Russian Guns in German Battery On English Soil-- Part 3: The Imperator Aleksandr, From World War I to the Cold War

After rebuilding the guns to accept German ammunition, they were placed at Batterie Mirus in Guernsey. The Finns used four of the remaining 12-inch guns in coastal batteries and the last four were used to replace ones on Soviet Railway guns.

After the war, these last eight were handed over to the Soviet Union and kept in operation until 1991. One turret is now a memorial at Isosaan and one barrel is preserved at the Finnish Coast Artillery Museum in Kuivasaan.

When captured, the Nina was also carrying some of the Aleksandr's 13-cm guns. Some were used at the fort at Tangane on the island of Rugsunday. These guns engaged the British light cruiser HMS Kenya during Operation Norway Archery in 1941, but saw no other action.

So There You Have the History of the Guns of the Aleksandr. --GreGen

Russian Guns for German Battery on British Land-- Part 2: The Imperator Aleksandr III

The 551-foot long Imperator Aleksandr was interned at Bizerte by the French after it unloaded the White Russians (anti-Communist). It was later scrapped by them to pay for dock fees. Its guns were put into storage and later used by the Germans (at Guernsey Island) and Finns for coastal artillery. The Soviets and Finns continued to use the ship's guns into the Cold War.

The Aleksandr's main armament consisted of a dozen 12-inch guns mounted in four triple turrets.

These twelve guns were placed in storage in Bizerte. In June 1940, the French gave them to Finland. Eight made it safely to that country, but four were seized by Germany aboard the SS Nina when they invaded Norway April 1940.

About Those Russian-German Guns on Guernsey. --GreGen

Russian Guns for the German Battery On English Land-- Part 1: The Imperator Aleksandr III

Last week I wrote about the German battery on the British Channel Island of Guernsey that had its main 14-inch guns that had been on a Russian battleship. I decided to find out some more about that battleship.

From Wikipedia.

The Russian battleship IMPERATOR ALEKSANDR III had an interesting history. It was begun before World War I, completed in 1917 and served in the Russian Black Sea fleet during the war. There were several Russian ships by the name Imperator Aleksandr, but this is the one the guns came from.

It was later renamed Volia, or Volya, which means freedom in Russian. The ship was surrendered to Germany in 1918 who then turned it over to the British under terms of the Armistice. The British then turned the ship over to the White Russians in 1919 during the Russian Revolution. The ship helped evacuate the White Russian from Crimea in 1920 when the Red Russians took control of the country.

--GreGen