Russian frigate Rurik (1851)

The Rurik (Рюрик) was a steam-powered frigate of the Imperial Russian Navy. She was ordered by the Senate of the Grand Duchy of Finland for the Finnish naval equipage (Suomen Meriekipaasi). She was named in honour of Rurik, the semi-legendary founder of ancient Russia.

Rurik was designed by Johan Eberhard von Schantz. She was built in Turku by Gamla Warfsbolaget i Åbo and launched in October 1851. At the time of her construction she was the largest ship ever built in Finland. The Scottish shipwright William Crichton was invited to supervise her construction. He would later start his own company that would eventually take over shipbuilding in Turku as the Crichton-Vulcan shipyard.

Although financed by Finns, the ship ended up serving as an escort vessel to the Russian Imperial Yacht. She survived the Crimean War, and later served in the Russian Baltic Fleet.