The Russian cruiser Svetlana () was a protected cruiser of the Imperial Russian Navy. She was the flagship of the Commander-in-Chief of the Imperial Russian Navy and was used as a royal yacht in peacetime. She was sunk in combat during Battle of Tsushima in the Russo-Japanese War. Background and Design Svetlana was constructed to provide Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich Romanov with a royal yacht. As the younger brother of Tsar Alexander III and uncle of Tsar Nicholas II, Grand Duke Alexei was commander-in-chief of the Imperial Russian Navy. The order was placed with Forges et Chantiers de la Méditerranée at Le Harve, France based on the design of the French . The cruiser was equipped with six 152-mm Canet guns, ten 47-mm Hotchkiss guns and two torpedoes; however, its armor was slightly less than that of her French sister ships. In place of the armor, Svetlana had luxurious facilities for the Grand Duke, including wooden decks, and an apartment with living room, study and bedroom and a large bathroom, together with a rooms for his servants. Operational history The shakedown cruiser of Svetlana was with a 388-man crew in the Mediterranean from Toulon. After successful completion of testing, she was sent directly to Lisbon to represent Russia at the 400th anniversary celebrations of the opening of a sea route to India by Vasco de Gama, where she hosted the Portuguese royal family. After returning via Le Harve for final repairs, she went to Kiel, where she was visited by officers from the Imperial German Navy before continuing on to her home port of Kronstadt on 23 June 1898. Grand Duke Alexei used his new yacht for the first time in early July for visits to ports around the Baltic Sea and for naval maneuvers. Svetlana accompanied the yacht of Grand Duke Mikhail Alexandrovich Romanov to a visit to Copenhagen in 1899. On 22 May 1899, Svetlana was used by Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich Romanov on an expedition to Trondheim and Arkhangelsk (from which the Grand Duke returned to St. Petersburg by train). Svetlana continued to Bear Island near Spitsbergen, evicting two German expeditions who were exploring for mineral resources and locations for a fishing station. She returned on 8 August 1899 to Kronstadt. In 1900, Svetlana took Grand Duke Alex to Reval, and at the end of June took members of the Russian Imperial Family to Kiel and Copenhagen.