Aurora

Аврора 

Aurora (Russian: Авро́ра; English transliteration: Avrora) is a Russian protected cruiser, currently preserved as a museum ship in St. Petersburg. She battled the Japanese Navy in the Russo-Japanese War. One of the first incidents of the Communist Revolution in Russia happened on the cruiser Aurora.

The cruiser Aurora is pictured on the Order of the October Revolution

As a museum ship, the In 1922, Aurora was brought to service again as a training ship. During World War II, the guns were taken from the ship and used in land defence of Leningrad. The ship itself was docked in Oranienbaum port, and was repeatedly shelled and bombed. On 30 September 1941 she was damaged and sunk in the harbour.

After extensive repairs in 1945 - 1947, Aurora was permanently anchored on the Neva in Leningrad (now St. Petersburg) as a monument to the Great October Socialist Revolution and in 1957 became a museum-ship.

On 2 November 1927, Aurora was awarded the Order of the Red Banner for its revolutionary merits and on 22 February 1968 - the Order of the October Revolution which, features the image of the cruiser itself.

cruiser Aurora became one of the many tourist attractions of Leningrad (now Saint Petersburg), and continued to be a symbol of the Communist Revolution and a prominent attribute of Russian history. In addition to the museum space, a part of the ship continued to house a naval crew whose duties included caring for the ship, providing security and participating in government and military ceremonies. The crew was considered to be on active duty and was subject to military training and laws.

Having long served as a museum ship, from 1984 to 1987 the cruiser was once again put in to its construction yard, the Admiralty Shipyard, for capital restoration. During the restoration overhaul, due to deterioration, the ship's hull below the waterline was replaced with a new welded hull according to the original drawings. The cut off lower hull section was towed into the Gulf of Finland, to the unfinished base at Ruchi, and sunk near the shore. (Source: Russian language entry for the Cruiser Aurora) The restoration revealed that some of the ship parts, including the armor plates, were originally made in England, which put in doubt the previously maintained image of the cruiser as a marvel of authentic Russian naval engineering.

Aurora stands today as the oldest commissioned ship of the Russian Navy, proudly flying the naval ensign under which it was commissioned those many years ago. It is still manned by an active service crew commanded by a Captain of the 1st Rank.

From 1956 to the present day 28 million people have visited the cruiser Aurora.