These photographs show the Russian battleship Sevastopol from the 1st Brigade of the Baltic Fleet, in winter anchorage off Helsingfors, now Helsinki, during World War One. It was converted from the Gangut by Navis, not the "N"- (Neu) model). It was the Flagship of the 1st Brigade and flies a Rear Admiral’s Flag at the foretopmast. Masts were new and the ship was totally repainted.

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During World War One Helsingfors was one of the primary bases for the Imperial Russian Baltic Fleet. After October Revolution in Russia, Sailors Soviets seized control of the Baltic Fleet. The newly independent Finland, no longer a Grand Duchy in the Russian Empire, required the Russian fleet to vacate Helsingfors, resulting in the famous Ice March in the winter of 1918.

Joachim Thiel

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