K-1000 battleship
Encyclopedia
The K-1000 battleship was rumoured to be a type of advanced battleship
produced by the Soviet Union
at the beginning of the Cold War
. Soviet intelligence agencies actively encouraged the circulation of rumours about the type, which were reprinted by several Western journals including Jane's Fighting Ships
.
Accounts of the new Soviet battleships appeared in journals in France, Germany and the USA in the late 1940s and early 1950s. The rumours were unclear about the specifications of the ships. The main point of agreement between different descriptions was that the type carried guided missile
s, mounted in distinctive domed turrets, in addition to a conventional heavy gun armament. The ships were often said to have been laid down in Siberian shipyards, although, there have never been shipyards in Siberia.
The displacement stated varied between 35,000 and 55,000 ton
s, and their speed was said to be anything between 25 and 33 knots. The main armament was normally said to be six to nine 16-inch guns, though sometimes twelve 18-inch guns were alleged.
The names assigned to the class were said to be:
Many of the names were re-used from units of the authentic, but never completed, Sovetsky Soyuz class which were under construction when World War II
broke out.
The Soviet Union actively perpetrated the hoax class of warships. A Soviet 'fleet recognition manual' planted in the West seemed to confirm the existence and general features of the K-1000 Heavy Fleet Unit Sovietskaya Byelorussia, and that she was in commission from 10 November 1953. The accompanying drawings, showing two missile domes, six heavy guns and a cluster of lighter armament, gave a further veneer of accuracy to the document. In fact the drawings were a direct copy of the 1949-50 edition of Jane's Fighting Ships
.
In reality, the USSR was (like other naval powers) scrapping its existing battleships, which had been rendered useless by the aircraft carrier
. The United States Navy
considered creating a 'missile battleship' out of the unfinished USS Kentucky
, which would have had some similarities to the fictional K-1000 class ; however, this plan never went ahead.
Battleship
A battleship is a large armored warship with a main battery consisting of heavy caliber guns. Battleships were larger, better armed and armored than cruisers and destroyers. As the largest armed ships in a fleet, battleships were used to attain command of the sea and represented the apex of a...
produced by the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
at the beginning of the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
. Soviet intelligence agencies actively encouraged the circulation of rumours about the type, which were reprinted by several Western journals including Jane's Fighting Ships
Jane's Fighting Ships
Jane's Fighting Ships is an annual reference book of information on all the world's warships arranged by nation, including information on ship's names, dimensions, armaments, silhouettes and photographs, etc...
.
Accounts of the new Soviet battleships appeared in journals in France, Germany and the USA in the late 1940s and early 1950s. The rumours were unclear about the specifications of the ships. The main point of agreement between different descriptions was that the type carried guided missile
Guided Missile
Guided Missile is a London based independent record label set up by Paul Kearney in 1994.Guided Missile has always focused on 'the underground', preferring to put out a steady flow of releases and developing the numerous GM events around London and beyond....
s, mounted in distinctive domed turrets, in addition to a conventional heavy gun armament. The ships were often said to have been laid down in Siberian shipyards, although, there have never been shipyards in Siberia.
The displacement stated varied between 35,000 and 55,000 ton
Ton
The ton is a unit of measure. It has a long history and has acquired a number of meanings and uses over the years. It is used principally as a unit of weight, and as a unit of volume. It can also be used as a measure of energy, for truck classification, or as a colloquial term.It is derived from...
s, and their speed was said to be anything between 25 and 33 knots. The main armament was normally said to be six to nine 16-inch guns, though sometimes twelve 18-inch guns were alleged.
The names assigned to the class were said to be:
- Strana Sovetov
- Sovetskaya Byelorossia
- Krasnaya Bessarabiya
- Krasnaya Sibir
- Sovietskaya Konstitutsia
- Lenin
- Sovetskiy Soyuz
Many of the names were re-used from units of the authentic, but never completed, Sovetsky Soyuz class which were under construction when World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
broke out.
The Soviet Union actively perpetrated the hoax class of warships. A Soviet 'fleet recognition manual' planted in the West seemed to confirm the existence and general features of the K-1000 Heavy Fleet Unit Sovietskaya Byelorussia, and that she was in commission from 10 November 1953. The accompanying drawings, showing two missile domes, six heavy guns and a cluster of lighter armament, gave a further veneer of accuracy to the document. In fact the drawings were a direct copy of the 1949-50 edition of Jane's Fighting Ships
Jane's Fighting Ships
Jane's Fighting Ships is an annual reference book of information on all the world's warships arranged by nation, including information on ship's names, dimensions, armaments, silhouettes and photographs, etc...
.
In reality, the USSR was (like other naval powers) scrapping its existing battleships, which had been rendered useless by the aircraft carrier
Aircraft carrier
An aircraft carrier is a warship designed with a primary mission of deploying and recovering aircraft, acting as a seagoing airbase. Aircraft carriers thus allow a naval force to project air power worldwide without having to depend on local bases for staging aircraft operations...
. The United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
considered creating a 'missile battleship' out of the unfinished USS Kentucky
USS Kentucky (BB-66)
USS Kentucky was to be the sixth and final constructed for the United States Navy; she was the second ship to be named in honor of Kentucky...
, which would have had some similarities to the fictional K-1000 class ; however, this plan never went ahead.