Project 70E modified Sverdlov class cruiser Dzerzhinsky in the Mediterranean on 3 April 1970. Completed in 1952 as a light cruiser (Project 68bis), she was rebuilt with in the early 1960's with an M-2 Volkhov SAM system (NATO SA-N-2 'Guideline') replacing her aft turrets. She was an active unit of the Black Sea Fleet until her 1987 decommissioning, frequently deploying to the Mediterranean.

SOVIET UNION: SVERDLOV-CLASS

Units: Sverdlov, Zhdanov, Admiral Lazarev, Admiral Ushakov, Admiral Senyavin, Dmitry Pozharski, Varyag, Ordzhonikidze, Aleksandr Nevski, Aleksander Suvarov, Oktyabrskaya Revolutsiya, Murmansk,

Dzerzhinski, Admiral Nakhimov, Mikhail Kutuzov

Type and Significance: These light cruisers were among the world’s last vessels whose armament was composed solely of guns.

Dates of Construction: Laid down between 1949 and 1954, with the last being completed in 1955.

Hull Dimensions: 689’ x 72’ 2” x 24’ 7”

Displacement: 16,000 tons

Armor: A belt with a maximum thickness of 5 inches, a deck that varied between 3 inches and 1 inch in depth, and 5-inch turret armor.

Armament: 12 5.9-inch guns in four triple gunned turrets, two each being located fore and aft, 12 3.9-inch guns, antiaircraft weapons, and 10 20.8-inch torpedo tubes.

Machinery: Turbines fed by six oil-fired boilers that could produce 110,000 horsepower.

Speed: 32.5 knots

Complement: 1,010

These ships engendered alarm in the naval officials of the Western powers, as they were perceived as significant threats. Although powerful in appearance, however, the Sverdlov-class cruisers were rendered largely obsolete by the beginning of the missile age. The Admiral Nakhimov and Dzerzhinski were refitted in the late 1950s to test early Soviet SSM batteries. The former unit was scrapped in 1961. The Ordzhonikidze was sold to Indonesia the following year and sold for scrap in 1972. All the other units except one were scrapped by 1994. The Mikhail Kutuzov was put in reserve in 1989 and remains in that status.

The Soviet Union led the way in the development of new cruisers. In 1950, Stalin, despite enduring economic problems, instituted a 10-year construction program that included 40 cruisers, being a collection of battle cruisers, heavy cruisers, and light cruisers. His goal was the restoration of the navy, after it had largely languished during the war, in order to match the naval strength of the Western powers. Construction on the first units was already under way as Stalin initiated the plan. These were the 14 light cruisers of the Sverdlov class. Production of these imposing vessels began in 1949; the final ship was not ready for sea until 1955. The Sverdlov-class light cruisers measured 689 feet by 72 feet, 2 inches, displaced 16,000 tons, and were protected by a combination of light belt and deck armor. Their primary armament consisted of 12 5.98-inch guns in four triplegunned turrets, two each located fore and aft. They also mounted smaller secondary guns and lighter antiaircraft weapons. These batteries benefited from radar equipment for calculating ranges to targets. Their engines could produce a maximum 32.5 knots. Between 1951 and 1952, work on further ships in the plan began when the keels of the two battle cruisers of the Stalingrad-class were laid down. The design called for vessels that measured 836 feet, 8 inches by 103 feet and displaced 40,000 tons. Their primary armament was projected as six 12-inch guns.

As production on the Stalingrad-class battle cruisers commenced, the first of the Sverdlov-class light cruisers were appearing on the world’s oceans. They made a deep impression on naval officials in the United States and Western Europe, who viewed them as a significant threat. The United States responded with the last cruisers whose construction had commenced during the war. Great Britain, owing to economic difficulties that plagued the other Western powers, was the only U.S. ally that built cruisers at the same time as the Soviet ships. These were the three light cruisers of the Tiger-class. Like the U.S. vessels, these ships were based on a wartime design. Owing to economic problems and the need to redesign them for newer detection systems, the first unit was not ready for service until 1959.

The continued justification for gun cruisers, however, was negated by further technological innovation in the Soviet Union between 1962 and 1969 that challenged the U.S. lead in guided missile cruiser design. Following World War II, Stalin had concentrated on constructing a navy that could defend the coasts of the Soviet Union and a few large vessels that could project power further overseas. These larger vessels were armed solely with guns. Upon Stalin’s death in 1953, successor Nikita Khrushchev shifted the priorities of the Soviet surface navy toward the incorporation of missiles. He recognized that the advent of the missile cruiser would ultimately lead to the gun cruiser’s obsolescence. Indeed, he believed that the sole priority of the Soviet Union should be the production of nuclear missile technology. A reflection of Khrushchev’s beliefs was the decision to end construction of the Stalingrad-class battle cruisers. He also characterized the units of the Sverdlov-class, although production continued, as “floating coffins.” New cruiser designs were subsequently drawn up under the direction of Sergei Gorshkov, commander in chief of the navy since 1956, and relied on the Soviet missile program for their armament.

The Soviet program, like that of the United States, had begun in earnest in the months following the end of World War II with the acquisition of German rocket technology. Soviet experiments with German equipment eventually produced missiles in the mid–1950s that alarmed Western powers; increasingly the Soviet Navy posed a greater strategic threat through missile deployment. In September 1955, the Soviet Union became the first nation to fire a submarine launched ballistic missile (SLBM), a weapon that could carry a nuclear warhead and deliver it to a target hundreds of miles away. The Soviets also produced the first conventionally powered ballistic missile submarine in 1958. At the same time, the Soviets were in the process of developing missile systems for surface ships. In the late 1950s, the Sverdlov-class cruiser Dzerzhinski was refitted to test the first-generation Soviet SAM batteries.

Experiments were also under way for the world’s first surface-to-surface missile (SSM) for use against other vessels. This latter type was the result of the need for an offensive capability against NATO aircraft carriers owing to the fact that the Soviet Union had no seabased airpower. Soviet officials viewed Western aircraft carriers as a threat to the Soviet Union itself, as they could launch aircraft armed with nuclear weapons against Soviet military sites and cities. Another Sverdlov-class cruiser, Admiral Nakhimov, was refitted to test the first of the SSM systems, SS-N–1, in the late 1950s.

LINK

Although the term “weapon of mass destruction” (WMD) has been in use for more than thirty-five years, it has no widely accepted definition. Only one international agreement uses the term: The 1967 Outer Space Treaty bans “nuclear weapons or any other kinds of weapons of mass destruction” from Earth orbit or on celestial bodies. The term “WMD” sometimes is used to identify weapons considered beyond civilized norms that should be banned or at least internationally controlled.

One working definition for WMD might be weapons that can create more than a hundred times the casualties expected from an equivalent mass of high explosive and that can cause severe contamination to an area requiring millions of dollars and months of work in cleanup and rebuilding efforts in order for safe use to resume. Most definitions of WMD list biological, chemical, radiological, or nuclear weapons. These four types of weapons can affect large areas and large numbers of people, especially in comparison with conventional weapons targeted at specific soldiers, vehicles, or buildings. In addition, all four can produce effects that spread far beyond their original target area and contaminate a large area for a long time after use.

WMD Effects

There are significant differences among the four kinds of WMD in terms of effects, difficulty of acquisition and delivery, and expectations about use. Nuclear weapons are the only type of WMD that destroy structures and equipment as well as killing people. No form of protection is effective against nuclear blast effects.

Pound for pound, biological weapons can produce even more casualties than nuclear weapons, but biological weapons are more dependent on environmental conditions and random factors. With sufficient warning, military forces can protect themselves against biological weapons; for many agents, civilian populations also can be treated after an attack is discovered. Biological agents do not usually produce instant death or even incapacitation; they often take hours or days to produce effects. Some people may even have natural immunity to a biological agent.

Chemical weapons must be delivered in vast quantities to cause massive casualties. When warned, military authorities can have troops use protective gear to reduce the number of casualties suffered during a chemical weapons attack. When not protected, however, exposed individuals may experience a nearly instant agonizing death from just drops of certain chemical agents.

Radiological weapons might produce more panic from fear of radiation than actual death. In theory, radioactive debris could be spread over a large area using conventional explosives laced with fissile material. Radiological weapons require large quantities of material to produce a delayed effect that can be defeated with protective clothing and through decontamination efforts.

Acquisition and Delivery

Nuclear weapons are probably the most difficult type of WMD to acquire because specialized equipment and knowledge is required to develop and test them. Nuclear weapons production relies on complex and unique equipment and the procurement of weapons-grade fissionable materials that must be carefully controlled. Meeting the requirements to construct nuclear weapons is a challenge for nations and may be beyond the ability of nonstate groups. Terrorist groups, however, may be able to acquire a weapon on the black market or through theft.

In contrast, biological weapons can be created using commercial equipment in a relatively small facility, and even small amounts can be deadly. They can be distributed easily, as shown in the U.S. anthrax attacks that occurred in the fall of 2001. Production of chemical weapons in quantity requires chemical engineering expertise and chemical production facilities on a scale similar to that of petroleum refineries. Aircraft sprayers and artillery delivery are preferred for battlefield use, but pressurized tanks can suffice at any scale.

Radioactive material suitable for radiological weapons is readily available given its widespread use in medical and research applications. Delivery of radiological weapons by means of aerial dusting would affect the largest possible area, but recent concern has centered on the possible terrorist employment of so-called dirty bombs, that is, conventional explosive devices used for dispersing nuclear material. Explosive dispersal is unlikely to produce any deaths from radiation but could require an expensive and time-consuming decontamination cleanup effort to make the area safe for human occupation.

Despite the potential for chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear weapons to produce large-scale death and destruction, weapons of mass destruction have primarily served as tools of deterrence by nations attempting to prevent their use by adversaries.

References

Cordesman, Anthony H., Terrorism, Asymmetric Warfare, and Weapons of Mass Destruction (New York: Praeger, 2001).

Tucker, Jonathan, Toxic Terror: Assessing Terrorist Use of Chemical and Biological Weapons (Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 2000).

The substance known as “red mercury,” purportedly a mystery ingredient in Soviet pure fusion weapons, gained both U.S. congressional and worldwide media attention in the wake of the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union when it began appearing on the nuclear materials black market. The red mercury furor began over reports that the Soviet Union had perfected a pure fusion nuclear warhead, which reportedly relied on heavy hydrogen—deuterium and lithium isotopes—as its fuel.

It is said that under the proper heat and pressure, the lithium and deuterium isotopes fuse, releasing high-energy neutrons that kill living matter in their path. Identified by traffickers with the composition Hg2SB2O7 (that is, a combination of mercury, sulphur, boron, and oxygen), red mercury has since been surmised to be the Russian code name for lithium deuteride, Li6D, a legitimate component in thermonuclear weapon production, or the heavy metal osmium.

Though there are some detractors who insist that red mercury is legitimate, much of the nuclear scientific community has stepped forward to discredit it as an important component in pure fusion weaponry. Instead, it is generally accepted that red mercury was touted by intelligence organizations or criminals as a weapons material to hoodwink terrorists and states with nuclear ambitions. Reports of it appearing on the nuclear black market have become less frequent in recent years.

References

Badolato, Edward V., and Dale Andrade, “Red Mercury: Hoax or the Ultimate Terrorist Weapon?” Counter Terrorism and Security, Spring 1996, pp. 18–20.

Edwards, Rob, “Cherry Red and Very Dangerous,” New Scientist, 29 April 1995, pp. 4–5.

“Red Mercury: Is There a Pure-Fusion Bomb for Sale?” International Defense Review, vol. 27, June 1994, pp. 79–81.

By: Garrick He

First seen in late 1987, the Wuhan 351 is a modified Romeo Class (Type 033G) (SSG), designated ES5G, converted as a trials anti-ship missile platform. The project was probably inspired by the Cold War era conventional-powered Russian Juliette class cruise missile submarine. The Wuhan 351's structure consist of six missile launcher tubes which are built into the casing abreast the conning tower and elevated to fire. To provide target acquisition an additional radar mast (Snoop Tray) is mounted between the two periscopes. It uses Pike Jaw or Hercules, hull mounted, search and attack, medium frequency sonar.

The Wuhan 351's primary weapon system consist of 6 missile launchers, 3x launchers on either side of the conning tower. Each of those watertight launcher tubes carries a single C-801 anti-ship missile. The C-801 incorporates technologies such as inertial cruise, active radar homing sea-skimmer with 40 km (22 nautical miles) range at 0.9 Mach. The C-801 may soon be replaced by C-802. The secondary weapon system consist of 8x 533mm torpedo tubes with 14 torpedoes or 28 mines. The submarine has to surface to fire missiles, although trials are reported to implement an encapsulated missile which can be launched from the torpedo tube while submerged. Based in the North Sea Fleet and reported still doing trials in 1999. Clearly there is no intention to fit this type of missile tube in other classes.

* Displacement: 1,650 tons surfaced and 2,100 tons submerged

* Dimensions: 76.6 x 6.7 x 5.2 meters

* Speed: 13 knots submerged, 15 knots surfaced and 10 knots snorting

* Endurance: 9 knots at 14,000 nm surface. 4 knots at 330 nm submerged (batteries)

* Propulsion: Twin shafts. Diesel-electric drive.

* Engines: 2x Type 37D diesel engines at 4,000 hp each. 2x PG series electric motors at 2,700 hp each. 2x creep motors at 100 hp each.

* Crew complement: 10 officers and 44 Enlisted.

* Armaments: 8x 533mm torpedo tubes. Six bow mounted and two are stern mounted. 14 torpedoes or 28 mines.

* Missiles: 6x C-801 anti-ship missiles in watertight launcher tubes.

The amphibious Jeep or Seep was inspired by the much larger DUKW. More properly it is a Ford GPA (G: Government, P: 80" wheelbase, A: Amphibian), based on the standard world war II Jeep. A simple hull was wrapped around the Jeep chassis. A propeller is driven from the transfer-case power take off unit. The other "propeller" shafts to the front and rear axles are enclosed in water proof tubes, sealed by flexible gaiters to the hull and to the differentials to allow normal suspension movement. These and other modification pushed the weight up to 1600kg (3600lbs). The cockpit has more control levers than you can poke a stick at: 2WD/4WD, hi-range/ lo-range, capstan winch (on the bows), rudder and propeller.

The Seep's intended use was to ferry soldiers to and from ships off-shore, to trundle up the beach and continue inland. They were not very successful. It had been planned to build 12,000 of them (Clayton '82) but only 5,000 were produced (Carlin '89), all by Ford. It is reported that many of the Jeeps that were used in battle sank if there were any significant waves at all. Nevertheless, a highly modified amphibious Jeep called `Half-Safe' crossed the Atlantic Ocean in 1950 and continued on to circle the world

Ford GPA Specifications

Amphibious, 2+2 seats, no doors.

Length overall: 15' 2", width 64" weight 3650lbs (unladen)

Engine: 2199cc petrol, 4 cyls, 2 valves/cylinders- side-valve power 60bhp at 3600rpm

Transmission: 3 speed, 2 speed transfer case part-time 4WD, propeller driven from Power Take Off

Suspension: live-axle-leaf/ live-axle-leaf, brakes drum/drum

Tyres: 6.00x16

Fuel tank: 12 gallons

LINK

LINK

LINK

T-34-85 equipped with stand-off screens to protect thinner side and top armour from the HEAT warheads of Panzerfausts during street fighting. These particular shields were constructed from 5–8 mm (0.2–0.3 in) steel wire. Berlin, May 1945.

In the Berlin operation, Soviet units did devise simple mesh screens which could be welded to the tank's exterior to detonate the Panzerfaust warheads prematurely (so-called bedstead armor, but most were fabricated from screening and angle irons, not actual bedsteads).

Operators

Welcome to the official website for the Mercenaries Medieval Combat Guild.
The Mercenaries Medieval Combat Guild, or “The Mercenaries” was created on February 15, 1994 in Colorado Springs, Colorado. It is a non-profit group and has as its mission:

Essentially, we are a group dedicated to the safe re-creation of medieval combat. We strive to be accurate in representation of clothing, weapons, armor, techniques, philosophies, and technical skills. In order to maintain our mission, we have created these goals:

1. To research and study historical sources and physical artifacts in order to further understand the weapons, armor, and techniques of combat used in the Middle Ages.

2. To create safe and accurate representations of the weapons of the medieval period that can be used in actual combat. These weapons shall be as close in weight, size, and shape as is possible to the medieval weapons they are meant to represent.

3. To apply the results of said research in both an academic manner and in a practical manner.

4. To encourage research and re-creation of all other aspects of medieval culture such as clothing, metalwork, music, etc.

5. To develop an accepting atmosphere where members can feel free to experiment within the confines of the mission.

While we are dedicated to being as accurate as possible, we do not require that our members confine themselves to a certain geographical area or specific time within the 700 year period of the Middle Ages so long as they make a genuine effort to “look the part." We have no desire to exclude those who are unable, either through financial or time constraints, to re-create exact replicas of the clothing or artifacts needed to participate. We are not a “live-role-playing” group and we restrict our members to the real world and do not allow fantasy elements such as magic or personas that are not human. This website is intended to act as a resource for members of the group and for those wishing to know more about our group. If you are interested in more information concerning the Mercenaries Medieval Combat Guild, or would like to attend one of our events, please refer to the contact page.

READ MORE

The conical case of the lunge mine is made of unpainted steel. Three legs attached to the base give a stand-off of 6 inches. At the apex is either a standard grenade-detonator or a primer cap, safety fuze, and detonator. Screwed to the apex is a metal tube containing a long wooden pole with a pointed striker at the lower end. The pole and striker are held away from the detonator by a safety pin and a copper shear wire. The liner of the cone is made of aluminum or steel.

After removing the safety pin, the attacker hinges forward toward the target, with sufficient force to shear the shear wire and drive the striker into the cap. It is reported that this mine is capable of penetrating 6 inches of armor plate with head-on contact, while 4 inches can be pierced by contact at a 60-degree angle.

SPECIFICATIONS:

Weight of mine body - 11.8 pounds.

Weight of charge - 6.40 pounds.

Length of mine body - 11 inches.

Diameter at base - 8 inches.

Length of handle 76 inches.

Internal height of shaped-charge cone - 4.5 inches.

Bottom diameter of cone - 3.7 inches.

Apex angle – 40*

Individual Suicide Attacks

Japanese antitank methods include considerable individual action by Japanese soldiers in suicidal missions. In one instance, a Japanese soldier dug a well-camouflaged fox hole among the weeds just off the shoulder of a road barely two traffic lanes wide. A tape-measure mine was tied to the end of a 5-foot bamboo pole. Lying in the protection of the fox hole, the soldier waited for a chance to push the mine under the tracks of any Allied tank using the road. Another one-man attack method uses the lunge mine, which consists of an armor-piercing charge placed on the end of a pole. The attacker waits in hiding and lunges at the first tank to draw near with his mine and pole held in much the same manner as a rifle with fixed bayonet. The mine explodes on contact.

A demolition charge, manually attached to an Allied tank and hand detonated, is another suicide weapon employed by the Japanese. Filled with 10% pounds of picric acid, a wooden box about 8 to 10 inches square is mounted on a wooden base and slung over the back of the soldier. The outside perimeter of the box is fringed with hooks by which the tank raider hangs the demolition charge on the turret or any other part of the Allied tank. A Type 91 or 97 hand grenade is used as a detonator. After the box is attached to the tank, the fuze head of the grenade is rapped sharply by the tank hunter; an explosion results immediately.

Another weapon is the shoulder-pack mine. With the mine strapped to his back, the Japanese conceals himself as close as possible to the path of the approaching tank. When the tank arrives at a point about 15 feet from the concealed soldier, he dashes out and throws himself under it, between the tracks. Ile pulls a detonating cord when the tank is directly over him. The mine explodes 1 to 3 seconds after the cord is pulled.

In recent operations in Burma much reliance was placed on one-man suicide tank-hunting tactics. Types of suicide activities varied. Soldiers sat in fox holes with aerial bombs between their knees, prepared to detonate them by hand when an Allied tank pass over. Attempts were made to place picric acid charges with pull fuzes on tanks by hand. Hand grenades and Molotov cocktails were thrown from hiding places in culverts. Other Japanese were reported to have attempted to set tanks on fire by throwing lighted branches which had been dipped in oil. One Japanese officer charged a tank armed only with his sword and succeeded in inflicting considerable personal injuries on the tank crew.

A report from Okinawa told of Japanese soldiers hidden in camouflaged holes and armed with explosive charges strapped to their backs. Success of this antitank ruse required that the hidden soldiers detonate the charges, using pull igniters, as Allied tanks pass over the holes.

These tactics illustrate a recently discerned Japanese trend to resort more and more to the use of individual tank hunters rather than teams. This practice apparently follows a known decision of the Japanese Imperial General Staff that tank-assault units can be used most efficiently if each individual member of such units acts upon his own initiative in suicide attacks. Tactics are modified to provide supporting fire for individual attackers in order to enable them to get within striking distance of their targets.

Type 98 was first used in Singapore and the Philippines in the early Pacific War. After that, Type 98 was used on Okinawa and Iwo Jima.

Independent artillery mortar battalions (Dokunitsu Kyoho Daitai) in Burma were issued with a ponderous 320mm Type 98 (M1938) spigot mortar which could throw a 675 lb bomb over 1,000yd. This weapon was clearly akin to the 320mm spigot mortar designed specifically for demolition work. (Few of them were made and they were little used).

In both cases the spigot mortar itself comprised a steel spigot, a domed steel mounting plate — supported by a dome-shaped wooden block, and a steel baseplate; these were all bolted to a heavy wood block base. The spigot was a steel cylinder with a cavity at the upper end for the propellant. The wooden base consisted of three sections of rectangular baulks of timber, the top section, the middle and the bottom sections — alternate sections being laid at right angles to one another.

Provision was made for a limited amount of traverse and the spigot-seating bolts were so constructed as to permit setting up for line. Changes in range were obtained by varying the propellant charge.

Bombs were in three parts which screwed together; an HE warhead fitted with a nose-fuse, a cylindrical central portion with an internal cavity for a secondary filling, and a cylindrical finned tail unit. The primary and augmenting charges were contained in a brass case which fitted into the spigot cavity; ignition was by means of an electric ignitor through a flash channel in the side of the spigot and the bomb tail.

Type 98 32cm Spigot Mortar

Introduced Year : 1938

Caliber : 320 mm

Barrel Length : -

EL Angle of Fire : Fixed at 45 Degrees

AZ Angle of Fire : 16 Degrees

Shell Weight : 300 Kg

Muzzle Velocity : 110 m/sec

Weight : 1.215 ton

Range : 1,100 m

Production Qty : 2,000 (Shells)