Battle of Shipka Pass
Encyclopedia
Four battles were fought between the Russian Empire
, aided by Bulgarian
volunteers known as Opalchentsi
, and the Ottoman Empire
for control over the vital Shipka Pass
during the Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878). The crucial moment came in August 1877, when a group of 5,000 Bulgarian and 2,500 Russian troopers repulsed an attack against the peak by the Ottoman Central army.
. To precede the main Russian army Joseph Vladimirovich Gourko
led a detachment to capture the vital Balkan Mountain
passes. Gourko approached Shipka Pass
, which was held by an Ottoman garrison of 4,000-5,000 soldiers under Suleiman Pasha.
On July 17, Gourko attacked from the north with four divisions. The two flank divisions captured mountain positions but the two divisions in the center were repulsed. On the 18th Gourko attacked from the south. Again the main attack on the pass was repulsed but the Russians carried some of the trenches. Gourko planned a combined attack from the north and the south on the 19th. The next day however the Ottoman forces evacuated the pass and Russia took possession of it.
In just over two weeks Gourko had captured three important mountain passes but the main army would become held up the day after Shipka Pass fell in the Siege of Plevna. The Ottoman Army would make two major attempts to retake the pass in 1877 and then in 1878 Gourko delivered a final blow to the Ottoman forces in the Shipka Pass area.
After taking the pass in July, 1877 the Russia
n forces built up a defensive position there. Russian General Stoletov
placed his 7,500 defenders (5,500 Bulgarians, 2,000 Russians) on three positions at St. Nicholas (today: Peak Stoletov), Central Hill and the reserves in between these two points.
Suleiman Pasha gathered 38,000 Ottomans and was determined to retake the pass instead of simply bypassing it. On August 21, the Ottoman forces bombarded Russian positions and then made an attack against St. Nicholas. The attack was repulsed and the Ottoman forces dug in 100 yards (91.4 m) away. The next day the Ottoman forces moved their artillery
up the mountain side and bombarded the pass while the infantry moved around the Russian flank. On August 23, the Ottoman forces attacked all Russian positions with the main effort again at St. Nicholas where most of the defenders were Bulgarian volunteers. The Ottoman forces thought that the volunteer positions would be easy to capture, but this turned out to be their greatest mistake. Instead, the first unit that began to retreat were the Russians on Central Hill. However, they rallied when the 4th Rifle Brigade arrived and all Ottoman attacks were repulsed. On the 26th, an Ottoman attack on St. Nicholas reached the Russian trenches but was repulsed again by a Bulgarian bayonet
charge. More Russian reinforcements arrived and on the 26th, an attack was made against the Ottoman position but driven back to Central Hill. This ended the battle for all practical purposes.
The Russians and Bulgarians had made a gallant stand. Suleiman would attempt to retake the pass one more time in 1877.
surrendered to the Russian Army, freeing a significant number of Russian troops. General Gourko now had as many as 65,000 soldiers to contend with the Ottomans. First Gourko forced the Araba Konak Pass and took Sofia
. From Sofia, he moved south through the Balkan Mountains to cut off the Ottoman army fronting Shipka Pass.
and Nikolai Mirskii
to cut off the Ottoman retreat. On January 8, Radezky's attack began but Skobelev was held up by unsuspectedly heavy resistance and Mirskii attacked unsupported, making little progress. On January 9, Mirskii faced an Ottoman counterattack, but Skobelev was able to move forward in support and defeat the Ottoman forces. Completely surrounded, the remaining Ottoman forces under Veissel Pasha surrendered the same day.
.
Today the Shipka Pass
is in the Bulgarka Nature Park
and is home to a monument commemorating those who died in the battle.
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
, aided by Bulgarian
Bulgarians
The Bulgarians are a South Slavic nation and ethnic group native to Bulgaria and neighbouring regions. Emigration has resulted in immigrant communities in a number of other countries.-History and ethnogenesis:...
volunteers known as Opalchentsi
Opalchentsi
Opalchentsi were Bulgarian voluntary army units, who took part in the Serbo-Turkish War of 1876 and the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878. The people in these units were called opalchenets-pobornik meaning "volunteer combatant"....
, and the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
for control over the vital Shipka Pass
Shipka Pass
Shipka Pass is a scenic mountain pass through the Balkan Mountains in Bulgaria. It marks the border between Stara Zagora province and Gabrovo province. The pass connects Gabrovo and Kazanlak. The pass is part of the Bulgarka Nature Park.The pass is 13 km by road north of the small town of...
during the Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878). The crucial moment came in August 1877, when a group of 5,000 Bulgarian and 2,500 Russian troopers repulsed an attack against the peak by the Ottoman Central army.
First Battle of Shipka Pass
In July, 1877 four Russian corps had crossed the Danube River and were moving into BulgariaBulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
. To precede the main Russian army Joseph Vladimirovich Gourko
Joseph Vladimirovich Gourko
Count Iosif Vladimirovich Romeyko-Gurko , also known as Joseph or Ossip Gourko, was a Russian Field Marshal prominent during the Russo-Turkish War ....
led a detachment to capture the vital Balkan Mountain
Balkan Mountains
The Balkan mountain range is a mountain range in the eastern part of the Balkan Peninsula. The Balkan range runs 560 km from the Vrashka Chuka Peak on the border between Bulgaria and eastern Serbia eastward through central Bulgaria to Cape Emine on the Black Sea...
passes. Gourko approached Shipka Pass
Shipka Pass
Shipka Pass is a scenic mountain pass through the Balkan Mountains in Bulgaria. It marks the border between Stara Zagora province and Gabrovo province. The pass connects Gabrovo and Kazanlak. The pass is part of the Bulgarka Nature Park.The pass is 13 km by road north of the small town of...
, which was held by an Ottoman garrison of 4,000-5,000 soldiers under Suleiman Pasha.
On July 17, Gourko attacked from the north with four divisions. The two flank divisions captured mountain positions but the two divisions in the center were repulsed. On the 18th Gourko attacked from the south. Again the main attack on the pass was repulsed but the Russians carried some of the trenches. Gourko planned a combined attack from the north and the south on the 19th. The next day however the Ottoman forces evacuated the pass and Russia took possession of it.
In just over two weeks Gourko had captured three important mountain passes but the main army would become held up the day after Shipka Pass fell in the Siege of Plevna. The Ottoman Army would make two major attempts to retake the pass in 1877 and then in 1878 Gourko delivered a final blow to the Ottoman forces in the Shipka Pass area.
Second Battle of Shipka Pass
The Second Battle of Shipka Pass took place in August 1877.After taking the pass in July, 1877 the Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n forces built up a defensive position there. Russian General Stoletov
Nikolai Stoletov
Nikolai Grigorevich Stoletov was a general in the Imperial Russian Army. He was the brother of noted physicist Aleksandr Stoletov....
placed his 7,500 defenders (5,500 Bulgarians, 2,000 Russians) on three positions at St. Nicholas (today: Peak Stoletov), Central Hill and the reserves in between these two points.
Suleiman Pasha gathered 38,000 Ottomans and was determined to retake the pass instead of simply bypassing it. On August 21, the Ottoman forces bombarded Russian positions and then made an attack against St. Nicholas. The attack was repulsed and the Ottoman forces dug in 100 yards (91.4 m) away. The next day the Ottoman forces moved their artillery
Artillery
Originally applied to any group of infantry primarily armed with projectile weapons, artillery has over time become limited in meaning to refer only to those engines of war that operate by projection of munitions far beyond the range of effect of personal weapons...
up the mountain side and bombarded the pass while the infantry moved around the Russian flank. On August 23, the Ottoman forces attacked all Russian positions with the main effort again at St. Nicholas where most of the defenders were Bulgarian volunteers. The Ottoman forces thought that the volunteer positions would be easy to capture, but this turned out to be their greatest mistake. Instead, the first unit that began to retreat were the Russians on Central Hill. However, they rallied when the 4th Rifle Brigade arrived and all Ottoman attacks were repulsed. On the 26th, an Ottoman attack on St. Nicholas reached the Russian trenches but was repulsed again by a Bulgarian bayonet
Bayonet
A bayonet is a knife, dagger, sword, or spike-shaped weapon designed to fit in, on, over or underneath the muzzle of a rifle, musket or similar weapon, effectively turning the gun into a spear...
charge. More Russian reinforcements arrived and on the 26th, an attack was made against the Ottoman position but driven back to Central Hill. This ended the battle for all practical purposes.
The Russians and Bulgarians had made a gallant stand. Suleiman would attempt to retake the pass one more time in 1877.
Third Battle of Shipka Pass
Suleiman Pasha made a second attempt to retake Shipka Pass from the Russians after a failed attempt in August. The Russian defenses had continually been worked on since August but reinforcements were limited due to the siege of Plevna. On September 13, Suleiman began to shell the Russians. The bombardment continued in earnest until the 17th when Suleiman launched a frontal assault against the St. Nicholas position. Capturing the first line of trenches, the Ottoman forces moved towards the summit. General Fyodor Radetzky, now commanding the defenses, brought up reinforcements and a Russian counterattack drove the Ottoman forces from all captured ground. Secondary Ottoman assaults to the north were repulsed as well. This would be the last attempt the Ottoman forces made to retake Shipka Pass.Fourth Battle of Shipka Pass
The Fourth Battle of Shipka Pass from January 5–9 was the final battle for Shipka Pass and a crushing Ottoman defeat.Background
In December, 1877, the fortress of PlevnaPleven
Pleven is the seventh most populous city in Bulgaria. Located in the northern part of the country, it is the administrative centre of Pleven Province, as well as of the subordinate Pleven municipality...
surrendered to the Russian Army, freeing a significant number of Russian troops. General Gourko now had as many as 65,000 soldiers to contend with the Ottomans. First Gourko forced the Araba Konak Pass and took Sofia
Sofia
Sofia is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria and the 12th largest city in the European Union with a population of 1.27 million people. It is located in western Bulgaria, at the foot of Mount Vitosha and approximately at the centre of the Balkan Peninsula.Prehistoric settlements were excavated...
. From Sofia, he moved south through the Balkan Mountains to cut off the Ottoman army fronting Shipka Pass.
The battle
General Radezky, commanding the garrison, made preparations to attack from the pass on January 5 while Gourko brought up two columns under Generals Mikhail SkobelevMikhail Skobelev
Mikhail Dmitrievich Skobelev was a Russian general famous for his conquest of Central Asia and heroism during the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-78. Dressed in white uniform and mounted on a white horse, and always in the thickest of the fray, he was known and adored by his soldiers as the "White...
and Nikolai Mirskii
Nikolai Ivanovitch Sviatopolk-Mirskii
Prince Nikolai Ivanovitch Sviatopolk-Mirskii was a Russian cavalry general and politician. In 1895 he purchased the famed Mir Castle Complex, repaired and rebuilt it....
to cut off the Ottoman retreat. On January 8, Radezky's attack began but Skobelev was held up by unsuspectedly heavy resistance and Mirskii attacked unsupported, making little progress. On January 9, Mirskii faced an Ottoman counterattack, but Skobelev was able to move forward in support and defeat the Ottoman forces. Completely surrounded, the remaining Ottoman forces under Veissel Pasha surrendered the same day.
Results
Russian forces under Gourko were able to crush Suleiman's army at the Battle of Philippopolis several days later and threaten ConstantinopleConstantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
.
Today the Shipka Pass
Shipka Pass
Shipka Pass is a scenic mountain pass through the Balkan Mountains in Bulgaria. It marks the border between Stara Zagora province and Gabrovo province. The pass connects Gabrovo and Kazanlak. The pass is part of the Bulgarka Nature Park.The pass is 13 km by road north of the small town of...
is in the Bulgarka Nature Park
Bulgarka Nature Park
The Bulgarka Natural Park is a Bulgarian nature park located on the northern slopes of the Balkan Mountains , occupying 22,000 hectares of territory in the central and Eastern part of the mountains between the cities of Gabrovo and Kazanluk.Located between the steep topography of the Central...
and is home to a monument commemorating those who died in the battle.
Sources
- http://members.aol.com/balkandave/shipka.htm
- http://abvg.net/Shipka/
- Compton's Home Library: Battles of the World CD-ROM
- http://www.russianwarrior.com/STMMain.htm?1877_militaryhist.htm&1
- Encyclopaedia Britannica, 1911 ed.
See also
- Battles of the Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878)
- Epic of the ForgottenEpic of the ForgottenEpic of the Forgotten is a Bulgarian poetic saga written by Ivan Vazov to commemorate the Bulgarian fight for freedom against the Ottoman Empire and to criticize the moral decline of the Bulgarian nation after the Liberation, in comparison to the heroic figures and events of the then recent past...
by Ivan Vazov - Shipka Memorial