Pavel Nakhimov

Nakhimov was born in the village of Gorodok in the Vyazma district of the Smolensk Governorate into a noble Russian family. He was the seventh of eleven children of a landlord and Second Major Stepan Mikhailovich Nakhimov and his wife Feodosia Ivanovna Nakhimova (née Kozlovskaya). Six of his siblings died as infants. He and all four of his brothers would become professional seamen, including Vice Admiral Sergei Stepanovich Nakhimov (18051872). == Early military career ==

In 1817, he entered the Naval Academy for the Nobility (Morskoy Dvoryanskiy Korpus) in Saint Petersburg. That year, he made his first sea voyage aboard the frigate Feniks ("Phoenix") to the shores of Sweden and Denmark. He was promoted to a non-commissioned officer soon after. In February 1818, he passed examinations to become a midshipman and was immediately assigned to the second Fleet Crew (Flotskiy Ekipazh) of the Russian Imperial Navy's Baltic Fleet. At the beginning of his naval career, Nakhimov's experience was limited to voyages in the Baltic Sea as well as a more extensive trip from the White Sea port of Arkhangelsk to Kronstadt naval base near Saint Petersburg. His lucky break came in March 1822, when he was assigned to the frigate Kreiser ("Cruiser"); the vessel took part in a round-the-globe expedition commanded by the well-known Russian explorer Mikhail Petrovich Lazarev (17881851), who had already undertaken several such voyages. During the three-year voyage, Nakhimov was promoted to the rank of lieutenant. On conclusion of this adventure, he received his first award, the Order of Saint Vladimir IV degree. He returned to his native Smolensk and was assigned to the 74-gun warship Azov, which made its maiden voyage from Arkhangelsk to Kronstadt in the autumn of 1826. In the summer of 1827, Azov sailed to the Mediterranean as flagship of the Russian squadron under the command of Rear-Admiral Lodewijk van Heiden for a joint expedition with the French and British navies against the Ottomans. Just before its departure, Emperor Nicholas I visited the Azov and ordered that in the case of hostilities, the crew should deal with the enemy "as Russians do". Azov, under then-Captain First Rank M.P. Lazarev, distinguished itself most prominently in the Battle of Navarino (20 October 1827), during which the allied British-French-Russian fleet "totally" destroyed the Ottoman squadron. For his outstanding gunnery performance during the battle, the 27-year-old Nakhimov was promoted to the captaincy of a trophy ship and was decorated by the allied governments. Early in his career, Nakhimov was criticized for "brutality towards sailors"; this allegation would not affect the public perception of him being a popular commander. == Crimean War and death ==

Battle of Sinope During the Crimean War of 18531856 Nakhimov distinguished himself by defeating the Ottoman fleet at Sinope in 1853. Before the battle, the Russian fleet in the Black Sea was divided into two groups, one led by Nakhimov and the other by V. A. Kornilov. Nakhimov was assigned the eastern part of the sea. Nakhimov asked for reinforcements, which he got on November 27, 1853, when a squadron led by Admiral Fyodor Mihailovich Novosilskiy joined Nakhimov's squadron. By the time of the battle, Nakhimov had six battleships, two frigates, and three steamers and outgunned the Ottomans with weapons such as Paixhans guns. At first, the Russian squadron demanded the surrender of the Ottoman fleet. All of the Ottoman ships, except for the Taif, were "devastated." Only 3336 Russian sailors and one officer died during the battle. Siege of Sevastopol and death His finest hour came during the Siege of Sevastopol, where he and Admiral V. A. Kornilov organized from scratch the land defense of the city and its port, the home base of the Russian Black Sea Fleet. As the commander of the port and the military governor of the city, Nakhimov became in fact the head of the Sevastopol naval and land defense forces. On , while inspecting the forward-defense positions on Malakhov Kurgan, he was fatally wounded by a sniper and died two days later. == Legacy ==

Glorification After his death, Nakhimov was glorified, which included misrepresenting facts. In publications, Nakhimov was represented as a "friend of the common people" and "the soul of the defense of Sevastopol." During World War II, Nakhimov was turned into a national hero by the Soviet Union and Stalin alongside other figures like Prince Pyotr Bagration, Mikhail Kutuzov, Aleksandr Nevsky, and Aleksandr Suvorov. His bust and the other busts in Dnipro were removed in December 2021. Nakhimov was buried inside St Vladimir's Cathedral in Sevastopol along with Mikhail Lazarev, V.A. Kornilov and Vladimir Istomin. There is a monument erected in his memory. The Soviet government instituted posthumous honors as well, introducing Nakhimov Naval Schools for teenagers in 1943, and establishing in 1944 both the Order of Nakhimov (with two degrees) and the Nakhimov Medal for Navy personnel. The Order of Nakhimov, one of the highest military decorations in the Soviet Union, continues to exist in the Russian Federation. Ships named after Nakhimov • Admiral Nakhimov, a Russian armoured cruiser. • Original name of Chervona Ukraina, a . • Admiral Nakhimov, a . • , a Soviet passenger liner. • Admiral Nakhimov, a Kresta II-class cruiser. • Admiral Nakhimov (formerly Kalinin), a Honours and awards coin commemorating the 190th anniversary of Nakhimov's birth. • Order of St. Vladimir, 4th class (1825; the voyage on the frigate Cruiser) • Order of Saint George, 4th class (1827; for service in the Battle of Navarino • Order of St. Anna, 2nd class (1830) • Order of St. Anna, 2nd class with the Imperial Crown (1837; for diligent and zealous excellent service) • Order of St. Vladimir, 3rd class (1842; for diligent and zealous excellent service) • Badge of distinction "For impeccable service" XXV years. (1846) • Order of St. Stanislaus, 1st class (1847) • Order of St. Anna, 1st class (1849) • Order of St. Anna, 1st class with the Imperial Crown (1851) • Order of St. Vladimir, 2nd class (1853; For the successful transfer of 13th Division) • Order of Saint George, 2nd class (1853; For the victory at Sinope) • Order of the White Eagle (Russia), (1855; For actions in the defence of Sevastopol) • Order of the Bath (United Kingdom) • Order of the Redeemer (Greece) == In popular culture ==

The 1947 Soviet movie Admiral Nakhimov, directed by Vsevolod Pudovkin, is about the life of Nakhimov. Soviet actor Aleksei Dikiy played Nakhimov. The movie covers Nakhimov's victory in the Battle of Sinop and his defense of Sevastopol. The film had to be remade by Pudovkin as the Communist Party of the Soviet Union viewed the original film as having too much "dancing" and misrepresenting historical facts. Pudovkin removed the love story and "toned down" the dance scenes. == Gallery ==

File:Pavel Nakhimov.PNG|Portrait of Pavel Nakhimov, by Georg Wilhelm Timm File:Admiral Nahimov.jpg|Painting of Pavel Nakhimov, by Georg Wilhelm Timm File:Mort de Nakhimoff.jpg|Pavel Nakhimov's lethal injury, by Ivan Dyagovchenko File:St. Vladimir's Cathedral, Sevastopol 01.jpg|Nakhimov's grave in St. Vladimir's Cathedral, Sevastopol == See also ==