A trap at Slobodzeya

2024 Author: Seth Attwood | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 15:55

For the first time, the Turkish fortress Ruschuk, which was defended by a 20-thousandth garrison, was attempted to be taken by a 17-thousandth Russian army under the command of Kamensky. It was July 22, 1810. The garrison of the fortress fiercely resisted, counterattacked, and after numerous heavy attacks, Kamensky's army, having lost about half of its personnel, stopped trying to take the fortress and took it under siege.

In early August, Turkish troops from both sides went to the rescue of the besieged garrison. On the one hand, the 60-thousandth army of Osman Pasha advanced, on the other, the 30-thousandth army of Kushakchi. Kamensky with a 21,000-strong army advanced sharply to meet the troops of Kushakchi and defeated them, losing one and a half thousand people (with Turkish total losses of 10 thousand). After that, the Turks abandoned the attempt to save the Ruschuk garrison, and on September 15 the fortress surrendered.

In the spring, Kamensky died of illness and was replaced by Kutuzov. On June 22, 1811, his 15,000-strong army, located near Ruschuk, was attacked by the 60,000-strong army of Akhmet Pasha. Kutuzov repulsed the attack. The losses of the Russians amounted to 500 people, the losses of the Turks - 5000.

After an unsuccessful attack, Akhmet Pasha retreated and went on the defensive. The army of Akhmet Pasha still posed a serious threat. Therefore, Kutuzov, instead of attacking this army, or preparing for defense, blows up the fortress and crosses to the other side, where he is located near the Slobodzeya fortress (see map). This step, to put it mildly, displeased Kutuzov's superiors. The authorities could not quite understand why they should give the fortress into the hands of the Turks, which they managed to conquer with such difficulty.

Akhmet Pasha, who was expecting an attack by Kutuzov, became somewhat thoughtful, discovering the absence of the Kutuzov army, which until recently adorned the bank of the Danube. After some thought, Akhmet Pasha came to the conclusion that Kutuzov's retreat was caused by the weakness of his army, which means … it means that we urgently need to go on the offensive! Akhmet Pasha is ferrying his army across the Danube, while Kutuzov is calmly waiting. About 40 thousand Turkish soldiers organize a fortified camp on the left bank (see map), about 30 thousand remain in the rear, on the right.

This is where the most interesting thing happens. By order of Kutuzov, a detachment (5,000 foot, 2,500 horse, 38 guns) under the command of General Markov secretly crossed the Danube upstream and with a powerful unexpected blow blows a 20,000-strong Turkish army on the right bank, losing only 9 people killed and 40 wounded. Then he puts guns on the shore and begins to methodically fire at the army of Akhmet Pasha, which was cut off at the "bridgehead". The sad picture is complemented by 14 ships, which, located nearby, are firing at the unfortunate Turks.

Soon Akhmet Pasha fled from there and began peace negotiations. On November 23, the surrender of the Turkish army was signed, which has already been reduced by three times. And in 1812, the Bucharest Peace Treaty was signed on favorable terms for Russia.

So, thanks to the bold and unexpected maneuver of Kutuzov, the nearly 40,000-strong army of the grand vizier Akhmet Pasha was trapped on the left bank of the Danube in the Slobodzia region. It would seem that the optimal opportunity to attack, completely exterminate the army of the Turks and capture the vizier himself - that is, to get luck, hitherto unheard of in the long Russian-Turkish confrontation! However, Kutuzov was in no hurry to do this. And it seems to have paid for it. Indeed, almost immediately after the troops of General Markov captured the second Turkish camp on the opposite bank, namely on the night of October 3 (15), 1811, the vizier took advantage of "heavy rain and stormy weather" and slipped on a boat across the Danube between the Russian patrols. The chance to capture the vizier himself was irretrievably missed … Oh, how worried about this in the Russian headquarters! Almost all. Except for the only person who, to the surprise of the officers, listened to this news, as always, with outward phlegmatic calmness. Needless to say, this was the only Russian commander. And how surprised the staff would be if they knew that in the depths of his soul Kutuzov was simply sincerely glad of this development of events! This great commander was also a great diplomat, and at one time he held the high post of the ambassador of the Russian Empire to the Ottoman Empire. The vast experience of communicating with the Ottomans, both in war and in peacetime, allowed Kutuzov to know some of the nuances of Turkish customs. For example, the fact that the vizier has no right to negotiate peace with the enemy if he is surrounded. By the way, a very wise idea. After all, being surrounded, you always feel too vulnerable and you can promise from three boxes that only you will be released alive. Perhaps the overall situation is not as dramatic as the grave situation of this particular high-ranking official. And then the padishah will have to follow this unprofitable and too hasty agreement? Well, I do not.

This rule was logical, and Kutuzov knew about it. That is why he was delighted to learn that the vizier did not fail and took advantage of the opportunity that Allah and Kutuzov gave him. He is free again, which means he can conduct peace negotiations. After all, Russia did not need a crushing victory, which would not lead to any other outcome, except for Turkey's refusal to negotiate and continue the war, but the fastest peace. Bonaparte is at the gate! It is not that risky to disperse forces on the Turkish front in such conditions - it is suicidal!

Once safe, the first thing the grateful and noble vizier freed Kutuzov's nephew Pavel Bibikov, who the other day, out of his own ardor, managed to get into Ottoman captivity when Markov was crushing the Turks. The exchange of gifts from old friends thus continued. But this gesture of goodwill also meant a call for negotiations. Soon the official "cry from the heart" of the defeated vizier followed with a corresponding request.

Mikhail Illarionovich agreed to negotiations, but at first he did not rush things. While the representatives of the Ottomans were keyfoving and eating off in Zhurzha (Dzhurdzhu) in negotiations with the Russian command, the Ottoman army, locked under Slobodzeya, was methodically destroyed by the Russians with practically no fighting. Artillery shelling ended with Turkish guns at the very beginning of the complete blockade. The Turks ran out of ammunition and food, there was no medicine. And there was not the slightest opportunity to deliver all this to the camp. Nevertheless, the Ottomans continued to resist with the stubbornness of the doomed: the authorities instilled in the Janissaries that the Russians would certainly cut off their heads in case of surrender. However, every day the situation in the camp became more and more catastrophic. Gradually, he began to resemble a branch of hell on earth: terribly emaciated people, who had eaten the bones of no less skinny horses to shine, were driven to the last extreme. In order to somehow warm up in an open field near the river in late autumn, the Turks were forced to use all the tents for fuel and live in damp dugouts. Lack of food and disease mowed down hundreds of Turks every day.

Terror reigned in Istanbul. But the sultan who eats well every day still could not fully imagine the catastrophe that befell his best army on the Danube. In addition, the constant whispers of the French ambassador Lyatour-Mobourg, who promised - with good reason - the imminent invasion of the huge army of the Emperor Napoleon into Russia, had an effect. And the padishah was in no hurry in peace.

And Kutuzov, paradoxical as it may sound, also found himself in a difficult position. He could easily kill the Ottoman army to the last man. But what to do next? If there is no one from the elite warriors to save, why should the padishah go to peace? He can begin the formation of a new, albeit poor in quality, but still army, and wait for the salutary speech of Bonaparte. This means that the complete destruction of this army cannot be allowed. And in an amicable way, she does not give up. The Ottomans must be forced to make peace as soon as possible. But how? This task was already not only from the military, but also from the diplomatic one. Therefore, the next steps of one of the greatest strategists of all time combined both.

To begin with, in order not to let the army of the defeated enemy die prematurely, Kutuzov agreed with Akhmet Pasha that he would supply the surrounded with food. At times it seemed that the Russian commander cared about the preservation of this army much more than the leadership of the Turks themselves: the pashas and their entourage locked up in the Slobodzeya camp took the food supplied to themselves and sold it (!) To ordinary soldiers at fabulous prices. So this measure did not greatly alleviate the fate of the “Danube prisoners”. Then Mikhail Illarionovich, like a skilled swordsman, tickled the Ottomans with the edge of the foil of Mars on the right, Bulgarian-Turkish bank of the Danube. He did not put the remnants of their troops in a hopeless position, but clearly demonstrated to the vizier the futility of further resistance. The detachment of the Colonel of the Don Cossacks Grekov occupied Turtukai. Then the Russians captured the even more powerful fortress of Silistria. Separate greetings to the Turks from the commander conveyed the "flying detachment" of another Mikhail, Major General Vorontsov, the very same, ours, who condescendingly looks at the city bustle of Odessa from the height of his pedestal on the Cathedral. He raided the right bank, panicking the scattered Turkish troops and garrisons. By the way, in Bulgaria they did not forget about the actions of Mikhail Semenovich. The historical museum of the city of Pleven has a fairly extensive exposition dedicated to the liberation of the Bulgarian lands by Vorontsov during that Russian-Turkish war …

Having alarmed the opponent's nervous system to his full extent, Kutuzov made another "knight's move" unexpected for everyone. He sent a letter to the vizier, in which he unequivocally noted that at any moment he could destroy his army at Slobodzeya. But in order to avoid further useless bloodshed, he does not want to do this and resolutely demands from his visa-a-vi to conclude an armistice and … give the remnants of the Ottoman army to the Russians "for preservation"!

What is this mysterious "preservation"? And this is another brilliant move from the Russian commander-in-chief. An honorable surrender, which is surrender in essence, but not in form. Such cases are very rare, but have occurred in history. Such a solution was usually proposed when an attempt to destroy the enemy could be too expensive. Kutuzov, on the other hand, offered to take an army without ammunition "for preservation", which he was guaranteed to destroy, not only taking anything against it, but also doing nothing at all. An army of people who had already become ghosts and those who would soon become them. For what? And all for the same. Akhmet Pasha, to whom, probably, Mikhail Illarionovich really felt some sympathy, was given a chance to maintain the appearance of the army, which made him the Sultan's plenipotentiary representative in the negotiations. This decision allowed him to preserve the honor of a commander and statesman in the eyes of both the Istanbul court and his own soldiers. And, of course, it gave the Russians a good bargaining chip in the negotiations. Firstly, the manifestation of such nobility in itself means a lot, and according to the Eastern tradition it should be appreciated. And secondly, it made it possible to hope for territorial concessions from the Ottoman Empire in exchange for the return to their native land of the remnants of the once formidable army, the magnificent Turkish army.

On November 23, Akhmet Pasha, in order not to let his soldiers on the left bank die of hunger entirely, was forced, along with the announcement of an indefinite truce, which meant the beginning of real peace negotiations, to sign an agreement on the transfer of the brave Janissaries "for preservation" to Mother Russia. By agreement, the Turks from the Slobodzeya camp went to the Russians not as prisoners, but as "guests." Their weapons, including cannons, piled in one place, were also taken "for preservation", and not as war spoils. Moreover, Kutuzov handed over 2 thousand sick and wounded (there were already few healthy ones among the Ottomans, apparently, they were selected goners) for treatment on the right bank of the Danube, to the Turks. It is very likely that the Russian commander feared the outbreak of epidemics from the sick Ottomans. And one more interesting detail - new "guests", accommodated in apartments in nearby villages from the town of Zhurzha, had to pay their maintenance costs from their own pocket (!) - tea, not prisoners … So tell me after that that Kutuzov is not from Odessa: capture the entire Turkish army and even make it pay for its captivity on its own!

Finally, those who six months ago were the great hope of the padishah and Bonaparte, exhausted and starving Ottoman soldiers, left their terrible camp near Slobodzeya, which in a couple of months turned into one giant cemetery of people and horses. Of the 36-38 thousand of its original two-legged inhabitants, barely a third - 12 thousand - were able to leave this place cursed for the Turks.

Thus ended the great Ruschuksko-Slobodzeya operation - an operation of a new type, one hundred years ahead of its time. This is perhaps the most complete victory of the Russians for the entire time of the Russian-Turkish wars. None of the Russian commanders, not even Suvorov with his assault on Ishmael, achieved such an absolute, destructive victory over such a large army of Turks, and even with such negligible losses for the victors.

Congratulations to our readers on the 200th anniversary of the Slobodzeya Triumph!

The success was incredible. In a few months, destroy the best field forces of the Turks, do what the previous commanders could not do in 4 years. For such an unprecedented victory, the award should be memorable! And she really was remembered. Order of George 1 degree? Field Marshal's baton? Well, not quite…

The tsar elevated Kutuzov to the rank of count.

Recall that at the court of their imperial majesties in St. Petersburg it was often pleasant to be promoted to the ranks for amorous merits, for successful stories of anecdotes, and even for skillful barber-breeding (however, the latter concerned mainly captured Turks) …

Yes, the success was incredible. But Count Kutuzov was still faced with a difficult task - to make the indefinite truce turn into a lasting and beneficial peace for Russia.

Unlike most of his contemporaries, Kutuzov did not believe that the fate of the war was decided by a general battle. He was very often reproached for indecision, although his tactics invariably led to success. When in 1805 Alexander I, supported by his young entourage and the Austrian Emperor Franz, was in a hurry to give Napoleon a general battle, Kutuzov suggested something else: “Let me lead the troops to the border of Russia,” he said, “and there, in the fields of Galicia, I will bury the bones French ". This resembles a rough draft of his actions in 1812. The rejection of his plan led to the Austerlitz catastrophe. At the famous military council in Fili, Kutuzov dropped the following words: "Moscow, like a sponge, will suck the French into itself" - it was clear to him what Napoleon could not have foreseen! Indeed, the Great Army of Napoleon was destroyed not by some grandiose battle, but by the careful tactics of the wise old man Kutuzov.