Editing Russo-Japanese War (section)

=== Blockade of Port Arthur ===
[[File:Battlefields in the Russo Japanese War.jpg|thumb|Battlefields in the Russo-Japanese War]]

The Japanese attempted to deny the Russians use of Port Arthur. During the night of 13–14 February, the Japanese attempted to block the entrance to Port Arthur by sinking several concrete-filled steamers in the deep water channel to the port,{{sfn|Tikowara/Grant|1907|pp=48–50}} but they sank too deep to be effective. A similar attempt to block the harbour entrance during the night of 3–4 May also failed. In March, the charismatic Vice Admiral [[Stepan Makarov|Makarov]] had taken command of the First Russian Pacific Squadron with the intention of breaking out of the Port Arthur blockade.

On 12 April 1904, two Russian [[pre-dreadnought]] battleships, the flagship {{ship|Russian battleship|Petropavlovsk|1894|2}} and the {{ship|Russian battleship|Pobeda||2}}, slipped out of port but struck Japanese mines off Port Arthur. The ''Petropavlovsk'' sank almost immediately, while the ''Pobeda'' had to be towed back to port for extensive repairs.

On 15 April 1904, the Russian government made overtures threatening to seize the British [[war correspondent]]s who were taking the ship {{SS|Haimun}} into war zones to report for the London-based [[The Times|''Times'']] newspaper, citing concerns about the possibility of the British giving away Russian positions to the Japanese fleet.

The Russians quickly learned, and soon employed, the Japanese tactic of offensive minelaying. On 15 May 1904, two Japanese battleships, the {{ship|Japanese battleship|Yashima||2}} and the {{ship|Japanese battleship|Hatsuse||2}}, were lured into a recently laid Russian minefield off Port Arthur, each striking at least two mines. The ''Hatsuse'' sank within minutes, taking 450 sailors with her, while the ''Yashima'' sank while under tow towards Korea for repairs. On 23 June 1904, a [[Battle of the Yellow Sea|breakout attempt]] by the Russian squadron, now under the command of Admiral [[Wilgelm Vitgeft]], failed. By the end of the month, Japanese artillery were firing shells into the harbour.