Do you know when the Chesme naval battle took place? The year 1770 is still celebrated in Russia. The Chesme battle took place in Chesme Bay in 1770, July 24-26 (July 5-7), on the site between the island of Chios and the western tip of Anatolia. It is known that numerous naval battles between the Venetian Republic and the Ottoman Empire, between the Turkish and Russian fleets, previously took place in this area. The battle was part of the Second Peloponnesian Uprising of 1769 and the forerunner of the coming Greek war for sovereignty (1821-1829).
Today, the Day of Military Glory of Russia is celebrated on July 7 - this is the day of the victory of the Russian flotilla over the Turkish in the Chesme battle.
Background
The number 1770 is familiar to many. The Chesme battle took place precisely this year. After the war between Russians and Turks began in 1768, Russia sent a couple of squadrons to the Mediterranean Sea from the Baltic. She wanted to divert the attention of the Ottomans from the First Archipelago Expedition (Black Sea Fleet), which then consisted of only six battleships.
Two Russian squadrons were commanded by Admiral Grigory Spiridov and an English adviser, Rear Admiral Elphinston John, and they were led by Count Alex Orlov. As a result, experienced sailors managed to find a flotilla of Ottomans on a raid in the Chesme Bay (western riviera of Turkey).
Under pressure from France and the influence of the Polish problem in 1768, the Ottoman Empire of Russia declared war. By this moment, the situation on the southern strategic line remained the same as it was in the 17th century. The Russian Empire did not have its own fleet in the Black and Azov Seas, where the naval forces of Porta ruled. In fact, the Black Sea was the "Turkish Lake". The Sea of ​​Azov, the Northern Black Sea Region and Crimea were controlled by the Ottoman Empire - these lands were a springboard for militarism against Russia.
Invasion
Year 1770 ... Chesme battle ... Why did it happen? In 1768, in the fall, the Crimean cavalry invaded the territory of Russia, starting the war. The enemy was defeated and retreated, but the threat remained. The Northern Black Sea coast has become a basic theater of operations, where the Russian army fought for more than five years with the armed forces of the Ottoman Port and the Crimean Khanate.
Tasks
Remember the number 1770. Chesme battle, it means. In the Black Sea, the absence of a fleet had to be compensated. That is why in St. Petersburg they decided to send a squadron from the Baltic to the Mediterranean Sea and from there threaten Turkey. The basic purpose of the expedition was to support the likely revolt of the Christian inhabitants of the Balkan Peninsula (primarily the islands of the Aegean Sea and the Greek Peloponnese) and the threat to the Turks from the rear.
What tasks did the Russian squadron have to carry out? She needed to destroy the enemy’s sea communications in the Mediterranean Sea, to remove some of his forces (mainly the fleet) from the Black Sea war site. If successful, the squadron was supposed to capture the most important coastal points of Turkey and block the Dardanelles. The main scene was located in the Aegean Sea or, as it was then stated, in the "Archipelago of Greece." Hence the name "Greek Expedition."
Idea
Long ago, the year 1770 passed. People still remember the Chesme battle. Who invented to send Russian ships to the coast of the Aegean, to awaken and support the uprising of the Christian population there against the Ottomans? For the first time this idea was stated by the then favorite of the Empress Catherine II Orlov Gregory. Probably, this idea was first reported by the future leader of the expedition, Count Orlov Alexei, brother of Gregory, and he only approved it and brought it to Catherine.
It is known that Orlov Alexei wrote to his brother about the problems of such a campaign and the war as a whole: “You need to go to Constantinople and free all the pious and Orthodox from the yoke of grave. And I’ll say it like sovereign Peter I said in a letter: they, the Mohammedans of the infidels, should be driven into the sand steppes to their former dwellings. And here piety will reappear, and glorify our Almighty God. " At the time of introducing the project of the campaign to the Council under the Empress, Orlov, Gregory formulated his proposal this way: "Send a couple of ships as a cruise to the Mediterranean Sea and from there make an enemy sabotage."
Some experts argue that the Chesme battle of 1770 was due to Russia's desire to have an independent exit from the Black Sea to the expanses of the world's oceans. And then a reason was not required.
Flotillas
And now let's look a little more closely at the year 1770, the Chesme battle (Russian-Turkish battle). The Russian flotilla consisted of nine battleships, three frigates (one 36-gun and a pair of 32-gun), 17-19 utility ships and the Grom (10-gun) bombing ship.
Noticing on June 23 the enemy fleet, anchored behind the island of Chios, our armada at dawn on June 24 (July 5), 1770, entered the Chios Canal, separating the named island from the Riviera of Anatolia, from the north with a fair calm wind. Along this coast, from the Chesme Bay to the north, the Ottoman armada stood in two lines anchored.
It contained 16 ships (of which there were six 90- or 80-guns, and the rest, like the Russian ones, were equipped with 66 guns), 60 small vessels and 6 frigates. He commanded the Turkish fleet Gassan ed-Din - Captain Pasha. At that moment he was in a camp on the shore, and he was replaced by Gassan Bay (a brave Algerian), who reasoned that enemy ships should be linked and take off with them into the air. Nevertheless, his corvettes could not follow this rule, since they were anchored. As a result, the Russians, with their sails raised, took the lead in the battle.
Tactics Orlova
In the year 1770, the Chesme battle (Russian-Turkish battle) greatly influenced the course of further history. It is known that the impressive forces of the enemy first hit Count Orlov. But, firmly hoping for the courage of his warriors and for God, he, in consultation with the captains and flagships, decided to attack the Turkish fleet. Orlov ordered the creation of springs (cables connected by anchors that hold the ship in position) in case you have to anchor against the enemy. The count built a battle line and moved towards the Turks in this order:
- Rear Guard: ships Svyatoslav (Admiral Elphinston, Skipper Roxburgh), Do Not Touch Me (Skipper Beshentsov), Saratov (Captain Polivanov).
- Vanguard: Eustathius (Admiral Spiridov, Captain Cruz), Europe (Captain Klokachev), Three Saints (skipper Khmetevsky).
- Cordebatalia: “Three Hierarchs” (Count Orlov Alexei, Brigadier Greig), “Januarius” (skipper Borisov), “Rostislav” (captain Lupandin).
Chios Strait Fight
The Chesme battle (1770, July 7) turned the story back. First, consider the battle in the Strait of Chios, which took place on June 24 (July 5). The Russian fleet agreed on an action plan and approached the southern border of the Turkish line. After that, he turned around and began to be deployed against enemy ships. The Turkish fleet began firing from a distance of 3 cable (560 m) at 11: 30-11: 45. Russian ships did not shoot back until they approached the enemy at a distance of 80 battles (170 m) for close combat at 12:00.
Three Russian ships failed to maneuver: “St. Yanuari ”was forced to turn around before becoming in the lineup,“ Europe ”missed its place, got damaged, as a result, turned and left the system, being behind Rostislav, and“ Three Saints ”rounded the enemy’s second ship from the rear before being able to to stand in a line, as a result of which he was mistakenly attacked by the corvette “Three Hierarchs”.
Damage to "Europe" led to the fact that "St. Eustathius "became the lead ship of the Russian armada. The ship was fired on three linear Turkish ships (including the flagship of the Ottoman flotilla "Burj u Zafer", commanded by Gassan Pasha). "St. Eustathius ”began boarding the flagship of the Ottoman armada before he saw a fire on it. After the flaming main mast “Burj u Zafer” fell on the deck of the corvette “St. Eustathius, ”he exploded. After 10-15 minutes, the Burj-u-Zafer also took off. Elphinstone assured that the Russians were virtually ineffectual, and Spiridov and Count Orlov Fedor (brother of the leader) left “St. Eustathius "even before the start of close combat. In the same way the skipper “St. Eustache »Cruz. Spiridov resumed leadership of the battle with the corvette Three Saints.
By 14:00, the Turks cut off the ropes of the anchors and retreated under the cover of coastal batteries to Chesme harbor.
Bay Fight
Many soldiers died in 1770. The Chesme battle was one of the most violent. June 25-26 (July 6-7) there was a battle in the Chesme Bay. It was in it that the Turkish firemen created two rows of 7- and 8-line corvettes, and the rest of the ships were located between these rows and the coast.
All day June 25 (July 6), Russian ships fired on the Turkish flotilla and coastal positions. Of the four utility vessels, firewalls were made. At 17:00 the bombing ship "Thunder" anchored in front of the entrance to the Chesme Bay and began to shell the Turkish fleet. At 00:30, the liner “Europe” joined him, and by 01:00 - the “Rostislav”, in the wake of which the firemen arrived.
"Rostislav", "Europe" and granted "Do not touch me" formed a line from north to south, starting a battle with the Turkish armada. At this time, “Saratov” stood on reserve, and the frigate “Africa” and “Thunder” attacked the batteries on the west coast of the bay.
At 01:30 or a little earlier (according to Elphinstone, at midnight), due to the Do Not Touch Me and Thunder shooting, one of the battleships of the Turks exploded: the fire spread to the hull from burning sails. Flames quickly shifted to other ships in the harbor.
So, we continue the story of the event that occurred on July 7, 1770. Everyone should study the Chesme battle. After the second Turkish ship exploded at 02:00, Russian ships ceased firing, and firewalls entered the bay. Two of them, under the command of captains Dugdale and Gagarin, were shot by the Turks. By the way, Elphinstone claims that only the captain Dugdale’s fireman was killed, and Gagarin’s ship refused to go into battle. Then one ship, commanded by Mackenzie, grappled with the already burning ship, and one (under the control of Lieutenant D. Ilyin) - attached to the 84-gun linear corvette.
It is known that Ilyin set fire to the firebrand, and he himself left it on the boat with the team. The ship exploded and set fire to most other Ottoman corvettes. By 02:30 three more battleships exploded.
At about 04:00, Russian ships sent their boats, wanting to save two large ships that had not yet burned. Nevertheless, they were able to take out only one of them - the "Rhodes" 60-gun. From 04:00 to 05:30 six more warships took off, and at the 7th hour - four at the same time. By 08:00 the battle in the Chesme Bay was over.
The consequences of the battle
What is good for Russian history in 1770? Chesme battle what benefit has brought Russia? After this battle, the Russian fleet was able to fundamentally break the ties of the Turks in the Aegean Sea and isolate the Dardanelles. All these nuances played an important role in the signing of the peaceful Kuchuk-Kainardzhi agreement.
At the direction of Catherine II, to commemorate the victory in the Grand Peterhof Palace, a memorial Chesmensky Hall was built (1774-1777), two monuments were erected for this event: the Chesmenskaya Pilaster in Tsarskoye Selo (1778) and the Chesmensky Monument in Gatchina (1775) as well as the Chesmensky Palace (1774-1777 years) and the Chesmensky Church of St. John the Baptist (1777-1780 years) in St. Petersburg.
The Chesme battle of 1770 was immortalized in cast gold and silver medals, which were made by order of Empress Catherine Alekseevna. Count Orlov Alexei was allowed to attach the name to the surname, as they used to say, "Chesmensky."
Names
It is known that the name "Chesma" was the armadillo of the armada of the Russian military flotilla. By order of Nicholas II, Chesmoy was named the settlement, which today is a village in the Chelyabinsk region.
And in the Anadyr Gulf there is Cape Chesma - it was called by the expedition on the clipper "Horseman" in 1876.
President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin in 2012, in July, affixed his signature to the amendments to the law “On Memorable Dates of Russia and Days of Military Glory”. As a result, Victory Day of the Russian flotilla over the Turkish one appeared in the Chesme battle, which is celebrated on July 7.
Reports
Historians still study the year 1770: the Chesme battle, the cause of which is already known, glorified Russia throughout the world. It is known that Spiridov reported to the President of the Collegium Admiralty in St. Petersburg Count Chernyshov: “Thanks be to God and the honor of the All-Russian Flotilla! From the 25th to the 26th fleet the enemy was attacked, broken, smashed, burned, sunk, put into heaven and turned to ashes, and left terrible ingloriousness in that place, and they themselves began to dominate the entire Archipelago of our All-Merciful Queen. ”
A. G. Orlov brilliantly expressed the feelings inspired by the Chesme victory in a letter to his brother: “Hello, sire, brother! I’ll tell you a little about our journey: having lit fire everywhere, they were forced to leave the sea. "They followed the thief with the fleet, approached him, fought, grabbed, defeated, defeated, destroyed, sent to the bottom and incinerated."