John of Kronstadt
Nicholas II routinely approved the draft; John of Kronstadt called for immediate start of construction work. However, the newly appointed commander of Kronstadt base admiral Stepan Makarov found Tomishko’s draft too weak artistically and too small for the purpose. He requested the Emperor to reconsider his choice; after nearly two years of delays, Nicholas agreed to discard Tomishko’s draft in June 1900.