Osman Nuri Pasha
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Field Marshal | |
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Battles/wars | Cretan revolt (1866–1869) First Serbian–Ottoman War Second Serbian–Ottoman War Crimean War |
Awards |
Osman Nuri Pasha (
Early life and education
Osman Nuri was born into the prominent Muslim Turkish Yağcıoğulları family
Osman attended the Kuleli Military High School and then graduated from the Ottoman Military College in 1852 as a lieutenant,[4] entering the Cavalry Arm at the beginning of the Crimean War.
Military career
He entered the
In 1861, Osman was sent to
After a few months of rest, he was placed in charge of the Third Army in
Osman knew that the Russian's next objective would be to cross the Balkans, the last important natural obstacle before Constantinople itself, but they could not risk that if they had a strong enemy force behind them.[8] So he moved his army 20 miles south of Nikopol, at Plevna, a small town surrounded by hills and ravines. The first Russian attack was easily repulsed on 20 July.
After that, Osman set about preparing for the next attack. He took advantage of the natural landscape and built a strong network of forts, trench lines, and redoubts that enabled him to fully use his superior armament (his troops had Krupp breech-loading artillery, long range Peabody-Martini rifles and Winchester repeaters, which severely outgunned and outranged the Russians). He also received 5,000 soldiers as reinforcements.[8] On 30 July the Russians attacked again only to lose over 7,000 soldiers (almost a third of the attacking force). By now, with the Russian forces severely depleted and demoralized, Osman Pasha could have launched a counterattack that would have endangered the whole Russian army south of the Danube[citation needed], but he chose to obey his orders and instead defended Plevna.
The Russians were quick to recover.
The Allies could not withstand such severe casualties, so they settled in for a siege and fully surrounded Plevna.[9] Osman Pasha asked for permission to withdraw before the encirclement was complete, but he was denied. By December, with food and ammunition running low and his troops suffering from starvation, cold and disease, Osman knew he could not hold on throughout the winter and that no help from outside was available. Instead of surrendering, he chose to try and break through the siege lines. On 9 December, the Ottoman army attacked a sector of the Russian line and nearly broke through. But the Russians recovered and closed the breach after bitter hand-to-hand fighting, driving the Ottomans back. But the enveloped army could not return to Plevna because during the engagement with the Russian forces, the Romanian army had stormed the defenses protecting their rear, making a withdrawal to the fortifications impossible. Furthermore, Osman was wounded in the leg by a bullet and his troops panicked, thinking that he had died. With his army caught between the Allies, Osman Pasha had no choice but to capitulate surrender to Mihail Cerchez.
In 1878, after the
On the night of 4 to 5 April 1900, he died in Constantinople. He was buried next to the Mosque of Fatih Sultan Mehmet as he requested. His tomb was personally commissioned by Abdülhamit II, who regarded him as one of his greatest generals. He is still revered in Turkey today as a sort of tragic hero who displayed gallant perseverance in the face of hopeless odds, and a Turkish flag is often seen draped on his tomb.
Siege of Pleven
During the Russian attack on Nikopol, Osman Pasha was in Vidin with his army. The Ottoman high command ordered Osman Pasha to reinforce Nikopol with 20,000 soldiers. While Osman was on his way to Nikopol, the city fell to the Russians on 16 July 1877. The Russians, knowing that Osman Pasha was heading to Nikopol, planned to intercept and attack his forces. Osman Pasha's troops were 20 miles away from Nikopol. Osman Pasha quickly created a strong network of fortifications, raising earthworks with redoubts, digging trenches and gun emplacements. On 19 July, Russian troops reached Pleven and started bombarding the town. The next day Russian troops continued the bombardment, eventually forcing some Ottoman units off the outer defences.
Reinforcements began arriving to both sides, as fighting intensified, and the Russians launched an assault. During the first assault, the Russians suffered 4,000 casualties, while the Ottomans suffered 1,000. After this, Osman Pasha strengthened his defences. The Russians were reinforced by the army of Prince Carol I of Romania, who assumed command of the attacking army. On 31 July the Russians attacked Pleven again, but Ottoman troops managed to repulse the assault. After this second engagement, the Russians lost 10.000 men, while Ottomans lost 2,000. After suffering heavy casualties during the assault, the Russians sent out scouts, and resolved to cut off the Ottoman supply lines. To this end, Russian forces attacked the Ottoman garrison at Lovcha. This attack proved to be successful, and the Russians were able to cut off all communications and supply lines to Pleven. By now, Osman Pasha's army had been reinforced to 30,000, while the Russian forces numbered 100,000. On 11 September, the Russians resumed the artillery bombardment, and mounted another assault. The assault succeeded in taking a few redoubts but Osman Pasha retook most of them. After the third battle, the Russians lost roughly 20,000 men, while the Ottomans lost only 5,000. Since the beginning of the war, Russian and Romanian losses reached up to 50,000. As more Russian and Romanian troops joined the siege, all attacks were halted. General
The Russian-Romanian army closed in by 24 October, as supplies began to run low in the city. On 9 December, Osman Pasha decided to attempt replay attack and attacked the Russian contingent during the night. Close-quarters combat ensued, but the Russian forces outnumbered the Ottomans. Osman Pasha's troops were driven back and he was struck in the leg by a stray bullet. Rumors of Osman Pasha's death spread panic, and Ottoman troops were driven back and enveloped by Romanian forces. At the end of the breakout attempt, the Ottomans had lost 4,000, while the Russians lost 2,000. The next day, Osman Pasha capitulated, surrendering the city to the Romanian Colonel Mihail Cerchez.
In Popular Culture
Minnesota based heavy metal band Kostnatění covered the Plevne March, composed in memory of Gazi Osman Pasha, on their EP "Oheň hoří tam, kde padl" (Fire burns where it falls) released in 2022. [11][12]
References
- ^ Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 20 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 351–352.
...Turkish pasha and mushir (field marshal)...
- ^ Forbes, Archibald (1895). "Soldiers I Have Known". Memories of War and Peace (2nd ed.). London, Paris & Melbourne: Cassell and Company Limited. pp. 366–368. Retrieved 26 July 2018 – via Internet Archive.
- ^ a b c Bahreddin Yediyıldız (1983). "Plevne kahramanı Gazi Osman Paşa" (in Turkish). Hacettepe University. Retrieved 15 March 2017.
- Gaziosmanpaşa University. 2015. Archived from the originalon 26 April 2017. Retrieved 15 March 2017.
- ^ a b c Emre Ozan (2015). "Gazi Osman Pasha" (in Turkish). Deniz Harp Okulu (DHO), Pusula Dergisi. Archived from the original on 28 January 2016. Retrieved 15 March 2017.
- ^ "Gazi Osman Paşa (1832 - 1900)" (in Turkish). bilgievi. March 2017. Archived from the original on 16 March 2017. Retrieved 15 March 2017.
- ^ "Gazi Osman Pasha". osmanli700.gen.tr. 1999. Retrieved 15 March 2017.
- ^ a b "Plevne kahramanı ve Macarlar" (PDF) (in Turkish). Prof. Tayyib Gökbilgin. 2013. Retrieved 15 March 2017.
- ISBN 9780810866065. Retrieved 15 March 2017.
- ISBN 978-1-59884-336-1.
- ^ "Plevne Marşı, by Kostnatění". Kostnatění. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
- ^ "Kostnatění - Oheň hoří tam, kde padl - Encyclopaedia Metallum: The Metal Archives". www.metal-archives.com. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
Bibliography
- Parry Melanie (ed.) (1997) "Osman Nuri Pasha" Chambers Biographical Dictionary (6th ed.) Larousse Kingfisher Chambers, New York, ISBN 0-550-16060-4;
- Dupuy, Trevor N.; Johnson, Curt; and Bongard, David L. (1992) "Osman Nuri Pasha" ISBN 0-06-270015-4;
- Von Herbert, Captain Frederick William (1911). The Defence of Plevna; Written by One who Took Part in It. London: John Murray. Retrieved 30 July 2018 – via Internet Archive.; reprinted 1990 by Ministry of Culture, Ankara, ISBN 975-17-0604-1;
- Hülagü, M. Metin (1993) Gazi Osman Paşa, 1833–1900: askeri ve siyasi hayatı Boğaziçi Yayınları, Istanbul, ISBN 975-451-094-6;
- Murray, Nicholas. “Nuri Osman Pasha,” Conflict and Conquest in the Islamic World: An Encyclopedia, edited by Alexander Mikaberidze. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 2011.
- Murray, Nicholas. The Rocky Road to the Great War: The Evolution of Trench Warfare to 1914. Potomac Books Inc. (an imprint of the University of Nebraska Press), 2013.
- Yenice, İhsan and Fidan, Raşit (2001) Plevne kahramanı Gazi Osman Paşa, 1833–1900 Gaziosmanpaşa Belediyesi Kültür Yayınları, İstanbul, ISBN none;
- Uçar, Nail (1978) Gazi Osman Paşa ve Plevne Orkun Yayınevi, Istanbul, ISBN none;