Soviet Navy

The Soviet Navy was the <a href="/facts/Naval_warfare/Wtc3fJYw">naval warfare</a> <a href="/facts/Military/kgNmLUnN">uniform service branch</a> of the <a href="/facts/Soviet_Armed_Forces/w42mNgsQ">Soviet Armed Forces</a>. Often referred to as the Red Fleet, the Soviet Navy made up a large part of the <a href="/facts/Soviet_Union/m7wWsPto">Soviet Union</a>'s <a href="/facts/Strategic_planning/tTk7h0wx">strategic planning</a> in the event of a conflict with the opposing <a href="/facts/Superpower/JNNkrRLt">superpower</a>, the <a href="/facts/United_States/P0sCdLe5">United States</a>, during the <a href="/facts/Cold_War/spJdJQ3q">Cold War</a> (1945–1991). The Soviet Navy played a large role during the Cold War, either confronting the <a href="/facts/North_Atlantic_Treaty_Organization/dCeTddMY">North Atlantic Treaty Organization</a> in <a href="/facts/Western_Europe/YmWlV59w">western Europe</a> or <a href="/facts/Power_projection/kW3ypzUF">power projection</a> to maintain its <a href="/facts/Warsaw_Pact/SLEsUSAS">sphere of influence</a> in <a href="/facts/Eastern_Europe/f5CDGzNA">eastern Europe</a>.
The Soviet Navy was divided into four major fleets: the <a href="/facts/Soviet_Northern_Fleet/kf5xPaKg">Northern</a>, <a href="/facts/Pacific_Fleet_(Russia)/heo5H4RN">Pacific</a>, <a href="/facts/Black_Sea_Fleet/PF4tS24V">Black Sea</a>, and <a href="/facts/Baltic_Fleet/F113t9E2">Baltic</a> Fleets, in addition to the <a href="/facts/Leningrad_Naval_Base/26c844ox">Leningrad Naval Base</a>, which was commanded separately. It also had a smaller force, the <a href="/facts/Caspian_Flotilla/qUUmt6nF">Caspian Flotilla</a>, which operated in the <a href="/facts/Caspian_Sea/Ymc08gkR">Caspian Sea</a> and was followed by a larger fleet, the <a href="/facts/5th_Operational_Squadron/o81shRM7">5th Squadron</a>, in the <a href="/facts/Mediterranean_Sea/Vr2pzVbM">Mediterranean Sea</a>. The Soviet Navy included <a href="/facts/Soviet_Naval_Aviation/coT5572x">Naval Aviation</a>, <a href="/facts/Russian_Naval_Infantry/3gW9zMw1">Naval Infantry</a>, and the <a href="/facts/Coastal_Artillery/4YsRaUPo">Coastal Artillery</a>.

The Soviet Navy was formed from the remnants of the <a href="/facts/Imperial_Russian_Navy/YHC9HrnF">Imperial Russian Navy</a> during the <a href="/facts/Russian_Civil_War/MLfkI67n">Russian Civil War</a>. After the <a href="/facts/Dissolution_of_the_Soviet_Union/Fyn5jw3n">dissolution of the Soviet Union</a> in 1991, the <a href="/facts/Russian_Federation/jfkCwyxn">Russian Federation</a> inherited the largest part of the Soviet Navy and reformed it into the <a href="/facts/Russian_Navy/6LA3GgUY">Russian Navy</a>, with smaller parts becoming the basis for navies of the newly independent <a href="/facts/Post-Soviet_states/usrFwWTU">post-Soviet states</a>.

Soviet Navy open-in-new

Soviet Navy