Russian battleships sent to the Far East earlier

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_battleship_Oslyabya
https://books.google.com.my/books?id=x6tl49QUU3QC&pg=PA34&dq=russian+Mediterranean+Squadron+1904
According to the sources, the battleship Oslyabya, 2 cruisers and 10 smaller escorts [of the Russian Mediterranean Squadron] were sent to the Pacific to reinforce the Russian Far Eastern Fleet, but several technical difficulties led to the group being sent home while in the Far East. Now, what if the group of ships continued [or the battleship and several escorts at least] were able to continue? If nothing unfortunate happened during the voyage and the ships weren't recalled because they were in the Pacific on 8 February 1904, what would be the consequences?
The group of ships was recalled to prevent destruction, but if the voyage continued, how would the Japanese stop them? Would this impact the Russian Japanese War in a significant manner?
Other pods that are useful [and better than the mentioned]:
1. The Russians rotate their battleships, cruisers and smaller vessels less frequently from the Far East. On 8 February, this gives them at least one battleship and if possible, more than that. While the Imperator Nikolai class was obsolete, could the presence of the Navarin, Sissoi Veliky, Admiral Makarov, Vladimir Monomakh and Dimitri Donskoy tip the balance in favour of the Russians?
2. The Second Pacific Squadron doesn't wait for the older and slower Third Pacific Squadron and reaches the Far East earlier. How would this scenario's Tsushima battle occur?
3. The Russians concentrate a larger portion of the fleet [better most of the warships] in the Far East. Would the Japanese even consider going to war in this case, if it is feasible?
 
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I don't know enough of the specifics to offer much insight, but I think your last PoD would put the British in convulsions. As I understand it, the alliance with Japan was meant to use them as a counterweight to Russia, allowing the British to focus more on home waters and the naval "menace" of the week (usually Germany post entente with France). A Russian presence in the Far East that over matches the Japanese likely forces the British to "do something". What that is, I'm not entirely sure. But, it probably turns some of the Germany hate/fear toward Russia as Germany can still claim (at this point) that it's navy is primarily focused on defense against Russia/France while a mass concentration of Russian ships in the far east can only be up to no good in the British mindset.
 

takerma

Banned
Russian concentration of more of the fleet there will trigger British to give/sell more stuff to Japanese probably.

Tsushima straight with only newer ships is interesting. Biggest problem is that Russian ships having travelled this far are badly in need of a refit. Getting there earlier is better obviously. However the massacre that happened in OTL was so decisive it is hard to imagine it going so differently.

Maybe they can sneak through at full speed if they get lucky with the weather?

I remember a TL here that had to kill Togo and then magically blow up two Japanese battleships in earlier engagement to decisively change the war in Russian favour.
 

Angrybird

Banned
The Russians had some 28 ships against 80 Japanese - 3:1
Even if they manage to increase the ratio to 40 to 80 - they are still outnumbered 2:1
 

Deleted member 9338

If they over time add additional ship to the Far East Fleet, Vickers sales may go up for additional warships sold to Japan.
 
The Third Pacific Squadron caught up with the Second largely due to Rozhestvenskii's nervous breakdown, which is another indication of the scale of the problem.

The Pacific and Black Sea fleets have always been Russia's best because they don't get frozen in so badly, they can train for much larger proportions of the year; unfortunately, the baltic fleet, not so much.

Although whether training really made much difference to gunnery in the age before directors and hydraulic turrets, not as much as you might think- morale and confidence mattered as much if not more, and Dimitri Donskoii probably did more damage to the Japanese fleet than the Second Pacific Squadron.

Damage control was beyond most people in that day and age, and it is open to doubt whether the IJN ever got it right.


Both sides had money issues; the Japanese ended the war almost bankrupt- whether they could have afforded much more than the fleet they had is doubtful, no matter how happy it could have made Vickers. Sending ships out and back regularly might have made the Russians better sailors, but it would have strained their peacetime operating budgets to the limit too.

What they needed to do was arrive early enough that there was a friendly port within reach that they could rest and refit in; in time to break the remains of the Pacific fleet out of Port Arthur, that would have changed the balance of power.

Not going to happen, though. Months to make up- no. It would need an almost instant decision, fast and accurate staff work, and no screwups on the way; the first two are at the outer edges of feasibility, the third may be ASB.

To Vladivostok, they might have made it but for administrative errors that meant they needed to stop and coal, wasting time and making news, in Cam Ranh Bay- within the Japanese zone of awareness, which meant Togo was alert and waiting for them.
 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_battleship_Oslyabya
https://books.google.com.my/books?id=x6tl49QUU3QC&pg=PA34&dq=russian+Mediterranean+Squadron+1904
According to the sources, the battleship Oslyabya, 2 cruisers and 10 smaller escorts [of the Russian Mediterranean Squadron] were sent to the Pacific to reinforce the Russian Far Eastern Fleet, but several technical difficulties led to the group being sent home while in the Far East. Now, what if the group of ships continued [or the battleship and several escorts at least] were able to continue? If nothing unfortunate happened during the voyage and the ships weren't recalled because they were in the Pacific on 8 February 1904, what would be the consequences?
The group of ships was recalled to prevent destruction, but if the voyage continued, how would the Japanese stop them? Would this impact the Russian Japanese War in a significant manner?
Other pods that are useful [and better than the mentioned]:
1. The Russians rotate their battleships, cruisers and smaller vessels less frequently from the Far East. On 8 February, this gives them at least one battleship and if possible, more than that. While the Imperator Nikolai class was obsolete, could the presence of the Navarin, Sissoi Veliky, Admiral Makarov, Vladimir Monomakh and Dimitri Donskoy tip the balance in favour of the Russians?
2. The Second Pacific Squadron doesn't wait for the older and slower Third Pacific Squadron and reaches the Far East earlier. How would this scenario's Tsushima battle occur?
3. The Russians concentrate a larger portion of the fleet [better most of the warships] in the Far East. Would the Japanese even consider going to war in this case, if it is feasible?

The appearance of a Russian battleship in the immediate area of Japan outside of Port Arthur probably would have influenced the decision of whether to go to war or not at that exact date - war would probably occur anyway in the short term. If the Med. Squadron was at Port Arthur, I think the surprise attack probably would have gone ahead anyway (the Japanese probably expected great success to attempt it in the beginning anyway).

Responding to the pods:
1. Perhaps the Japanese wait for the rotation. I still think they would look for the most ideal time to strike. It would not be sufficient to advert the war.
2. If both sides met, the Russians would still likely lose (perhaps the battle isn't as one sided) as they had poor gunnery skills and were taking on a poorer quality of coal. The only chance the Russians had was slipping through to Vladivostok.
3. I'm inclined to believe that in this case if sufficient amounts of warships (in particular battleships) were stationed at Port Arthur, Japan may have to reconsider war. That being said, this could have adverse effects for Russia elsewhere where her naval power is depleted.
 
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