During the Russo-Japanese War, on January 27 (February 9 in the new style) 1904, after a fierce battle, the crew of the cruiser "Varyag," one of the most modern warships of its time, decided to scuttle the ship in the Korean port of Chemulpo to prevent it from falling into enemy hands. In 1905, the Japanese raised and repaired the "Varyag," renaming it "Soya." In 1916, Russia repurchased the ship from Japan, but a year later sent it to the UK for repairs. However, the new Bolshevik government could not pay for the work, and the cruiser remained in the UK. In 1920, it was sold to Germany for scrap, but during transportation, the ship encountered a storm and ran aground near the village of Lendalfoot.

The remains of the ship lie on the seabed a few hundred meters from the monument, which is a three-meter bronze Orthodox cross. The cross features the cruiser, the St. Andrew's flag, and other maritime symbols. Special capsules embedded in the pedestal of the memorial contain soil from various corners of Russia connected to the history of the "Varyag." This soil was collected by historians of the Russian Navy and naval officers in the Tula region, the birthplace of the "Varyag" commander, Rear Admiral Vsevolod Rudnev, as well as in Kronstadt and Vladivostok.