the Decembrist uprising was born precisely.

In 1853, the complex was rebuilt by military engineers Pasypkin and Matyushev. The second part of the century passed without major events. The twentieth century brought revolution and the disbandment of the valiant Crew. Not far from here, in the Kryukov barracks, the headquarters of revolutionary sailors and a sailor's club arose. And here the Sailor Theater opened. And on December 17, 1918, Vladimir Mayakovsky read here “Left March,” specially written for this speech. As the poet later admitted, he already had separately prepared stanzas, and the poem itself came together quickly, on the way, in a cab (“Speech at the Komsomol House of Krasnaya Presnya at an evening dedicated to the twentieth anniversary of activity, March 25, 1930”).

After the time of Mayakovsky, the once legendary buildings were no longer seen by any famous person: the complex was transferred to the Naval Base. It was used for administrative purposes and for housing (on the website “Citywalls.ru” a former cadet at the naval faculty of LISI writes that he lived there from 1955 to 1960). They also write there that the base kept its headquarters here, and even had a guardhouse. After the war, in the 40s-50s, there was another restructuring. And half a century later, in the late 90s, the base left the territory - it moved. For some time, the complex stood ownerless (for all that, the headquarters and chief officers' house, the barracks for single lower ranks, the barracks for combat companies and the service wing are included in the register of monuments). Then the complex was bought by a certain Moscow company - ZAO Construction Management No. 155. As they wrote in the press, it is the largest player in the Russian construction market. The owner intended to turn the barracks into a business-class residential complex. But, as the media write, he had problems with the KGIOP, which could not draw up a security obligation (http://kanoner.com/?s=barracks+crew). In 2013, the same leisurely KGIOP wanted to force Muscovites to start work and even fined them. The parties blamed each other for the delay, KGIOP disowned its own statements, and gradually the owner lost interest in the object. Newspapers in 2013 wrote that the SU-155 “begins exploring the barracks,” intending to demolish the Soviet buildings. Then everything became quiet. And then in 2017 it became known that the company was undergoing reorganization and that it was a real bankrupt! As a result of the difficult financial situation, all her projects were frozen: in addition to the barracks, the reconstruction of the chief prosecutor's house on Liteiny Prospekt and the Orlov-Denisov dacha in Kolomyagi became a priority. It got to the point that they tried to sell the chief prosecutor's house along with the project on Avito! Obviously, the company has completely gone around the world...

The unfortunate barracks, of course, does not care about the problems of its hapless owner. They are waiting for caring hands. Logically, they should be confiscated, and it is not clear why Smolny is still “rushing around” with the bankrupt and giving him another last, desperate chance. Pity is inappropriate here: the ancient legendary buildings are much more pitiful. Broken windows, from which wonderful views open, are thrown open into the unknown. What should they expect? The fact that after many years this unfortunate “SU” will recover, and, perhaps, in a thirst for clearing the territory, will declare several historical buildings to be Soviet. And there will be a “big city defense battle” here. If the building is confiscated, how soon will a new owner be found for it? And will this owner be reliable? I would like to…

But what, frankly speaking, I wouldn’t like is yet another “elite apartment”. Not out of some kind of envy, as some might think. No, this area simply breathes its former glory. The wind, ruffling the tattered netting, could flutter the flags of past victories. A place that remembers Mayakovsky and Bestuzhev and their comrades is worthy of a much more respectful purpose than the prospects of the next “elite”. It would be much more appropriate to place some kind of museum here. Let’s say, with government help, we can move the 20th Century Museum, which recently lost its large premises, into at least one building.


The window is open to the unknown (photo by Olga Rodionova).
Daria Vasilyeva, especially for “GP”.
Photo by the author, Olga Rodionova and from the site citywalls.ru.

On February 16, 2016, the Russian Navy celebrates the 206th anniversary of the birth of the naval guard.
On this day in 1810, remembering the meeting with the French Emperor Napoleon in June 1807, in Tilsit, which was provided by a battalion of French Guards sailors, Emperor Alexander I ordered the formation of a special unit - the “Naval Guards Crew”.

The crew was formed according to the staff of the guards battalion and included 4 combat companies, a musical choir and an artillery team with a total number of 434 people. It was intended for manning the crews of court yachts and rowing ships, servicing them, thus performing naval service. But, being part of the Guards Corps, he also performed land court service: palace and garrison guards, parades, reviews and parades. The crew was awarded a land standard banner.
On February 23, 1810, a report card for the uniform and other things of the Guards Crew was approved. Due to the fact that the sailors-guards performed double service, they had a summer naval uniform, which differed from the naval uniform, and a winter uniform, an infantry-guards uniform. Soon, significant changes were made to the naval uniform, in particular, the coat of arms of the Guards Crew was established, which was a double-headed eagle under the royal crown with two admiralty anchors crossed behind the eagle.

The first commander of the crew is captain 2nd rank Kartsov Ivan Petrovich.

The most trained non-commissioned officers of the Life Guards of the Finnish Regiment were appointed as instructors to the crew. The crew was replenished with selected sailors from the navy with the requirement “that the people be tall and clean-faced,” and officers were transferred to the Crew for distinction and, as a rule, for patronage. The transfer of both officers and sailors was carried out by order of the Sovereign himself.
The Marine Guards Crew, as an independent naval unit, included nine Imperial yachts, including “Simeon and Anna”, “Louise Ulrika”, “Pallada”, “Neva”, “Golubka” and “Torneo”, as well as 24 rowing vessels. All together they made up the first squadron of the Guards Crew.

While celebrating the anniversary of the Fleet Guard, it should be noted that the history of the Naval Guards crew is much older and goes back to a time when Russia itself was not yet an empire. The prototype of the Guards crew was the “Court Rowing Crew” created by Peter I back in 1710, which was engaged in servicing the watercraft of the imperial court. From the middle of the 18th century. There was a Team of Court Rowers of the Palace Department and Crews of Court Yachts, which were united in 1797.

Peter’s passion for the sea and the fleet began to develop very early, from the boat, which was later nicknamed “Grandfather of the Russian Navy.” On it, the young king made his first sailing voyages along the Yauza River and Prosyannaya Pond.

In 1689, the construction of ships began in Pereslavl-Zalessky, which marked the beginning of the creation of an “amusing” fleet on Lake Pleshcheyevo. Here Peter conducts naval games (exercises), in which the “amusing” Preobrazhensky and Semenovsky regiments took part. Soon the young king moved to Arkhangelsk, where he saw the real sea and European ships.


In 1695, Peter begins the fight with Turkey for access to the Azov and Black Seas. After an unsuccessful attempt in 1695 to take the Azov fortress with the army alone, the construction of ships began at the Voronezh shipyards.

In the spring of 1696, while in Voronezh at the launching of ships for the second Azov campaign, Peter selected several boats for his journeys along the river. He recruited rowers for them from soldiers of the Preobrazhensky Regiment and sailors - a “funny” team, which he called “royal rowers.” From that moment on, the “royal rowers” ​​accompanied the king on all his campaigns and voyages.
In 1702, the “royal rowers” ​​took part in Peter’s campaign to Arkhangelsk. The “Tsar’s Rowers” ​​took part in the construction of two yachts and transporting them along the so-called “sovereign road” from the village of Nyukhcha on the shores of the Onega Bay of the White Sea to Lake Onega and further to Ladoga to Noteburg (Shlisselburg). The following year, the rowers took part in the capture of the Nyenschanz fortress.

In May 1703, under the personal command of Peter, at the mouth of the Neva, together with soldiers of the guards regiments, they boarded the galliot "Gedan" and the shnyava "Astrild" from the Swedes.

In 1705 and 1706 The “royal rowers” ​​were included in the crew of the Munker shnyava. It was a real combat ship, built at the Olonets shipyard according to a design developed by Peter I.

In June 1705, "Munker" took part in repelling the attacks of the Swedish fleet of Admiral Ankerstern on Kronshlot. Subsequently, the ship took part in battles with the Swedes in the Gulf of Finland in 1712 and 1713.
In 1703, on the banks of the Neva, Peter founded St. Petersburg - since 1712 the capital of Russia. Soon this city becomes his permanent place of residence.

For the Tsar’s travels along the Neva and other rivers, the “Tsar’s Rowers” ​​were finally transferred from Voronezh in 1708 as the “Tsar’s Rowing Team.”
In 1710, the team became a separate military unit, subordinate directly to the Admiralty - the collegium, and in 1715, the royal rowers began to be called court rowers, whose main purpose was to man the crews of court yachts and rowing ships. After Peter's death, the fleet fell into disrepair, and ship construction was suspended. At the beginning of the reign of Empress Catherine I - in 1725 - the court oarsmen came under the jurisdiction of “Her Majesty’s Own Patrimonial Affairs Office”. The rowers lived on Mokhovaya Street in private houses, since barracks were not built for them. In the summer, the oarsmen were used to serve on court rowing ships, and in the winter they were sent with decrees to the estates of Her Majesty.
In 1732, Empress Anna Ioannovna increased the number of rowers, since in addition to the “Petrine” yachts “Princess Anna” and “Tsesarevna Elizaveta”, large 12-gun yachts “Minerva”, “Virtsou” and “Annenghof” were built.

Under Anna Ioannovna, yachts sailed along the bay to Kronstadt and carried out evolutions twice a week. They spent the winter in St. Petersburg, and in the summer, during the empress’s stay in Peterhof, they were based in Peterhof harbor and took part in all celebrations and festivities.

In 1742, with the accession of Empress Elizabeth Petrovna, the Court Rowing Team merged with her personal “room rowers” ​​and received the name Court Rowing Team. Its shape became even more luxurious. However, no new imperial yachts were built under Elizabeth.

In 1762, Empress Catherine II the Great ascended the throne. Gifted with a great mind and strong character, she made a lot of efforts to revive the Russian army and navy. Under it, a large number of military ships, including new classes, were built, and the Black Sea Fleet was created. The Russian fleet played a decisive role in two wars with Turkey (1768–1774 and 1787–1791) and with Sweden (1788–1790). During the reign of Empress Catherine the Great, the number of the Court Rowing Team was increased to 160, and they were divided into two teams: the Court Rowing Team and the Court Yacht Team.

Emperor Paul I, who ascended the throne on November 6, 1796, had a special weakness for the fleet and its affairs. Under him, the rowing team from the Court Department came under the jurisdiction of the Admiralty Boards, and then it was merged with the Court Yacht Team, transforming it into one “Court Rowing Team of Court Sailing Vessels.” The lower ranks of the team were in the rowing fleet. The court rowing team was based in Grebnoy port on Vasilyevsky Island.

Over the hundred years of existence of the royal rowers and imperial yachts, they were under the command of Admiral General F.M. Apraksin, Schoutbenakht (rear admiral) I.F. Botsis, court adviser P. Moshkov, captain - lieutenants, who later became admirals F.F. Ushakova, P.I. Khanykova, M.I. Voinovich, A.F. Klokacheva. The last commander of the team was the aforementioned first commander of the Naval Guards crew - captain - lieutenant I.P. Kartsov.
The personnel of the Guards crew served on imperial yachts and watercraft of country palaces, as well as warships. In addition, he was involved along with the entire guard in guard duty, reviews, parades, and celebrations. The Guards crew was subordinate to the Admiralty Collegium, but, being part of the Guard, it was also partly subordinate to the ground command.
In 1811, the Guards crew was transferred from Galernaya Harbor to the Lithuanian Castle - a building at the intersection of the Moika River and the Kryukov Canal, which previously housed the Lithuanian Musketeer Regiment. The crew lived here for the next nine years.

In 1816, construction of a barracks town began for the crew on Ekateringofsky Avenue (now Rimsky-Korsakov, 22). Next to the barracks was the St. Nicholas Naval Cathedral. In the autumn of 1820, the crew was transferred from the Lithuanian castle to the newly built barracks.

November 7, 1824 The most significant and destructive flood in the entire history of the city occurred in St. Petersburg. The water in the Neva and numerous canals rose more than 13 feet (4 meters) above normal and overflowed its banks, flooding embankments and streets. During the flood, 462 houses were destroyed, 3,681 were damaged, 200 to 600 people drowned, and many went missing. Guards sailors sailed on four rowing boats through the flooded streets, providing assistance to the affected residents of the capital. Risking their lives, they rushed into flooded houses, saving women, children, and the elderly from imminent death.

In July 1836, the Guards crew took part in the celebrations of the meeting of the boat Peter by the Baltic Fleet.
In August 1856, the 1st company of the Guards crew participated in the coronation ceremony of Emperor Alexander II in Moscow.

As part of the crew, on March 16, 1857, a special engine team was created from the personnel of steam ships assigned to the Guards crew.
In 1860, the 50th anniversary of the formation of the Guards crew was celebrated. Emperor Nicholas I, taking into account that more than 100 years had passed since the formation of the rowing and yachting teams, granted the Guards crew on February 16 the St. Andrew's ribbon on the banner installed for the regiments and other units of the troops, existing for 100 years or more. The following inscriptions were embroidered in gold on the St. Andrew's ribbon: on the front side - “Guards Crew”; on both internal ones - “For feats performed in the battle of August 17, 1813 at Kulm”; on the back there is “1710 of the Court Rowing and Yacht Team”, and on the bow the year of the ribbon is “1860”.

To commemorate the 200th anniversary of the Guards crew in 1910, the crew was granted a new banner and new bands for the St. George signal horns.

All personnel were assigned to wear the Kulm anniversary badge, and the sailors, in addition, instead of bayonets, were given cutlasses of the general guards type.

On the centenary of the Battle of Borodino, August 26, 1912, a company of the Guards crew took part in the parade on the Borodino field.
The Guards crew participated in almost all wars fought by Russia. The crew fought their first battle on August 4, 1812 near Smolensk, defending the bridge across the Dnieper from attacks by the French cavalry. During the Battle of Borodino on August 26, 1812, part of the crew ensured the crossing of Russian troops across the Kolocha River. In a bayonet battle, the sailors, together with the rangers, almost completely destroyed the 106th French regiment of the division of General A. Delson.

The sailors of the Guards crew fought through Russia, Poland, Germany and France. They became famous on May 9, 1813 near Bautzen, but they especially distinguished themselves on August 17, 1813 in the battle of Kulm.

As part of the 1st Guards Division of General A. Ermolov, sailors under the command of Count A. Osterman-Tolstoy in a fierce battle blocked the path of the French corps of Marshal Vandamme, thereby saving the Allied army retreating from Dresden. In this battle, the Guards crew lost 70% of its officers and more than 30% of its rank and file killed and wounded.
For their steadfastness in the battle of Kulm, the Guards crew was awarded the St. George Banner, and in 1819, in memory of this battle, by decree of Alexander I, all ships of the Guards crew were awarded three-color pennants with the St. Andrew's flag in the head, on the center of the cross of which a shield with the image of St. George the Victorious was superimposed.

The sailors-guards ended this war in Paris. The most distinguished sailors stood guard of honor at the Talleyrand Palace during the signing of the Paris Peace Treaty.

Upon returning home, the Guards crew, as part of army units, entered St. Petersburg through the Narva triumphal gates built in honor of the victory.

Subsequently, the crew participated with honor in all wars waged by Russia. The siege of Varna in 1828, the Hungarian campaign in 1849, the defense of Kronstadt and Sevastopol during the Crimean War, the battles in the Balkans in 1877-1878, the Battle of Tsushima in 1905 and the battles of the 1st World War - sailors distinguished themselves everywhere, on land and at sea. guardsmen. They were also part of the crews of ships of the Russian fleet that went on many long-distance and round-the-world voyages.

After the Patriotic War of 1812 and the foreign campaign of 1813–1814. Revolutionary sentiments spread among the guards, and part of them took part in the Decembrist uprising. Their main goal was to fight for the abolition of serfdom and the establishment of a constitutional monarchy.
In 1823, the secret “Guards Crew Society” was organized, which a year later merged with the Northern Society. Crew officers participated in secret societies, among them lieutenants and midshipmen B.A. and M.A. Bodisko, A.P. Arbuzov, A.P. and P.P. Belyaevs, V.A. Divov, N.A. Chizhov, M.K. Kuchelbecker, D.N. Lermantov, E.S. Musin–Pushkin, P.F. Miller et al.

The uprising was scheduled for 1826, but the situation in the country forced them to act earlier than they expected.
In November 1825, Alexander I suddenly died and was to be succeeded by his brother Constantine, but even earlier he had renounced the throne. Thus, the next brother after him, Nicholas, turned out to be the heir to the throne, but Constantine’s abdication remained unpublicized. Therefore, after the death of Alexander I, the oath was taken to Constantine, and after the announcement of his abdication, a “re-oath” should have followed - to Nicholas. Unrest in the army and discontent in the country increased. It was decided to speak out on December 14, the day of the “re-oath” to Nicholas, to prevent it from being carried out in the guards regiments.
The first, at about 11 o'clock, on December 14, 1825, on the day of the oath of Nicholas I, the Moscow Life Guards Regiment came to Senate Square. Nicholas I, having learned about the movement of the regiment to the square, ordered government troops to be pulled together and surround the square.
At 1 p.m., Nicholas ordered the horse guards to attack the rebels. The attack of the Horse Guards was repulsed; government troops sympathized with the rebels and acted reluctantly.
By 2 p.m., the sailors of the Guards crew joined the Moscow regiment - all 8 companies - 1100 people (including 18 young officers) led by captain-lieutenant N.A. Bestuzhev, the Life Guards Grenadier Regiment arrived after him. Thus, only 3,150 people came to the square.

The rebels, awaiting the arrival of S.P. Trubetskoy and the addition of other regiments took a defensive position, but he never appeared on the square. Government troops launched several attacks on the square of the rebels, but each time, repelled by rifle fire, they were forced to retreat.
Having drawn a large number of troops to the square, Nicholas I at about 4 p.m. gave the order to open fire with grapeshot. An hour later the uprising was suppressed.
On Senate Square, 103 members of the Guards crew were killed, 62 sailors were arrested and sent to the Peter and Paul Fortress. On July 13, 1826, a “civil execution” took place on board the battleship “Prince Vladimir”, which was stationed in the Kronstadt roadstead - the demotion of naval officers - Decembrists - to the "rank and file".

During the February Revolution of 1917, the last commander of the Guards crew, Grand Duke Kirill Vladimirovich, led the crew to the Tauride Palace and handed it over to the State Duma.
After the February Revolution, in the events of which the Guards sailors took an active part, the crew lost its importance as a privileged part of the Navy.
By August 30, 1917, a detachment was formed from the sailors of the Guards and 2nd Baltic Fleet crews, which carried out searches and arrests of Kornilov officers.
The sailors of the crew also played a significant role in the October Revolution. They took part in the capture of a number of key points in the city.

Decades of oblivion passed, after which the power called the land of the Soviets also faded into history.
Already in modern Russia, under the leadership of candidate of technical sciences, professor, retired captain 1st rank Leonid Aleksandrovich Malyshev, the International Military History Club “Naval Guards Crew” was created in 1992, which studies and promotes the combat chronicle of the Guards naval crew.

Participation in historical reconstructions, work with archival documents, military-patriotic education of youth with their involvement in the ranks of the Club, scientific, journalistic and literary activities - this is not the full range of that titanic work that over and over again brings new layers to the surface more than three hundred years of history of the naval guard.

guards crew

naval formation as part of the Russian Imperial Guard. The prototype of the Guards crew was the “Court Rowing Crew” created by Peter I back in 1710, which was engaged in servicing the boats. funds of the imperial court. From the middle of the 18th century. There was a team of court rowers of the palace department and crews of court yachts, which in 1797 were united and transferred to the jurisdiction of the Admiralty Board. From these units, on February 16, 1810, the “Sea Guards Crew” was formed from four (later eight) companies, an artillery squad with two field guns, a non-combatant last company and a musical choir (orchestra). The crew was assigned a special uniform, somewhat different from the general naval uniform, with elements of the uniform of the Guards Infantry, and according to the staff, combat equipment and equipment of the land type were included, including entrenching tools and convoys. The personnel served on imperial yachts and ships. means of country palaces, was involved along with the entire guard in guard duty, reviews, parades, and celebrations.

The crew received their baptism of fire in the Patriotic War of 1812. On March 2, sailors under the command of Captain 2nd Rank I. Kartsev, as part of the 1st Division of the Guards Corps, set out on a campaign from St. Petersburg to Vilna. Together with the troops of the 1st Western Army of General M.B. Barclay de Tolly's sailors-guards retreated into the interior of the country under the pressure of Napoleon's superior forces. The crew followed in the rearguard and were used mainly together with engineering units in establishing crossings, building bridges and fortifications, and setting up camps; sailors often had to destroy buildings and property so that they would not fall to the enemy. For their masterful actions in building bridges in the Drissa area in the presence of Alexander I, the sailors were awarded cash bonuses by the emperor. The crew fought their first battle on August 4 during the defense of Smolensk, repelling the attacks of the French cavalry on the Royal Bastion and the bridge over the Dnieper. When forced to abandon the city, sailors and pontooners destroyed this bridge.

The crew met the morning of the Battle of Borodino on August 26, 1812 on the far right flank of the Russian army in reserve. By order of Barclay de Tolly, the sailors were sent to help the guards rangers defending the village of Borodino from attacks by Delson's division. The sailor guards pushed back the enemy and then destroyed the bridge across the Kolocha River. In the battle, four sailors and non-commissioned officers died a heroic death, seven were seriously wounded, and subsequently two of them died. The crew's artillerymen, who were part of the 1st Life Guards light artillery company, took an active part in the battle. In the middle of the day, under the command of Staff Captain Lodygin, they moved to a position towards the village of Semenovskoye on the left flank. Positioned on a hill together with the guards infantry regiments formed in a square, the artillerymen repelled attacks by the enemy’s heavy cavalry. In five hours of fierce battle, they lost all their officers killed and wounded, and four sailors were killed. Several officers of the Guards crew that day served as adjutants to the high command. Midshipman N.P. Rimsky Korsakov repeatedly, under a hail of cannonballs and bullets, delivered orders from Commander-in-Chief M.I. to the front line. Kutuzov, earning praise for his fearlessness and intelligence. Lieutenant-Commander P. Kolzakov fought on the Semenov flashes, and was the first to rush to the aid of the wounded P.I. Bagration.

After the surrender of Moscow, the crew was in the Tarutino camp. By September 25, the infantry units numbered 10 officers, 25 non-commissioned officers and 319 sailors and were assigned to the engineering troops. An artillery team (2 officers, 6 non-commissioned officers and 25 gunners) with two guns became part of the 23rd artillery. brigades. The sailors took part in the counter-offensive and fought in Poland, Germany and France. During the Patriotic War, the crew lost 53 sailors killed; 16 sailors were awarded the Insignia of the Military Order (St. George Cross).

The guards became famous in the battle of May 9, 1813 near Bautzen in Saxony, where, together with two battalions, the grenadiers acted in the first line and held their position under the crossfire of enemy artillery. The crew’s brilliant feat was their participation in the bloody battle of Kulm in Bohemia on August 16-18, 1813. Under the command of General A.P. Yermolov’s sailors successfully repelled the attacks of Vandam’s French corps, which was trying to cut off the path of the Russian army from the mountains to the road to Teplitz. For their courage, the crew earned the highest military award, the St. George Banner. In the bloody battles of the Foreign Campaign, the crew suffered heavy losses: out of fourteen officers, three were killed and six wounded, one hundred non-commissioned officers and sailors were killed, wounded and missing.

Together with the Russian guard, the crew entered Paris, the capital of the defeated Napoleonic Empire, on March 19, 1814. Returning from Le Havre to Kronstadt on the frigate "Archipelago", the sailors as part of the guard on July 30 solemnly entered St. Petersburg through the triumphal gates installed at the Narva outpost. A year later, the first warship, the 24-gun yacht Rossiya, appeared on the crew. On June 5, 1819, in memory of the Battle of Kulm, the ships of the Guards crew (the frigate "Mercurius" and 5 court yachts) were assigned topmast flags and pennants with the image of St. George.

Along with serving in the capital and country residences, the sailors took part in long-distance voyages of Russian ships. Almost every sailing ship that set off on a voyage around the world had a guards officer. Individual ships, manned by guardsmen, also made overseas voyages. In 1819, the frigate Hector and the brig Olympus sailed to France, England and Prussia. In 1823, the frigate "Agile" approached the Faroe Islands and Iceland, bypassed Great Britain and returned through the English Channel and the North Sea to the Baltic; a year later he went to Gibraltar, Brest and Plymouth. The battleship "Emgeiten" sailed to the Rostock area.

The crew officers took part in the secret societies of the Decembrists. Among them were lieutenants and midshipmen B.A. Bodisko and M.A. Bodisko, A.P. Arbuzov, A.P. Belyaev and P.P. Belyaev, V.A. Divov, N.A. Chizhov, M.K. Kuchelbecker, D.N. Lermantov, E.S. Musin-Pushkin, P.F. Miller and others. December 14, 1825 crew led by Lieutenant Commander N.A. Bestuzhev went out to Senate Square, and there were 18 young officers there. After the suppression of the uprising, most of them were sentenced to hard labor or sent to distant flotillas, some of the sailors were exiled to the Caucasus.

The crew participated in almost all wars fought by Russia. The guards acted during the siege of Varna in 1828, participated in the suppression of liberation uprisings in Poland in 1831 and 1863, in the Hungarian campaign of 1849, and distinguished themselves in the defense of Kronstadt in the Crimean War.

In 1857, the first engine team of the Guards crew was formed.

During the Russian-Turkish War of 1877-1878. sailors under the command of Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich fought in the Balkans. The guardsmen took part in mining on the Danube and setting up crossings. They equipped steam boats with pole mines. The boat "Tsesarevich" (commander Lieutenant F.V. Dubasov) blew up the Turkish monitor, and the boat "Shutka" (commander Lieutenant N.I. Skrydlov) successfully attacked the steamer. For heroism and valor in this war, the crew was awarded silver St. George's horns, and the lower ranks were given St. George's ribbons on their caps. At the end of the 19th century. The guards frigates "Svetlana", "Duke of Edinburgh", the clipper "Strelok", the corvette "Rynda" made long voyages.

The guards also became famous during the Russian-Japanese War of 1904-1905. The squadron battleship "Emperor Alexander III" (commanded by Captain 1st Rank N.M. Bukhvostov) fought heroically in the Battle of Tsushima. Not a single sailor escaped from the ship that died but did not lower its flag. In St. Petersburg, in the park near the St. Nicholas Naval Cathedral, a memorial obelisk was erected in honor of the sailors of the battleship. One of the first Russian submarines, Field Marshal Count Sheremetyev, was also manned by guards in Vladivostok.

In peacetime, the crew served together with other units of the Guards Corps. In the summer, sailors sailed on ships of the Baltic Fleet and imperial yachts, serving court vessels. facilities. By 1910, the crew included 4 combat and 2 engine companies, the guardsmen manned the cruiser "Oleg", the destroyers "Voiskovoy" and "Ukraine", the imperial yachts "Standard", "Polar Star", "Alexandria", "Tsarevna" , "Marevo", messengers of the ship "Reconnaissance" and "Dozorny". The crew lists included 5 admirals, 21 staff officers, 24 chief naval officers, 20 mechanical engineers, 8 doctors, 10 admiralty officers, 2 class officers, 38 conductors, 2,060 non-commissioned officers and sailors. Those included in the Guards crew were Emperor Nicholas II, Empress Maria Feodorovna, heir Tsarevich Alexei Nikolaevich, Grand Dukes Mikhail Alexandrovich, Kirill Vladimirovich, Konstantin Konstantinovich, Dmitry Konstantinovich, Alexander Mikhailovich.

To commemorate the 200th anniversary in 1910, the crew was granted a new banner and new bands for the St. George signal horns. All personnel were assigned to wear the Kulm anniversary badge, and the sailors, in addition, instead of bayonets, were given cutlasses of the general guard type.

During the First World War, guards sailors manned the crew of the cruiser Varyag, which was returned by Japan and sailed from Vladivostok to Murmansk via the Southern Sea Route. A separate battalion of the Guards crew, numbering over 1,900 people, operated on the land front.

The last commander of the crew was Rear Admiral Grand Duke Kirill Vladimirovich. During the February Revolution, he led the sailors to the Tauride Palace and transferred the crew to the disposal of the State Duma.

Guards crew- a naval formation as part of the Russian Imperial Guard. The prototype of the Guards crew was the “Court Rowing Team” created by Peter I back in 1710, which was engaged in servicing the boats. funds of the imperial court. From the middle of the 18th century. There was a team of court rowers of the palace department and crews of court yachts, which in 1797 were united and transferred to the jurisdiction of the Admiralty Board. From these units, on February 16, 1810, the “Sea Guards Crew” was formed from four (later eight) companies, an artillery squad with two field guns, a non-combatant last company and a musical choir (orchestra). The crew was assigned a special uniform, somewhat different from the general naval uniform, with elements of the uniform of the Guards Infantry, and according to the staff, combat equipment and equipment of the land type were included, including entrenching tools and convoys. The personnel served on imperial yachts and ships. means of country palaces, was involved along with the entire guard in guard duty, reviews, parades, and celebrations.

The crew received their baptism of fire in the Patriotic War of 1812. On March 2, sailors under the command of Captain 2nd Rank I. Kartsev, as part of the 1st Division of the Guards Corps, set out on a campaign from St. Petersburg to Vilna. Together with the troops of the 1st Western Army of General M.B. Barclay de Tolly's sailors-guards retreated into the interior of the country under the pressure of Napoleon's superior forces. The crew followed in the rearguard and were used mainly together with engineering units in establishing crossings, building bridges and fortifications, and setting up camps; sailors often had to destroy buildings and property so that they would not fall to the enemy. For their masterful actions in building bridges in the Drissa area in the presence of Alexander I, the sailors were awarded cash bonuses by the emperor. The crew fought their first battle on August 4 during the defense of Smolensk, repelling the attacks of the French cavalry on the Royal Bastion and the bridge over the Dnieper. When forced to abandon the city, sailors and pontooners destroyed this bridge.

The guards became famous in the battle of May 9, 1813 near Bautzen in Saxony, where, together with two battalions, the grenadiers acted in the first line and held their position under the crossfire of enemy artillery. The crew’s brilliant feat was their participation in the bloody battle of Kulm in Bohemia on August 16-18, 1813. Under the command of General A.P. Yermolov’s sailors successfully repelled the attacks of Vandam’s French corps, which was trying to cut off the path of the Russian army from the mountains to the road to Teplitz. For their courage, the crew earned the highest military award - the Banner of St. George. In the bloody battles of the Foreign Campaign, the crew suffered heavy losses: out of fourteen officers, three were killed and six wounded, one hundred non-commissioned officers and sailors were killed, wounded and missing.

Together with the Russian guard, the crew entered Paris, the capital of the defeated Napoleonic Empire, on March 19, 1814. Returning from Le Havre to Kronstadt on the frigate "Archipelago", the sailors as part of the guard on July 30 solemnly entered St. Petersburg through the triumphal gates installed at the Narva outpost. A year later, the first warship appeared on the crew - the 24-gun yacht "Russia". On June 5, 1819, in memory of the Battle of Kulm, the ships of the Guards crew (the frigate "Mercurius" and 5 court yachts) were assigned topmast flags and pennants with the image of St. George.

Along with serving in the capital and country residences, the sailors took part in long-distance voyages of Russian ships. Almost every sailing ship that set off on a voyage around the world had a guards officer. Individual ships, manned by guardsmen, also made overseas voyages. In 1819, the frigate Hector and the brig Olympus sailed to France, England and Prussia. In 1823, the frigate "Agile" approached the Faroe Islands and Iceland, bypassed Great Britain and returned through the English Channel and the North Sea to the Baltic; a year later he went to Gibraltar, Brest and Plymouth. The battleship Emgeiten sailed to the Rostock area.

In 1857, the first engine team of the Guards crew was formed.

During the Russian-Turkish War of 1877-1878. sailors under the command of Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich fought in the Balkans. The guardsmen took part in mining on the Danube and setting up crossings. They equipped steam boats with pole mines. The boat "Tsesarevich" (commander Lieutenant F.V. Dubasov) blew up the Turkish monitor, and the boat "Shutka" (commander Lieutenant N.I. Skrydlov) successfully attacked the steamer. For heroism and valor in this war, the crew was awarded silver St. George's horns, and the lower ranks were given St. George's ribbons on their caps. At the end of the 19th century. the guards frigates "Svetlana", "Duke of Edinburgh", the clipper "Strelok", the corvette "Rynda" made long voyages.

The guards also became famous during the Russian-Japanese War of 1904-1905. The squadron battleship "Emperor Alexander III" (commanded by Captain 1st Rank N.M. Bukhvostov) fought heroically in the Battle of Tsushima. Not a single sailor escaped from the ship that died but did not lower its flag. In St. Petersburg, in the park near the St. Nicholas Naval Cathedral, a memorial obelisk was erected in honor of the sailors of the battleship. One of the first Russian submarines, Field Marshal Count Sheremetyev, was also manned by guards in Vladivostok.

In peacetime, the crew served together with other units of the Guards Corps. In the summer, sailors sailed on ships of the Baltic Fleet and imperial yachts, serving court vessels. facilities. By 1910, the crew included 4 combat and 2 engine companies, the guardsmen manned the cruiser "Oleg", the destroyers "Voiskovoy" and "Ukraine", the imperial yachts "Standart", "Polar Star", "Alexandria", "Tsarevna" , "Marevo", messengers of the ship "Reconnaissance" and "Dozorny". The crew lists included 5 admirals, 21 headquarters and 24 chief officers of the fleet, 20 mechanical engineers, 8 doctors, 10 admiralty officers, 2 class officials, 38 conductors, 2,060 non-commissioned officers and sailors. Those included in the Guards crew were Emperor Nicholas II, Empress Maria Feodorovna, heir Tsarevich Alexei Nikolaevich, Grand Dukes Mikhail Alexandrovich, Kirill Vladimirovich, Konstantin Konstantinovich, Dmitry Konstantinovich, Alexander Mikhailovich.

Company commanders of the Guards crew. 1890s

Brass band on the upper deck of the imperial yacht "Polar Star". 1893


Emperor Nicholas II and flag captain K.D. Nilov in front of a line of officers on the yacht "Polar Star".


Emperor Nicholas II at the aft salon of the yacht "Polar Star"

Imperial yacht "Polar Star" (on board the lower ranks of the Guards crew).


Empress Alexandra Feodorovna at the aft salon of the yacht "Polar Star"

Food sample of the imperial yacht "Polar Star". 1900s


Nicholas II among the regiment's sergeants. 1900


Sailors and non-commissioned officers of the Guards crew (72 people). Early 1900s


Carrying the banner to the Winter Palace in 1902.


A group of sergeants present at the 200th anniversary of Shlisselburg. October 1902

Sailor of the Guards crew from the yacht “Standard” Derevenko holds the 2-year-old heir Alexei Nikolaevich in his arms. 1906

Boatswain (chief foreman) of the Guards crew K.I. Ryzhov


A group of a company of the Guards Crew at the monument to the ranks of the Life Guards of the Jaeger Regiment and the Guards Crew.


Quartermaster (sergeant major) of the Guards crew


Quartermaster of the Guards crew V.D. Glotov.

Sailor of the Guards crew from the Kursk province.

Junior quartermaster of the Guards crew.

The lower ranks of the Guards crew inspect the high relief of the monument in the village of Gorki, on the site of the Commander-in-Chief’s tent,


The highest review of recruits in 1908 in Tsarskoye Selo. 1908.


The highest review of recruits in 1908 in Tsarskoye Selo. Detour by the Empress. 1908.


Parade in Tsarskoye Selo of the Guards crew. 1908.


Opening of the monument to the battleship "Alexander III" in the Imperial presence on May 15, 1908.


Band of the Guards crew on the yacht "Standard". After 1910.


Tent of the commander of the Guards crew. 1912.


Paired sentries at the tent at the Baltic Shipyard - along with the convoys. 1903


Honor guard during the launch of the imperial yacht Alexandria. August 16, 1903


Honor guard during the launch of the cruiser "Almaz". 1900s


Departure of the Guards crew for the Borodino celebrations. High relief on the monument in the village of Gorki. August 18-31, 1912.


A company of the Guards crew on the Borodino field on August 25, 1912.


Officers of the Guards crew and a banner group with a new banner from Emperor Nicholas II and a historical pole from the banner of Emperor Alexander I on the Borodino field. 08/25/1912


The company before marching to the parade on August 26. 1912.


The flag bearers are extra-urgent boatswains. 1912.


Banners and tent of the commander of the Guards crew in the village of Maslovo. 1912.


The second battalion of the Guards crew before being sent to the front on August 28, 1914.


Trenches of the Guards crew on the land front during World War I (1914-1916).



An elderly woman with a huge black cat was already in her place. The remaining places were taken by sailors. They are coming from N.N. to St. Petersburg on a ship to replace the ship's crew. According to unofficial statistics, the most talkative people are sailors. This means that the neighbor will not be bored. Guests came from the next carriage.
And so they sit and discuss their sad affairs with the names and surnames of the offenders.
How, to whom and how much was paid for the medical examination:
- Tanka charges divinely... rubles for completing the entire medical record.
- Manka so much for the signature of specialist I.I. Ivanov.
- Mishka tore off for the direction to the ship as an electrician, also good.
- Grishka paid a lot for the direction to this particular ship.
The sea wolves go out into the vestibule of the carriage and return, inspired to righteous anger.
- Captain F is an old senile, first mate T is an idiot, doesn’t understand anything at all, first mate B is an alcoholic, his eyes will flood, that’s all.
“On the last voyage I worked for captain E,” the third mate P.P. Petrov loudly announces.
By morning they were quiet. They scattered to their places. A neighbor with a smart cat listened to all this nonsense. She knows Tanya, Manya, Misha, Grisha, not to mention Captain E (her husband, after all), by sight, and is familiar with some of them.
At 9 am the train arrives at the Moscow station in St. Petersburg. The conquerors of the sea elements also stood up, slightly to severely dented.
To quickly smooth out their hangover wrinkles, the neighbor tells them:
- Gentlemen officers! Sometimes look around at elderly ladies with cats, and suddenly she knows Manya, Tanya and others.
The rest of the time before disembarking, the whole team rode in the vestibule until the eldest got tired of apologizing, and they did not leave the platform until the old aunt with her stupid cat moved far from the carriage.

Short

We were family friends. The husbands went to sea, and his wife and I met at get-togethers quite often. Valera is a tall man with an incredibly explosive temperament. His environment should be calm.
Otherwise…
The HR department announced to Valera that it was necessary to have a certificate of secondary education. Once ordered, he went to study at night school. I finished it somehow easy and fun. I thought: “A friend graduated from the Higher Marine Engineering School, and he?” Average sailor - easy!
In a math exam they ask:
- What is the difference between sine and cosine?
Answer: (eyes light up)
- Sine – what’s not clear? But this is (swinging his arms in one direction), and the cosine - Valera is already starting to get angry - here! - wave your arms in the other direction.
To the second question: “What is a triangle” (the insanity grew stronger). Valera drew a triangle in the air and was offended by the teachers’ lack of understanding.
I love it when people learn, so I offered to help.
Two friends are sitting, reminiscing about their difficult hikes over a glass of vodka, and I am sitting at this table and writing Valera’s test on the edge.
Thank God, Valera’s natural laziness won and with a clear conscience I stopped helping him.
Valera did not become a navigator, but he became a good, respected boatswain.