Cruiser Aurora
The cruiser Aurora is a legendary cruiser that became a symbol of the Communist Revolution in Russia. The cruiser's construction started in the Admiralty Shipyard of St. Petersburg on 23 May 1897 and it was launched on 11 May 1900. The Aurora was included into the list of fighting ships of the navy in July 1903.
In 1917 the cruiser's crew took an active part in the February Revolution and also in the following civil war and in the defense against foreign intervention. On October 25 (7 November) 1917, a blank shot from the Aurora's forecastle gun signaled the start of the assault on the Winter Palace. Once World War II began, the Aurora and her crew made a stand for Leningrad.
In 1948 the cruiser was moored to Petrogradskaya Embankment of Leningrad and was used as a training facility of the Nakhimov Naval School.
In 1956 the Aurora became a museum-ship. In 1968 the cruiser was awarded the Order of the October Revolution.