The Admiral Nakhimov-class cruisers were a group of four light cruisers built for the Imperial Russian Navy just before World War I began in 1914. Construction was interrupted by the Russian Revolution and only two of the ships were eventually completed well after the end of the Russian Civil War by the Soviets. Chervona Ukraina was the first ship completed and was built to essentially the original design. Krasnyi Kavkaz was much modified and completed five years after Chervona Ukraina.

She was laid down on 3 October 1913 as Admiral Nakhimov after Pavel Nakhimov and launched on 6 November 1915. Construction was abandoned in 1917 during the October Revolution when the ship was about 80% complete. In the second half of 1918, the Marine Department of Hetman Pavlo Skoropadskyi restarted construction of the ship. On 25 January 1919, the ship was formally renamed Hetman Bogdan Khmelnitsky, but Nikolayev was captured shortly afterward by French-led Allied military forces.

At the start of the Russian Civil War, the ship was run aground at the fitting dock in Nikolayev by the shipyard workers to hinder the evacuation by the Whites in 1919. The ship was raised by the Soviets in 1920 pending a decision on her disposition. The ship was renamed to Chervona Ukraina on 7 December 1922. It was decided to finish her in 1923 and the job was completed in 1927 to nearly the original design. She was modified to handle aircraft by adding cranes on either side of the middle funnel and a parking area was built for them between the central and rear funnels, although no catapult was ever fitted. The original internal torpedo tubes were replaced by four triple 457 mm torpedo tubes mounted on the deck abaft the rear funnel.

Chervona Ukraina made a number of port visits to Turkey, Greece and Italy before World War II. She was extensively overhauled between 26 August 1939 and 1 May 1941 where her aircraft equipment was removed and she was fitted with new fire control equipment. The ship was given three Italian Minizini twin-gun 50 caliber 100 mm anti-aircraft mounts, one was placed on the forecastle, in front of the forward 130 mm B7 Pattern 1913 gun and the other two on each side of the quarterdeck. One torpedo tube mount was removed from each side and four single mounts for the semi-automatic 45 mm 21-K gun were fitted as well as seven 12.7 mm DShK heavy machine guns.

Chervona Ukraina, in company with the cruisers Krasny Kavkaz, Komintern and a number of destroyers, laid down a defensive mine barrage protecting the Black Sea Fleet base at Sevastopol on 22 June 1941. She provided gunfire support to Soviet forces during the Siege of Odessa and escorted convoys bringing the 157th Rifle Division into Odessa during September 1941. She escorted convoys from Odessa to Sevastopol in October when the evacuation of Odessa was ordered. During the Siege of Sevastopol Chervona Ukraina provided gunfire support and evacuated cut-off troops from elsewhere in the Crimea into Sevastopol and brought in reinforcements from Caucasian ports.

She was hit three times in the South Bay of Sevastopol by bombs from German Junkers Ju 87 Stuka dive-bombers from II./StG 77 on 12 November 1941, but didn't sink until the next day after her crew was ordered to abandon her. Her guns were salvaged and most of the guns and crew were incorporated into the port's defenses, although two of her twin Minizini turrets were added to Krasny Kavkaz.

She was raised on 3 November 1947, repaired, and used as a training hulk until 30 October 1950 when she became a target ship. On 10 May 1952, Chervona Ukraina was grounded on a spit to serve as a fixed target; by 1980 there was nothing left of the ship above the surface.