Russia built a number of ironclads , generally copies of British or French designs . Nonetheless , there were real innovations from Russia ; the first true type of ironclad armored cruiser , the General @-@ Admiral of the 1870s , and a set of remarkably badly designed circular battleships referred to as ' popovkas ' ( for Admiral Popov , who conceived the design ) . The Russian Navy pioneered the wide @-@ scale use of torpedo boats during the Russo @-@ Turkish War of 1877 – 1878 , mainly out of necessity because of the superior numbers and quality of ironclads used by the Turkish navy . Russia expanded her navy in the 1880s and 1890s with modern armored cruisers and battleships , but the ships were manned by inexperienced crews and politically appointed leadership , which enhanced their defeat in the Battle of Tsushima on 27 May 1905 .