The Uragan class (also known as the Bronenosetz class, , "armor carrier" or "warship") was a class of monitors built for the Baltic Fleet of the Imperial Russian Navy. The ships were built to the plans of the American Passaic-class monitors, a design that was tested on a smaller scale on . A total of 10 ships were constructed at five different shipyards in Saint Petersburg, all entering service in 1865. The ships were among the first ironclad warships in the Russian Navy. Russian-American relations During the American Civil War Americans mistook Russian defensive moves as an indicator of support for the Union cause. Relations between Russia and Britain deteriorated further because of the British support — or what the Russians saw as sponsorship — of the Polish January Uprising of 1863. If war between Russia and Britain were to begin, it was thought likely that British and French Naval forces would try to attack the Russian capital of Saint Petersburg on the Gulf of Finland. It was feared that this would be a repeat of the Baltic theatre of the Crimean War eight years previously, when the Allied steam-powered fleet had outgunned and outmaneuvered the Russian sailing fleet. Russians calculated, that in a battle in the confined waters of the Baltic the Russian wooden ships would be worthless, but could do more damage to the British in distant seas. With the wooden fleet gone, Russia would have no naval protection of her home waters. Russian monitor program A Russian monitor program was started as soon as news of the Battle of Hampton Roads reached Europe. Naval architect N. Artseulov was sent to America to join Russian naval attaché, Captain (later Rear Admiral) Stepan Stepanovich Lessovsky and to assess at first hand the advantages and disadvantages of John Ericsson's monitors. He returned on 16 March 1863, with detailed drawings and specifications of the . On 11 March 1863 the Russian Admiralty approved a program to build ten armored vessels based on the Passaic design. The decision to use the American plans was based on the lack of time, money and experience in building armored vessels. A larger monitor, Smerch («Смерч»), with two turrets of a design by Cowper Phipps Coles was also approved and launched in 1864. One of the benefits of the Ericsson turret design, as opposed to the British design by Coles, was the layered construction from armored