On April 29, 1918, blue and yellow flags were raised on the ships of the Black Sea Fleet

It was the last year of the First World War, in which the Black Sea was one of the battlefields. In the Black Sea Fleet of Tsarist Russia, a significant proportion of the sailors were from Ukraine, and all the most important bases were located in Ukraine: Sevastopol, Mykolaiv, and Odesa were located on Ukrainian territory.

During the Ukrainian War of Independence that started in February 1917, the activities of Ukrainian intellectuals and officers in the Black Sea Fleet, the Ukrainian movement in Sevastopol, Odesa, and other port cities created a favorable environment for intensifying Ukrainianization in the fleet.

The newly formed Ukrainian state already realized how important the factor of naval forces was in the struggle for independence.

Defending the right to its own navy was difficult for Ukraine at the time. The Germans claimed the former Russian maritime heritage as a military trophy, and many sailors put social over national interests and actively supported the Bolsheviks.

However, the first Ukrainian flags flew over Sevastopol as early as 1917. On July 12, 1917, the blue and yellow flag was raised for the first time on the destroyer Zavydnyi. This historic event marked the beginning of the Ukrainization of ship crews. On November 12, the crews of the cruiser Pamyat Merkuriya (the future cruiser Hetman Ivan Mazepa) and the battleship Volia announced their allegiance to the Ukrainian government by raising the blue and yellow flag.

In 1918, the Bolsheviks seized Crimea. Recognizing its strategic importance, the Ukrainian National Republic began the struggle for its liberation, which was successful and resulted in the entry of Ukrainian forces into major settlements on the peninsula: Dzhankoi, Simferopol, and Bakhchysarai.

At the same time, the commander of the Black Sea Fleet, Rear Admiral Mykhailo Sablin, announced the complete transfer of all fleet forces to the jurisdiction of the Ukrainian National Republic.

It culminated on April 29, 1918, when an order was issued to officially raise Ukrainian flags. Since then, this day has been considered the day the Ukrainian Navy was born.