, captain of
Mirny.
Mirny was under construction in 1818 at Olonetskaya Shipyards,
Lodeynoye Pole. It was initially named
Ladoga (after
Lake Ladoga), but when the need arose for a new ship for an Antarctic expedition, the decision was taken not to build a completely new one, but to refit
Ladoga. It was reconstructed under surveillance of its future commander Mikhail Lazarev. On
Vostok under the captaincy of
Commander Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen, the leader of the expedition, alongside
Mirny under the command of
Lieutenant Commander Mikhail Lazarev left
Kronshtadt and on reached the shore of
Antarctica, which was sighted for the first time in history. After repair in
Sydney in
Australia, the expedition explored the tropical parts of the Pacific, and on again turned to Antarctica. On the sloops reached the southernmost point of their voyage at 69° 53' S and 92° 19' W. On they returned to Kronshtadt. In 751 days they covered 49 723 miles (approx. 92 300 km). Apart from the discovery of the world's sixth continent,
Antarctica, 29 islands were mapped and complex oceanographic works carried out. A medal was issued by the
Russian Admiralty to commemorate the expedition. == Named in honor ==