The strongest naval power in the world, Britain, is not too actively involved in the “submarine race”. This is quite understandable: “mistress of the seas” and so possessed in the oceans a huge advantage over their rivals. As we already know, in the richest country in the world, one after another arriving inventors-“divers”, who yearned to implement their projects. As a rule, they were met by outwardly quite friendly attitude; they were welcomed and allocated funds. But in the end, all “products” was recognized as unusable. In General, this estimate is not very different from the truth, especially in the first half of the nineteenth century. Brand new technical tools, especially those that could shake the power of Britain, the Admiralty tried to hold them off as long as possible. At least in order not to give other powers a reason and example. Such a policy in the nineteenth century was characterized in relation to submarines.
“MISTRESS” IN THE TAIL
The idea behind the project was never built submarine “Ero” physicist Marie-Davy, to supply its electric motor, it seemed very attractive. Indeed, what could be better than a virtually silent motor which does not require any precious air and not enough fuel. However, as already mentioned, the Professor is too ahead of its time. The full rechargeable battery in the mid-nineteenth century was not, and the boat “on batteries” (battery cells) could be just the gas-guzzling toy. The possible range of such underwater “Electroapparat” was limited to a few kilometers, and to replenish the supply of energy in disposable elements was impossible.
Two people who moved in Russia “underwater thing” off the ground, deserve a separate story. Chronologically, the first was Ivan Alexander, teacher of drawing and painting, always interested in modern techniques and technologies. Once in France, Louis Daguerre invented a usable method of capturing images, which subsequently became the photo that Alexander immediately made acquainted with the method and opened in St. Petersburg, a photo Studio, one of the first in the world. It is this passion that became a profession, and brought the inventor to the underwater case. In 1853, before the Crimean war, he visited Britain, where a lot of pictures, and beheld the innumerable rows of ships “mistress of the seas”, ready to March to the shores of the Crimea in order to “teach those Russians.”
“Dwarf” submarine or midget submarines occupy a special place in the underwater shipbuilding. Of them, in fact, grew large submarines with a displacement of tens of thousands of tons with crews of hundreds of people. Virtually all countries after the first small submarines switched to medium and larger submarines. And only two States continued to develop boats and large and small sizes -Italy and Japan.
As we have seen, the “underwater thing” in France during the time of Napoleon special did not develop, despite quite a rich flow of suggestions, starting with Robert Fulton. However, ironically, the submarine had to rescue the deposed Emperor from captivity on the island of St. Helena. The twists and turns of a real trace in the history of shipbuilding have left, but are curious as illustrations of the rapid “underwater currents”, which was accompanied by the development of new technology.
A large part of the surface of the Earth is covered with water. Since ancient times people preferred to live near rivers, lakes, seas and oceans, learning the techniques of crossing water spaces. It was so even in the ancient world, as the formation of the merchant fleet, there are warships escorting the cargo ships.
After the Japanese turned their 155-mm pseudologia “Mogami” in a normal heavy cruiser, armed with jasminewebcam, the fleet of the Country of the rising sun was in a curious position. Japan was the only major Maritime powers, not having to the beginning of the Second world war, no one modern light cruiser. All units of this class belonged to the older types 20 years; no restructuring and modernization could not make them full-fledged rivals to modern British, French and especially American ships of the same class.
In the nineteenth century, the United States became a real “worker” in the field of underwater shipbuilding. To a large extent this contributed to the Civil war in which both sides actively tried to use all conceivable technical tricks. However, the “underwater Express” has typed a full speed not immediately. After the second (and, as it turned out, last) war against England came decades latent fermentation of thoughts, not often manifested in the final product. Only in 1851, a curious enthusiast, Lodner Phillips issued the first “product”, so to speak, of the new bottling. 26-year-old inventor came from a quite land of Indiana, had no formal education, knew little of the experience of his predecessors, and his main profession was… Shoe business. And available funds had virtually no.
It would seem that after Robert Fulton managed to create an almost working submarine, the diving business had to go forward with good speed. However, the main engine of progress in this area was the war, and after the bloodiest of the Napoleonic era in Europe and America came a lull. Of the immediate followers of Fulton can be mentioned is that the brothers Kössen, who had just “to the table” and built in 1810 in Le Havre an obvious rip-off of the first “Nautilus”. (Actually, the brothers did not hide a “source of inspiration”, even naming his creation “the Submarine Nautilus”).
The message of the Soviet information Bureau was, as usual, short: “” N ” the submarine of the Northern fleet under the command of Lieutenant Stolbov entered in the fascist of the harbour and attacked the transport with a displacement of 6 tonnes. Torpedoman Melnikov two torpedoes blew up the enemy ship. The submarine returned safely to their base”. This is the first military success of the Northern fleet in the great Patriotic war fell to the lot of crew of the submarine U-402, which is 14 July 1941, entered Porsangerfjord and destroyed the transport ship of the enemy. The first step was made. But the “four second” had many difficult hikes, and each demanded that the crew maximum impact spiritual and physical strength, bravery, courage and resourcefulness.