Wrangel's fleet
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Wrangel's Fleet, the last remnant of the Black Sea Fleet of the Imperial Russian Navy, existed from 1920 until 1924. This squadron was a "White" (anti-communist and counter-revolutionary) unit during the Russian Civil War. It was known also as the Russian Squadron (Русская Эскадра).
History
In 1920 the last remnants of the former Denikin's forces were confined to the Crimean peninsula and commanded by Pyotr Nikolayevich Wrangel. In November 1920 the Bolsheviks captured the White position and the White forces evacuated to Turkey. The fleet was re-organised under the command of Rear Admiral Mikhail Alexandrovich Kedrov and was granted asylum by the French. The fleet moved to Bizerta in Tunisia by February 1921 and was interned there under the command of Rear Admiral Mikhail Berens. As well as the crews of the ships the Russian community included 4,500 civilian refugees.
The French Government recognised the Soviet Union in 1924 and gave ownership of the ships to the Soviets. A technical commission directed by Alexei Krylov arrived in Bizerta in December and found the warships unrepairable. The ships were sold as scrap metal by the Soviet government in Bizerta. Many of the sailors of the fleet settled in France as White Emigres.
Composition of the Russian Squadron
- Battleships
- General Alexiev
- Georgi Pobedonosets
- Cruisers
- General Kornilov
- Almaz
- Destroyers
- Kapitan Saken
- Bespokoiny
- Derzky
- Gnevny
- Pylkiy
- Pospeshny
- Schastlivy (grounded 24 October 1919 while being towed to internment)
- Tserigo
- Zharkiy
- Zvonkiy
- Zorkiy
- Submarines
- Tyulen
- Burevestnik
- AG-22
- Utka
- Gunboats
- Vsadnik
- Dzhigit
- Gaidamak
- Strazh
- Grozny
For my purposes I alter the historical fleet quite considerably with more battleships, cruisers and other units and equipment to make these forces attractive to another country to assimilate (we are Borg!)