210 years ago, on July 1, 1807, the Battle of Athos took place. During the naval battle, the Russian squadron under the command of Vice Admiral D.N. Senyavin attacked and defeated the Turkish fleet under the command of Kapudan Pasha Seid-Ali. As a result of the battle Ottoman Empire lost the opportunity to conduct effective operations at sea and agreed to the Slobodzeya truce on August 12 (24), 1807.

background

Exacerbation of contradictions between the great powers in early XIX century led to a number of wars. Among them was the Russian-Turkish war of 1806-1812, caused by the Porte's desire for revenge for previous defeats and the political game of France, which wanted to divert Russia's attention from European affairs. Napoleon, preparing in 1806 for a war with the Fourth Coalition of European Powers, which included Russia, hoped that the war with Turkey would divert Russian forces from the theater of operations in Western Europe. Therefore, French diplomacy in every possible way fomented the revanchist sentiments of the Porte. In Istanbul, they decided that Russia was weakened and distracted by events in Europe, and the time had come to regain positions in the Crimea, the Northern Black Sea region and the Caucasus. The Russian government, having failed to resolve the differences peacefully, at the end of October 1806 ordered the troops to cross the border, occupy Bessarabia, Moldavia and Wallachia. On December 18, Turkey declared war on Russia.

As well as major battles on land, a tense struggle was also fought in the maritime theaters. The Russian Black Sea Fleet, which was in a neglected state, could not complete the task of decisively defeating the Ottoman fleet. This task was assigned to the ships of the Baltic Fleet. A squadron of the Baltic Fleet under the command of Dmitry Nikolayevich Senyavin, an associate and follower of F.F. Ushakov, made the transition from Kronstadt to the Mediterranean Sea back in 1805, where for two years they fought against the French armed forces. With the outbreak of war with the Ottoman Empire, Senyavin's squadron headed to the Archipelago for military operations against the Turkish fleet.

In January 1807, the tsar approved the war plan developed by the naval minister P.V. Chichagov. This plan assumed the capture of Constantinople by the simultaneous action of the fleets from the Black and Mediterranean Seas and the landing corps, which was to be delivered on the Black Sea ships. Senyavin was ordered, with the support of the allied English squadron located in the Archipelago, to break through the Dardanelles and attack the Turkish capital. However, the plan was not implemented due to the unsatisfactory state of the Black Sea Fleet and the inability of the command to prepare the landing corps for the assault on Constantinople. And the attack from the side of the Archipelago was thwarted through the fault of the British, who hastened to independently reach Constantinople and deliver an ultimatum to the Ottoman government to end the war with Russia. The Turks played for time, and at that time they strengthened the straits. The British, fearing that they had fallen into a trap, left the Dardanelles. After the failure, the British, despite the urgent requests of Senyavin, did not agree to go on a joint operation to break through the Dardanelles and went to Malta. Senyavin was forced to limit himself to the blockade of the Dardanelles and occupied the island of Tenedos in order to obtain a convenient and close base for ships. On May 10, 1807, in the Battle of the Dardanelles, Senyavin's squadron defeated the Turkish fleet, which was trying to unblock Constantinople. Only the proximity of the strait, the support of coastal batteries and a favorable westerly wind allowed the Turkish fleet to avoid complete defeat.

Athos battle

The naval blockade of the Turkish capital led to food riots and became one of the prerequisites for the uprising in Constantinople and the overthrow of Sultan Selim III from the throne. The new Sultan Mustafa IV ordered Kapudan Pasha Seyid-Ali (in various sources - Said-Ali, Seit-Ali, Seyit-Ali) to go to sea and "take away" Tenedos from Senyavin. The Ottoman fleet, which had not shown itself for a whole month after the defeat, finally decided to go out to the open sea again.

On June 10 (22), the Turkish fleet under the command of Seyid-Ali (10 battleships, 6 frigates, 3 corvettes, 2 brigs) left the Dardanelles and stood off the eastern coast of the island of Imbros. Leaving the brig Bogoyavlensk at Tenedos, which had arrived from Corfu the day before, and two Greek ships, D.N. Senyavin headed north of Imbros Island. He planned to cut off the enemy from the Dardanelles, and then impose a decisive battle on him. On June 15 (27), when the Russian squadron was between the islands of Imbros and Samothrace, the Turkish fleet descended to the island of Tenedos and fired on the fortress. On June 16 (28) a Turkish landing force (7 thousand people) was transported from the Anatolian coast, which began the siege of the fortress. The Russian garrison (600 people) attacked the enemy at the time of his landing, and the artillery of the fortress and Bogoyavlensk fired on Turkish ships. Thus, for two days, Turkish ships and landing forces attacked the coastal fortifications of the island.

Senyavin's squadron on June 17 (29) headed for the island of Tenedos, cutting off the Turkish fleet from the Dardanelles. Turkish ships, trying to avoid the battle, left in a westerly direction. To strengthen the defense of Tenedos, Senyavin left "Venus", "Spitsbergen", "Bogoyavlensk" and 2 corsair ships. The admiral himself with 10 battleships (754 guns) rushed to catch up with the enemy. The Russians discovered the Ottoman fleet on June 19 (July 1), 1807 at anchor between the island of Lemnos and Mount Athos. The Turkish squadron consisted of 10 ships, 5 frigates, 3 sloops and 2 brigs - a total of 1196 guns, one and a half times more than that of Senyavin's squadron. The ships of the line formed the first line, in the center of which were the flagships, the frigates were located in the second line.

Senyavin knew from past experience that the Turks fought bravely until their flagship was sunk or taken prisoner, since in Turkey for leaving the battle before the flagship was supposed to the death penalty. Senyavin outlined his battle plan in orders to ship commanders dated May 23 and June 12. In order to give the battle a decisive character and utterly defeat the enemy, the Russian admiral intended to take a windward position and strike at the Turkish flagships. He decided to use a new tactic - each of the three Turkish flagships was to be attacked by two Russian ships from one side at a distance of a canister shot. To attack the Turkish flagships were assigned: "Raphael" with "Strong", "Selafail" with "Uriil" and "Powerful" with "Yaroslav". Thus, three pairs of ships were created, which provided the attackers with superiority in artillery fire. The rest of the ships under the command of D.N. Senyavin and the junior flagship Rear Admiral A.C. Greig, if necessary, were to reinforce the attacking groups and prevent the ships of the Turkish avant-garde from coming to the aid of their flagships. At the same time, Senyavin counted on the good combat and naval skills of the Russian sailors and their significant superiority in this respect over the enemy.

At 5.15, at the signal of the flagship, the Russian squadron rushed to the Ottoman ships. At 0745, the flagship's signal was raised on the Tverdy: "Designated ships to attack the enemy flagships closely." Six ships in three tactical groups on parallel courses began to descend on the enemy almost perpendicular to his battle line in order to simultaneously attack all the flagships. If they were walking in a wake column, then tactical deployment would take considerable time. The rest of the ships of the Russian squadron were approaching the Turkish avant-garde. Senyavin wanted to carry out a maneuver to cover the head of the Turkish fleet and exclude the possibility of assisting the attacked flagships from the avant-garde ships.

With the approach of the Russian squadron, the Turks opened fire, traditionally trying to damage the sails and spars of the Russian ships in order to deprive them of maneuverability. Our ships, not responding to it, approached the enemy in silence and, only approaching the grape shot, opened fierce aimed fire. The Raphael was the first to approach the enemy line. He fired a volley from all the left side guns (charged with twin cannonballs) at Seyid-Ali's ship "Messudie". However, having lost control due to damaged sails, the Russian ship itself went downwind and cut through the enemy line between the Messudie and Sed el-Bahri. He was attacked by two ships of the line, two frigates and a brig. The Messudie was already preparing to board, but the well-aimed fire of the Raphael forced the enemy ship to withdraw. Following the Raphael, the remaining ships of the attacking group entered the battle, acting against the enemy ships assigned to them. "Uriel" was forced to transfer fire from "Sed el-Bahri" to "Messoudiy" to replace "Raphael". By 9 o'clock "Selafail", "Strong", "Powerful" and "Yaroslav" took their places against three Turkish flagships. From the nearest distance of a canister and even a rifle shot, they inflicted serious damage to them in sailing weapons with well-aimed fire and hit numerous crews of Turkish ships. At the same time, Selafail fought one-on-one with Sed el-Bahri for almost an hour.

At about 9 o'clock Senyavin on the "Tverdy", and after him the other three ships of his group - "Ambulance", "Retvizan" and "St. Elena "- went to the head of the Turkish fleet. "Solid", having shot down a Turkish frigate that had moved forward, blocked the path of the lead ship and fired a longitudinal volley at it almost point-blank. Having received damage, the Turkish ship drifted and thus stopped the movement of all other ships. Thus, the maneuver of enveloping the head of the Ottoman fleet was fully implemented.

Having circled the lead Turkish ship, Senyavin went to the aid of the Raphael, which by this time had corrected its damage and, having caught up with the Turkish avant-garde, fired from both sides. The actions of the "Solid" and the rest of the ships of the Senyavin group led to the fact that the enemy vanguard was put in two fires. The heavily damaged ships of the Turkish avant-garde went downwind, breaking formation. Leading to the wind, the "Solid" blocked the path of the Turkish flagships and fired a longitudinal salvo under the nose of the "Sed el-Bahri", which had previously suffered from the fire of the "Selafail" and "Uriil".

Encouraged by the example of the flagship, the Russian crews tried to outdo each other. Some ships fought within pistol range and repaired their damage without stopping the fight. So, for example, on the ship "Selafail" (commander P. M. Rozhnov), in the heat of battle, under strong grapeshot fire, they changed the Mars-Ray. Unable to withstand the fire of Russian ships, the Turkish flagship "Messudie" at about 10 o'clock evaded to the west. At a signal from the Russian admiral, the “Strong” rushed after him, entering the thick of the Ottoman fleet and firing on both sides. On the ship "Yaroslav" all running rigging was broken and sail control was lost. The ship turned to the left tack, and it began to diverge from the Turkish squadron in counter-courses, but did not stop the battle. Passing by three Turkish ships of the rear guard and two frigates, he actively fired at them. At the same time, the crew repaired the damage. The Turks tried to destroy the Russian ship that had separated from the squadron. A battleship and a frigate tried to attack him, but the Yaroslav forced them to retreat with grapeshot fire. After that, he turned to the left tack and went to connect with his squadron.

By 11 o'clock, thanks to the successful action of artillery and the skillful maneuvering of our ships, the battle order of the Ottoman fleet was finally broken. Turkish ships, taking advantage of the leeward position, began to leave for the Athos peninsula. At about 12 o'clock, the ships of the Turkish rearguard tried to help their flagships, but the Solid stopped them with their fire. By 13 o'clock the wind died down and at 13.30 the Russian ships ceased fire, both squadrons, having stopped the battle, were in disarray near the Athos Peninsula. Many ships received serious damage and repaired them. Senyavin planned to continue the battle.

After 2 pm the west wind blew. Taking advantage of this, the Turkish ships began to move north. The heavily damaged Sed el-Bahri and the ship of the line and two frigates escorting it headed for the Gulf of Aion Oros. Senyavin sent after "Selafail" and "Uriel". On the night of June 20 (July 2), Sed el-Bahri was captured off the Athos peninsula by Selafail. The ships accompanying the Turkish flagship, when a Russian ship appeared, abandoned the damaged ship and went deep into the bay to the island of Nikolinda. "Selafail" took "Sed-el-Bahri" in tow and led to the squadron. To destroy the ship and frigates that had taken refuge in the Aion-Oros Bay, Senyavin sent the ships Retvizan, Strong, Uriel and St. Elena" under the command of A. C. Greig. On the morning of June 21 (July 3), seeing the hopelessness of their situation, not wanting to die in battle, the crews of the battleship and frigates threw them aground and, after landing the teams, were burned by the Turks themselves.

This was not limited to the losses of the Turkish fleet in the battle of Athos. At dawn on June 22 (July 4), the ship of the line and the frigate, badly damaged by the fire of our artillery, could not stay at sea and were burned by the Turks themselves off the island of Tino, and two frigates sank off the island of Samothraki.

Results

Thus, the Turkish fleet was completely defeated and fled. The Ottoman fleet lost its combat capability for a long time. The Turks lost 3 battleships, 4 frigates and a corvette. The rest of the surviving ships were badly damaged. The size of the loss of the Turks in people can be judged by the fact that on a captured ship of 800 crew members, 230 were killed and 160 wounded. Our ships also suffered significantly, having received heavy damage in the hull and spars, but total number killed and wounded on all ships of the squadron did not exceed 200 people. Among those killed in the battle of Athos was the commander of the Raphael ship, Captain 1st Rank D. A. Lukin.

June 23 (July 5), 1807 Senyavin decided not to pursue the enemy anymore, and to return to the aid of the besieged Tenedos. However, because of the headwind and calm, he arrived there only on June 25 (July 7). Avoiding unnecessary bloodshed, the Russian admiral, having entered into negotiations with the commander of the Turkish troops, offered the Ottomans an honorable surrender: surrender on the condition that the disarmed Turkish troops be transported to the Anatolian coast. The Turkish commander accepted the conditions, and on June 28, about 5 thousand Turkish soldiers were transported ashore, all siege guns were handed over to the Russians, and the fortifications were blown up.

The English fleet, which had so far rendered no assistance to Senyavin, reappeared. It was decided by common forces to attack the Turkish fleet stationed in the Dardanelles. On June 29 (July 11), an English squadron under the command of Lord Collingwood came to Tenedos. For a whole month, the squadrons stood side by side, while negotiations were going on in Tilsit between the emperors Alexander I and Napoleon. On August 1, both squadrons moved to the island of Imbros in order to attack the Turks in the Dardanelles. But on August 12, the corvette "Kherson" delivered to Senyavin the rescript of the Russian emperor on the cessation of hostilities against the Turkish Empire. On June 25, the Treaty of Tilsit was concluded and an alliance between Russia and France. The consequence of the alliance with France was Russia's accession to the continental blockade, which led to the expectation of an early break with England. As a result, the British became our opponents and the position of our squadron in the Archipelago became extremely dangerous. On August 28, Senyavin's squadron left the Archipelago for Corfu.

After defeats on land and at sea, the impossibility of the armed forces to continue hostilities and the loss of hope for the help of Napoleon, who made peace and an alliance with Russia in Tilsit, the Port was forced to accept the offer of a truce made by General Michelson. The agreement was concluded on August 12, 1807, for a period of March 3, 1809.

BATTLE OF ATHO, 1807, during the Russian-Turkish war of 1806-12. It took place during the 2nd Archipelago expedition (see Archipelago expeditions) in the Aegean Sea in the region of the Athos Peninsula (now Aion-Oros) and the northwestern tip of the island of Lemnos between the Russian squadron of Vice Admiral D. N. Senyavin (10 battleships, 754 guns) and the Turkish fleet of Kapudan Pasha Seyit-Ali (9, then 10 battleships, 5 frigates and 3 corvettes, 1196 guns). The Russian squadron blocked the Dardanelles, the Turkish fleet tried to force it to lift the blockade. Senyavin, seeking to defeat the Turkish fleet in a naval battle, gave him the opportunity to leave the strait, and then cut off the path to retreat to the east. On the morning of June 19 (July 1), the Turkish fleet was discovered off the island of Lemnos. Senyavin decided to take a windward position and strike at three enemy flagships with six specially designated ships. Each Turkish flagship was to be attacked by two Russian ships from a canister shot distance (about 185 m from the cable). The remaining forces of the Russian fleet under the command of Senyavin and the junior flagship A.S. Gresh were supposed to prevent the Turkish vanguard from coming to the aid of their flagships. At about 8 hours 30 minutes, 3 tactical groups of 2 ships approached the Turkish flagships at a distance of half a cable (90-100 m) and opened fire. The remaining ships of the Russian fleet swept the Turkish vanguard and attacked it from both sides. By 11 o'clock the first phase of the battle was over; Turkish ships, taking advantage of the leeward position, began to leave for the Athos Peninsula. By 13:30, the Russian ships ceased fire due to the calm. Soon the wind changed direction, and the Turkish ships began to retreat in disorder to the north, to the island of Thassos. The damaged admiral Turkish ship "Sedd-ul-Bahr" on the night of June 20 (July 2) was captured by the Russians. The battleship, frigate and corvette accompanying him were cut off by Russian ships and destroyed by their crews. On the way to the Dardanelles, 2 Turkish frigates sank; a battleship and a frigate were blown up off the island of Thassos. Losses of the Turkish fleet - over 1000 people killed and wounded, 774 prisoners; Russian squadron - 250 people killed and wounded.

In the Battle of Athos, D.N. Senyavin developed the tactics of attacking the wake column developed by F.F. Ushakov with several tactical groups, directing the main blow against the enemy flagships. The persistent pursuit of the retreating Turkish fleet allowed it to inflict significant losses. Athos battle together with victories Russian army on the Danube and in the Caucasus forced the Ottoman Empire to sign a truce on August 12 (24).

Lit.; Shcherbachev O.A. Battle of Athos. M.; L., 1945; Russian naval art. M., 1951. S. 147-152.

PrehistoryBy the beginning of hostilities of the Russian fleet in the Mediterranean Sea in 1805-1807
years, the situation in Europe was extremely tense. Aggressive policy
Napoleon I, which threatened the independence of many European states, and
also the interests of Russia in the Balkans and the Mediterranean, led to
the formation in 1805 of a new anti-French coalition, which included
Russia also entered. To prevent further expansion of the French
aggression in the Mediterranean, as well as in the framework of the Russian-Turkish war
1806-1812, the government of Alexander I sent from St. Petersburg to about. Corfu squadron under the command of Admiral D.N. Senyavin,
one of the most prominent students and associates of F.F. Ushakov.

Athos battle

Athos naval battle

Athos battle, also known as Battle of Mount Athos and Battle of Lemnos- happened on July 1 (June 19 according to the Julian calendar) in 1807 near the Athos peninsula in the Aegean Sea as part of the campaign of the Second Archipelago expedition of the Russian fleet during the Russian-Turkish war of 1806-1812. During the battle, the Russian squadron of Vice Admiral D.N. Senyavin (10 battleships, 754 guns) attacked and defeated the Turkish squadron of Kapudan Pasha Seyit-Ali (10 battleships, 5 frigates, 3 sloops and 2 brigs, 1196 guns). Turkish losses: 3 battleships, 4 frigates and 1 sloop.

Battle

Within a month after the defeat of the Turkish fleet in the Battle of the Dardanelles, the Russian fleet under the command of Vice Admiral Senyavin maneuvered, trying to lure the enemy out of the straits. Finally, on June 15 (27), taking advantage of the fact that the Russian squadron was delayed near the island of Imbros by a weak wind, the Ottoman fleet moved out of the straits to the island of Tenedos, a temporary Russian base in the Aegean Sea, and landed troops there. For two days, ships and landing forces stormed the coastal fortifications of the island, but on June 17 (29) the sails of the Russian squadron appeared on the horizon.

Trying to avoid battle and diverting the fleet from Tenedos, the Turkish squadron went around it from the south side and rushed to the west. Senyavin, leaving small ships to help the fortress, set off in search of the enemy and found him on June 19 (July 1) in an unsettled position at anchor between the island of Lemnos and Mount Athos.

From past experience, Senyavin knew that the Turks fought bravely unless their flagship was sunk or captured, since in the Ottoman Empire the death penalty was due for leaving the battle before the flagship. Therefore, he concentrated all the fire on the Turkish flagships. By evening, the enemy began to retreat, avoiding battle. The 2nd flagship of the Turkish squadron, the ship of Captain Bey Bekir Bey, was in distress, on which all the yards and all the sails were shot down, and which was towed behind a battleship and two frigates. However, seeing the Russian squadron, these ships abandoned the tugboat, and they themselves took to flight, leaving the admiral's ship, which was boarded.

On the morning of June 20 (July 2), it turned out that the entire Turkish squadron, having caught a fair wind, was moving north to the island of Thassos, and the battleship and two frigates (which had previously helped the captain-bey's ship) were cut off from it by the Russian squadron. On June 21 (July 3), Senyavin sent Rear Admiral Greig in pursuit of the latter with three ships of the line, but the Turkish sailors threw their ships ashore and set them on fire. At dawn on June 22 (July 4), another ship of the line and a frigate exploded in the retreating Turkish squadron, and two damaged frigates sank off the island of Samothraki. Of the 20 Turkish ships, only 12 returned to the Dardanelles.

On June 23 (July 5), Senyavin decided not to pursue the enemy anymore, and to return to the aid of the besieged Tenedos. However, because of the headwind and calm, he arrived there only on June 25 (July 7). The Turkish landing force surrendered and, leaving all their guns and weapons, was transported to the Anatolian coast.

As a result of the battle, the Ottoman Empire lost a combat-ready fleet for more than a decade and agreed to sign the Slobodzeya truce on August 12 (24).

Side forces