On August 11, 1791 (July 31, old style), the battle of Kaliakria took place off the coast of Bulgaria, captured by the Turks.

It played an important role in the end of the Russo-Turkish war of 1787-1791 and contributed to the conclusion of the Yassy Peace on favorable terms for Russia.

Russo-Turkish war

According to historians, the conclusion of the Kuchuk-Kainardzhiyskiy peace in 1774, which allowed Russia to gain a foothold in the Northern Black Sea region and the Caucasus, as well as the annexation of Crimea to the Russian Empire, caused strong discontent among the Ottoman authorities.

The Turks were striving for revenge.

Militant sentiments in the Ottoman Empire were fueled by European powers, in particular Great Britain, which promised the Turks diplomatic support.

In 1787, Turkey issued an ultimatum to Russia, demanding that St. Petersburg abandon Crimea and support for Kartli-Kakheti, as well as agree to the inspection of Russian ships passing through the Bosphorus and Dardanelles.

Catherine II rejected the demands of Istanbul, and on August 24, 1787, Turkey declared war on the Russian Empire.

Soon, the Holy Roman Empire entered the hostilities on the side of Russia.

In the fall, the Turks landed troops on the Kinburn Spit, but were defeated by Russian troops.

Subsequently, the forces of the Russian Empire took Khotin and Ochakov.

In 1789, the Russian-Austrian troops under the command of Alexander Suvorov defeated the Turks in the Focsani and Rymnik battles.

In 1790, the Turks concentrated on military operations in the Caucasus and in the area of ​​the Crimean coast.

The situation was complicated by the fact that the Holy Roman Empire concluded a separate peace with the Ottomans.

Nevertheless, Russian troops stormed Ishmael, and in 1791 crossed the Danube and defeated the Turks on the territory of modern Romania.

The Russian army also operated successfully in the Caucasus.

“The Turks were defeated in field battles.

The main problem was that on the diplomatic front, England and Prussia acted against Russia, wanting St. Petersburg to make concessions to the Ottoman Empire.

It seemed that there was even a risk of Prussia entering the war.

Therefore, Russia urgently needed peace on favorable terms, "said Igor Kurukin, professor of the Russian State Humanitarian University, Doctor of Historical Sciences, in an interview with RT.

  • S. Shiflyar.

    The storming of Ishmael on December 11 (22), 1790.

    Engraving (colored version).

    Based on a watercolor drawing by the battle-painter Mikhail Ivanov.

    The drawing was based on sketches from nature made during the battle.

  • © Wikimedia Commons

According to historians, the authorities of the Ottoman Empire decided to achieve a more favorable military-political position by establishing control over the Black Sea.

To strengthen their fleet, the Turks decided to use even North African corsairs against Russia.

As Vitaly Zakharov, professor at Moscow State Pedagogical University, Doctor of Historical Sciences, noted in a conversation with RT, the Ottoman Empire managed to assemble a naval grouping that outnumbered the forces of the Russian fleet on the Black Sea by about one and a half times.

For some time, for various reasons, either Russian or Turkish sailors avoided a decisive battle.

But in early August 1791, the commander of the Black Sea Fleet, Rear Admiral Fyodor Ushakov, after careful preparation, led the Russian ships out of Sevastopol in search of the Turkish fleet.

Battle of Kaliakria

Turkish ships were diverted to Cape Kaliakria (nowadays this is the territory of Bulgaria).

Fyodor Ushakov discovered them on August 11, 1791 around noon.

"The Ottomans were commanded by Kapudan Pasha Giritli Hussein, and Seidi-Ali (in Russian sources - Said-Api) was appointed his assistant (chief" patron ")," writes the navy historian Sergei Makhov.

According to Turkish data, the Ottoman squadron consisted of 20 battleships, 25 frigates, six shebeks, five bombarding ships, ten kirlangichi and 15 transports.

Russian sources indicate a slightly smaller size of the Turkish fleet, which may be due to discrepancies in the class of individual ships.

Under the command of Ushakov were 16 (in some sources - 15) battleships, two bombarding ships, two frigates, a fire-ship, a rehearsal ship and 17 cruising ships.

Despite the fire of the Turkish coastal batteries, the fleet under the command of Ushakov in marching formation, without rebuilding in a line, passed between the coast and the Turkish fleet, took an advantageous windward position and attacked the enemy.

“This maneuver was so unexpected that the Turks were unable to position themselves in the battle line.

Moreover, several of their ships collided, "said German Artamonov, professor at the Moscow State Pedagogical University, in an interview with RT.

  • Portrait of Admiral Fyodor Ushakov

  • © Wikimedia Commons

Ushakov attacked the enemy's flagship on the Rozhdestven Hristovo ship and forced him to withdraw from the battle.

The Russian squadron opened effective fire on the main forces of the Turkish fleet.

“Ushakov, carried away by the battle, found himself with his ship in the middle of the Turkish fleet, with his left side he fought off two large frigates, and two Turkish battleships attacked him from the stern and starboard side, but soon the lagging leading ships came to his rescue -“ St. Alexander Nevsky "," John the Baptist "and" Fyodor Stratilat ", - writes Sergei Makhov.

Unable to withstand the shelling, the Turkish ships stopped the battle and began a hasty retreat towards the Bosphorus.

  • Battle of Kaliakria

  • © Wikimedia Commons

"The victory was won thanks to Ushakov's highly maneuverable tactics, high discipline and crew soldering, excellent officers," historian and writer Dmitry Volodikhin said in an interview with RT.

According to Vitaly Zakharov, the tactics used by Ushakov in the battle of Kaliakria was innovative.

In the future, British Admiral Horatio Nelson acted in a similar way against the French in the Battle of Trafalgar.

“The Turkish fleet has lost its combat capability,” summed up the battle at Kaliakria, Igor Kurukin.

The Ottoman Sultan Selim III was furious and said that the command of the fleet had offended him by their behavior.

Turkish diplomats received a command to make peace with Russia on any terms.

  • Monument to Fyodor Ushakov at Cape Kaliakra

  • © Wikimedia Commons / Petar Dobrev

According to Vitaly Zakharov, Turkey was defeated both on land and at sea.

The Ottoman Empire temporarily lost the ability to wage war against Russia.

Moreover, the Russian troops, successfully operating beyond the Danube - on the territory of modern Romania and off the coast of Bulgaria - actually laid the foundation for the liberation of the Balkans.

Already on the day of the battle of Kaliakria, an armistice was concluded between Russia and Turkey in Galati.

And at the beginning of 1792, the Yass peace was signed between the Russian and Ottoman empires.

Turkey agreed to the incorporation of Crimea into Russia, the expansion of the Russian Empire to the Kuban River, and also transferred the interfluve of the Southern Bug and the Dniester under the authority of St. Petersburg.

“The victory at Kaliakria demoralized the Turkish fleet, deprived it of the opportunity to resist and thereby contributed to the conclusion of peace with Turkey on terms favorable to Russia,” stated Dmitry Volodikhin.