Causes of the war

The Russian Empire: sought to revise the regime of the Black Sea straits; increasing influence in the Balkan Peninsula.

Ottoman Empire: wanted to suppress the national liberation movement in the Balkans; the return of the Crimea and the Black Sea coast of the Caucasus.

England, France: they hoped to undermine the international authority of Russia, to weaken its position in the Middle East; tear away from Russia the territories of Poland, the Crimea, the Caucasus, Finland; strengthen its position in the Middle East, using it as a sales market.

These factors led the Russian Emperor Nicholas I in the early 1850s to think about separating the Balkan possessions of the Ottoman Empire, inhabited by Orthodox peoples, which was opposed by Great Britain and Austria. Great Britain, in addition, sought to oust Russia from the Black Sea coast of the Caucasus and from Transcaucasia. The Emperor of France, Napoleon III, although he did not share the plans of the British to weaken Russia, considering them excessive, supported the war with Russia as a revenge for 1812 and as a means of strengthening personal power.

Russia had a diplomatic conflict with France over the control of the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, Russia, in order to put pressure on Turkey, occupied Moldavia and Wallachia, which were under the protectorate of Russia under the terms of the Adrianople peace treaty. The refusal of the Russian Emperor Nicholas I to withdraw troops led to the declaration of war on Russia on October 4, 1853 by Turkey, followed by Great Britain and France.

The course of hostilities

October 1853 - Nicholas I signed the Manifesto on the beginning of the war with Turkey.

Nicholas I took an uncompromising position, relying on the power of the army and the support of some European states (England, Austria, etc.). Artillery was also outdated. The Russian fleet was predominantly sailing, while in the military naval forces ah Europe was dominated by ships with steam engines. The Russian army could successfully fight against the Turkish army, which was similar in state, but it was not able to resist the united forces of Europe.

The Russian-Turkish war was fought with varying success from November 1853 to April 1854. The main event of the first stage - Sinop battle(November 1853). Admiral P.S. Nakhimov defeated the Turkish fleet in Sinop Bay and suppressed coastal batteries.

As a result of the Battle of Sinop, the Russian Black Sea Fleet under the command of Admiral Nakhimov defeated the Turkish squadron. The Turkish fleet was defeated within a few hours.

This activated England and France. They declared war on Russia. The Anglo-French squadron appeared in the Baltic Sea, attacked Kronstadt and Sveaborg.

The second stage of the war (April 1854 - February 1856) - the Anglo-French intervention in the Crimea, the appearance of warships of the Western powers in the Baltic and White Seas and in Kamchatka. main goal the joint Anglo-French command was the capture of the Crimea and Sevastopol - the naval base of Russia. On September 2, 1854, the allies began the landing of the expeditionary force in the Evpatoria region. Battle on the river Alma in September 1854, the Russian troops lost. By order of the commander A.S. Menshikov, they passed through Sevastopol and retreated to Bakhchisaray. At the same time, the garrison of Sevastopol, reinforced by the sailors of the Black Sea Fleet, was actively preparing for defense. It was headed by V.A. Kornilov and P.S. Nakhimov.

After the battle on the river Alma the enemy laid siege to Sevastopol. Sevastopol was a first-class naval base, impregnable from the sea. The Russian fleet could not resist the enemy, so some of the ships were sunk in front of the entrance to the Sevastopol Bay, which further strengthened the city from the sea.

Defense of Sevastopol

Defense under the leadership of admirals Kornilov V.A., Nakhimov P.S. and Istomin V.I. lasted 349 days with a 30,000-strong garrison and naval crews. During this period, the city was subjected to five massive bombardments, as a result of which part of the city, the Ship Side, was practically destroyed.

On October 5, 1854, the first bombardment of the city began. It was attended by the army and Navy. The artillery duel lasted five hours. Despite the huge superiority in artillery, the allied fleet was badly damaged and was forced to retreat. After that, the Allies abandoned the use of the fleet in the bombing of the city. The defenders of the city could celebrate a very important not only military, but also a moral victory. Their joy was overshadowed by the death during the shelling of Vice Admiral Kornilov. The defense of the city was headed by Nakhimov, who, for his distinction in the defense of Sevastopol, was promoted to admiral on March 27, 1855. F. Roubaud. In July 1855, Admiral Nakhimov was mortally wounded. The attempts of the Russian army under the command of Prince Menshikov A.S. to pull back the forces of the besiegers ended in failure (the battle of Inkerman, Yevpatoriya and Chernaya Rechka). Around the city, the enemy's ring was gradually shrinking. Russian troops were forced to leave the city. The offensive of the enemy ended there. Subsequent military operations in the Crimea, as well as in other parts of the country, were not of decisive importance for the Allies. Things were somewhat better in the Caucasus, where Russian troops not only stopped the Turkish offensive, but also occupied the fortress of Kars. On August 27, 1855, French troops stormed the southern part of the city and captured the height that dominated the city - Malakhov Kurgan.

The loss of Malakhov Kurgan decided the fate of Sevastopol. On the evening of August 27, 1855, by order of General M.D. Gorchakov, the Sevastopol residents left the southern part of the city and crossed the bridge to the northern part. The battles for Sevastopol ended.

Military operations in the Caucasus

Turkey invaded Transcaucasia, but suffered a major defeat, after which Russian troops began to operate on its territory. In November 1855, the Turkish fortress Kare fell.

The extreme exhaustion of the allied forces in the Crimea and the Russian successes in the Caucasus led to the cessation of hostilities. Negotiations between the parties began.

Parisian world

At the end of March 1856, the Treaty of Paris was signed, under the terms of which the Black Sea was declared neutral, a ban on having naval forces, military arsenals and fortresses on the Black Sea. Similar demands were made to Turkey. In addition, Russia was deprived of the mouth of the Danube and the southern part of Bessarabia, had to return the fortress of Kars. The defeat in the Crimean War had a significant impact on the alignment of international forces and on the internal situation of Russia.

Heroes of the Crimean War

Kornilov Vladimir Alekseevich

(1806 - October 17, 1854, Sevastopol), Russian Vice Admiral. Since 1849 the chief of staff, since 1851 the actual commander of the Black Sea Fleet. During the Crimean War, one of the leaders of the heroic defense of Sevastopol.

On October 5, the enemy undertook the first massive bombardment of the city from land and sea. On this day, when bypassing the defensive orders, V.A. Kornilov was mortally wounded in the head on Malakhov Hill. “Defend Sevastopol,” were his last words.

Pavel Stepanovich Nakhimov

In early November, Nakhimov learned that the Turkish squadron under the command of Osman Pasha, heading for the shores of the Caucasus, left the Bosporus and, on the occasion of a storm, entered the Sinop Bay. Without waiting for the steam frigates that Vice Admiral Kornilov led to reinforce the Russian squadron, Nakhimov decided to attack the enemy, relying primarily on combat and moral character Russian sailors. For the victory, Nicholas I awarded Nakhimov the Order of St. George, 2nd degree.

In the spring of 1855, the second and third assaults on Sevastopol were heroically repulsed. In March, Nicholas I granted Nakhimov for military distinctions with the rank of admiral. In July, an enemy bullet hit him in the temple. Without regaining consciousness, Pavel Stepanovich died two days later.

Admiral Nakhimov was buried in Sevastopol in the Cathedral of St. Vladimir, next to the graves of Lazarev, Kornilov and Istomin. With a large gathering of people, admirals and generals carried his coffin, seventeen in a row stood a guard of honor from army battalions and all the crews of the Black Sea Fleet, drums sounded and a solemn prayer service, a cannon salute thundered. In the coffin of Pavel Stepanovich, two admiral's flags and a third, priceless flag torn by cannonballs were hung. battleship"Empress Maria", the flagship of the Sinop victory.

Reasons for the defeat of Russia

· Economic backwardness of Russia;

· Political isolation of Russia;

· Lack of a steam fleet in Russia;

· Poor supply of the army;

Lack of railroads.

Russia lost the mouth of the Danube and the southern part of Bessarabia, had to return the fortress of Kars, and also lost the right to patronize Serbia, Moldavia and Wallachia.

To mid-nineteenth in. aggravated contradictions between England and Russia. The desire of tsarist Russia to seize Constantinople and the straits ran into the resistance of England, who feared the strengthening of Russia in the Middle East. " England cannot agree to Russia taking possession of the Dardanelles and the Bosporus. This event would deal both commercially and politically a major if not fatal blow to British power.”, wrote Marx and Engels in April 1853 (Soch., vol. IX, p. 382).

France, which had major interests in the East, also could not put up with the growing influence of Russia in Turkey. The governments of England and France were also interested in weakening Turkey in order to force her to blindly follow directions from London and Paris. The aggressive ruling circles of England and France tried in every possible way to weaken the power of Russia and therefore used Turkey's discontent to foment her conflict with Russia. Moreover, they advocated the displacement of Russia from the shores of the Black Sea.

A military clash between England, France and Turkey, on the one hand, and Russia, on the other, was becoming inevitable.

The reason for the war was the dispute over the Palestinian "shrines" of Jerusalem and Bethlehem, which broke out between the Catholics, supported by Napoleon III, and the Orthodox, who were patronized by Nicholas I. In reality, there was a struggle between the Russian and French governments for the subordination of Turkey to their influence, Nicholas I began to threaten Turkey by war. On May 10, 1853, there was a break in diplomatic relations between Russia and Turkey, and in June, on the orders of Nicholas I, the Russian army under the command of M.D. Gorchakov occupied the principalities of Moldavia and Wallachia. On September 27, Turkey, with the support of England and France, presented an ultimatum to Russia on the cleansing of Moldavia and Wallachia by Russian troops, but, having received no answer, on October 15 declared war on Russia. On October 20, Nicholas I declared war on Turkey.

Thus began the Crimean (Eastern) War. England and France took the side of Turkey against Russia. Already on September 17, the combined Anglo-French fleet passed through the Dardanelles to the Sea of ​​Marmara, and at the beginning of 1854 England and France declared war on Russia.

The war was aggressive on both sides.

Actions on the Black Sea and the defense of Sevastopol

September 17–25. The squadron of the Black Sea Fleet under the command of Vice Admiral P.S. infantry division with artillery, convoy and ten days of supplies (16393 people, 827 horses, 16 guns) to reinforce the Caucasian army, transported him to the Caucasian coast for seven days, landed the landing personnel in Anakria, and the convoy and other cargo in Sukhum-Kala ( ).

The 20th of October. 7 push the steamer "Colchis" under the command of Lieutenant Commander K.A. Kuzminsky with a landing force of 224 people, sent to return the fortification of St. Nicholas captured by the Turks (south of Poti), having approached the shore at a distance of a rifle shot, ran aground. From enemy fire on the steamer, opened from 5 guns, the steamer caught fire twice, but the return fire from the steamer silenced the coastal batteries, which gave it the opportunity to refloat and go to sea. During the battle, the capital lieutenant Kuzminsky was killed ( ).

27th October. In connection with the outbreak of hostilities between Russia and Turkey, the Anglo-French fleet, which was in the Sea of ​​Marmara, arrived in Constantinople on October 27 and settled on the Bosphorus ( ).

the 3rd of November. In connection with the news received on the eve of the declaration of war on Turkey, the commander of the squadron, which was cruising off the Caucasian coast, Vice Admiral Nakhimov gave an order explaining his intentions in the event of a meeting with the enemy: "... Having the news that the Turkish fleet went to sea with the intention of occupying the port of Sukhum-Kale, which belongs to us (adjutant general Kornilov was sent from Sevastopol with 6 ships to search for it), the enemy’s intention cannot be fulfilled otherwise than by passing us or giving us battle. In the first case, I hope for the vigilant supervision of Messrs. commanders and officers, in the second, with God's help and confidence in my commanders and officers and teams, I hope to accept the battle with honor and prevent the enemy from fulfilling his audacious intention. Without extending my instructions, I will express my opinion that in my opinion, in maritime affairs, a close distance from the enemy and mutual assistance to each other is the best tactic.» { }.

November 4. Cruising off the Anatolian coast, 6-push. the steamer "Bessarabia" (captain-lieutenant Shchegolev) captured without a shot in the Sinop region the Turkish steamer "Medjari-Tejaret", armed with 4 guns and having a car of 200 forces. Enlisted in the Russian fleet, this ship was named "Turk" ( ).

November 5. Capturing 11-push. steamer-frigate "Vladimir" (captain-lieutenant G.I. Butakov, flag of vice-admiral V.A. Kornilov) in the Penderaklia area after a three-hour battle of the Turkish-Epipetian 10-gun. the steamer "Pervaz-Bakhri", enrolled in the lists of the fleet under the name "Kornilov". Turkish losses: 58, Russian losses: 2 killed and 3 wounded.
The battle of "Vladimir" with "Pervaz-Bakhri" was the first collision of steam ships in the world, in which Russian sailors under the command of G.I. Butakov won ( ).

November 7. In order to return the border coastal fortification of St. Nicholas (south of Poti) captured by the Turks in October, a detachment of the Black Sea Fleet consisting of 2 frigates, 2 corvettes and 4 steamships under the command of Vice Admiral L.M. Serebryakov bombarded the fortification for two hours to ensure success ground forces sent by the shore. In view of the fact that the attack from land was not carried out, and a sharp drop in the barometer threatened with a storm, the detachment was forced to move away from the coast ( ).

November 9. Fight 44-push. frigate "Flora" (captain-lieutenant A.N. Skorobogatov) in the Pitsunda area 12 miles from the coast with three Turkish ships: "Taif", "Feyzi-Bakhri" and "Saik-Ishade" (62 guns in all). Being in combat contact with the enemy from 2 a.m. to 9 a.m., the sailing frigate, in conditions of low wind, skillfully repelled all attempts by the enemy, who did not depend on the wind, to attack with joint forces and, having damaged the enemy’s flagship steamer, forced him to abandon further battle and move away. Having received two surface holes during the entire battle, the Flora frigate had neither wounded nor killed ( ).

November 18th. Sinop battle. On November 11, the squadron of Vice Admiral P.S. Nakhimov, consisting of three battleships, discovered and blocked the main forces of the Turkish fleet in the Sinop Bay. On November 16, a detachment of Rear Admiral F.M. Novosilskoto joined the squadron, consisting of 3 battleships and 2 frigates. After that, Nakhimov decided to attack and destroy the Turkish fleet. On the eve of the battle, on November 17, he issued an order outlining the plan of attack. " Finally- wrote Nakhimov, - I I will express my opinion that all preliminary instructions under changed circumstances can make it difficult for a commander who knows his business, and therefore I leave it to everyone to act completely independently at their own discretion, but without fail to do their duty».

The ratio of forces of the parties was as follows:

a) the Russian squadron consisted of 6 battleships - 84-push. "Empress Maria" (flag of Vice Admiral Nakhimov, commander - Captain 2nd Rank P.I. Baranovsky), 120-gun. "Paris" (flag of Rear Admiral Novosilsky, commander - Captain 1st Rank V.I. Istomin),. 120-push “Vel. Prince Konstantin ”(captain 2nd rank L.A. Ergomyshev), 120-gun. "Three saints" (Captain 1st rank K. Kutrov), 84-push. "Chesma" (captain 2nd rank V.M. Mikryukov), 84-push. "Rostislav" (captain 1st rank A.D. Kuznetsov) and 2 frigates - 54-push. "Kulevchi" (captain-lieutenant L. Budishev) and 44-push. "Cahul" (captain-lieutenant A.P. Spitsyn), only 8 ships with a total of 710 guns, including 76 bombing guns.

b) The Turkish fleet under the command of Admiral Osman Pasha consisted of 7 frigates - 44 guns. "Auni-Allah" (flag), 44-push. "Fazli-Allah", 58-push. "Forever-Bahri", 60-push. "Nesimi-Zefer", 62-push. "Nizamiye", 56-push. "Damiad", 54-push. “Kaidi-Zefer, 3 corvettes - 24 guns. "Nedzhemi-Feshan", 22-push. "Gyuli-Sefid", 24-push. "Feyzi-Meobud", 2 steamboats - 20 push. "Taif", 4-push. "Erikli" and 4 transports with a total of 472 guns. The fleet was protected by 6 coastal batteries (24 guns). On the ships of the Turkish squadron, as instructors, there were English officers. The Taif steamer was commanded by the Englishman Slade.

November 18 at 9 a.m. 30 minutes. a signal was raised on the Russian flagship "Prepare for battle and go to the Sinop raid." The squadron went in two columns: one - the ship "Empress Maria" (flag of Nakhimov), followed by "Vel. Prince Konstantin "and" Chesma "; the other - "Paris" (Novosilsky's flag), followed by "Three Saints" and "Rostislav". The frigates "Kagul" and "Kulevchi" remained under sail at the exit from the Sinop Bay to monitor the steamers and prevent them from escaping.

At the entrance of the Russian ships to the raid, the Turkish flagship Auni-Allah opened fire, followed by the rest of the enemy ships and coastal batteries. The Russian ships, having opened return fire, continued their approach and anchored according to the planned disposition.

Half an hour after the start of the battle, "Empress Maria" set fire to the Turkish flagship frigate "Auni-Allah", and then "Fazli-Allah" (the former Russian frigate "Raphael", taken by the Turks in 1829), which, having riveted the ropes, threw themselves ashore . After that, the "Empress Maria" transferred fire to the coastal batteries and the enemy ships that continued to resist.

The battleship "Paris" fired at several ships, blew up the corvette "Gyuli-Sefid", knocked out the frigate "Damiad" and "Nizamie", which caught fire and washed ashore. Then he fired at the coastal batteries. " It was impossible to stop admiring the beautiful and cold-bloodedly calculated actions of the Paris ship., - Nakhimov wrote in the report, - I ordered to express his gratitude to him during the battle itself, but there was nothing to raise the signal: all the halyards were killed».

"Chesma" and "Vel. Prince Konstantin "blew up the frigate" Navek-Bakhri ", fire" Vel. Prince Konstantin” were shot down and washed ashore by the frigate “Nesimi-Zefer” and the corvette “Nedzhemi-Feshan”.

The fire of the ship "Three Saints" destroyed the frigate "Kaadi-Zefer" (took off into the air).

"Rostislav" knocked out the corvette "Feyzi-Meabud", which, throwing itself ashore, burned down and destroyed one battery.

By the end of the four-hour battle, the Turkish squadron and coastal batteries were destroyed. Saved only one 22-push. the ship "Taif". Having broken through after a skirmish with the frigates "Kagul" and "Kulevchi" from the raid and leaving the bay, "Taif" met at sea with a detachment of steamers ("Odessa", "Crimea" and "Khersones") under the command of Vice Admiral V.A. Kornilov, marching from Sevastopol to Sinop to reinforce Nakhimov's squadron. Taking advantage of the advantage in speed, Taif broke through after a short battle and, arriving in Constantinople, informed the Turkish government about the destruction of Osman Pasha's squadron. Of the 4500 people of the Turkish team, two-thirds died. Many Turks were captured, including Admiral Osman Pasha and 2 commanders.

Damage and consumption of shells on Russian ships during the battle are shown in the table:

ships	Damage		Shell consumption
	Holes in the board	Dr. damage	Total	Incl. double projectile shots
"Imp. Maria"	60	11	2180	52
"Paris"	18	8	3944	-
“Vel. book. Konstantin"	30	14	2602	136
"Three Saints"	48	17	1923	-
"Rostislav"	25	20	4962	1002
"Chesma"	20	7	1539	-
"Kulevchi"	-	-	260	-
"Cahul"	-	-	483	-
"Odessa"	-	-	79	-
"Crimea"	-	-	83	-
Total	201	77	18055	1190

The Russians had no losses in ships. During the battle, the squadron lost 37 killed and 229 wounded.

The Sinop victory showed the high fighting qualities of the sailors who had gone through the school of Admirals Lazarev and Nakhimov. " Sinop battle, - wrote contemporaries, - proved the excellent condition of the Black Sea Fleet and the acquaintance of the Russians with the latest improvements in military affairs, aroused a living joy in Russia, and the name of Pavel Stepanovich became known to every Russian person».

Summing up the results of the battle, P.S. Nakhimov wrote in an order dated November 23, 1853: “ The destruction of the Turkish fleet in Sinop by a squadron under my command cannot but leave a glorious page in the history of the Black Sea Fleet. I express my sincere gratitude to the second flagship(Rear Admiral Novosilsky. - Ed.) as my chief assistant and who, going forward in his column, so fearlessly led it into battle. G.g. to the commanders of ships and frigates for the cool and precise ordering of their ships according to the given disposition during heavy enemy fire, as well as for their unshakable courage in the continuation of the matter itself, I appeal with gratitude to the officers for the fearless and precise performance of their duty, I thank the teams that fought like lions».

The battle of Sinop was the last big fight sailing ships and the first battle in which bombing guns were used ( ).

December 2nd. The pilot schooner (hydrographic vessel) "Alupka", being brought by a NO storm to the Turkish coast and having a strong leak, was forced to rescue the crew, throwing 6 falconets, signal books, etc. into the sea, to go down to the Bosphorus, where she was captured captured by the Turks ( ).

December 23. The combined Anglo-French fleet left the Bosporus for the Black Sea in order to protect the coast of Turkey and its fleet from the attacks of the Russian fleet ( ).

28th of February. The conclusion of an alliance treaty between Turkey, England and France, according to which the last two states were obliged to provide armed assistance to Turkey in its struggle against Russia ( ).

March 31. An English military steamer that appeared near Sevastopol, noticing a Russian sailing merchant schooner going to Evpatoria, tried to capture it, but due to the approach of the frigates Kagul and Kulevchi chasing it, it was forced to abandon it and hastily leave ().

April 10th. The bombardment of Odessa by the Anglo-French fleet, consisting of 19 battleships and 10 steam-frigates, was accompanied by an attempt by the enemy to land troops to occupy the city, which was repulsed by coastal batteries ( ).

April 30. Making reconnaissance near Odessa, the English military steamer-frigate "Tiger", following in thick fog, jumped out onto the stones 6 kilometers from the Odessa lighthouse and was fired upon by a field artillery semi-battery, which caused serious damage to the ship. The crew surrendered to the Russians, and the ship, due to the impossibility of removing it, was burned ( ).

June 3. The appearance of a detachment of 2 English and 1 French steam-frigates (52 guns) in front of Sevastopol and the pursuit of them by a detachment of 6 Russian steam-frigates - Vladimir, Thunder Bearer, Bessarabia, Crimea, Odessa and Khersones "(33 guns) - under the command of Rear Admiral Panfilov. Taking advantage of the superiority in speed, the enemy, after a short skirmish, went to sea ( ).

the 14 th of July. The Anglo-French fleet, consisting of 21 ships, approached Sevastopol, but the fire of coastal batteries forced the enemy to retreat to Cape Lucullus ( ).

1 - 7 September. The allied Anglo-French fleet, having left its base in Varna, consisting of 89 warships and 300 transport ships, approached Evpatoria and proceeded to the landing. In six days, 62,000 people were landed with 134 guns (28,000 French, 27,000 British, 7,000 Turks). Encountering no resistance due to the absence of any troops and means of defense in Evpatoria, the Allies occupied the city and captured significant stocks of grain, which were intended to be exported abroad even before the war. Later, before the creation of a French base in Kamysheva Bay near Sevastopol and an English base in Balaklava, Yevpatoria served until the end of November as the main base of the Anglo-French fleet and a place for unloading supplies brought for the allied army ().

September 7. The steamer "Taman" under the command of Lieutenant Shishkin, while cruising at Cape Kerempe, captured a Turkish merchant brig and, after removing the command from it, burned it ().

8 September. A battalion of Black Sea sailors under the command of Captain-Lieutenant Rachinsky with 4 amphibious assault guns participated in the battle of the Alma River as part of the ground forces of the Crimean army of A.S. Menshikov. The battalion was in the firing line in front of the center of the position of the Russian troops near the village of Burlyuk ( ).

September 9 - 11. In view of the unsuccessful outcome of the battle of Alma, the Commander-in-Chief of the naval and land forces in the Crimea, Prince Menshikov, fearing a breakthrough of the enemy fleet on the Sevastopol raid simultaneously with an attack by the ground forces of the fortifications of the Northern side, ordered Vice Admiral Kornilov to block the enemy’s ability to penetrate the raid to flood part of ships of the Black Sea Fleet. Having gathered a council of flagships and commanders, Kornilov proposed to go to sea and attack the enemy fleet, at least at the cost of destroying the fleet. However, the majority was in favor of sinking ships at the entrance to the raid and using ship crews and guns for land defense.
On the night of September 11, after Menshikov's repeated order, 5 battleships ("Three Saints", "Uriel", "Varna", "Silistra" and "Selafail") and 2 frigates ("Sizopol" and " Flora"), the crews and guns from which were transferred to the Sevastopol garrison. For the entire time of the siege, up to 2,000 naval guns with ammunition and personnel of up to 10,000 people were transferred to the bastions and batteries of Sevastopol from the ships of the Black Sea Fleet ( ).

11 September. Appointment of Vice-Admiral V.A. Kornilov as Chief of Defense of the Northern Side and Vice-Admiral P.S. Nakhimov as Chief of Defense of the Southern Side of Sevastopol ( ).

September 14. In connection with the decision of the Anglo-French land command to seize Sevastopol from the South side, the allied fleet moved its base from Evpatoria: the British to Balaklava, the French to Kamysheva Bay near Sevastopol ( ).

September 20. The steam-frigate "Vladimir" (Captain 2nd Rank G.I. Butakov), being in position in front of Kilenbukhta, together with the batteries of the Malakhov Kurgan, the third and fourth bastions, fired at the location of the British on the slopes of Sapun Mountain and forced them to withdraw deeper ().

September 22nd. The attack of the Anglo-French detachment consisting of 4 steam-frigates (72 guns) on the Ochakov fortress and the Russian rowing flotilla located here, consisting of 2 small steamers and 8 rowing gunboats (36 guns) under the command of Captain 2nd Rank Endogurov. After a three-hour firefight at a long distance, the enemy ships, having received damage, went to sea ( ).

September 25. Night sortie from the 5th bastion of a detachment of hunters, including 155 people, including 80 sailors under the command of Lieutenant P.F. Gusakov, against the French trenches at Rudolf Hill. The sortie discovered by the French was repulsed. Due to ignorance, upon returning, the hunters were mistaken for the enemy and fired upon by their batteries. Noting this case in his order, Vice-Admiral V.A. Kornilov emphasized the need for coordinated actions of individual commanders and demanded mutual information about the planned actions of the units ( ).

October 5. The first bombardment of Sevastopol from land and sea. With the beginning of the bombardment of Sevastopol from land, the allied Anglo-French fleet, consisting of 29 ships of the line (English - 4 screw and 9 sail; French - 5 screw and 9 sail and 2 sail Turkish) and 21 steamers, approaching the entrance to the Sevastopol Bay, bombarded the city and coastal fortifications of the South and North sides, having 1340 guns against 115 Russians and firing up to 50,000 shells within 8 hours. A number of Allied ships were damaged and disabled by the return fire of Russian batteries. So, the English ship "Albion" received 93 holes and lost all three masts, the French ship "Paris" - 50 holes, 3 of them underwater; many ships were on fire. Two ships due to severe damage were sent for repairs to Constantinople. The damage received by the ships forced the allied naval command to abandon the continuation of the bombardment and withdraw with the fleet to their bases, as a result of which further shelling of Sevastopol was carried out only from land. During the bombing, Vice-Admiral V.A. Kornilov, one of the organizers and leaders of the city's defense, was mortally wounded by a cannonball on Malakhov Kurgan, who died on the same day.
The steam-frigates "Vladimir" (captain 2nd rank G.I. Butakov) and "Khersonesos" (captain-lieutenant I. Rudnev) took part in return fire from the Sevastopol raid, firing at English batteries that operated against Malakhov Kurgan, which was largely degree affected the results of enemy fire.
Assessing the results of the first bombardment by the enemy and the defense of Sevastopol by the Russians, K. Marx wrote: “. ..in a few hours, the Russians silenced the fire of the French batteries and throughout the day fought an almost equal battle with the English batteries ... The defense of the Russians greatly sobered up the winners at Alma» { }.

October 6 - 8. In response to the continued bombardment of Sevastopol from the land, the steamboat-frigate "Vladimir" (Captain 2nd Rank G.I. Butakov), while standing on the Sevastopol roadstead, systematically fired at the British batteries installed on Sapun Mountain, thereby weakening their fire on the fortifications of Malakhov Kurgan and the third bastion. For three days, the steamer-frigate received 6 holes, of which 3 were underwater ( ).

On the night of October 9. The outing of two teams of hunters (212 people, 29 of them sailors) under the command of Lieutenant P. Troitsky and midshipman S. Putyatin to the French trenches. Despite the death of both chiefs in battle, the hunters, breaking into the trenches and splitting the French who were here, riveted 8 mortars and 11 cannons and caused a major alarm in the entire French line of fortifications ( ).

October 12. Fireship "Bug" under the command of Lieutenant K.P.

October 24. Steam-frigates “Vladimir” (captain 2nd rank G.I. Butakov) and “Khersonesos” (captain-lieutenant I. Rudnev), covering the withdrawal of Russian troops to Sevastopol after the Inkerman battle, with well-aimed fire forced the French field battery, which was shelling the retreating ones, to withdraw from the position and get out of the shelling ( ).

November 24. Steam-frigates "Vladimir" (captain 2nd rank G.I. Butakov) and "Khersones" (captain-lieutenant I. Rudnev), leaving the Sevastopol raid into the sea, attacked the French steamer that was standing at Pesochnaya Bay and forced it to leave. After an unsuccessful chase, "Khersonesus" and "Vladimir", approaching Streletskaya Bay, bombarded the French camp located on the shore and enemy ships from bombing guns. In view of the approach of the latter, "Khersonesos" and "Vladimir", having started a firefight, began to retreat to Sevastopol in order to lure the enemy under the shots of coastal batteries. Having come under fire from the latter, the enemy ships received a number of damages in the hull and spars ( ).

29th of November. Night sortie of a detachment of scouts, including about 500 people, to destroy the trench work carried out by the French in front of the fourth bastion. A detachment of 20 sailors under the command of Lieutenant F. Titov with two mountain guns also took part in the sortie, which was tasked with a sudden attack on enemy trenches to divert the attention of the enemy from the direction of the main sortie.
Having successfully completed the task, Titov's detachment returned without loss, allowing the scouts to quietly approach the French trenches and, breaking into them, destroy about 150 French people, destroy the work done, rivet 4 mortars and capture 3 small mortars and a lot of weapons ().

November 30th. Night sortie of a detachment of 80 sailors-hunters under the command of Lieutenant L.I. Batyanov from the 4th bastion to the location of the French trenches in order to destroy them.
Having successfully completed the task, the detachment captured 3 mortars, a lot of weapons and prisoners, but the detachment commander was mortally wounded.
At the same time, a detachment of 20 sailors with two mountain guns under the command of Lieutenant F. Titov carried out the same successful sortie into the French trenches against the fifth bastion ( ).

December 3. Midnight raid by midshipman V. Titov with four mountain unicorns from redoubt No. 1 to the French camp, which caused a commotion in the ranks of the enemy ( ).

December 6. Decree on equating the participants in the defense of Sevastopol with one month of service on the bastions for a year of service ( ).

9th December. Night sortie of two parties of hunters, mainly sailors of the third bastion under the command of Lieutenant N.A. Biryulev and Lieutenant N.Ya. Astapov, to the location of the English trenches. Having swiftly burst into them and pierced the British who were here with bayonets, the hunters, capturing 3 officers and 33 soldiers, returned, having lost 4 killed and 22 wounded ( ).

December 19th. A night sortie of a detachment of sailors-hunters under the command of Lieutenant N.A. Biryulev, who knocked out the enemy with a bayonet attack from a newly dug trench against the 4th bastion ( ).

December 26. Night sortie of a detachment of sailors under the command of Lieutenant P. Zavalishin from the fifth bastion to the location of the French trenches. Having attacked the trenches and knocked out the French with bayonets, the detachment was forced to withdraw due to the enemy receiving strong reinforcements ( ).

Dec. 31. Night sortie of two detachments of hunters-sailors and soldiers under the command of lieutenants N.A. Biryulev and N.Ya. Astapov from the third bastion to the location of the English and French trenches.
The detachment of Lieutenant Biryulev, after a bayonet fight with the enemy, occupied the French trenches and mortar battery No. 21, where they riveted mortars and took prisoners. The detachment of Lieutenant Astapov also successfully occupied and destroyed the English trenches, capturing an English guard picket of 13 people ( )

January 8. Night sortie of a detachment of hunters-sailors and soldiers from the fifth bastion under the command of lieutenants F. Titov and P. A. Zavalishin to destroy the French trenches. Having knocked out the enemy with a bayonet strike, the detachment managed to destroy the trenches before the arrival of French reinforcements and withdrew with a fight ( ).

January 20th. A sortie of a detachment of sailors under the command of Lieutenant N.A. Biryulev from the third bastion against the French trenches, where destruction was made and prisoners were taken. During a hand-to-hand fight, when the French, forced out of the trenches, opened rifle fire, the sailor Ignaty Shevchenko, seeing that the French arrows were aiming at Biryulyov, rushed to him and shielded him from bullets, one of which killed Shevchenko.
The quartermaster of the 30th naval crew, Pyotr Koshka, who had repeatedly distinguished himself earlier, also participated in the same sortie. Seriously wounded in a bayonet fight, he remained in service until the end of the battle ( ).

12th of February. The French night attack on the Selenginsky redoubt was repelled by the steamship-frigate "Vladimir" (captain of the 2nd rank G.I. Butakov), the steamships "Khersonesus" and "Gromonoyets" and the battleship "Chesma" that were on the roadstead, which hit the advancing enemy with their fire and its reserves located in the Georgievskaya beam area ( ).

On the night of February 13. By order of A.S. Menshikov, the battleships “Twelve Apostles”, “Svyatoslav”, “Rostislav”, the frigates “Cahul” and “Mesemvria” ( ) were additionally flooded between the Nikolaev and Mikhailovskaya batteries.

February 22. The shelling of the ships "Khersones" and "Gromonosets" from the Big raid of the 9-gun French battery, erected at a height between Sushilnaya and Volovya beams. After an hour-long skirmish, the battery was silenced. The steamer "Khersonesos" received 6 holes, of which 3 were underwater ( ).

28th of February. Night sortie of a party of 80 sailors-hunters under the command of Lieutenant N. Astapov and midshipman N. Maksheev from the third bastion to the English trenches. Having dispersed the enemy and destroyed the trenches, the hunters brought 100 tours to the bastion. In the morning midshipman Maksheev repeated the sortie, having obtained 30 more rounds, which, together with the previous ones, went to strengthen the protection of the fortifications of the bastion ( ).

March 7. During the bombing, one of the remarkable organizers of the defense of Sevastopol, Rear Admiral Vladimir Ivanovich Istomin, was killed by a cannonball on Malakhov Kurgan. Noting his merits, Vice Admiral P.S. Nakhimov wrote: “ The defense of Sevastopol lost in it one of its main figures, constantly inspired by noble energy and heroic determination....». « The strength of character in the most difficult circumstances, the holy performance of duty and vigilant concern for his subordinates earned him general respect and unfeigned grief over his death.» { }.

10th of March. Participation in a joint night sortie with ground units from Sevastopol of four parties of sailors-hunters, consisting of about 630 people under the general command of Captain 2nd Rank L.I. Budischev. Of these, two parties under the command of Lieutenant N. Biryulev and midshipman N. Maksheev, breaking into the British batteries No. 7 and No. 8, killed their personnel and riveted all the guns and mortars. The party under the command of midshipman P. Zavalishin, having entered the flank and rear of the French trenches, forced the French to clear them, which contributed to the overall success of the sortie. The party under the command of Lieutenant N. Astapov, having knocked out the enemy's cover from the trenches, ensured success in capturing and destroying the British batteries.
Captured 2 officers and 12 privates; British losses: 8 officers and 78 privates killed. Russian losses: 2 officers and 10 sailors were killed and 4 officers and 60 sailors were wounded ( ).

26 March. Night sortie of a detachment of 20 sailors-hunters under the command of midshipman Fedorovsky from Sevastopol against the English trenches. Having secretly made their way to the English front line, the hunters captured the sentry and, after destroying the trenches, returned back with one wounded ( ).

March 27. PS Nakhimov was promoted to admiral. In this regard, Nakhimov turned to the defenders of Sevastopol and expressed gratitude to the admirals, officers and sailors for heroic service homeland. In the order for the Sevastopol port dated April 12, he wrote: “ The enviable fate of having subordinates under my command, decorating the boss with their valor, fell on me. I hope Messrs. admirals, captains and officers will allow me here to express my sincerity of gratitude with the knowledge that, heroically defending Sevastopol, precious to the sovereign and Russia, they brought me undeserved mercy. Sailors! Should I tell you about your exploits in protecting our native Sevastopol and the fleet? From a young age I was a constant witness to your labors and readiness to die at the first command; we have been friends for a long time; I am proud of you since childhood. We will defend Sevastopol ... you will give me the opportunity to wear my flag on the main bramstenge with the same honor with which I wore it thanks to you and under other coats; ... on the bastions of Sevastopol, we did not forget maritime affairs, but only strengthened the enthusiasm and discipline that always adorned the Black Sea sailors» { }.

March 28 - April 6. The second bombardment of Sevastopol by the allies. In ten days, the enemy fired 168,000 shells out of 482 guns; Russian batteries from 466 guns (mostly removed from ships and serviced by sailors) fired 88,700 shells. Allied losses - 1852 people, Russian losses - 5986 people.
Vigorously correcting at night the destruction of batteries and the defensive line caused during the day, the defenders forced the enemy to abandon the assault ( ).

April 7. A sortie of a detachment with the participation of sailors-hunters under the command of Lieutenant-Commander N. Astapov from the third bastion against the English trenches. Attacking one of the lodgements, the detachment knocked out the British from it with a bayonet blow ( ).

April 24. Night outing of a detachment of hunters consisting of 100 sailors and soldiers under the command of midshipman N. Maksheev from the third bastion against the English trenches. After knocking out the enemy with a bayonet attack and capturing prisoners, the detachment returned to its location ( ).

12 May. The combined Anglo-French fleet, consisting of about 80 pennants with a landing force of 16,000 people, having approached Cape Kamysh-Burun and landed a landing force, occupied Kerch, the small garrison of which retreated to Feodosia. Caught in the Kerch harbor, 3 steamships and 10 transports and small vessels were burned by their crews. The brig "Argonaut" under the command of Lieutenant Commander E.A. Serebryakov, having entered into an unequal battle with the English steam schooner "Snake", which had superior machine power and armament, caused several damage to the latter. Taking advantage of the blowing wind, the Russian brig broke away from the enemy and went to Berdyansk ( ).

May 25 - 30. The third Anglo-French bombardment of Sevastopol and an assault on May 27, during which the Allies managed to capture the Selenga and Volyn redoubts advanced forward and the Kamchatka lunette.
After the general (third) bombardment of the entire defensive line of Sevastopol, the French concentrated more than 9 divisions (35,000 people) on the left flank of the Russian location and attacked the Volyn and Selenginsky redoubts and the Kamchatka lunette advanced forward, for the possession of which the most stubborn struggle broke out. Knocked out several times by Russian counterattacks, the French, supported by the British, finally pushed the defenders back to Malakhov Kurgan. Admiral Nakhimov, who was on the lunette, was surrounded, but, together with the remnants of the lunette garrison, made his way out of the enemy ring.
Having suffered heavy losses during the repulse of the assault, the commandant sailors riveted all their guns before leaving the lunette.
Significant losses were inflicted on the Allies during their assault on the Kamchatka lunette by the steam-frigates "Vladimir" (captain 2nd rank G.I. Butakov), "Crimea" (captain-lieutenant P.D. .Rudnev), who fired at the enemy from Kilen Bay. On May 27, "Vladimir", "Crimea", "Gromonosets" and "Odessa" successfully fired from the raid on the Selenginsky and Volynsky redoubts, occupied by the French the day before.
During the fighting, the allies lost 6,200 people, the Russians 5,500 people, of which sailors - 12 officers killed, 51 wounded, sailors 117 killed and 878 wounded and shell-shocked; of the latter, more than half remained in service ( ).

Spring. Laying minefields by Russians in the Black Sea (in the Kerch Strait 40 minutes), at Yenikale (40 minutes) and at Kerch (20 minutes) ( ).

June 5 - 6. The fourth bombardment of Sevastopol by the Anglo-French, after which the enemy launched a general assault, but he was everywhere repulsed. Significant assistance in repelling the assault on the first and second bastions was provided by the steamship-frigate “Vladimir” (captain 2nd rank G.I. Butakov), “Thunder-bearer” (captain-lieutenant I.G. Popandopulo), “Khersonesos” (captain-lieutenant I. Rudnev), "Crimea" (captain 1st rank P.D. Protopopov), "Bessarabia" (captain-lieutenant P. Shchegolev) and "Odessa" (lieutenant Wulfert), who took up positions in front of the entrance to Kilenbukhta and hit with buckshot as advancing troops, and their reserves, accumulated in Kilen-balka.
During the bombardment and assault, 72,000 shells were used up by the Allies, 19,000 by the Russians. The loss of the Allies was 7,000 people, the Russians were 4,800 people. Assessing the results of this assault, which was unsuccessful for the Allies, Marx wrote: June 18(n.st. - Ed.) In 1855, the Battle of Waterloo was to be played at Sevastopol in the best edition and in the opposite direction. Instead, the first serious defeat of the French-English army occurs.» { }.

June 28. During a detour of the fortifications of the defensive line, he was mortally wounded by a rifle bullet in the temple on the Kornilov bastion (Malakhov Kurgan) and on June 30, an outstanding Russian naval commander, head of the defense of Sevastopol, Admiral Pavel Stepanovich Nakhimov ( ) died.

July 13. The steam-frigate "Vladimir" (Captain 1st Rank G.I. Butakov) successfully operated from Kilen-balka against the French fortifications during the night sortie of hunters from the second bastion of Sevastopol ( ).

August 5 - 8. The fifth bombardment by the Anglo-French of Sevastopol, during which the allies fired 56,500 shells, the Russians - 29,400. The losses of the Russians were up to 3,000 people, the allies - 750 people.
In fact, the bombardment continued on a somewhat reduced scale after 8 August. During the period from 9 to 25 August, the enemy fired 132,500 shells (an average of 9,000 per day), and the Russians fired 51,275 shells (an average of 3,000 per day). The losses of the Russians during this period were expressed in 8921 people, the losses of the allies in 3500 ( ).

August 15. For communication between the South and North sides, a floating pontoon bridge with a length of about 900 meters ( ) was built across the entire Sevastopol roadstead.

August 24 - 27. The sixth bombardment of Sevastopol and the general assault on its defensive line, undertaken on August 27.
In repulsing the assault on the second bastion, on which the main attack was directed (18,000 bayonets against 7,000), the steam-frigates "Vladimir" (captain 1st rank G.I. Butakov), "Khersonesus" (captain-lieutenant Rudnev ) and "Odessa" (Lieutenant Wulfert), whose fire inflicted huge losses on the French assault columns. The steamer "Vladimir" achieved particular success, which, approaching almost close to the shore, bombarded the enemy with bombs and buckshot, who resumed attacks on the bastion six times.
Simultaneously with the assault on the second bastion, the Malakhov Kurgan (Kornilovsky bastion) was subjected to fierce attacks, on which, together with the ground units, there was a handful of sailors led by Lieutenant Commander P.A. Karpov. The capture of Malakhov Kurgan by the French decided the outcome of the assault.
During the bombing and assault, the defenders of Sevastopol lost about 12,030 people, the enemy - over 10,000 people ().

August 28. With the onset of dusk, on a signal from a rocket, the garrison of Sevastopol began to leave the bastions and fortifications of the South side, crossing the pontoon bridge built over the Sevastopol raid to the North side. At the same time, detached parties began to destroy and explode batteries, powder magazines, guns, etc., and naval teams began to sink the remaining ships in the Sevastopol roadstead. The battleships "Imp.Maria", "Vel. Prince Konstantin”, “Paris”, “Chesma”, “Yagudiel”, “Brave”, 1 frigate, 1 corvette and 7 brigs.
The entire garrison of Sevastopol and naval teams settled on the fortifications of the Northern side to continue the fight ( ).

August 30. In connection with the abandonment of Sevastopol and the transition of troops to the North side on the Sevastopol roadstead, the last ships of the Black Sea Fleet - 10 ships ("Vladimir", "Gromonosets", "Bessarabia", "Crimea", "Odessa" were flooded after the removal of guns and ammunition from them , Khersones, Elborus, Danube, Grozny, Turk) and 1 transport (Gagra) ( ).

October 5. Bombardment by the Anglo-French fleet of the Kinburn fortress, which covered the entrance to the Dnieper-Bug Estuary. In this bombardment, for the first time, newly appeared armored ships were used - French steam floating batteries "Lave", "Tonnante" and "Devastation" in 1400 tons with wooden hulls sheathed on board with four-inch side iron armor. Having approached a distance of 4 cables, the floating batteries with their 50-pound cannonballs completely defeated the fortifications of Kinburn without receiving serious damage, since the numerous cannonballs of Russian cannons that fell into the armor either split on impact or left minor dents. After the defeat of the Kinburn fortifications and the withdrawal of the landing force from the allied fleet, Kinburn was forced to surrender ( ).

Action on the Danube

October 11. A detachment of the Danube River Flotilla, consisting of two steamships "Prut" and "Ordinarets" and taken by them on board and in tow 8 rowing gunboats under the command of Captain 2nd Rank Varpakhovsky, having the task of passing from Izmail to Galati, while passing by the Turkish fortress of Isakchi, was fired upon her batteries. Carrying out a breakthrough, the detachment had an hour and a half artillery exchange of fire with Turkish batteries and destroyed 3 guns in the process.
Breakthrough conditions, complicated by the fact that steamers, having gunboats in tow, could not develop more than 2.5 knots against the current, led to the fact that Russian ships had a significant amount of damage from enemy shells. Detachment losses: 7 killed (including the head of the detachment, captain 2nd rank Varpakhovsky) and 51 wounded ( ).

March 8 - 9. In order to cover the crossing of the Russian troops on the right bank of the Danube near Galati, a detachment of the Danube river flotilla, consisting of the steamer "Prut" and three rowing gunboats, fired at the enemy bank in the area of ​​​​the crossing ().

March 9 - 10. In order to demonstrate during the crossing of Russian troops to the right bank of the Danube near Galati, two rowing gunboats from the Danube river flotilla under the command of Lieutenant Martyn fired intensively at the Turkish batteries near Girsov ( ).

March 10 - 11. In order to ensure the crossing of Russian troops at Galati and to clear the right bank of the Danube from the enemy, a detachment of the Danube River Flotilla, consisting of 6 rowing gunboats under the command of Captain 1st Rank Bernard de Grave, having taken a position in the area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe mouth of the Machinsky branch, silenced the Turkish batteries with their fire and thereby contributed to the success of the crossing of the Russian troops.
The steamer Prut, which joined the detachment on March 11, after participating in the shelling of the coast, reconnoitred the coast and made sure that it was cleared of the enemy, reported that to the ground command, which ordered the start of the crossing, carried out without hindrance ().

March 11th. A detachment of the Danube River Flotilla, consisting of 14 rowing gunboats under the command of Rear Admiral A.D. Kuznetsov, covering the crossing of Russian troops across the Danube near the island of Chatal, from dawn to noon fired at the Turkish fortifications located here ().

March 11th. A detachment of the Danube River Flotilla, consisting of the Ordinarets steamer and three rowing gunboats under the command of Lieutenant Commander Kononovich, covering the crossing of Russian troops across the Danube near Galati, fired on Turkish coastal fortifications ().

March 12. A detachment of the Danube River Flotilla, consisting of 14 rowing gunboats under the command of Rear Admiral A.D. Kuznetsov, assisted the ground forces in building a pontoon bridge across the Sulinsky sleeve ( ).

April 29. A detachment of 3 gunboats of the Danube River Flotilla under the command of Captain 1st Rank Bernard de Grave, together with a coastal battery located on the left bank of the Danube, bombarded the fortifications of the eastern front of the Turkish fortress of Silistria ( ) from a distance of 20 cables.

April 30. With the assistance of the vessels of the river Danube flotilla, the Russian troops occupied the island of Salani lying opposite Silistria, which was used to set up siege batteries here ( ).

16th of May. The shelling by the steamer "Prut" and two gunboats of the Danube river flotilla under the command of captain 1st rank Bernard de Grave of the fortifications of the eastern front of the Silistria fortress at a distance of 7 cables during the assault by its ground forces under the command of General Schilder ( ).

June 15. A detachment of gunboats of the Danube River Flotilla, covering the withdrawal of Russian troops from Silistria and the construction of the pontoon bridge built here, with their fire held the offensive of the units of the Turkish garrison of Silistria, who tried to prevent the withdrawal and construction of the bridge ().

December 26. A detachment of the Danube River Flotilla under the command of Rear Admiral Tsebrikov, with its fire, contributed to the return crossing of Russian troops across the Danube at Tulcha ().

Actions on the Baltic Sea

March 31. The English fleet, under the command of Vice-Admiral Nepira, consisting of 13 screw and 6 sailing ships of the line, 23 frigates and steamships, entered the Gulf of Finland and announced a blockade of the Russian coast of the Baltic Sea and the Gulf of Bothnia, the Gulf of Finland and the Gulf of Riga ().

April 2. In order to provide skerry flotillas of gunboats and coastal defense of the Baltic Sea with personnel, the first call to the naval service of the naval militia from among volunteers in the St. Petersburg, Novgorod, Tver and Olonets provinces took place. The record made significantly exceeded the planned number of conscription, giving from the day it began to May 22, 7132 people who expressed a desire to join the naval militia. By the end of April, the first militia battalion had already been formed, assigned to serve on the gunboat flotilla. According to the general recall of the command over the two years of the war, the naval militias proved to be disciplined and courageous warriors who quickly got used to the requirements of naval service in a combat situation ( ).

April 6. An attempt to bombard the city of Ganges by several English ships. Intensive fire from coastal batteries forced the enemy to go to sea ( ).

May 7 - 8. The attack of an English screw frigate and a rowboat on the city of Eknes, repulsed by Russian coastal batteries ( ).

May 10. The attack of 6 English ships on the Ganges with the support of 26 ships stationed in the roadstead. After a five-hour skirmish with coastal batteries, having received serious damage, the enemy ships went to sea ( ).

26 of May. Two English warships (16-gun "Oden" and 6-gun "Vulture"), having received the task of reconnaissance of the Russian forces on the coast of the Gulf of Bothnia and destroy the military and merchant ships located here, attacked the small unprotected Finnish port of Gamle -Carleby, making an attempt to land a landing force of about 350 people sent on 9 barges armed with small cannons. As the landing force approached the shore, it was met by fire from a small coastal detachment, reinforced by volunteers from local residents. After a 45-minute battle, having lost one barge sunk and having two others badly damaged, the enemy was forced to hastily retreat. The defenders captured 1 flag, 1 cannon and 22 prisoners.
Having accepted the repulsed landing, the ships, without taking any further action, went to sea ( ).

the 9th of June. Two steam-frigates and one screw corvette from among the English ships that blockaded the Aland Islands, approaching the fortifications of Bomarzund at 10-12 cable lengths, tried to bombard them from large-caliber bombing guns. A fire was caused by return fire from the fortifications on one of the enemy ships, and the rudder was damaged on the other, which forced the enemy to stop firing and leave ( ).

12 June. The French fleet, which arrived in the Baltic Sea, consisting of 1 screw and 8 sailing ships of the line, 1 screw and 6 sailing frigates and 4 wheeled steamers under the command of Vice Admiral Parseval-Deschen, connected at Bare Sound with the English fleet ().

June 14. A combined Anglo-French fleet of 18 ships of the line, 8 frigates and several smaller vessels under the command of Vice Admirals Napier and Parseval-Deschen appeared in front of Kronstadt with the aim of attacking it. However, having limited themselves to reconnaissance for a week and having found out the extraordinary power of the defense of Kronstadt, the Allies abandoned the attack and retreated on June 20 to the island of Seskar ( ).

July 10. Vice-Admiral Nepir, having received a notice from the English Admiralty of consent to the implementation of the operation he proposed against the Aland Islands (Bomarzund), completely crossed the fleet from the island of Seskar to the Aland archipelago ( ).

July 15. Arrival in the Åland Islands to Bomarzund of the French squadron under the command of Admiral Parseval-Deschen with the landing corps of General Barage d "Ilye ().

26 July. Anglo-French landing of 11,000 people near Bomarzund. The unloading of siege weapons continued until July 29 ( ).

July 28 - August 4. Continuous bombardment of Bomarzund from land and sea by the Anglo-French, who fired up to 120,000 shells. On August 4, the completely destroyed fortress surrendered to the Anglo-French command (2175 people and 112 guns) ( ).

July 29. Making reconnaissance at Bomarzund, the English screw frigate "Penelope", being under fire from the Russian fort, jumped out onto the stones near the island of Prest-E. With the assistance of two steamships, Penelope, which threw some of its guns into the water and received 9 holes from fire from the fort, hardly got off the rocks and was taken away in tow ( ).

August 10. The attack of a detachment of English steam ships consisting of 2 steam-frigates, 1 sloop, 1 steamer and 1 schooner on the city of Abo in order to destroy the city and port. Met by fire from two military steamships and ten rowing gunboats under the command of Captain 1st Rank Akulov, the enemy, after a strong one and a half hour firefight at a distance of 12–20 cables, abandoned the intention to penetrate the Abo roadstead, retired to the sea ().

August, 26th. The departure of the French landing corps under the command of Barage d "Ilye from Bomarzund to France ().

October 7th. The cessation of operations in the Baltic Sea and the departure of the allied Anglo-French fleet from the Baltic to their bases.
As a result of the unsuccessful actions of the English fleet, Admiral Napier was replaced for the 1855 campaign by Admiral Dondas ( ).

April 28. Arrival to Nargen Island of the English squadron under the command of Admiral Dondas, consisting of 17 ships of the line and 30 steam-frigates and steamers. Two weeks later (in mid-May), the squadron moved to Krasnaya Gorka. On May 19, the French squadron of Admiral Penot joined it, consisting of 3 battleships and 2 steamships ().

May 24. English steam 20-push. the frigate "Cossaсk", approaching the Ganges, tried to land a landing party on a boat to destroy the posts of the coastal telegraph (semaphore), capture local pilots and requisition food. At the moment of landing, the enemy was attacked by a local team, which sank the boat and captured the surviving people from the landing party, led by its commander. The next day, the frigate Cossack, making sure that its landing force was destroyed, fired at the Ganges to no avail, firing about 150 shells within 2 hours ( ).

The beginning of June. The combined Anglo-French fleet under the command of Rear Admirals Dondas and Peno, consisting of: English - 19 screw and 2 sailing ships of the line, 4 screw frigates, 12 wheeled armed steamers, 16 mortar floating batteries, 16 gunboats and 23 small steam and sailing ships and French - 1 screw and 2 sailing ships of the line, 1 frigate, 1 corvette, 3 paddle steamers, 5 mortar floating batteries and 6 gunboats (total 101 pennant, about 2500 guns) approached Kronstadt, intending to attack it. Convinced of the strengthening of Kronstadt's defensive means compared to the previous year, the Anglo-French command abandoned the attack and limited itself to a blockade, sending detachments from the main forces to carry out attacks on individual points on the coast of the Gulf of Finland ( ).

June 6 - 7. An English detachment consisting of 2 screw battleships and 2 steam gunboats, approaching the mouth of the Narova River, fired at the coastal batteries located here and a detachment of 4 rowing gunboats under the command of Captain-Lieutenant Stackelberg, intended to defend the entrance to the Narova River, from the maximum distance , as well as the village of Gungersburg (Ust-Narova). After an eight-hour bombardment, which caused fires in private houses in Gungersburg, but did not cause damage to the batteries and gunboats operating against it, the enemy retreated to the sea to the island of Seskar ( ).

June 8. A detachment of English and French steam ships, detached from the Allied fleet, which was in front of Kronstadt, during the reconnaissance of the Kronstadt fortifications, fell into the area of ​​minefields set by the Russians, and the steamer-frigate "Merlin" and the steamers "Firefly", "Vulture" ran into the mines and Bulldog.
Due to the small charge of mines (10–15 pounds of gunpowder), all ships remained afloat, having received only minor damage that required minor dock repairs. However, as a result of the discovery of minefields in large numbers (the British fished up to 70 mines in various places), the allied command came to the conclusion that it was impossible to carry out active operations from the sea against Kronstadt and therefore decided to limit themselves to a blockade ( ).

June 10th. The English frigate Amphion, sent to make soundings and establish fairways off the eastern coast of Sandhamn Island near Sveaborg, had a skirmish with Russian coastal batteries and gunboats. Having received damage, the frigate retreated ( ).

July 1. A detachment of English steam ships, consisting of a steamer-frigate, a corvette and a gunboat, accompanied by seven armed barges with a landing force of about 700 people, having made an attempt to penetrate the Tranzond to Vyborg, attacked a Russian detachment blocking its path as part of the Tosno steamer and 8 rowing gunboats under the command of captain 2nd rank Rudakov, who occupied a position between the islands of Ravensaari and Nikolaevsky. As a result of an hour-long battle, the enemy barges, having come under fire from gunboats and gunfire from the islands, were forced to retreat with losses, and one barge was sunk. Later, having fired at the fortifications on the islands, the English detachment, having abandoned attempts to penetrate into the Vyborg Bay, retired ( ).

July 9. Shelling by a detachment of 4 English courts of the city of Friedrichsham. Encountered by fire from coastal batteries, the enemy withdrew to the sea ( ).

July 28 - 29. Bombardment by the combined Anglo-French fleet of the fortress of Sveaborg.
Allied fleet under the command of the English Admiral Dondas and the French Admiral Peno, consisting of an English squadron of 6 battleships, 4 frigates, 16 floating bombardment batteries, 16 gunboats, 8 steamers and 4 transports and a French squadron of 3 battleships, 1 frigate, 1 corvette , 1 steamboat, 5 floating bombardment batteries, 6 gunboats (71 pennants, over 1000 guns), having taken a position at a distance of 20-30 cables in front of Sveaborg, bombarded () its fortifications and Russian ships located between the islands in the passages ( 3 battleships, 1 frigate, 1 steam-frigate, 1 schooner and 5 gunboats - 300 guns).
In forty-five hours of continuous shelling, the allies fired up to 18,500 shells and about 700 incendiary convex rockets. The bombing and resulting fires destroyed a significant number of wooden buildings and warehouses, as well as blown up four bomb magazines, but relatively little damage was done to the forts and batteries themselves. Of the Russian ships, the battleship Rossiya, which was stationed in the Gustavsvert passage, suffered the most damage, having received 3 underwater holes and 43 hits in the surface hull and mast. In two days of bombardment by the allies of the fortifications of Sveabort, Russian ships fired 2,800 shots at the enemy. Losses of the garrison: 62 killed and 199 wounded, losses on ships: 11 killed and 89 wounded (on the battleship Rossiya). Allied losses are unknown. Having not achieved the desired results with the bombardment, the allied fleet did not dare to force the Sveaborg passes in order to penetrate the inner roadstead and capture Sveaborg and Helsingfors, and retreated to the sea to the island of Nargen ( ).

July 29. English screw 84-push. the battleship "Hawke" and the corvette "Desperate", having passed into the Gulf of Riga and approaching the mouth of the Western Dvina, had an hour and a half skirmish with the Riga battalion of the rowing flotilla (12 gunboats) under the command of Lieutenant Commander P. Istomin, after which they went to sea ( ).

August 4. Skirmish between a detachment of the Russian rowing flotilla consisting of 6 propeller boats: Flurry, Pike, Ruff, Zarnitsa, Gust and Burun under the command of Rear Admiral S.I. Mofet, on the one hand, and three Allied ships (a screw frigate and 2 steamboats), on the other hand, near the Tolbukhin lighthouse, which lasted about two hours and ended to no avail for both sides ( )

August 21. The attack of the English steamer on the city of Gamle-Carleby. After a 3.5-hour skirmish with coastal batteries, having received damage, the ship retired to the sea ( ).

The beginning of November. After a six-month stay in the Baltic Sea, the allied Anglo-French fleet, having not achieved any serious results in the fight against the Russian fleet and the coast, left the Baltic Sea with the approach of winter time and returned to their ports ( ).

Actions on the White Sea

The beginning of June. Arrival in the White Sea of ​​an English detachment consisting of three ships under the command of Captain Ommaney to blockade the Russian coast. Later, with the arrival of several more English and French ships in the White Sea, the Allied naval forces were brought here to 10 ships ( ).

22nd of June. Six armed boats sent from the frigate of the Ommaney detachment, which approached the island of Mudyug to measure the fairways leading to Arkhangelsk, were fired upon by two field batteries and rifle fire from gunboats. The lighthouse was damaged by return fire from the frigate. The boats, having not completed their task, returned to the frigate, and the latter hastened to go to sea ( ).

July 6 - 7. Shelling of the Solovetsky Monastery by two English ships (28 guns). Return fire from two monastery guns damaged one steamer.
On July 7, the British offered to surrender to the monastery, but were refused. Convinced that the monastery would resist, the enemy retired to the sea ( ).

July 10 - 11. Anglo-French attack on the village of Pushlaty (on the shores of the Onega Bay), where the peasants put up stubborn resistance to the landing of 100 people. Having lost 5 people killed, the enemy set fire to the village and retired to their ships ( ).

September 8 - 12. Departure of the Anglo-French squadron from the White Sea. On September 8, the English ships left; 12th - French ( ).

The end of May. Arrival of an Anglo-French detachment of 6 ships under the command of Captain Bailey in the White Sea to continue the blockade of the Russian coast ( ).

May 30. Approaching the island of Mudyug and announcing on June 4 a blockade of all ports, harbors and bays of the White Sea, the enemy ships did not dare to attack Arkhangelsk.
Cruising all summer in the White Sea, the Anglo-French ships were engaged in the destruction of small fishing schooners and fishing boats, and also attacked small coastal villages ( ).

Assessing the actions of the Anglo-French fleet on the White Sea during the war of 1854-1855, Engels wrote:
« ... The siege squadron was engaged in miserable attacks on Russian and Lappish villages and the destruction of the miserable property of poor fishermen. The British correspondents justify this shameful behavior by the natural irritation of the squadron, which feels that it cannot do anything serious! Good defense!» { }.

Actions in the Far East

July August. In connection with the news received about the declaration of war by England and France on Russia and the likelihood of an attack by the Anglo-French naval forces Pacific Ocean in Petropavlovsk-on-Kamchatka, the commander of the Petropavlovsk port, Major General V.S. Located in the port 44-push. frigate "Aurora" and 10-gun. military transport "Dvina" were anchored in the depths of the bay behind the Koshka spit with the left sides to the exit from the bay. The starboard guns of both ships were removed to reinforce the 7 batteries erected on the shore. The total number of guns on ships and batteries reached 67. The available garrison of Petropavlovsk consisted of 1016 people (including the crews of both ships and a detachment of volunteers from local residents) ( ).

August 18. Joint Anglo-French squadron (English ships: 50-gun frigate "President", 40-gun frigate "Pique", steamer "Virago", French ships: 50-gun frigate "La Forte", 20-gun corvette "L" Eurydice, 12-gun brig "Obligado" - a total of 218 guns), entering Avacha Bay and approaching the harbor of Petropavlovsk-on-Kamchatka from a distance of about 7-8 cables, fired at the port and coastal batteries in order to find out the location and after a short exchange of fire with the batteries, the enemy withdrew and anchored outside the shots.

August 19 the enemy resumed shelling, but since his ships were out of range of coastal batteries, the latter did not respond to him ( ).

August 20. The Anglo-French squadron, approaching the entrance to the Peter and Paul Bay and taking up positions against batteries No. 1 and No. 4 (8 guns), fired at both batteries from 80 guns for an hour and a half. Battery number 1 (5 guns), bombarded with enemy shells, on which all the guns were out of order, was forced to cease fire. The personnel of the battery, having riveted the guns, were transferred to battery No. 4 (3 guns), against which the enemy increased their fire and began to prepare a landing force. Soon, the landing force on 15 rowboats (about 300 people), under cover of ship fire, began to approach the shore. Seeing the impossibility of holding out, the personnel of the battery (28 people), having riveted the guns, retreated, but soon, uniting with the detachments of sailors sent from battery No. 1 and Kamchadal volunteers (up to 100 people), they attacked with bayonets the landing force, which, without accepting the battle, hurriedly ran to the boats and rolled away from the shore.
After that, the enemy transferred fire to battery No. 2 (11 guns) that covered the entrance to the Peter and Paul Harbor, which until the evening fought with three enemy frigates, which several times tried to land troops in the area of ​​\u200b\u200bbatteries No. 1 and No. 3, and one enemy boat was sunk. With the onset of dusk, the enemy ceased fire and retreated into the depths of the bay, correcting the damage received over the next three days ( ).

24 August. Peter and Paul battle. The attack of the united Anglo-French squadron in full force on Petropavlovsk.
At six o'clock in the morning, the enemy ships, having taken up positions against batteries No. 3 and No. 7, began an intensive shelling of them, having the intention, after their destruction, to land an assault force to capture the city and the ships stationed in the harbor.
As a result of a three-hour battle, the enemy managed to destroy both Russian batteries, whose personnel, having lost more than half of their people, withdrew to join the reserve. Convinced that the batteries had been abandoned by the Russians, the enemy proceeded to land on 25 rowboats in two groups - in the area of ​​​​battery No. 7 of about 700 people and in the area of ​​battery No. 3 - about 150.
Having entrenched themselves on the shore under the cover of fire from their ships, both landing parties began to quickly climb the hills of Nikolskaya Mountain, bypassing Petropavlovsk from two sides.
In order to prevent the enemy from occupying the mountain crest, Major General V.S. . With a powerful bayonet strike and rifle fire from specially selected riflemen, the garrison threw the enemy from the slopes of the mountain into the sea.
Having suffered heavy losses, the landing force in disorder rushed to escape to the rowboats, which hastily rolled away under the protection of their ships.
The Russians captured in battle the English banner of the marine infantry, many weapons and prisoners. According to British data, the Allies lost up to 450 people killed and wounded. Russian losses: 32 killed and 64 wounded.
Having accepted the landing, the enemy ships hastily retreated deep into the bay, where, having corrected the damage, on August 27 they finally went to sea ().

April 4 - 6. Having received information about the intention of the Anglo-French command with the beginning of spring to again undertake large-scale operations against Petropavlovsk, Governor-General of Eastern Siberia N.N. Muravyov ordered Rear Admiral V.S. prepare all ships for an urgent exit, loading on them property, food, guns, the entire garrison with their families and leave Kamchatka at the mouth of the Amur. Upon receipt of this order on March 3, work began on the preparation of ships and the loading of port property. At the same time, due to the presence of ice in the bay, they began to make a channel in it for the withdrawal of ships to the sea. By the beginning of April, all preparations were completed, and on April 4, the Irtysh and Baikal transports were the first to be sent. On April 6, the rest of the ships went to sea - the frigate "Aurora", the corvette "Olivutsa" (), transport "Dvina" and boat No. 1.
The Anglo-French squadron, which arrived at Petropavlovsk in early May, found the port abandoned by the Russians ( ).

The 1 of May. The squadron of Rear Admiral Zavoyko, consisting of the Aurora frigate, the Olivuts corvette, three transports - the Dvina, Baikal and Irtysh - and boat No. 1, having made the transition from Kamchatka to the Tatar Strait, concentrated in De- Castries for further passage to the Amur Estuary, as soon as the latter is cleared of ice ( ).

May 8. Convinced that Rear Admiral Zavoyko's squadron had left Petropavlovsk, the Anglo-French naval command could not establish its whereabouts for a long time.
Finally, on May 8, a detachment of English ships consisting of 1 frigate, 1 screw corvette and 1 sloop under the command of Commodore Elliot, entering the Tatar Strait, discovered the Russian squadron in De-Kastri Bay.
The screw corvette Hornet, sent for reconnaissance, exchanged several volleys with the Russian corvette Olivutsa, and reported to Elliot about the composition of the Russian squadron, which was preparing for battle. Not risking a fight, Elliot sent the Hornet to Hakodate to his command with a request to send reinforcements, and he himself remained in the Tatar Strait for observation with two ships, considering the Russian ships blocked ( ).

16th of May. Having received on May 15 the news that the Amur estuary was cleared of ice, the squadron of Rear Admiral Zavoiko on the night of May 16, using thick fog, left De Kaetri Bay and went north through the Tatar Strait to the mouth of the Amur, where it arrived safely on May 24.
On the same day, May 16, the Anglo-French squadron of Admiral Stirling, who came from Hakodate to connect with Elliot's detachment, hurried to De-Kastri Bay in order to attack the Russian squadron, but did not find it. This new disappearance of the Russians was all the more incomprehensible because the British considered the Tatar Strait to be a bay with no outlet to the north. Despite the undertaken searches for the Russian squadron, it was not found ( ).

July 22. During the chase of the English steamer for the brig "Okhotsk" near Nikolaevsk-on-Amur, the crew of the brig, transferring to boats, blew up the ship. Most of the boat crew reached the shore and escaped capture ( ).

March 18. Parisian world. The conclusion in Paris of a peace treaty between the warring countries, according to which:
a) the allies cleared the points they occupied in the Crimea and on the Black Sea (Sevastopol, Evpatoria, Kerch, Kinburn, etc.);
b) Russia returned Kars occupied by the Russians and part of the Danube Bessarabia to Turkey;
c) The Black Sea was declared neutral, i.e. closed to warships and open to merchant ships of all nations;
d) Russia pledged not to maintain a combat fleet in the Black Sea;
e) Russia and Turkey could not create any naval bases on the shores of the Black Sea;
f) Russia pledged not to build fortifications on the Aland Islands;
g) to regulate the issues of navigation on the Danube, a special permanent all-European commission was formed from representatives of all interested countries.

Thus, the Treaty of Paris deprived Russia of the result of her centuries-old struggle for access to the Black Sea and left southern Ukraine, Crimea, and the Caucasus defenseless from enemy attacks.

The London Treaty of 1871 abolished the humiliating articles of the Paris Treaty ( ).

October 23, 1853 Turkish sultan declared war on Russia. By this time, our Danubian army (55 thousand) was concentrated in the vicinity of Bucharest, having forward detachments on the Danube, and the Ottomans had up to 120-130 thousand in European Turkey, under the command of Omer Pasha. These troops were located: 30 thousand at Shumla, 30 thousand in Adrianople, and the rest along the Danube from Viddin to the mouth.

Somewhat earlier than the announcement of the Crimean War, the Turks had already begun hostilities by seizing the Oltenitsky quarantine on the night of October 20 on the left bank of the Danube. The arrived Russian detachment of General Dannenberg (6 thousand) attacked the Turks on October 23 and, despite their numerical superiority (14 thousand), almost occupied the Turkish fortifications, but was withdrawn by General Dannenberg, who considered it impossible to keep Oltenitsa under the fire of Turkish batteries on the right bank of the Danube . Then Omer Pasha himself returned the Turks to the right bank of the Danube and disturbed our troops only with separate surprise attacks, which the Russian troops also responded to.

At the same time, the Turkish fleet brought supplies to the Caucasian highlanders, who acted against Russia at the instigation of the Sultan and England. To prevent this, Admiral Nakhimov, with a squadron of 8 ships, overtook the Turkish squadron, which had taken refuge from bad weather in the Sinop Bay. November 18, 1853, after a three-hour battle of Sinop, the enemy fleet, including 11 ships, was destroyed. Five Ottoman ships took off, the Turks lost up to 4,000 killed and wounded and 1,200 prisoners; the Russians lost 38 officers and 229 lower ranks.

Meanwhile, Omer Pasha, having abandoned offensive operations from Oltenitsa, gathered up to 40 thousand to Kalafat and decided to defeat the weak forward Malo-Valakh detachment of General Anrep (7.5 thousand). On December 25, 1853, 18 thousand Turks attacked the 2.5 thousand detachment of Colonel Baumgarten near Chetati, but the reinforcements (1.5 thousand) who came up saved our detachment, which shot all the cartridges, from final death. Having lost up to 2 thousand people, both of our detachments retreated at night to the village of Motsetsei.

After the battle at Chetati, the Small Wallachian detachment, reinforced to 20 thousand, settled in apartments near Calafat and blocked the Turks from entering Wallachia; further operations of the Crimean War in the European theater in January and February 1854 were limited to minor clashes.

Crimean War in the Transcaucasian theater in 1853

Meanwhile, the actions of the Russian troops in the Transcaucasian theater were accompanied by complete success. Here the Turks, having gathered a 40,000-strong army long before the declaration of the Crimean War, opened hostilities in mid-October. The energetic Prince Bebutov was appointed head of the Russian active corps. Having received information about the movement of the Turks to Alexandropol (Gyumri), Prince Bebutov sent a detachment of General Orbeliani on November 2, 1853. This detachment unexpectedly stumbled upon the main forces of the Turkish army near the village of Bayandur and barely escaped to Alexandropol; the Turks, fearing Russian reinforcements, took up a position at Bashkadyklar. Finally, on November 6, a manifesto was received on the beginning of the Crimean War, and on November 14, Prince Bebutov moved to Kars.

Another Turkish detachment (18 thousand) on October 29, 1853 approached the Akhaltsikhe fortress, but the head of the Akhaltsikhe detachment, Prince Andronnikov, with his 7 thousand on November 14, attacked the Turks himself and put them into a disorderly flight; the Turks lost up to 3.5 thousand, while our losses were limited to only 450 people.

Following the victory of the Akhaltsikhe detachment, the Alexandropol detachment under the command of Prince Bebutov (10 thousand) defeated on November 19 the 40 thousandth army of the Turks in the strong Bashkadyklar position, and only extreme fatigue of people and horses did not allow to develop the success achieved by pursuit. Nevertheless, the Turks in this battle lost up to 6 thousand, and our troops - about 2 thousand.

Both of these victories immediately raised the prestige of the Russian power, and was preparing in Transcaucasia general uprising quieted down immediately.

Crimean War 1853-1856. Map

Balkan theater of the Crimean War in 1854

Meanwhile, on December 22, 1853, the combined Anglo-French fleet entered the Black Sea in order to protect Turkey from the sea and help it supply its ports with the necessary supplies. Russian envoys immediately broke off relations with England and France and returned to Russia. Emperor Nicholas turned to Austria and Prussia with a proposal, in the event of his war with England and France, to observe the strictest neutrality. But both of these powers shied away from any obligations, refusing at the same time to join the allies; to ensure their possessions, they concluded a defensive alliance among themselves. Thus, at the beginning of 1854, it became clear that Russia was left without allies in the Crimean War, and therefore the most decisive measures were taken to strengthen our troops.

By the beginning of 1854, up to 150 thousand Russian troops were located in the area along the Danube and the Black Sea up to the Bug. With these forces, it was supposed to move deep into Turkey, raise an uprising of the Balkan Slavs and declare Serbia independent, but the hostile mood of Austria, which was strengthening its troops in Transylvania, forced us to abandon this bold plan and limit ourselves to crossing the Danube, to master only Silistria and Ruschuk.

In the first half of March, Russian troops crossed the Danube at Galats, Brailov and Izmail, and on March 16, 1854, occupied Girsovo. An unstoppable advance towards Silistria would inevitably lead to the occupation of this fortress, the armament of which had not yet been completed. However, the newly appointed commander-in-chief, Prince Paskevich, who had not yet personally arrived at the army, stopped it, and only the insistence of the emperor himself forced him to continue the offensive towards Silistria. The commander-in-chief himself, fearing that the Austrians would cut off the retreat of the Russian army, offered to return to Russia.

The stop of the Russian troops at Girsov gave the Turks time to strengthen both the fortress itself and its garrison (from 12 to 18 thousand). Approaching the fortress on May 4, 1854 with 90 thousand, Prince Paskevich, still fearing for his rear, stationed his army 5 miles from the fortress in a fortified camp to cover the bridge over the Danube. The siege of the fortress was carried out only against its eastern front, and from the western side, the Turks, in full view of the Russians, brought supplies to the fortress. In general, our actions near Silistria bore the imprint of the extreme caution of the commander in chief himself, who was also embarrassed by false rumors about the alleged union of the allies with the army of Omer Pasha. On May 29, 1854, Prince Paskevich, shell-shocked during reconnaissance, left the army, handing it over to Prince Gorchakov, who energetically led the siege and on June 8 decided to storm the Arab and Peschanoe forts. All orders for the assault had already been made, as two hours before the assault, an order was received from Prince Paskevich to immediately lift the siege and move to the left bank of the Danube, which was carried out by the evening of June 13. Finally, according to the condition concluded with Austria, which undertook to support our interests in the western courts, from July 15, 1854, the withdrawal of our troops from the Danubian principalities began, which from August 10 were occupied by Austrian troops. The Turks returned to the right bank of the Danube.

During these actions, the Allies launched a series of attacks on our coastal cities on the Black Sea and, by the way, on Holy Saturday, April 8, 1854, severely bombarded Odessa. Then the allied fleet appeared at Sevastopol and headed for the Caucasus. On land, Allied support for the Ottomans was expressed by the landing of a detachment at Gallipoli to defend Constantinople. Then these troops were transferred to Varna in early July and moved to Dobruja. Here, cholera caused great devastation in their ranks (from July 21 to August 8, 8,000 fell ill and 5,000 of them died).

Crimean War in the Transcaucasian theater in 1854

Military operations in the spring of 1854 in the Caucasus opened on our right flank, where on June 4, Prince Andronnikov, with the Akhaltsykh detachment (11 thousand), defeated the Turks at Cholok. Somewhat later, on the left flank of the Erivan detachment of General Wrangel (5 thousand) on June 17 attacked 16 thousand Turks on the Chingil Heights, overturned them and occupied Bayazet. The main forces of the Caucasian army, i.e., the Alexandropol detachment of Prince Bebutov, moved to Kars on June 14 and stopped at the village of Kyuryuk-Dara, having 15 miles ahead of them the 60,000th Anatolian army of Zarif Pasha.

On July 23, 1854, Zarif Pasha went on the offensive, and on the 24th, the Russian troops also moved forward, having received false information about the retreat of the Turks. Faced with the Turks, Bebutov lined up his troops in battle order. A series of energetic attacks by infantry and cavalry stopped the right wing of the Turks; then Bebutov, after a very stubborn, often hand-to-hand fight, threw back the center of the enemy, having used up almost all his reserves for this. After that, our attacks turned against the Turkish left flank, which had already bypassed our position. The attack was crowned with complete success: the Turks retreated in complete frustration, losing up to 10 thousand; in addition, about 12 thousand bashi-bazouks fled from them. Our losses amounted to 3 thousand people. Despite the brilliant victory, the Russian troops did not dare to begin the siege of Kars without a siege artillery fleet and retreated back to Alexandropol (Gyumri) in the fall.

Defense of Sevastopol during the Crimean War

Panorama Defense of Sevastopol (view from Malakhov Kurgan). Artist F. Roubaud, 1901-1904

Crimean War in the Transcaucasian theater in 1855

In the Transcaucasian theater of war, operations were resumed in the second half of May 1855 by us occupying Ardagan without a fight and advancing towards Kars. Knowing about the lack of food in Kars, the new commander-in-chief, General Ants, was limited to only one blockade, but, having received in September the news of the movement of Omer Pasha's army transported from European Turkey to the rescue of Kars, he decided to take the fortress by storm. The assault on September 17, which was launched on the most important, but at the same time on the strongest, western front (Shorakh and Chakhmakh heights), cost us 7,200 people and ended in failure. The army of Omer Pasha could not advance to Kars due to a lack of means of transportation, and on November 16 the garrison of Kars surrendered to capitulation.

British and French attacks on Sveaborg, the Solovetsky Monastery and Petropavlovsk

To complete the description of the Crimean War, one should also mention some of the secondary actions taken against Russia by the Western allies. On June 14, 1854, an allied squadron of 80 ships, under the command of the English Admiral Nepier, appeared at Kronstadt, then withdrew to the Aland Islands, and returned to their harbors in October. On July 6 of the same year, two English ships bombarded the Solovetsky Monastery on the White Sea, unsuccessfully demanding its surrender, and on August 17, an allied squadron also arrived at the port of Petropavlovsk in Kamchatka and, shelling the city, made a landing, which was soon repulsed. In May 1855, a strong allied squadron was sent to the Baltic Sea for the second time, which, after standing for some time near Kronstadt, went back in the autumn; its combat activity was limited only to the bombardment of Sveaborg.

Results of the Crimean War

After the fall of Sevastopol on August 30, hostilities in the Crimea were suspended, and on March 18, 1856, Parisian world, who ended the long and difficult war of Russia against 4 states of Europe (Turkey, England, France and Sardinia, which joined the allies at the beginning of 1855).

The consequences of the Crimean War were enormous. Russia after it lost its predominance in Europe, which it had enjoyed since the end of the war with Napoleon in 1812-1815. It has now passed to France for 15 years. The shortcomings and disorganizations discovered by the Crimean War opened in Russian history the era of reforms of Alexander II, which updated all aspects of national life.

On April 22, 1854, the Anglo-French squadron fired on Odessa. This day can be considered the moment when the Russian-Turkish confrontation de facto turned into a different quality, turning into a war of four empires. It went down in history under the name Crimean. Although many years have passed since then, this war still remains extremely mythologized in Russia, and the myth is classified as black PR.

“The Crimean War showed the rottenness and impotence of serf Russia,” these are the words that a friend of the Russian people, Vladimir Ulyanov, better known as Lenin, found for our country. With this vulgar stigma, the war entered Soviet historiography. For a long time there is neither Lenin nor the state created by him, but in public consciousness the events of 1853-56 are still being assessed exactly as the leader of the world proletariat said.

In general, the perception of the Crimean War can be likened to an iceberg. Everyone remembers the “top” from school times: the defense of Sevastopol, the death of Nakhimov, the flooding of the Russian fleet. As a rule, those events are judged at the level of clichés planted in the heads of many years of anti-Russian propaganda. Here is the "technical backwardness" of tsarist Russia, and the "shameful defeat of tsarism", and the "humiliating peace treaty." But the true scope and significance of the war remain little known. It seems to many that it was some kind of peripheral, almost colonial confrontation, far from the main centers of Russia.

The simplified scheme looks straightforward: the enemy landed in the Crimea, defeated the Russian army there, and, having achieved his goals, solemnly evacuated. But is it? Let's figure it out.

Firstly, who and how proved that the defeat of Russia was precisely shameful? The very fact of losing does not say anything about shame. In the end, Germany lost the capital in World War II, was completely occupied and signed an unconditional surrender. But have you ever heard anyone call it a shameful defeat?

Let's look at the events of the Crimean War from this point of view. Three empires (British, French and Ottoman) and one kingdom (Piedmont-Sardinia) then opposed Russia. What is Britain of those times? This is a gigantic country, an industrial leader, the world's best navy. What is France? This is the third economy in the world, the second fleet, a large and well-trained land army. It is easy to see that the union of these two states has already had such a resonant effect that the combined forces of the coalition had absolutely incredible power. But there was also the Ottoman Empire.

Yes, by the middle of the 19th century, her golden period was in the past, and she was even called the sick man of Europe. But do not forget that this was said in comparison with the most developed countries in the world. The Turkish fleet had steamships, the army was numerous and partially armed with rifled weapons, officers were sent to study in Western countries, and in addition, foreign instructors worked on the territory of the Ottoman Empire itself.

By the way, during the First World War, having already lost almost all of its European possessions, “sick Europe” defeated Britain and France in the Gallipoli campaign. And if such was the Ottoman Empire at the end of its existence, then it must be assumed that in the Crimean War it was even more dangerous opponents.

The role of the Sardinian kingdom is usually not taken into account at all, and yet this small country has put up against us twenty thousand, well-armed army. Thus, Russia was opposed by a powerful coalition. Let's remember this moment.

Now let's see what goals the enemy pursued. According to his plans, the Aland Islands, Finland, the Baltic region, the Crimea and the Caucasus were to be torn away from Russia. In addition, the Kingdom of Poland was restored, and an independent state of "Circassia" was created in the Caucasus, a vassal in relation to Turkey. That's not all. The Danubian principalities (Moldavia and Wallachia) were under the protectorate of Russia, but now it was supposed to transfer them to Austria. In other words, the Austrian troops would go to the southwestern borders of our country.

They wanted to share the trophies as follows: the Baltic states - Prussia, the Aland Islands and Finland - Sweden, the Crimea and the Caucasus - Turkey. Shamil, the leader of the highlanders, receives Circassia, and, by the way, during the Crimean War, his troops also fought against Russia.

It is generally believed that this plan was lobbied by the influential member of the British cabinet, Palmerston, while the French emperor had a different point of view. However, let us give the floor to Napoleon III himself. Here is what he said to one of the Russian diplomats:

“I intend to… make every effort to prevent the spread of your influence and force you to return to Asia, from whence you came. Russia is not European country, it should not be and will not be so unless France forgets the role it is supposed to play in European history... As soon as your ties with Europe are weakened, you will of your own begin to move to the East in order to turn back into an Asian country. It will not be difficult to deprive you of Finland, the Baltic lands, Poland and Crimea.”

This is the fate prepared for Russia by England and France. Isn't it familiar motives? Our generation was "fortunate" to live to see the implementation of this plan, and now imagine that the ideas of Palmerston and Napoleon III would have come true not in 1991, but in the middle of the 19th century. Imagine that Russia enters the First World War in a situation where the Baltics are already in the hands of Germany, when Austria-Hungary has a foothold in Moldavia and Wallachia, and Turkish garrisons are stationed in the Crimea. And the Great Patriotic War of 1941-45, in such a geopolitical situation, turns into a notorious catastrophe.

But "backward, powerless and rotten" Russia left no stone unturned from these projects. None of this has been implemented. The Paris Congress of 1856 drew a line under the Crimean War. According to the concluded agreement, Russia lost a tiny part of Bessarabia, agreed to free navigation along the Danube and the neutralization of the Black Sea. Yes, neutralization meant a ban for Russia and the Ottoman Empire to have naval arsenals on the Black Sea coast and keep the Black Sea military fleet. But compare the terms of the agreement with what goals the anti-Russian coalition initially pursued. Do you think this is a disgrace? Is this a humiliating defeat?

Now let's move on to the second important issue, to the "technical backwardness of serf Russia." When it comes to this, they always think of rifled weapons and the steam fleet. Like, in Britain and France, the army was armed with rifled guns, and Russian soldiers were armed with obsolete smoothbore guns. While advanced England, together with advanced France, had long ago switched to steamships, Russian ships sailed. It would seem that everything is obvious and backwardness is evident. You will laugh, but in the Russian fleet there were steam ships, and in the army - rifled guns. Yes, the fleets of Britain and France were significantly ahead of the Russian one in terms of the number of ships. But excuse me, these are the two leading maritime powers. These are countries that have surpassed the whole world at sea for hundreds of years, and the Russian fleet has always been weaker.

It must be admitted that the enemy had much more rifled guns. This is true, but it is also true that the Russian army had rocket weapons. Moreover, the combat missiles of the Konstantinov system were significantly superior to their Western counterparts. In addition, the Baltic Sea was reliably covered by Boris Jacobi's domestic mines. This weapon was also among the best examples in the world.

However, let's analyze the degree of military "backwardness" of Russia as a whole. To do this, it makes no sense to go through all types of weapons, comparing each technical specification one or the other samples. It is enough just to look at the ratio of losses in manpower. If Russia really seriously lagged behind the enemy in terms of armaments, then it is obvious that our losses in the war should have been fundamentally higher.

The numbers of total losses vary greatly in different sources, but the number of those killed is approximately the same, so let's turn to this parameter. So, during the entire war, 10,240 people were killed in the army of France, 2,755 in England, 10,000 in Turkey, and 24,577 in Russia. About 5,000 people are added to Russia's losses. This figure shows the number of dead among the missing. Thus, the total number of those killed is considered equal to
30,000. As you can see, there is no catastrophic ratio of losses, especially considering that Russia fought for half a year longer than England and France.

Of course, in response, we can say that the main losses in the war fell on the defense of Sevastopol, here the enemy stormed the fortifications, and this led to relatively increased losses. That is, the "technical backwardness" of Russia was partially compensated by the advantageous position of the defense.

Well, let's consider then the very first battle outside Sevastopol - the battle of Alma. The coalition army of about 62 thousand people (the absolute majority - the French and British) landed in the Crimea and moved to the city. In order to delay the enemy and gain time to prepare the defensive structures of Sevastopol, the Russian commander Alexander Menshikov decided to fight near the Alma River. At that time, he managed to gather only 37 thousand people. He also had fewer guns than the coalition, which is not surprising, because three countries opposed Russia at once. In addition, the enemy was also supported from the sea by ship fire.

“According to one testimony, the allies lost 4300 on the day of Alma, according to others - 4500 people. According to later estimates, our troops lost 145 officers and 5600 lower ranks in the battle on Alma, ”such data are given by academician Tarle in his fundamental work"Crimean War". It is constantly emphasized that during the battle we had a shortage of rifled weapons, but note that the losses of the parties are quite comparable. Yes, our losses turned out to be greater, but the coalition had a significant superiority in manpower, what does the technical backwardness of the Russian army have to do with it?

An interesting thing: the size of our army turned out to be almost two times smaller, and there were fewer guns, and the enemy fleet was shelling our positions from the sea, in addition, Russia’s weapons were backward. It would seem that under such circumstances, the defeat of the Russians should have been inevitable. And what is the real result of the battle? After the battle, the Russian army retreated, maintaining order, the exhausted enemy did not dare to organize a pursuit, that is, his movement to Sevastopol slowed down, which gave the city's garrison time to prepare for defense. The words of the commander of the British First Division, the Duke of Cambridge, perfectly characterize the state of the "winners": "Another such victory, and England will have no army." Such is the “defeat”, such is the “backwardness of serf Russia”.

I think that one non-trivial fact did not escape the attentive reader, namely the number of Russians in the battle on Alma. Why does the enemy have a significant superiority in manpower? Why does Menshikov have only 37 thousand people? Where was the rest of the Russian army at that time? The answer to the last question is very simple:

“At the end of 1854, the entire border strip of Russia was divided into sections, each subordinate to a special chief as commander-in-chief of an army or a separate corps. These areas were as follows:

a) The coast of the Baltic Sea (Finland, St. Petersburg and Ostsee provinces), the military forces in which consisted of 179 battalions, 144 squadrons and hundreds, with 384 guns;

b) the Kingdom of Poland and the Western provinces - 146 battalions, 100 squadrons and hundreds, with 308 guns;

c) The space along the Danube and the Black Sea to the Bug River - 182 battalions, 285 squadrons and hundreds, with 612 guns;

d) Crimea and the Black Sea coast from the Bug to Perekop - 27 battalions, 19 squadrons and hundreds, 48 ​​guns;

e) coast Sea of ​​Azov and the Black Sea - 31½ battalion, 140 hundreds and squadrons, 54 guns;

f) Caucasian and Transcaucasian Territory - 152 battalions, 281 hundreds and a squadron, 289 guns (⅓ of these troops were on the Turkish border, the rest were inside the region, against mountaineers hostile to us).

It is easy to see that the most powerful grouping of our troops was in the southwestern direction, and not at all in the Crimea. In second place is the army covering the Baltic, the third strongest in the Caucasus, and the fourth on the western borders.

What explains this, at first glance, the strange disposition of the Russians? To answer this question, let's temporarily leave the battlefields and move on to the diplomatic offices, where no less important battles unfolded, and where, in the end, the fate of the entire Crimean War was decided.

British diplomacy set out to win over Prussia, Sweden and the Austrian Empire. In this case, Russia would have to fight almost with the whole world. The British acted successfully, Prussia and Austria began to lean towards an anti-Russian position. Tsar Nicholas I is a man of unbending will, he was not going to give up under any circumstances, and began to prepare for the most catastrophic scenario. That is why the main forces of the Russian army had to be kept far from the Crimea along the border "arc": north, west, southwest.

Time passed, the war dragged on. The siege of Sevastopol continued for almost a year. In the end, at the cost of heavy losses, the enemy occupied part of the city. Yes, yes, no “fall of Sevastopol” ever happened, the Russian troops simply moved from the southern to the northern part of the city and prepared for further defense. Despite their best efforts, the coalition achieved almost nothing. During the entire period of hostilities, the enemy captured a small part of the Crimea and the tiny fortress of Kinburn, but at the same time was defeated in the Caucasus. Meanwhile, at the beginning of 1856, Russia concentrated over 600 thousand people on the western and southern borders. This is not counting the Caucasian and Black Sea lines. In addition, it was possible to create numerous reserves and collect militias.

And what did representatives of the so-called progressive public do at that time? As usual, they launched anti-Russian propaganda and distributed leaflets - proclamations.

“Written in glib language, with full diligence to make them accessible to the understanding of the common people and mainly the soldier, these proclamations were divided into two parts: some were signed by Herzen, Golovin, Sazonov and other persons who had left their fatherland; others - Poles Zenkovich, Zabitsky and Worzel.

Nevertheless, iron discipline reigned in the army, and few succumbed to the propaganda of the enemies of our state. Russia climbed the Second patriotic war with all the ensuing consequences for the enemy. And here, alarming news came from the front of the diplomatic war: Austria openly joined Britain, France, the Ottoman Empire and the Kingdom of Sardinia. A few days later, Prussia also made threats to Petersburg. By that time, Nicholas I had died, and his son Alexander II was on the throne. After weighing all the pros and cons, the king decided to start negotiations with the coalition.

As mentioned above, the treaty that ended the war was by no means humiliating. The whole world knows about it. In Western historiography, the outcome of the Crimean War for our country is assessed much more objectively than in Russia itself:

“The results of the campaign had little effect on the alignment of international forces. It was decided to make the Danube an international water artery, and declare the Black Sea neutral. But Sevastopol had to be returned to the Russians. Russia, which previously occupied a dominant position in Central Europe, lost its former influence for the next few years. But not for long. The Turkish empire was saved, and also only temporarily. The union of England and France did not achieve its goals. The problem of the Holy Lands, which he was supposed to solve, was not even mentioned in the peace treaty. And the Russian tsar annulled the agreement itself fourteen years later, ”Christopher Hibbert described the results of the Crimean War in this way. This is a British historian. For Russia, he found much more correct words than Lenin.

1 Lenin V.I. complete collection works, 5th edition, volume 20, p. 173.
2 History of diplomacy, M., OGIZ State socio-economic publishing house, 1945, p. 447
3 Ibid., p. 455.
4 Trubetskoy A., "Crimean War", M., Lomonosov, 2010, p.163.
5 Urlanis B.Ts. "Wars and the population of Europe", Publishing house of socio-economic literature, M, 1960, p. 99-100
6 Dubrovin N.F., "History of the Crimean War and the Defense of Sevastopol", St. Petersburg. Printing house of the Association "Public benefit", 1900, p.255
7 Eastern War 1853-1856 Encyclopedic Dictionary of F.A. Brockhaus and I.A. Efron
8 Eastern War 1853-1856 Encyclopedic Dictionary of F.A. Brockhaus and I.A. Efron
9 Dubrovin N.F., "History of the Crimean War and the Defense of Sevastopol", St. Petersburg. Printing house of the Association "Public benefit", 1900, p. 203.
10 K. Hibbert, Crimean Campaign 1854-1855. Tragedy of Lord Raglan”, M., Tsentrpoligraf, 2004

Russia's defeat in the Crimean War was inevitable. Why?
“This is a war of cretins with scoundrels,” said F.I. Tyutchev.
Too harsh? Maybe. But if we take into account the fact that others died for the sake of the ambitions of some, then Tyutchev's statement will be accurate.

Crimean War (1853-1856) also sometimes called Eastern war- This is a war between the Russian Empire and a coalition of the British, French, Ottoman empires and the Kingdom of Sardinia. fighting unfolded in the Caucasus, in the Danube principalities, in the Baltic, Black, White and Barents Seas, as well as in Kamchatka. But the battles reached the greatest tension in the Crimea, which is why the war got its name. Crimean.

I. Aivazovsky "Review of the Black Sea Fleet in 1849"

Causes of the war

Each side that took part in the war had its own claims and reasons for the military conflict.

Russian empire: sought to revise the regime of the Black Sea straits; increasing influence in the Balkan Peninsula.

The painting by I. Aivazovsky depicts participants in the upcoming war:

Nicholas I peers tensely into the formation of ships. He is being watched by the commander of the fleet, stocky Admiral M.P. Lazarev and his pupils Kornilov (Chief of Staff of the Fleet, behind Lazarev's right shoulder), Nakhimov (behind the left shoulder) and Istomin (far right).

Ottoman Empire: wanted to suppress the national liberation movement in the Balkans; the return of the Crimea and the Black Sea coast of the Caucasus.

England, France: hoped undermine Russia's international prestige, weaken its position in the Middle East; tear away from Russia the territories of Poland, the Crimea, the Caucasus, Finland; strengthen its position in the Middle East, using it as a sales market.

By the middle of the XIX century, the Ottoman Empire was in a state of decline, in addition, the struggle of the Orthodox peoples for liberation from the Ottoman yoke continued.

These factors led the Russian Emperor Nicholas I in the early 1850s to think about separating the Balkan possessions of the Ottoman Empire, inhabited by Orthodox peoples, which was opposed by Great Britain and Austria. Great Britain, in addition, sought to oust Russia from the Black Sea coast of the Caucasus and from Transcaucasia. The Emperor of France, Napoleon III, although he did not share the plans of the British to weaken Russia, considering them excessive, supported the war with Russia as a revenge for 1812 and as a means of strengthening personal power.

Russia had a diplomatic conflict with France over the control of the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, Russia, in order to put pressure on Turkey, occupied Moldavia and Wallachia, which were under the protectorate of Russia under the terms of the Adrianople peace treaty. The refusal of the Russian Emperor Nicholas I to withdraw troops led to the declaration of war on Russia on October 4 (16), 1853 by Turkey, followed by Great Britain and France.

The course of hostilities

First stage of the war (November 1853 - April 1854) - these are Russian-Turkish military operations.

Nicholas I took an uncompromising position, hoping for the power of the army and the support of some European states (England, Austria, etc.). But he miscalculated. The Russian army numbered over 1 million people. However, as it turned out during the war, it was imperfect, primarily in technical terms. Its armament (smooth-bore guns) was inferior to the rifled weapons of the Western European armies.

The artillery is outdated. The Russian fleet was predominantly sailing, while the European navies were dominated by ships with steam engines. There were no good communications. This did not allow to provide the place of hostilities with a sufficient amount of ammunition and food, as well as human replacements. The Russian army could successfully fight against the Turkish army, which was similar in state, but it was not able to resist the united forces of Europe.

The Russian-Turkish war was fought with varying success from November 1853 to April 1854. The main event of the first stage was the Battle of Sinop (November 1853). Admiral P.S. Nakhimov defeated the Turkish fleet in Sinop Bay and suppressed coastal batteries.

As a result of the Battle of Sinop, the Russian Black Sea Fleet under the command of Admiral Nakhimov defeated the Turkish squadron. The Turkish fleet was defeated within a few hours.

During a four-hour battle in Sinop bay(Turkish naval base) the enemy lost a dozen and a half ships and over 3 thousand people killed, all coastal fortifications were destroyed. Only 20-gun fast steamer "Taif" with an English adviser on board he was able to escape from the bay. The commander of the Turkish fleet was taken prisoner. Nakhimov's squadron lost 37 men killed and 216 wounded. Some ships left the battle with heavy damage, but one was not sunk. . The Sinop battle is inscribed in golden letters in the history of the Russian fleet.

I. Aivazovsky "Sinop battle"

This activated England and France. They declared war on Russia. The Anglo-French squadron appeared in the Baltic Sea, attacked Kronstadt and Sveaborg. English ships entered the White Sea and bombarded the Solovetsky Monastery. A military demonstration was also held in Kamchatka.

Second phase of the war (April 1854 - February 1856) - Anglo-French intervention in the Crimea, the appearance of warships of the Western powers in the Baltic and White Seas and in Kamchatka.

The main goal of the combined Anglo-French command was the capture of the Crimea and Sevastopol, the Russian naval base. On September 2, 1854, the Allies began the landing of an expeditionary force in the Evpatoria region. Battle on the river Alma in September 1854, the Russian troops lost. By order of the commander A.S. Menshikov, they passed through Sevastopol and retreated to Bakhchisaray. At the same time, the garrison of Sevastopol, reinforced by the sailors of the Black Sea Fleet, was actively preparing for defense. It was headed by V.A. Kornilov and P.S. Nakhimov.

After the battle on the river Alma the enemy laid siege to Sevastopol. Sevastopol was a first-class naval base, impregnable from the sea. In front of the entrance to the raid - on the peninsulas and capes - there were powerful forts. The Russian fleet could not resist the enemy, so some of the ships were sunk in front of the entrance to the Sevastopol Bay, which further strengthened the city from the sea. More than 20,000 sailors went ashore and lined up along with the soldiers. 2 thousand ship guns were also transported here. Eight bastions and many other fortifications were built around the city. Earth, boards, household utensils were used - everything that could delay bullets.

But for the work there were not enough ordinary shovels and picks. Theft flourished in the army. During the war years, this turned into a disaster. In this regard, a well-known episode comes to mind. Nicholas I, outraged by all sorts of abuses and theft found almost everywhere, in a conversation with the heir to the throne (the future Emperor Alexander II) shared his discovery that shocked him: “It seems that in all of Russia only two people do not steal - you and me.”

Defense of Sevastopol

Defense led by admirals Kornilova V.A., Nakhimova P.S. and Istomin V.I. lasted 349 days with a 30,000-strong garrison and naval crews. During this period, the city was subjected to five massive bombardments, as a result of which part of the city, the Ship Side, was practically destroyed.

On October 5, 1854, the first bombardment of the city began. It was attended by the army and navy. From the land, 120 guns fired at the city, from the sea - 1340 guns of ships. During the shelling, over 50 thousand shells were fired at the city. This fiery whirlwind was supposed to destroy the fortifications and crush the will of their defenders to resist. However, the Russians responded with accurate fire from 268 guns. The artillery duel lasted five hours. Despite the huge superiority in artillery, the allied fleet was badly damaged (8 ships were sent for repairs) and was forced to retreat. After that, the Allies abandoned the use of the fleet in the bombing of the city. The fortifications of the city were not seriously damaged. The decisive and skillful rebuff of the Russians came as a complete surprise to the allied command, which expected to take the city with little bloodshed. The defenders of the city could celebrate a very important not only military, but also a moral victory. Their joy was overshadowed by the death during the shelling of Vice Admiral Kornilov. The defense of the city was headed by Nakhimov, who, for his distinction in the defense of Sevastopol, was promoted to admiral on March 27, 1855. F. Roubaud. Panorama of the defense of Sevastopol (detail)

A. Roubaud. Panorama of the defense of Sevastopol (detail)

In July 1855, Admiral Nakhimov was mortally wounded. The attempts of the Russian army under the command of Prince Menshikov A.S. to pull back the forces of the besiegers ended in failure (the battle under Inkerman, Evpatoria and Black River). The actions of the field army in the Crimea did little to help the heroic defenders of Sevastopol. Around the city, the enemy's ring was gradually shrinking. Russian troops were forced to leave the city. The offensive of the enemy ended there. Subsequent military operations in the Crimea, as well as in other parts of the country, were not of decisive importance for the Allies. Things were somewhat better in the Caucasus, where Russian troops not only stopped the Turkish offensive, but also occupied the fortress Kars. During the Crimean War, the forces of both sides were undermined. But the selfless courage of the Sevastopol people could not compensate for the shortcomings in armament and provision.

On August 27, 1855, French troops stormed the southern part of the city and captured the height that dominated the city - Malakhov Kurgan.

The loss of Malakhov Kurgan decided the fate of Sevastopol. On this day, the defenders of the city lost about 13 thousand people, or more than a quarter of the entire garrison. On the evening of August 27, 1855, by order of General M.D. Gorchakov, the Sevastopol residents left the southern part of the city and crossed the bridge to the northern part. The battles for Sevastopol ended. The Allies did not achieve his surrender. The Russian armed forces in Crimea survived and were ready for further fighting. They numbered 115 thousand people. against 150 thousand people. Anglo-French-Sardinians. The defense of Sevastopol was the culmination of the Crimean War.

F. Roubaud. Panorama of the defense of Sevastopol (fragment "The battle for the Gervais battery")

Military operations in the Caucasus

In the Caucasian theater, hostilities developed more successfully for Russia. Turkey invaded Transcaucasia, but suffered a major defeat, after which Russian troops began to operate on its territory. In November 1855, the Turkish fortress Kare fell.

The extreme exhaustion of the allied forces in the Crimea and the Russian successes in the Caucasus led to the cessation of hostilities. Negotiations between the parties began.

Parisian world

At the end of March 1856, the Treaty of Paris was signed. Russia did not suffer significant territorial losses. Only the southern part of Bessarabia was torn away from her. However, she lost the right to protect the Danubian Principalities and Serbia. The most difficult and humiliating was the condition of the so-called "neutralization" of the Black Sea. Russia was forbidden to have naval forces, military arsenals and fortresses on the Black Sea. This dealt a significant blow to the security of the southern borders. The role of Russia in the Balkans and the Middle East was reduced to nothing: Serbia, Moldavia and Wallachia passed under the supreme authority of the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire.

The defeat in the Crimean War had a significant impact on the alignment of international forces and on the internal situation of Russia. The war, on the one hand, exposed its weakness, but on the other, it demonstrated the heroism and unshakable spirit of the Russian people. The defeat summed up the sad end of Nikolaev's rule, stirred up the entire Russian public and forced the government to come to grips with reforming the state.

Heroes of the Crimean War

Kornilov Vladimir Alekseevich

K. Bryullov "Portrait of Kornilov on board the brig "Themistocles"

Kornilov Vladimir Alekseevich (1806 - October 17, 1854, Sevastopol), Russian Vice Admiral. Since 1849 the chief of staff, since 1851 the actual commander of the Black Sea Fleet. During the Crimean War, one of the leaders of the heroic defense of Sevastopol. Mortally wounded on Malakhov Hill.

He was born on February 1, 1806 in the family estate of Ivanovsky, Tver province. His father was a naval officer. Following in his father's footsteps, Kornilov Jr. entered the Naval Cadet Corps in 1821 and graduated two years later, becoming a midshipman. Richly gifted by nature, hot and addicted young man was burdened by coastal military service in the Guards sea ​​crew. He could not stand the routine of parade grounds and drills at the end of the reign of Alexander I and was expelled from the fleet "for lack of vigor for the front." In 1827, at the request of his father, he was allowed to return to the Navy. Kornilov was assigned to M. Lazarev's ship Azov, which had just been built and arrived from Arkhangelsk, and from that time his real naval service began.

Kornilov became a participant in the famous Navarino battle against the Turkish-Egyptian fleet. In this battle (October 8, 1827), the crew of the Azov, carrying the flagship flag, showed the highest valor and was the first of the ships of the Russian fleet to earn the stern St. George flag. Lieutenant Nakhimov and midshipman Istomin fought next to Kornilov.

October 20, 1853 Russia declared a state of war with Turkey. On the same day, Admiral Menshikov, appointed commander-in-chief of naval and land forces in the Crimea, sent Kornilov with a detachment of ships to reconnoiter the enemy with permission to "take and destroy Turkish warships wherever they meet." Having reached the Bosphorus Strait and not finding the enemy, Kornilov sent two ships to reinforce Nakhimov's squadron, cruising along the Anatolian coast, sent the rest to Sevastopol, he himself switched to the Vladimir steamship frigate and lingered at the Bosphorus. The next day, November 5, "Vladimir" discovered the armed Turkish ship "Pervaz-Bakhri" and entered into battle with it. It was the first battle of steam ships in the history of naval art, and the crew of the Vladimir, led by Lieutenant Commander G. Butakov, won a convincing victory in it. The Turkish ship was captured and taken to Sevastopol in tow, where, after repairs, it became part of the Black Sea Fleet under the name Kornilov.

At the council of flagships and commanders, which decided the fate of the Black Sea Fleet, Kornilov called for the ships to go to sea in order to fight the enemy for the last time. However, by a majority vote of the council members, it was decided to flood the fleet, excluding steam frigates, in the Sevastopol Bay and thereby block the enemy’s breakthrough to the city from the sea. On September 2, 1854, the flooding of the sailing fleet began. All the guns and personnel of the lost ships were directed by the head of the city's defense to the bastions.
On the eve of the siege of Sevastopol, Kornilov said: "Let them first tell the troops the word of God, and then I will give them the word of the king." And around the city a religious procession was made with banners, icons, hymns and prayers. Only after this did the famous Kornilov call sound: “Behind us is the sea, ahead of the enemy, remember: do not believe in retreat!”
On September 13, the city was declared under a state of siege, and Kornilov involved the population of Sevastopol in the construction of fortifications. The garrisons of the southern and northern sides were increased, from where the main attacks of the enemy were expected. On October 5, the enemy undertook the first massive bombardment of the city from land and sea. On this day, when bypassing the defensive orders, V.A. Kornilov was mortally wounded in the head on Malakhov Hill. “Defend Sevastopol,” were his last words. Nicholas I, in his letter addressed to Kornilov's widow, pointed out: "Russia will not forget these words, and a name honored in the history of the Russian fleet will pass to your children."
After the death of Kornilov, a will was found in his box, addressed to his wife and children. “I bequeath to the children,” wrote the father, “to the boys, having once chosen the service of the sovereign, do not change it, but make every effort to make it useful to society ... Daughters follow their mother in everything.” Vladimir Alekseevich was buried in the crypt of the Naval Cathedral of St. Vladimir next to his teacher, Admiral Lazarev. Soon Nakhimov and Istomin would take their place beside them.

Pavel Stepanovich Nakhimov

Pavel Stepanovich Nakhimov was born on June 23, 1802 in the Gorodok estate of the Smolensk province in the family of a nobleman, retired major Stepan Mikhailovich Nakhimov. Of the eleven children, five were boys, and all of them became navy sailors; at the same time, Pavel's younger brother, Sergei, finished his service as vice admiral, director of the Naval Cadet Corps, in which all five brothers studied in their youth. But Pavel surpassed everyone with his naval glory.

He graduated from the Naval Corps, among the best midshipmen on the Phoenix brig he participated in a sea voyage to the shores of Sweden and Denmark. At the end of the corps with the rank of midshipman, he was assigned to the 2nd naval crew of the St. Petersburg port.

Tirelessly engaged in training the crew of the Navarin and polishing his combat skills, Nakhimov skillfully led the ship during the actions of the Lazarev squadron on the blockade of the Dardanelles in the Russian-Turkish war of 1828-1829. For excellent service, he was awarded the Order of St. Anne, 2nd class. When the squadron returned to Kronstadt in May 1830, Rear Admiral Lazarev wrote in the certification of the Navarin commander: "An excellent and completely knowledgeable sea captain."

In 1832, Pavel Stepanovich was appointed commander of the Pallada frigate built at the Okhta shipyard, on which, as part of the squadron, Vice Admiral F. Bellingshausen he sailed in the Baltic. In 1834, at the request of Lazarev, then already the chief commander of the Black Sea Fleet, Nakhimov was transferred to Sevastopol. He was appointed commander of the battleship Silistria, and eleven years of his further service were spent on this battleship. Giving all his strength to work with the crew, instilling in his subordinates a love for maritime affairs, Pavel Stepanovich made the Silistria an exemplary ship, and made his name popular in the Black Sea Fleet. In the first place, he put the naval training of the crew, was strict and demanding of his subordinates, but had a kind heart, open to sympathy and manifestations of maritime brotherhood. Lazarev often kept his flag on the Silistria, setting the battleship as an example to the entire fleet.

The military talents and naval art of Nakhimov were most clearly manifested during the Crimean War of 1853-1856. Even on the eve of Russia's clash with the Anglo-French-Turkish coalition, the first squadron of the Black Sea Fleet under his command was vigilantly cruising between Sevastopol and the Bosphorus. In October 1853, Russia declared war on Turkey, and the squadron commander emphasized in his order: “In the event of a meeting with an enemy that is superior to us, I will attack him, being absolutely sure that each of us will do his job. In early November, Nakhimov learned that the Turkish squadron under the command of Osman Pasha, heading for the shores of the Caucasus, left the Bosporus and, on the occasion of a storm, entered the Sinop Bay. The commander of the Russian squadron had 8 ships and 720 guns at his disposal, Osman Pasha had 16 ships with 510 guns under the protection of coastal batteries. Without waiting for the steam frigates, which Vice Admiral Kornilov led the Russian squadron to reinforce, Nakhimov decided to attack the enemy, relying primarily on the combat and moral qualities of Russian sailors.

For the victory at Sinop Nicholas I honored Vice Admiral Nakhimov with the Order of St. George, 2nd class, writing in a personalized rescript: “By destroying the Turkish squadron, you adorned the annals of the Russian fleet with a new victory, which will forever remain memorable in maritime history". Assessing the battle of Sinop, Vice Admiral Kornilov wrote: “A glorious battle, higher than Chesma and Navarin ... Hurray, Nakhimov! Lazarev rejoices at his student!”

Convinced that Turkey was not in a position to wage a successful struggle against Russia, England and France brought their fleet into the Black Sea. Commander-in-Chief A.S. Menshikov did not dare to prevent this, and the further course of events led to the epic of the Sevastopol defense of 1854-1855. In September 1854, Nakhimov had to agree with the decision of the council of flagships and commanders to sink the Black Sea squadron in the Sevastopol Bay in order to make it difficult for the Anglo-French-Turkish fleet to enter it. Having moved from sea to land, Nakhimov voluntarily entered into submission to Kornilov, who led the defense of Sevastopol. Seniority in age and superiority in military merit did not prevent Nakhimov, who recognized the mind and character of Kornilov, from maintaining good relations with him, based on a mutual ardent desire to defend the southern stronghold of Russia.

In the spring of 1855, the second and third assaults on Sevastopol were heroically repulsed. In March, Nicholas I granted Nakhimov for military distinctions with the rank of admiral. In May, the valiant naval commander was awarded a life lease, but Pavel Stepanovich was annoyed: “What do I need it for? It would be better if they sent me bombs.”

Since June 6, the enemy began active assault operations for the fourth time through massive bombardments and attacks. On June 28, on the eve of the day of Saints Peter and Paul, Nakhimov once again went to the advanced bastions to support and inspire the defenders of the city. On Malakhov Kurgan, he visited the bastion where Kornilov died, despite warnings about strong rifle fire, he decided to climb the parapet banquet, and then an aimed enemy bullet hit him in the temple. Without regaining consciousness, Pavel Stepanovich died two days later.

Admiral Nakhimov was buried in Sevastopol in the Cathedral of St. Vladimir, next to the graves of Lazarev, Kornilov and Istomin. With a large gathering of people, admirals and generals carried his coffin, seventeen in a row stood a guard of honor from army battalions and all the crews of the Black Sea Fleet, drums sounded and a solemn prayer service, a cannon salute thundered. In Pavel Stepanovich's coffin, two admiral's flags and a third, priceless one, the stern flag of the battleship "Empress Maria", the flagship of the Sinop victory, were torn by cannonballs.

Nikolay Ivanovich Pirogov

The famous doctor, surgeon, participant in the defense of Sevastopol in 1855. The contribution of N. I. Pirogov to medicine and science is invaluable. He created anatomical atlases of exemplary accuracy. N.I. Pirogov was the first to come up with the idea of ​​plastic surgery, put forward the idea of ​​bone grafting, applied anesthesia in military field surgery, for the first time applied a plaster cast in the field, suggested the existence of pathogens that cause suppuration of wounds. Already at that time, N.I. Pirogov called for abandoning early amputations in case of gunshot wounds of the limbs with bone injuries. The mask designed by him for ether anesthesia is still used in medicine. Pirogov was one of the founders of the Sisters of Mercy service. All his discoveries and achievements saved the lives of thousands of people. He did not refuse to help anyone and devoted his whole life to the boundless service of people.

Dasha Alexandrova (Sevastopol)

She was sixteen and a half when the Crimean War began. She lost her mother early, and her father, a sailor, defended Sevastopol. Dasha ran to the port every day, trying to find out something about her father. In the chaos that reigned around, it turned out to be impossible. Desperate, Dasha decided that she should try to help the fighters at least somehow - and, along with everyone else, to her father. She exchanged her cow - the only thing she had of value - for a decrepit horse and wagon, got vinegar and old rags, and, among other women, joined the wagon train. Other women cooked and washed for the soldiers. And Dasha turned her wagon into a dressing station.

When the position of the troops worsened, many women left the convoy and Sevastopol, went north, to safe areas. Dasha stayed. She found an old abandoned house, cleaned it out and turned it into a hospital. Then she unharnessed her horse from the wagon, and spent the whole day walking with her to the front line and back, taking out two wounded for each "walk".

In November 1953, in the battle of Sinop, sailor Lavrenty Mikhailov, her father, died. Dasha found out about this much later ...

The rumor about a girl who takes out the wounded from the battlefield and provides them with medical care spread throughout the warring Crimea. And soon Dasha had associates. True, these girls did not risk going to the front line, like Dasha, but they completely took over the dressing and care of the wounded.

And then Pirogov found Dasha, embarrassing the girl with expressions of his sincere admiration and admiration for her feat.

Dasha Mikhailova and her assistants joined the Crusades. Studied professional treatment of wounds.

The youngest sons of the emperor, Nikolai and Mikhail, came to Crimea “to raise the spirit of the Russian army”. They also wrote to their father that in the fighting Sevastopol "she takes care of the wounded and sick, a girl named Daria is exemplary diligence." Nicholas I ordered her to receive a gold medal on the Vladimir ribbon with the inscription "For diligence" and 500 silver rubles. By status, the gold medal "For Diligence" was awarded to those who already had three silver medals. So we can assume that the Emperor highly appreciated the feat of Dasha.

The exact date of death and the resting place of the ashes of Darya Lavrentievna Mikhailova have not yet been discovered by researchers.

Reasons for the defeat of Russia

• Economic backwardness of Russia;
• Political isolation of Russia;
• The absence of a steam fleet in Russia;
• Poor supply of the army;
• Lack of railroads.

In three years, Russia lost 500 thousand people in killed, wounded and captured. The allies also suffered great damage: about 250 thousand killed, wounded and died of disease. As a result of the war, Russia lost its positions in the Middle East to France and England. Its prestige in the international arena was badly undermined. On March 13, 1856, a peace treaty was signed in Paris, under the terms of which the Black Sea was declared neutral, the Russian fleet was reduced to minima and fortifications were destroyed. Similar demands were made to Turkey. In addition, Russia lost the mouth of the Danube and the southern part of Bessarabia, was supposed to return the fortress of Kars, and also lost the right to patronize Serbia, Moldova and Wallachia.