The “In Memory of Azov” project was created in the 80s of the 19th century, when the Russian Navy was especially creatively searching for the optimal type of ocean cruiser. The culprit of this activity was the head of the Naval Ministry (from 1882 to 1888), Vice Admiral Ivan Alekseevich Shestakov (1820–1888). A bright, extraordinary personality (which is probably why the publication of his memoirs “Half a Century of Ordinary Life”, promised to the Soviet reader in 1946, did not take place), notes Admiral’s adjutant V.A. Kornilov, he left a deep mark in the management of the Naval Ministry. But the admiral's special and enduring hobby was designing ships. Having returned the fleet to the path of European development, he vigilantly followed technological innovations and was constantly looking for those types of ships that, as it seemed to him, were more suitable for reproduction in Russia.