According to the Treaty of Paris which was signed after the end of the Crimean War (1853–1856) and was in force between 1856 and 1871, Russia could not have a naval base on the Black Sea, which is why in the mid-1870s, the Russian Black Sea Fleet consisted only of two coast defense battleships and several armed steamers. In late 1876, the navy authorities became interested in the project of torpedo boat attacks presented by lieutenant Stepan Osipovich Makarov. He suggested placing several torpedo boats on a large ship “with a fair speed” equipped to transport them and set them afloat quickly. The torpedo boats were to be discreetly delivered to the bases of the Turkish fleet and to attack its vessels at night.

In April 1877, the Russian Steam Navigation and Trading Company provided its largest ships to the Navy Department so that they could be armed and used as warships. The steamer “Veliky Knyaz Konstantin” which had the largest displacement and a speed of 12.7 knots was chosen to be converted into a torpedo boat tender. Makarov was appointed its commander. The first attacks of torpedo boats on the Danube River took place one month after the start of the war. As a result of the aggressive attacks of the Russians, the Turkish fleet on the Danube had lost four out of nine armored ships by late 1878.

On April 18, 1877, the steamer “Veliky Knyaz Konstantin” went on its first mission under the command of lieutenant Makarov. Four torpedo boats were launched, and Makarov personally supervised the attack, although the attempt to sink the enemy’s ships failed. On May 28, on the Sulina roadstead, the torpedo boats launched by “Veliky Knyaz Konstantin” attacked a Turkish ship. It suffered serious damage but stayed afloat. The psychological effect of the attack was several times more significant than the material outcome. The Turkish command announced the blockade of Russian Black Sea ports, but after May 5, 1878, it backed out of all the actions that could enforce the blockade.