Russo-Turkish War (1828–1829)
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Russo-Turkish War (1828–1829) | |||||||||
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Part of Battle of Akhalzic (1828), by January Suchodolski. Oil on canvas, 1839 | |||||||||
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100,000[1] | Unknown |
The Russo-Turkish War of 1828–1829 was sparked by the Greek War of Independence of 1821–1829. War broke out after the Ottoman Sultan Mahmud II closed the Dardanelles to Russian ships and revoked the 1826 Akkerman Convention in retaliation for Russian participation in the Battle of Navarino.[2]
After several defeats, the Sultan decided to sue for peace, leading to the Treaty of Adrianople being signed on 14 September 1829.
The Balkan front
At the start of hostilities the Russian army of 100,000 men was commanded by Emperor
The Russians then laid prolonged sieges to three key Ottoman citadels in modern Bulgaria: Shumen, Varna, and Silistra.[1] With the support of the Black Sea Fleet under Aleksey Greig, Varna was captured on 29 September. The Siege of Shumen proved much more problematic, as the 40,000-strong Ottoman garrison outnumbered the Russian forces. As the Russians were harassed by Turkish troops and ill-equipped, many of the soldiers died of disease or exhaustion. Russia then had to withdraw to Moldavia with heavy losses without having captured Shumen and Silistra.[3]
As winter approached, the Russian army was forced to leave Shumen and retreat back to Bessarabia. In February 1829, the cautious Wittgenstein was replaced by the more energetic Hans Karl von Diebitsch, and the Tsar left the army for Saint Petersburg. On 7 May, 60,000 soldiers led by Field Marshal Diebitsch crossed the Danube and resumed the siege of Silistra. The Sultan sent a 40,000-strong contingent to the relief of Varna, which was defeated at the Battle of Kulevicha on 30 May. Three weeks later on 19 June, Silistra fell to the Russians.[citation needed]
On 2 July, Diebitsch launched the Trans-Balkan offensive, the first in Russian history since the
The Caucasus front
Although the main fighting was in the west, there was significant action on the Caucasus front.
1828, June: Kars: On 14 June, Paskevich set out for Kars 40 miles southwest which was held by 11,000 Turks with 151 guns.[a] The capture of Kars was almost an accident. During a skirmish in the outskirts of the city a company of riflemen under Lieutenant Labintsev made an unauthorized advance. Seeing their danger, other companies rushed to the rescue. Their situation drew in more soldiers until most of the Russian force was massed at one point. The city wall was breached and soon the Turks held only the citadel. At 10:00 am on 23 June the citadel surrendered. The Turks lost 2,000 killed and wounded, 1,350 prisoners and 151 guns, although much of the garrison managed to escape. The Russians lost 400 killed and wounded. Kios Pasha[b] of Erzurum was within an hour's march of Kars, but when he heard the news he withdrew to Ardahan. [citation needed]
1828, July: Akhalkalaki: Paskevich then feinted toward Erzurum but marched north to Akhalkalaki where he attacked the city first with his artillery. Under bombardment, the 1,000-man Turkish garrison became demoralized and half of the men tried to escape by letting themselves down the walls on ropes. Most of the Turks, however, were killed. The Russians then used the same ropes to scale the walls and enter the city. The Turks remaining in the garrison, some 300 men, surrendered on 24 July.[citation needed]
1828, August: Akhaltsikhe: Thirty miles to the northwest of Akhalkalaki was Akhaltsikhe with 10,000 men under a semi-independent Pasha. It guarded the Borjomi Gorge which led northeast to Georgia. Instead of taking the main road which went southwest to Ardahan and then north, Paskevich and 8,000 men marched three days through road less country and reached Akhaltsikhe on 3 August. The next day Kios Pasha and 30,000 men encamped four miles from the fort. Paskevich, outnumbered by an enemy on two sides, turned on Kios. After a day-long battle, Kios and his infantry force of 5,000 men fled to the Akhaltsikhe fortress while the remaining Turks scattered south to Ardahan. During the battle with Kios Pasha, the Russians lost 531 men, including a general, but confiscated a great amount of the Turk's supplies. Paskevich and his troops now began a siege of Akhaltsikhe which had three layers of defense: the town with its crooked streets, ravines and bastions; the fortress; and a citadel.
When the attack began at 4:00 pm, the citizens defended themselves as best they could but by nightfall the town was on fire. In one mosque 400 people burned to death. By dawn of the 16th the ruined town was in Russian hands. The Russians then moved their artillery up to bear on the fortress walls. On 17 August, Kios Pasha surrendered the fortress and the citadel on the condition that he and his remaining 4,000 men be allowed to withdraw with their arms and property. During the battle, the Russians lost about 600 men while the Turks lost 6,000.
The next day, Paskevich attacked and captured Atskhur castle which guarded the Borjomi Gorge leading from Akhaltsikhe northeast to Georgia. On 22 August the Russians occupied Ardahan, the road junction connecting Akhaltsikhe-Akhalkalaki to the Kars-Erzurum road. Seeing no further opportunities the Russians retired to winter quarters.[citation needed]
1829: Kios Pasha was replaced by Salih Pasha with Haghki (Hakki) Pasha as his deputy. Over the winter Paskevich went to St Petersburg with a plan for a massive invasion of
1829, June: Saganlug and Erzurum: On 13 June Paskevich (12,340 infantry, 5,785 cavalry and 70 guns) left Kars for
1829: After Erzurum: From Erzurum the main road led northwest through
Treaty of Adrianople
Faced with these several defeats, the Sultan decided to sue for peace. The Treaty of Adrianople signed on 14 September 1829 gave Russia most of the eastern shore of the Black Sea and the mouth of the Danube. Turkey recognized Russian sovereignty over parts of present-day northwest Armenia. Serbia achieved autonomy and Russia was allowed to occupy Moldavia and Wallachia (guaranteeing their prosperity and full "liberty of trade") until Turkey had paid a large indemnity. Moldavia and Wallachia remained Russian protectorates until the Crimean War. The Straits Question was settled four years later, when both powers signed the Treaty of Hünkâr İskelesi.[citation needed]
Regarding the Greek situation with the treaty of Adrianople, the Ottoman Sultan finally recognized the independence of the
See also
- Russo-Persian War (1826–28)
- Greek War of Independence
Notes
Citations
- ^ a b c Tucker (2010), p. 1152.
- ^ Khodarkovsky (2011).
- ^ Sked.
- ^ Shaw (1977), p. 31.
- ^ Gokbilgin (1991), p. 684.
- ^ Uyar (2020), p. 83.
- ^ Marx (1853).
References
- Gokbilgin, M.Tayyib (1991). "Edirne". In Lewis, B.; Pellat, C.; Schacht, J. (eds.). The Encyclopedia of Islam. Vol. II. Brill.
- Khodarkovsky, Michael (2011). Bitter Choices: Loyalty and Betrayal in the Russian Conquest of the North Caucasus. Cornell University Press. ISBN 978-0801449727.
- Marx, Karl (21 April 1853). "What Is to Become of Turkey in Europe?". New York Tribune.
- Shaw, Stanford J.; Shaw, Ezel Kural (1977). History of the Ottoman Empire and Modern Turkey: Reform, Revolution, Republic (Volume 2 ed.). Cambridge University Press.
- Sked, Alan. Metternich and Austria: An Evaluation.
- Tucker, Spencer C., ed. (2010). A Global Chronology of Conflict: From the Ancient World to the Modern Middle East (Volume III ed.). ABC-CLIO.
- Uyar, Mesut (2020). The Ottoman Army and the First World War. Taylor & Francis.
The Russian Army had penetrated deep into Eastern Anatolia and captured Erzurum in 1829...
General references
- Allen, William Edward David; Muratoff, Paul (2010). "II". Caucasian Battlefields.
- Bitis, Alexander. "The 1828–1829 Russo-Turkish war and the resettlement of Balkan peoples into Novorossiia." Jahrbücher Für Geschichte Osteuropas (2005): 506-525 online in English
- Marriott, J. A. R. The Eastern Question An Historical Study in European Diplomacy (1940) pp 221–225. online
- The Ottoman Empire: Problems of Foreign Policy and Relations with Russia (in Russian). 1996.
- Sheremet, V. I. (2002). "At the gates of Constantinople. Campaign of 1829 and the Treaty of Adrianople. The Russo-Turkish War of 1828–1829: Military Actions and Geopolitical Consequences". Military History Magazine (in Russian) (2).
- Shishov, A. V. (2001). Russian General-Field Marshals Dibich-Zabalkansky, Paskevich-Erivansky (in Russian).