Defense of Sevastopol

In 1853, Turkey declared war on Russia. On November 1 of the same year, Russia supported the initiative and declared war on Turkey.

The outbreak of hostilities was successful for the Russian side. At the Danube theater, the Russian army successfully repulsed the onslaught of the Turks, then crossed the Danube and sieged the fortress of Silistria. At the same time, the Turkish army was defeated in Transcaucasia .

The allies of Turkey were France and England. These states were afraid of strengthening Russian influence, so on March 1 the Allies put forward a demand that the Russian troops should be withdrawn from the Danube principalities. Russia refused, after which France and England declared war on it. A great event, which led to the Crimean War, - the defense of Sevastopol - originates here.

In 1854, sabotage of the English fleet in the Baltic and White Sea and landing in the Crimea. On September 12, many thousands of Anglo-French troops arrived in the Crimea and headed towards Sevastopol.

For the first time the troops collided on September 8 near the river Alma. Here the Russian army, losing to the enemy in numbers, was defeated and had to retreat. The enemy went to Sevastopol and, having bypassed the city from the east, occupied convenient harbors. The siege and defense of Sevastopol began.

The beginning of defense

The defense of Sevastopol lasted 349 days. Sevastopol was well fortified from the sea by the city, since the Black Sea Fleet was based here. But there was practically no fortification on the land side. In 1854 they just started erecting. The defense of Sevastopol was organized by Admirals PS Nakhimov, VA Kornilov and VI Istomin.

Anglo-French ships blocked the city from the sea. To block the way for enemy ships, it was decided to flood seven large ships. Later, five more were flooded.

When the defense of Sevastopol began, in the city there was a garrison of 17 thousand people. In October, the troops of Prince A. S. Menshikov arrived in Sevastopol. At the defense of the city now stood 35 thousand people.

The course of defense

City defenders - thousands of soldiers and sailors, city residents, women and children - created 8 km of fortifications, which were designed to protect the southern part of the city. Bastions, lunettes, redoubts, lodges were placed here. The Crimean War, the defense of Sevastopol, forced the townspeople to give everything they had: wagons, materials, horses. Strengthening works did not stop even at night. On October 16 the city already had 20 batteries, heavy weapons doubled. The leadership of engineering defense lay on Colonel E. I. Totlebene. The land lines were defended by naval artillery from the ships of the Black Sea Fleet. The defense of Sevastopol in 1854 continued.

Immediate storming of the city was not profitable for the enemy. During the siege Sevastopol was bombed six times. On June 6, an attempt was made to assault the ship's side, but it was repulsed by the defenders of the city.

In an attempt to destroy the defense of Sevastopol, the enemy dug 1,280 meters of underground galleries, where he produced 120 explosions. But the defenders of the city were ahead of the opponents in the mine war: they dug 6889 meters of galleries. The Mineral War was conducted under the direction of the officer AV Melnikov.

Bloody and stubborn struggle was fought for Malakhov Kurgan. August 27, 1855 the French took this position, and the next day the Russian troops left the South side of Sevastopol. They blew up all the fortifications, then pulled up the floating bridge across the bay, built during the campaign, to the North side. As a result of these actions, the opponents were separated by the Sevastopol Bay.

In 1856 negotiations were held. According to the peace treaty, the Russian fleet on the Black Sea, as well as military fortifications, were liquidated. During the next twenty years, Sevastopol was in decline.