Advanced Officers' Class (1827–1877) Russian scholar
Mikhail Lomonosov envisioned the establishment of a naval academy in 1759. However, only 68 years later, in 1826, did the famous admiral and seafarer
Ivan Fedorovich Kruzenshtern propose the establishment of the earliest organizational precursor to today's Naval Academy - the "Advanced Officers' Class" (Вышие офицерский класс) of the
Russian Navy which were opened on 25 April 1827 under the Naval Corps. The mission of the Advanced Officers' Class was to improve the theoretical training of the most promising naval officers in exact and applied sciences. As a result of the revolution in naval affairs brought about by the
Crimean War (1853–56) and the clear end of the
age of sail the future of naval education in Russia and its transformation was reviewed by a special commission in 1862.
Transition to academy By the 7 August 1862 order of the
Naval Minister, the Officers' Class was transformed into the newly established Academic Course of Maritime Sciences having a two-year period of study and divided into three departments:
hydrographic,
shipbuilding, and
mechanical. The graduates of the course provided the navy with scientific officers for the fleets and instructors for the
Naval Cadet Corps. •
Nikolayev Naval Academy (1877–1917) In 1872 the council of the Academic Course developed a proposal for a full-fledged Academy. On 28 January 1877, the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the Officers' Class, by the imperial directive of
Aleksandr II the Officers' Class was renamed the Nikolayev Naval Academy. At this time both the Naval Cadet Corps and the Naval Academy were headed by the same naval officer. • Heads of the Academy during the imperial period • '''Advanced Officers' Class''' (1827–1877) •
Krusenstern, Ivan Fyodorovich (1827–1842) • Rimskiy-Korsakov, Nikolay Petrovich (1842–1848) • Kazin, Nikolay Glebovich (1848–1851) • Glazenap, Bogdan Aleksandrovich (1851–1855) • Davydov, Aleksey Kuzmich (1855–1857) • Nakhimov, Sergey Stepanovich (1857–1861) •
Rimsky-Korsakov, Voin Andryevich (1861–1871) • Epanchin, Aleksey Pavlovich (1871–1882) •
Nikolayev Naval Academy (1877–1917) • Arsenyev, Dmitriy Sergeyevich (1882–1896) • Kriger, A.Kh. (1896–1901) • Damozhirov, A.I. (1901–1902) •
Chukhnin, G.P. (1902–1905) • Rimskiy-Korsakov, Nikolay Aleksandrovich (1905–1906) • Voyevodskiy, Stepan Arkadyevich (1906–1908) • Rusin, Aleksandr Ivanovich (1908–1910) • Shulgin, Grigoriy Ivanovich (1910–1917) ==Soviet period==