propellers. The ship could still be steered by using her engines at varying speeds, but the flooding intensified and by 03:15 the next morning the bow was submerged to the point where forward movement was no longer possible. Ozerov realized that Sissoi Veliky could not make it to Vladivostok; he ordered "all astern", reversed the engines and headed crabwise to Tsushima Island, hoping to beach his crippled ship with the intent of using her as a fixed gun emplacement. By 06:00 flooding forced Ozerov to telegraph "all stop", shutting down the vessel's engines. The crippled Vladimir Monomakh passed by Sissoi Veliky, unable to offer any assistance. At 07:20 the Japanese armed merchant cruisers and Dainan Maru converged on the stationary ship. When they came within of Sissoi Veliky, Ozerov signalled: "I am sinking, request assistance." The Japanese responded with a straightforward question, "Do you surrender?" Ozerov hoisted the white flag in response. At 08:15 the Japanese boarding party of one officer and 31 enlisted men boarded the battleship and raised the Japanese flag, but failed to pull down the Russian flag. The Japanese attempted to tow their prize to safety, but soon realized the effort was futile. They moved the Russian prisoners onto their ships and retrieved their flag. At 10:05 Sissoi Veliky capsized and sank, still flying the Russian flag. Sissoi Veliky lost 47 men killed during the battle; 613 of her crew were rescued. Notes Footnotes References Bogdanov, M. A. (2004, in Russian). Eskadrenny bronenosets Sissoi Veliky (Эскадренный броненосец "Сисой Великий") (Stapel Series, vol.1). Saint Petersburg: M. A. Leonov. . Corbett, J. S. (1994 reprint). Maritime Operations in the Russo-Japanese War, 1904-1905. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. . Ships built at Admiralty Shipyard 1894 ships Battleships of the Imperial Russian Navy Russo-Japanese War battleships of Russia Maritime incidents in 1905 Shipwrecks of the Russo-Japanese War Shipwrecks in the Tsushima Strait