Russian merchant cruiser Ural (1904)

The Ural was an auxiliary cruiser of the Imperial Russian Navy during the Russo-Japanese War. She was originally a Rivers-class ocean liner for Norddeutscher Lloyd, launched in 1890 under the name Spree. She was renamed Kaiserin Maria Theresia in 1899, before being sold to the Russians in 1904.

Commercial service
Built in 1890 as the Spree for Norddeutscher Lloyd of Bremen by the AG Vulcan shipyard of Stettin, Germany, she was 6,963 gross tons with a length of 463 ft and a beam of 51.8 ft and a speed of 18 kn. She had two funnels, three masts, and a single screw, with accommodation for 244 first-class, 122 second-class and 460 third-class passengers. In 1899 she was completely rebuilt by AG Vulcan. She was lengthened to 526 ft, her tonnage increased to, new engines were fitted joined to twin screws to give a speed of 20 kn. The number of funnels was increased to three, though she was reduced to two masts. Her accommodation was altered to carry 405 first-class, 114 second-class and 387 third-class passengers, and she was renamed Kaiserin Maria Theresia (some sources say Theresa.)

Wartime service
She was sold to the Imperial Russian Navy in 1904 for use in the Russo-Japanese War. The Russians rebuilt her as an auxiliary cruiser and renamed her Ural. In October she left Kronstadt to join Admiral Zinovy Rozhestvensky's fleet on its way to Vladivostok. In May 1905, the Ural was used as a scout ship and was the first ship to sight Admiral Tōgō Heihachirō's fleet at the Battle of Tsushima. In an action with Japanese battleships, she was hit by a 12-inch shell in the engine room and eventually torpedoed and sunk by a Japanese destroyer.