Yesterday, former Prime Minister Paul Keating was detailing the first visit of Russian Naval vessels to Australia - however there was a couple of earlier visits. The first Naval Vessal that I am aware of is the Rynda, carrying the Arch Duke Alexander Mikhailovich. This was in 1888, the centenary of the Colony. The Rynda arrived in Newcastle on the 19th January and since the fear of Russian invasion was genuine, many people fled Newcastle (Note that Fort Scratchely was actually built because of the Russian threat). For more information see australiarussia/ryndaENFIN.htm
Posted on: Thu, 13 Nov 2014 05:32:59 +0000