The Battle of Athos is a naval battle that took place on June 18, 1807 near the Athos peninsula. It was part of the Russian naval campaign during the Russo-Turkish War of 1806-1812. Thanks to skillful and bold actions, the Russian squadron under the command of Admiral D.N.Senyavin utterly defeated the Turkish fleet, lifted the siege from the island of Tenedos and strengthened its positions in the Mediterranean.

Background of the conflict and the strength of the parties

The Russo-Turkish War of 1806-1812 was a confrontation between the Ottoman Empire and Russia, the reason for which was Turkey's non-compliance with diplomatic treaties signed with Russia. According to them, the Turks were forbidden to interfere in the internal affairs of Moldova and Wallachia. Russia's victory in this war was predetermined by successful land and sea battles.

The decisive episode of the struggle at sea was the Battle of Athos. The Russian squadron, led by Admiral Senyavin, blocked the Dardanelles Strait in order to isolate the enemy's capital Constantinople and force the Turks to join the naval battle. A base was established in the Aegean Sea - the island of Denedos, located just ten miles from the Dardanelles. The attempts of the Turks to lift the blockade turned into a major battle with the Russian fleet: Senyavin's calculation of luring the enemy out completely worked.

Admiral Senyavin had ten ships of the line, armed with 754 guns... The Turkish fleet surpassed the Russian in the number of ships and artillery - under the command of Seyit-Ali there were ten ships of the line, five frigates, three corvettes and two brigs, all of which had about 1196 guns. The Russian fleet, in turn, could oppose the best training and moral qualities of its sailors.

Battle

Senyavin understood that by blocking the Dardanelles, sooner or later he would lure the Turkish fleet out to sea and that he would try to lift the blockade. Based on this, a plan for the future battle was developed in advance. According to him, it was supposed to concentrate the main attack on the enemy's flagships, forcing them to withdraw from the battle. According to the laws of the Ottoman Empire, retreat before the loss of the flagship was punishable by death. This had a positive effect on the courage and courage of the Turks at the beginning of the battle, but after the loss of the flagship, their morale dramatically evaporated. Senyavin divided the Russian fleet into two main groups, one of which, consisting of six ships, was supposed to attack three enemy flagships, and the second, including the remaining four ships, was to provide an attack of the main group, pinning down the rest of the enemy fleet as much as possible. Such tactics required, first of all, impeccable training of the crews, since it was necessary to correctly maneuver in a very narrow space.

When preparations for battle were completed, Senyavin in early June 1807 deliberately withdrew most of the Russian fleet from the island of Tenedos. The ploy worked and already on the 15th the Turkish squadron landed its troops near the island, intending to capture it. The Russian admiral, in turn, cut off the escape routes for the Turks and on June 19 entered the battle with them near the island of Lemnos and Mount Athos.

As planned, the main attack of the Russian ships was directed at the enemy's flagships. By the evening, having received significant damage, the Turkish fleet began to retreat. As a result of the pursuit, the Russian ships managed to disable some of the Turkish ships, some of them were destroyed by the Turks on their own due to too much damage.

Results of the battle

The enemy's losses amounted to six ships and about a thousand personnel, another 774 Turks were taken prisoner. On the Russian side, not a single ship was lost, the number of killed and wounded was about 250 people.
The victory in the Athos battle allowed Russia to strengthen the blockade of the Dardanelles and significantly influenced the overall outcome of the war. The Ottoman Empire lost an efficient fleet for a whole decade and was forced to sign the proposed truce.

Captain 1st rank V.I. ANDREEV

Outstanding Russian naval commander of the late XVIII - early XIX century Dmitry Nikolaevich Senyavin was born on August 6, 1763. His ancestor Naum Senyavin became famous for a major naval victory in the battle at about. Ezel in 1719 during the Great Northern War. Dmitry Nikolaevich's father also served in the navy.

In 1773 D.N. Senyavin was enrolled in the Marine Corps and, thanks to his great abilities, he was one of the first to graduate.

In November 1777 Senyavin was promoted to midshipman and sailed several campaigns in this rank.

On May 1, 1780, Senyavin was promoted to warrant officer and assigned to the Prince Vladimir ship, which was part of a squadron sent to Portugal to maintain armed neutrality. Senyavin was on the voyage for about a year, and it gave him good sea hardening. Upon his return, he was assigned to the Azov fleet.

In 1783, Senyavin was promoted to lieutenant and appointed flag officer of Rear Admiral Mekenzi, who was in charge of the construction of the Sevastopol port. In this position (with interruptions) Senyavin remained until 1786, when he was transferred to a floating train. He was appointed commander of the Karabut packet boat, which maintained relations with the Russian ambassador to Turkey.

During the Russian-Turkish war of 1787-1791. Senyavin went through a harsh military school under the command of Admiral Ushakov. In the first period of the war, he served as flag captain in Voinovich's squadron. On July 3, 1788, the first victory of the Black Sea Fleet was won at about. Fidonisi, where F.F. Ushakov, who commanded the Russian avant-garde.

At a time when a strong Turkish fleet helped the besieged Ochakov from the sea, Senyavin with five cruisers was sent to the shores of Anatolia to disrupt the Turkish routes of communication and divert the attention of the Turkish fleet from Ochakov. It should be noted that already here, in his first independent actions, Senyavin showed outstanding abilities and had a number of successes - he took several prizes, destroyed about a dozen Turkish merchant ships, etc.

After these successful actions, Senyavin was appointed commander of the Leonty Martyr ship and then commander of the Vladimir ship. 1791 - the fourth year of the war - found Senyavin as the commander of the Navarkhia ship in the squadron of F.F. Ushakov.

After the end of the war, D.N. Senyavin continued to command the battleship as part of Ushakov's squadron. On August 13, 1798, a squadron under the flag of Vice Admiral Ushakov, consisting of six battleships, seven frigates and three brigs, left Sevastopol and headed for Constantinople to join the Turkish fleet. In Constantinople, the Russian squadron was joined by 4 ships, 6 frigates, 4 corvettes and 14 gunboats from the forces of the Turkish fleet, and the combined squadron went out to the Mediterranean for combat operations against the French.

Ushakov's first task was the occupation of the Ionian Islands, occupied by the French, to create a squadron base on them. The most protected of the islands were Corfu and Santa Mavra. The capture of Santa Mavra was entrusted to Captain 1st Rank Senyavin, who commanded the ship "St. Peter". The frigate Navarkhia and two Turkish ships were assigned to help him. Senyavin brilliantly coped with the task entrusted to him, and on November 2, the Santa Mavra fortress surrendered. Ushakov, reporting on the capture of the fortress, gave the most positive assessment of Senyavin's actions. Other Ionian Islands were also occupied by Russian sailors, and then the Kingdom of Naples and Rome were liberated from the French.

Upon the return of Ushakov's squadron to Sevastopol in 1800, Senyavin was appointed commander of the Kherson port. In 1803 he was transferred to Sevastopol for the same position. The next year, Senyavin was appointed chief of the navy in Revel, where he remained until 1805. This year Senyavin was put in charge of a Russian squadron that was sent to the Mediterranean to fight against the French.

The international situation at the beginning of the 19th century. was very difficult. After the victories of the Russian troops under the command of the great commander A.V. Suvorov and the Russian fleet under the command of the remarkable naval commander F.F. Ushakov at the end of the 18th century. the international importance of Russia and its influence on European affairs have increased significantly. The main place in the international life of that time was occupied by the fierce struggle between capitalist England and its competitor France, which also entered the capitalist path of development. This struggle was fought for domination in Europe and throughout the world, i.e. was aggressive in nature.

The protege of the French bourgeoisie, Napoleon, understood that without an alliance with Russia he would not defeat England. But Napoleon's active aggressive policy in Europe and especially in the Balkans and the Middle East threatened Russia's interests. All this led to an aggravation of Franco-Russian contradictions.

Beginning in 1804, Russia began to concentrate its forces in the Mediterranean to fight France. 2 battleships, 2 frigates, 6 corvettes and 4 brigs under the command of Captain-Commander Sorokin were sent there from the Black Sea Fleet. In addition, an infantry division was transferred from Sevastopol to Corfu. A squadron of two battleships and two frigates arrived from Kronstadt to the Mediterranean in 1804, in addition to the forces from the Black Sea Fleet stationed there.

In March 1805, an agreement was concluded between Russia and England on joint actions against France. Austria and Naples joined this union. Thus, the British government managed to create a coalition to fight against France.

September 10, 1805 from Kronstadt to the Archipelago left the main forces of the Russian fleet under the command of D.N. Senyavin, who had just been promoted to vice admiral. The squadron consisted of 5 battleships and a frigate. On the way, 2 brigs joined the squadron. On January 18, 1806, Senyavin arrived safely in Corfu and here took command of the Russian naval and land forces in the Mediterranean. In total, under the command of Senyavin, there were 11 battleships, 7 frigates, 5 corvettes, 7 brigs and 12 gunboats (1,154 guns and 8,000 crew members). The ground forces were about 15 thousand people.

Senyavin was tasked with defending the Ionian Islands as the base of the Russian fleet and preventing the capture of Greece by Napoleon. At first, proceeding from the prevailing situation, Senyavin moved to active actions. He occupied the Cattaro region and Montenegro with the fortresses of Boko di Cattaro and Castel Nuovo. To attract the population to his side, Senyavin freed the inhabitants of the Russian-occupied regions from all duties and organized the escort of ships going to Trieste and Constantinople, which greatly contributed to the development of trade in these regions.

In turn, the Bokez and Montenegrins created a flotilla of about 30 ships to help the Russian squadron, each armed with 8-20 cannons. These ships operated successfully, disrupting the trade relations of the French.

Further actions of Senyavin's squadron, up to the break with Turkey, were of the same nature: actions against fortresses, struggle against enemy trade and skirmishes with light forces of the French.

In December 1806, Turkey, incited by Napoleon, declared war on Russia.

On January 1, 1807, a new squadron under the command of Captain-Commander Ignatiev arrived in Corfu to reinforce Senyavin's squadron. It consisted of five ships of the line, a frigate, a corvette and a sloop. At the same time Senyavin learned about the break with Turkey.

In accordance with the war plan outlined in St. Petersburg, on January 8, 1807, Senyavin was sent instructions stating: "... the main goal of our actions should be directed towards striking a blow to the very depths of the Ottoman Empire by achieving and conquering its capital ..." ".

Further in this instruction it was said: with ten or more ships and several frigates to go to the Dardanelles and interrupt communication between the European and Asian coasts; if possible, then interrupt communication throughout the Dardanelles and the Sea of \u200b\u200bMarmara; try to occupy the main points in the Archipelago, including the islands of Rhodes, Mytilene and others, which have shipyards and ship forests; dispatch several ships for the blockade of Egypt; for the landing of troops, use ground forces, which must be taken to the squadron in such a way that the defense of Corfu and other places is not weakened; leave as many ships in the Adriatic as circumstances require; establish a cruise between all the indicated places; try to have relations with the commander of the Russian army in Moldavia and Wallachia; especially "to pay attention to the aggravation of obstacles to any communication between the French and the Turks, so that not only the troops can pass them, but even couriers and written communications could not be allowed through."

Analyzing this instruction, it should be noted, first of all, the large number of tasks assigned to Senyavin. In fact, Senyavin was supposed to seize Constantinople, block Egypt, and defend Corfu, and prevent the French from communicating with the Turks. If Senyavin had blindly followed this instruction, he would inevitably have been defeated, since his forces would have been diffused. It should be recognized that Senyavin's decision to leave part of the forces to defend Corfu, and with the main forces to go to the Archipelago, where the main task was being solved, should be recognized as quite correct.

On February 10, 1807, a squadron of eight battleships and a frigate with a landing force of 1256 people headed for the Aegean Sea. Considering that surprise acts overwhelmingly, Senyavin delayed all merchant ships on the way so that no one would notify the enemy about the movement of the Russian squadron.

The hopes of government circles that the British squadron of Admiral Duckworth would help Senyavin were not justified. Petersburg strategists have forgotten the old tradition of England - to rake in the heat with someone else's hands. The British did not want to reinforce Senyavin's squadron with their ships, but tried to forestall events and capture Constantinople before the Russians.

On February 7, 1807, an English squadron of seven ships, two frigates and two bombarding ships under the flag of Admiral Duckworth passed the Dardanelles and suddenly appeared at Constantinople, destroying several small Turkish ships along the way. The British began negotiations with the Turks, but the latter, deliberately delaying the negotiations, managed to strengthen the fortifications in the strait so much that Duckworth had to hastily withdraw, while incurring heavy losses.

Thus, when Senyavin and his squadron came to the Archipelago, the Dardanelles were already very strongly fortified and the task of breaking through them turned out to be difficult. Dukworth, as expected, flatly refused to reinforce Senyavin's squadron and left for Malta on March 1.

On February 28, Senyavin convened a council of war, at which, in view of the circumstances, it was decided not to break through the Dardanelles, but to limit themselves to their blockade.

In connection with the adopted plan for the blockade of the Dardanelles, it was necessary to occupy a maneuverable base for the fleet. The choice fell on the island located in the immediate vicinity of the strait. Tenedos. Troops were landed on the island, which laid siege to the fortress of Tenedos. Thanks to the decisive actions of the landing force and help from the ships of the squadron, the Turks were forced to surrender the fortress. On March 10, 1807, the Turkish garrison was released to the Anatolian coast, since Senyavin could not leave a large mass of "mouths" in his squadron.

Having secured himself a base, Senyavin proceeded to blockade the Dardanelles. For this, two ships were assigned in turn; they were at anchor at the strait for 10-12 days. At the same time, ships were sent for cruising on the enemy's trade routes and for operations against enemy shores. But still, the main task for Senyavin was the destruction of the Turkish fleet, since as long as this fleet continued to exist exceeding the Russian squadron in numbers, Senyavin's position in the Archipelago could not be strong.

Battle of Dardanelles (May 10-11, 1807)

The blockade of the Dardanelles caused famine and discontent among the population in Constantinople. The Turkish government demanded from the command of its fleet to lift the blockade of the strait and destroy the Russian squadron. Fulfilling this requirement, on May 7, the Turkish fleet consisting of eight battleships, six frigates, four boats, a brig and over 50 rowing ships left the strait.

Senyavin, wanting to pull the enemy away from the strait and coastal batteries, as well as go out into the wind, withdrew to about. Imbros. The next day it got fresh, and Senyavin returned to Tenedos. There he learned that, during the absence of the squadron, the Turks under the command of French officers had unsuccessfully attacked Tenedos. In addition, Senyavin learned that the Turkish fleet was stationed a few miles from Tenedos, near Fr. Mavra.

On May 10, taking advantage of the favorable south-westerly wind, the Russian squadron weighed anchor and went for rapprochement with the enemy. The Turkish fleet set sail and, not wishing to accept the battle, went to the Dardanelles. Senyavin ordered the Russian squadron to raise all sails and attack according to their ability. Only by 6 o'clock in the evening, already not far from the Dardanelles, did the Russian ships catch up with the Turks and began fighting. Russian squadron. numerically inferior to the enemy, perfectly maneuvered. The Russians, much earlier than the Turks, learned to use the fire of both sides of the ships. Not adhering to the formation, Senyavin's ships cut through the enemy's line and, being under fire from enemy ships and coastal batteries, in the conditions of the onset of darkness, they continued the battle, in which the excellent combat training of Russian sailors played an important role. At night, in the dark, Turkish batteries fired at both the Russians and their ships. By midnight the wind died down and the battle was over. Heavily damaged 3 Turkish ships were forced to stick to the shallows under the Asian coast. The rest of the ships managed to slip into the Dardanelles.

Russian ships anchored at the strait. At dawn on May 11, boats launched from Turkish ships began towing 3 damaged ships into the strait. Senyavin ordered four ships and one frigate to cut off the enemy. The Turkish ships were attacked, one of them managed to enter the Dardanelles, and the other two washed ashore.

This ended the Battle of Dardanelles, as a result of which 3 enemy ships were disabled. Losses in personnel reached 2000 people.

Meanwhile, as a result of the blockade of the Dardanelles, which led to the fall of the cessation of the supply of food to Constantinople, the discontent of the population increased. All this ended in a coup: Selim III was overthrown and Sultan Mustafa IV came to power.

Although the first exit of the Turkish fleet from the Dardanelles ended in failure, the population demanded that the government and the fleet take action and break the blockade.

The Turkish government set the fleet commander a task: avoiding a battle with the Russian fleet, to take possession of the island of Tenedos with the help of an assault force. The Turkish government believed that Senyavin, having lost his base, would be forced to lift the blockade of the Dardanelles. This assumption of the Turks was erroneous, since if they managed to take Fr. Tenedos, the Russian squadron could choose as a base any of the many islands near the Dardanelles. The Turkish command could achieve the lifting of the blockade only by winning the battle, which it carefully avoided and feared.

On June 10, a Russian observation post on Tenedos reported that an enemy squadron, consisting of 10 ships of the line, five frigates, two brigs and three sloops, was leaving the strait. The Turkish fleet took up a position at about. Imbros. The rowing flotilla of the Turks was concentrated on the Asian coast. On it there was a 6-thousandth landing, intended for landing on the island of Tenedos.

Until June 14, weather conditions did not allow Senyavin to approach the enemy. On June 15, Senyavin, wishing to get out into the wind, approached Fr. Imbros and took up a position between Imbros and the European coast, thus finding himself between the Turks and the strait. The Turkish fleet descended to Tenedos and tried unsuccessfully to land troops on the northern side of the island. On June 16, under cover of naval artillery fire, the Turks managed to land a landing in the amount of about 6,000 people, which began a siege of the fortress.

Senyavin, making sure that the Turkish fleet is at about. Tekedos hurried with the squadron there. Seeing the Russian squadron, the commander of the Turkish fleet, Seyid-Ali, weighed anchor and went to sea in a southwest direction. Senyavin, approaching Tenedos at about noon on June 17, learned that the garrison was running out of shells and that the Turks had intensified their attack, hastening to capture the fortress until it received help from the squadron. Expecting to catch up with the enemy still, Senyavin supplied the fortress with ammunition and destroyed the Turkish rowing ships carrying the troops. On the morning of June 18, Senyavin's squadron went to sea and by the evening took over from Fr. Imbros position, blocking the Turks' path to the Dardanelles.

Battle of Athos (June 19, 1807)

Even before going to sea, taking into account the experience of the battle at the Dardanelles, Senyavin issued a combat order as follows:

"Circumstances oblige us to give a decisive battle, but as long as the enemy flagships are not severely defeated, until then a very stubborn battle must be expected, therefore, make the attack as follows: according to the number of enemy admirals, in order to attack each of our two, ships are assigned:" Raphael "with "Strong", "Selafail" with "Uriel" and "Powerful" with "Yaroslav." At signal number 3, with the French jack, these ships immediately descend on the enemy flagships, and attack them with all possible determination, as close as possible, not at all afraid, The past battle on May 10 showed that the closer to him, the less harm he does, therefore, if it happened to someone and fell on board, then we can expect great success. ”I came to a grapeshot shot, start shooting. If the enemy is under sail, then hit the masts, if at anchor, then the hull.Attack two on one side, but not on both sides, if it happens to give space to another ship If you, then in no case should you go beyond the grape-shot, with whom the battle was started, and end either by drowning, or by conquering the enemy ship.

As in many unforeseen cases it is impossible to make positive instructions for everyone, I do not extend them anymore; I hope that every son of the fatherland will be honored to fulfill his duty in a glorious way.

Ship "Solid". Dmitry Senyavin ".

Thus, the basis of Senyavin's order was the desire for a decisive battle. Correctly assessing the enemy, Senyavin directs the main blow at the Turkish flagships. In the direction of the main attack, he creates a double superiority of forces (six battleships against three Turkish flagships) and applies a new technique: a concentrated strike of two ships from one side. To ensure the success of the main attack, Senyavin leaves at his disposal 4 ships of the line with the aim of either supporting the main attack, or tying up the rest of the Turkish ships in battle, so that they cannot come to the aid of the flagships.

At dawn on June 19, Russian ships discovered the enemy. Turkish ships were at anchor not far from about. Lemnos. At five o'clock on the flagship of the Russian squadron the signal "Set all possible sails and descend on the enemy" was raised.

The Turkish fleet very quickly formed up in the battle line so that their three flagships were in the middle of the line, and the frigates and brigs were in the head and behind the line.

The balance of forces in battle was as follows. The Russian squadron included ships: "Tverdiy" - 74 guns, commander - Captain 1st Rank Maleev (flag of Vice Admiral Senyavin); "Raphael" - 74 guns, commander Captain 1st Rank Lukin; "Uriel" - 84 guns, commander - Captain 2nd Rank I. Bychensky; "St. Helena" - 74 guns, commander - Captain 2nd Rank M. Bychensky; "Strong" - 74 guns, commander - 1st rank captain Saltikov; "Selafail" - 74 guns, commander - 2nd rank captain Rozhnov; "Yaroslav" - 74 guns, commander - Captain 2nd Rank Mitkov; "Fast" - 74 guns, commander - 1st rank captain Shelting; "Powerful" - 74 guns, commander - 1st rank captain Blood; "Retvizan" - 64 guns, commander - 2nd rank captain Rtishchev. In total, Senyavin had 10 ships of the line with 740 guns.

The Turkish squadron consisted of battleships: "Messudie" - 120 cannons (flag of kapudan-pasha Seid-Ali); "Sedel-Bahri" - 90 cannons, (flag of the captain-bey Bekir-bey); "Ankai-Bahri" - 86 guns (Sheremyat-bey flag); Tausu-Bahri - 84 guns; "Besharet-Nyuma" - 84 guns; "Tefik-Nyuma" - 84 guns; "Sayadi-Bahri" - 74 guns; "Mem-Bank-Nusaret" - 74 guns; "Hibet Endas" - 74 guns; "Kilit-Bahri" - 84 guns (did not take part in the battle); frigates: "Meskenzi Gaza" - 50 guns; "Bedriza Fet" - 50 guns; "Fuki Zephyr" - 50 guns; "Nessim Fetu" - 50 guns; Iskandrie - 44 guns; sloops: "Metelin" - 32 guns; "RehberiAlim" - 28 guns; "Denuvet" - 24 cannons, two brigs with 18 cannons each. In total, the Turkish squadron consisted of 10 battleships, 5 frigates and 5 small vessels. The total number of guns on it reached 1214.

Consequently, the Russian squadron was significantly inferior to the enemy in the number of ships and in the number of guns. But in terms of the quality of the tactical training of the command, courage and courage of the personnel, Senyavin's squadron was far superior to the Turkish one.

With a wind from the east-northeast with a force of 3-4 points, the Russian squadron descended on the enemy in two columns, of which the left consisted of 6 ships intended to attack the flagships, the right - 4 ships under the command of Senyavin himself. At about 7 o'clock, at the signal of the flagship "Descend on the enemy," the left column turned towards the enemy and went perpendicular to his course, heading for the center of the enemy line. The right column also changed course, trying to cover the head of the enemy line. At 7 o'clock. 45 minutes Senyavin's signal was raised on "Tverdiy": "The assigned ships should attack enemy flagships closely." Since the Turks were in the wind and their guns had a high elevation angle, they opened fire first. The guns of the Russian ships were loaded with two cannonballs for the first volley, and according to the order, the ships did not open fire until they came within the range of a grape-shot.

Striving to get closer to the enemy as soon as possible, the ships of the left column did not adhere to formation when approaching and went in pairs. Each pair was heading to their assigned flagship. The first pair was "Raphael" with "Strong". It was on them that the fire of the entire enemy squadron was concentrated. When approaching the enemy line, the "Raphael", having shot down the sails, did not obey the helm and cut the line of the Turks between the ships "Messudie" and "Sedel-Bakhri", firing from both sides. "Strong" and two other pairs of ships, approaching the distance of a pistol shot, lay down on a course parallel to the enemy's course. Their formation was so closely packed that the bowsprites of the rear ships lay at the stern of the front ships. Only perfectly trained commanders and teams could carry out this difficult maneuver, being in the immediate vicinity of the enemy, under his fire. Meanwhile, the column under the command of Senyavin attacked the enemy vanguard; the flagship "Tverdiy" very quickly shot down the head frigate of the Turks, and then, striking the next ship in the line, forced it to drift, thereby stopping the movement of the entire enemy column. By this time, "Raphael" left, the crew of which had already corrected the damage to the ship and, going on a parallel course, continued to shoot at the Turkish lead ship. The next two Turkish ships were under concentrated fire from all four ships of the Senyavin column and, unable to withstand their fire, also descended into the wind. The fourth battleship in the Turkish line was Sedel-Bahri, the flagship of Bekir-bey, which had already been seriously damaged by the shelling of the left column's artillery. Senyavin on "Tverdy" blocked his path and shot down the remaining sails and yards with a longitudinal salvo. "Fast" continued to fight with the first three ships and at one time was in a very serious condition, but then he managed to break away from the enemy.

As a result of the bold and decisive actions of the Russian ships, by 10 o'clock the damaged Turkish ships were forced to break down and retreat in disarray towards Mount Athos. At 10 o'clock Senyavin raised the signal "Go down to the enemy even closer and pursue him unremittingly."

Meanwhile, the left column was doing its job. "Powerful" and "Strong" fired concentrated fire on "Messudiya", the rest of the ships fired at other Turkish ships. Due to the stop of the line of Turkish ships, the Russian ships gradually moved forward so that about 10 o'clock. 30 min. the terminal ship "Yaroslav" caught up with the "Messudie". However, due to the loss of control, he arbitrarily turned around, and then dropped to the port tack and went on a countercourse with the end ships of the Turkish line.

By 12 o'clock the situation of the battle was as follows: "Fast" continued to fight with three ships of the vanguard; "Raphael", having passed the line, went out into the wind and put in order its broken rigging and sails; "Retvizan" and "St. Helena" were in the wind relative to the enemy's vanguard: "Powerful" was in the middle of the Turkish squadron; the rest of the ships, stretching out in an arc, fought with the enemy center. The distance between the opponents gradually increased. ... At one o'clock in the afternoon the wind died down completely, and both squadrons stopped fighting. The Turkish squadron was divided into three groups:

1. leeward - of three vanguard ships and three frigates;
2. the central one consists of four ships and two frigates;
3. the last one, where the flagship 90-gun ship "Sedel-Bakhri" and the ship "Besharet-Nyuma", the frigate "Nessim-Fetu" and the sloop "Metelin" were in tow without sails.

During the battle, the Turkish ships were badly beaten, and some of them barely kept afloat. Of the Russian ships, the Raphael, Tverdiy, Powerful and Fast were damaged.

By 2 o'clock in the afternoon it finally calmed down, and then the wind changed and began to blow from the west. Thus, the Turkish squadron found itself in the wind and, having brought it to the sidewind, began to quickly move away from the Russian ships to the north. The wrecked Sedel-Bahri and its escorts were gradually lagging behind the rest of the ships. By 6 o'clock in the evening, when the wind was getting fresher, Senyavin ordered "Uriel" and "Selafail" to cut them off. The assigned ships set off in pursuit, and at night the escorts ("Besharet-Nyuma", "Nessim" and "Metelin") abandoned the "Sedel-Bakhri", fleeing the Russian ships that were overtaking them. "Sedel-Bahri" surrendered. On the morning of June 20, the main forces of the Turkish squadron continued to remain in the wind and were out of reach for Senyavin, but those ships that tried to escort the Sedel-Bakhri and then abandoned it did not manage to catch up with their squadron and remained under the wind off Mount Athos. Senyavin ordered four ships to cut them off. Fleeing from persecution, the Turks were forced to run aground and burn their ships. At dawn on 22 June, two large smoke were observed. Subsequently, it turned out that the Turks burned another ship and one frigate, broken so that they could not go along with the fleet. Soon two more Turkish frigates sank at about. Samofraki. ...

Thus, as a result of the Athos battle, the Turkish squadron lost 3 ships of the line, 4 frigates and a sloop. The losses in personnel were extremely high. For example, only one "Sedel-Bahri" was 230 killed, 160 wounded, and 774 people were taken prisoner by the Russians. On the Russian side, there were no losses in the crew.

After the battle, Senyavin went to the rescue of his base - Tenedos, which heroically held out in the fight against the numerically superior enemy forces. When the Russian squadron approached Tenedos, the Turks besieging the fortress found themselves between two fires - between the fortress and the ships. Having entered into negotiations with the head of the Turkish landing, Senyavin suggested that the Turks surrender on the condition that the disarmed Turkish troops would be delivered to the Anatolian coast. The Turks agreed. On June 28, about 5,000 Turks were transported ashore, and all siege guns and weapons were surrendered to the Russians. The Turkish squadron on June 26 entered the Dardanelles and no longer left the strait. The Russian fleet conquered supremacy at sea.

The immediate political result of the Athos victory was an appeal by the Turkish government with a proposal to begin negotiations on an armistice. In August, these negotiations ended with the conclusion of a truce.

What ensured the success of the Russian sailors in the Athos battle? First of all, victory over the enemy was achieved thanks to the excellent training, courage and heroism of the sailors and officers of the Russian ships. The Russian squadron made long transitions and had. wonderful practice. Much attention in the squadron was paid to discipline, organization of service, combat training and the art of maneuvering. All the commanders of the ships had previously thoroughly studied the combat order and assimilated the admiral's plan. The order itself was distinguished by its simplicity and clarity of presentation. Given the good preliminary preparation commanders of ships, he gave them freedom of action.

In the Athos battle, Senyavin showed himself as an outstanding naval commander, a worthy successor to Ushakov's traditions. He perfectly used the strengths of the Russian fleet - good maneuverability of ships, combat training of personnel, nullifying the superiority of the enemy's material part. Having a smaller number of ships, Senyavin in the decisive sector of this battle - against the flagships - concentrated a double superiority of forces (against one side of the enemy ship two of his ships). Senyavin knew that Turkish ships were fighting staunchly only until their flagships were disabled, and then their combat effectiveness dropped sharply, since the commanders were not prepared for independent actions. Where the situation was clear and little could change during the battle (the left column), Senyavin gave the commanders the opportunity to act independently; where the situation was changing rapidly, Senyavin took over the leadership. He directly commanded the right group that attacked the enemy's vanguard.

* * *
Senyavin won a brilliant victory over the Turks. But the conclusion of the Tilsit Peace Treaty did not allow the Russian squadron to use the results of their victory. On August 23, Senyavin received an order to cease hostilities and immediately transfer the Ionian and Dalmatian Islands and the Cattaro province to France, and Tenedos to Turkey and return to Russia.

In pursuance of this order, Senyavin sent the ships of the Black Sea Fleet at his disposal (5 ships, 4 frigates, 4 corvettes and 4 brigs) and 20 prize ships under the command of Captain-Commander Saltanov to Sevastopol. The squadron of Captain-Commander Baratynsky, located in Venice, was ordered to go to the Baltic. On September 19, Senyavin's squadron, including ten ships and three frigates, left Corfu to travel to Russia. Senyavin was warned of the possibility of war with Britain and the need to avoid meeting with her fleet in this regard.

On October 28, 1807, the Russian squadron arrived in Lisbon. It is unlikely that any of the Russian admirals had to be in such a difficult and dangerous position as Senyavin found himself in during his Lisbon "sitting". An English squadron blocked Lisbon from the sea. Lisbon itself at the end of November 1807 was occupied by French troops under the command of General Junot. Senyavin found himself between two fires. Exceptional diplomatic skill was required to preserve the Russian squadron. Napoleon sought to use Russian ships to fight against England. The Russian Tsar Alexander I sent a decree to Senyavin, in which he was asked to fulfill all the instructions "which will be sent from His Majesty the Emperor Napoleon." Senyavin, who was extremely hostile to the Peace of Tilsit and to the "friendship" of Russia with Napoleon, managed to save the Russian squadron from the encroachment of Napoleon.

In August 1808, British troops entered Lisbon. The British understood that the Russian squadron would not surrender and that a bloody battle was ahead. Therefore, the British Admiral Cotton was forced to negotiate and on August 23 to sign a special convention with Senyavin. According to this convention, the Russian squadron was supposed to go to England and stay there until the conclusion of peace between England and Russia, and then return to Russia. On August 31, 1808, Senyavin's squadron under the Russian flag left Lisbon and on September 27, 1808 arrived at the Portsmouth roadstead.

On August 5, 1809, the Russian teams left Portsmouth and on September 9 arrived in Riga. The people who were with D.N. Senyavin, during a difficult, almost four-year voyage in foreign lands, appreciated him. Later generations also highly appreciated his martial and diplomatic skills. According to Alexander I and Senyavin's immediate superiors, this worthy successor of Ushakov's traditions was unfriendly, just as they were unfriendly to Ushakov himself. Alexander I took revenge on Senyavin for his popularity and fame in Russia, for his independent way of thinking and independence of action. In 1810 Senyavin was appointed to the secondary position of the commander of the Revel port. During Napoleon's invasion of our homeland in 1812, Senyavin submitted a request to the tsar to be assigned to the army. Alexander I wrote on the petition: "Where? In what kind of service? And how?" The admiral was offended by these questions. "I will serve," he replied, "in exactly the way that I have always served and as loyal and devoted Russian officers usually serve." Alexander I did not like such answers, and Senyavin was not accepted into the army. Moreover, on April 21, 1813, he was dismissed from service with half his pension.

During the movement of the Decembrists, although Senyavin himself did not take a direct part in it, the name of the famous admiral was associated with the Decembrists. From the materials of the investigation into the case of the Decembrists, it is clear that the Decembrists intended to put him at the head of the Provisional Government of Russia. Already in the last years of D.N. Senyavin was again called up for service. A new war with Turkey was approaching. Senyavin was instructed to command a squadron on its way to England for further travel to the Archipelago. In a remarkable order issued on August 5, 1827 to Heyden, Senyavin expressed his attitude towards the sailors:

“I consider it very important to draw your Excellency's special attention to the treatment of gentlemen commanders and officers with lower ranks and servants. The remarks I made on this subject show me that gentlemen officers have false rules in reasoning the observance of discipline in their subordinates. There is no doubt that strictness is necessary in the service, but, first of all, it must teach people what to do, and then exact and punish them for omissions.It is necessary to distinguish between involuntary omission from intentional or disdainful: 1) sometimes requires indulgence, 2) immediate punishment without indulgence. .. Chiefs and officers should be able to instigate competition for diligent service in their subordinates with the encouragement of the most excellent. They should know the spirit of the Russian sailor, to whom sometimes thanks are most dear to all. Obscene curses during work should not come out of the mouth of officers, and malfunction and misdemeanors of sailors established military discipline.As it may happen that your squadron will be used for military action, the more should the gentlemen. commanders and officers to acquire the sincere love of their subordinates in order to use them with the best use at the right time ... I suggest to your Excellency, whenever convenience presents itself, to visit ships and frigates in your command, to inspect in all parts the serviceability of these, maintenance people sick and to test the knowledge of sailors in exercises. Moreover, the poor knowledge of the sailors, especially in handling artillery, puts you in the indispensable need to train them as often as possible in cannon exercise and bring them to the proper success in this area, for artillery decides victories. "

Original taken from y_i_p in the Athonite battle

Battle of Athos

On July 2, 1807, Admiral Dmitry Senyavin defeated the Turkish fleet at Mount Athos.

Battle of Athos Between the Turkish fleet under the command of Kapudan Pasha Seid-Ali and the Russian squadron under the command of Vice-Admiral Senyavin, it happened on June 19 according to the Old Style. The battle was a consequence of the desire of the Turks to lift the blockade of the Dardanelles, which was held by Senyavin's squadron, having the island of Tenedos occupied by it as a base. For a long time Senyavin tried in vain to lure the Turkish fleet out from under the protection of the Dardanelles fortifications; but then, under the influence of the results of the blockade, the Turks decided to try to recapture the island of Tenedos from the Russians. June 15 tour. The fleet, taking advantage of the absence of Senyavin, who withdrew on purpose to lure the Turks, approached Tenedos and landed a landing on it, which began to significantly crowd out the small Russian garrison.
However, 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 rounded it from the south and rushed 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 fight bravely unless their flagship is sunk or captured, since in the Ottoman Empire, the death penalty was imposed on leaving the battle before the flagship. Therefore, he concentrated all the fire on the Turkish flagships. By evening, the enemy began to withdraw, avoiding battle. The 2nd flagship of the Turkish squadron, the ship of the captain-bey Bekir-bey, on which all yards and all sails were shot down, and which was in tow behind the battleship and two frigates, was in distress. However, upon seeing the Russian squadron, these ships abandoned the tug, and fled, abandoning the admiral's ship, which was taken on board.
On the morning of June 20 (July 2), it was discovered that the entire Turkish squadron, having caught a favorable wind, went north to the island of Thassos, and the battleship and two frigates (previously helping the captain-bay's ship) were cut off from it by the Russian squadron. June 21 (July 3) Senyavin dispatched the latter in pursuit of Rear Admiral Greig 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 battleship and 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.

June 23 (July 5) Senyavin decided not to pursue the enemy anymore, and to return to help besieged Tenedos. However, due to the headwind and calm weather, he arrived there only on June 25 (July 7). The Turkish troops surrendered and, leaving all their guns and weapons, were transported to the Anatolian coast.
The Russian squadron in the Athos battle did not lose a single ship. Her losses in personnel were as follows: the commander of the ship "Raphael" Captain 1st Rank Lukin, one midshipman and 76 lower ranks. 7 officers, 5 midshipmen and 160 lower ranks were wounded. The Turks lost: 1 ship captured, 2 ships and 2 frigates were burned and 2 frigates sank. The losses of the Turks in personnel are not known exactly, but judging by the losses of the flagship, they were probably enormous.
As a result of the Battle of Athos, the Ottoman Empire lost an efficient fleet for more than a decade and agreed to sign the Slobodzeya truce on August 12 (24).
center.

A place Outcome

Victory of the Russian fleet

Parties

the Russian Empire

Ottoman Empire

Commanders

D. N. Senyavin A. S. Greig

Seit Ali Bekir Bey

Forces of the parties Losses

Russian-Turkish War (1806-1812)

Battle of Athosalso known as Battle of Mount Athos and Battle of Lemnos - happened on July 1 (June 19 according to the Julian calendar) 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 ships of the line, 4 frigates and 1 sloop.

Battle

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

Trying to avoid battle and diverting the fleet from Tenedos, the Turkish squadron rounded it from the south and rushed 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 fight bravely unless their flagship is sunk or captured, since in the Ottoman Empire, the death penalty was imposed on leaving the battle before the flagship. Therefore, he concentrated all the fire on the Turkish flagships. By evening, the enemy began to withdraw, avoiding battle. The 2nd flagship of the Turkish squadron, the ship of the captain-bey Bekir-bey, on which all yards and all sails were shot down, and which was in tow behind the battleship and two frigates, was in distress. However, upon seeing the Russian squadron, these ships abandoned the tug, and fled, abandoning the admiral's ship, which was taken on board.

On the morning of June 20 (July 2), it was discovered that the entire Turkish squadron, having caught a favorable wind, went north to the island of Thassos, and the battleship and two frigates (previously helping the captain-bay's ship) were cut off from it by the Russian squadron. June 21 (July 3) Senyavin dispatched the latter in pursuit of Rear Admiral Greig 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 battleship and 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.

June 23 (July 5) Senyavin decided not to pursue the enemy anymore, and to return to help besieged Tenedos. However, due to the headwind and calm weather, he arrived there only on June 25 (July 7). The Turkish troops surrendered and, leaving all their guns and weapons, were transported to the Anatolian coast.

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

Forces of the parties

Attack of the Turkish fleet by the squadron of Rear Admiral A. Greig - a picture from the book of VB Bronevsky "Notes of a naval officer"

the Russian Empire

Ottoman Empire

Turkish name	Name in Russian	Number of guns	Comments
Battleships
Messiah	Sultan's Majesty	120	Flagship
Sedd Al-Bahr	Stronghold of the sea	84	2nd flagship. Captured
Ankai-Y Bahri	Majesty of the sea	84
Taus and Bahri	Sea bird	84
Tenfik-Nyuma	A sign of a good journey	84
Besharesh	Happy news	84	Washed ashore
Kilid-I Bahri	Sea key	84
Sayad-I Bahri	Sea fisherman	74
Galbank-i-Nusret	Happy	74
Hibet-Andaz	Intrepid	74
Frigates
Meskenzi-Gazi	Field of Mars	50
Hip-i-Zafar	Winner	50
Fakh-i-Zafar	Sailor	50
Nessim	Light wind	50	Washed ashore
Iskender	Alexandria	44
Sloops
Metelin		32	Washed ashore
Rehber-i-Alim		28
Brigi
Alamit-i-Nusret		18
Melankay		18
Total		1196

In addition to these losses, 1 ship of the line and 3 frigates that sank near the islands are also mentioned

Before the start of the Russian-Turkish War of 1806-1812. the military presence of Russian naval forces in the Ionian Sea continued - with a base on the island of Corfu. To strengthen these forces and to defend the Republic of the Seven United Islands, formed under Admiral F.F. Ushakov, Emperor Alexander I sent a squadron under the command of Captain-Commander Alexei Samuilovich Greig - the son of the famous Admiral Samuil Karlovich Greig, an associate of Catherine II, a participant in the Chios and Chesme battles of 1770.

Admiral Alexey Samuilovich Greig. Unknown artist. OK. 1848 g.

In October 1804, a detachment of ships consisting of the 66-gun ship "Retvizan" (flag of AS Greig, commander Lieutenant-Commander F. Selivanov), 74-gun "St. Elena "(commander 1st rank captain IT Bychensky) and two frigates - 44-gun" Venus "(commander 1st rank captain R. Elfinston) and 24-gun" Avtroil "(commander lieutenant-captain N. Baskakov) left Kronstadt. At the destination, Greig was ordered to coordinate his actions with the commander of the ground forces, Major General R. von Anrep and the plenipotentiary representative of Russia, Count G.D. Mocenigo. 11 (23 January) 1805 detachment of Rear Admiral A.S. Greiga arrived safely at Corfu.

Admiral Dmitry Nikolaevich Senyavin. Artist M.I. Drommeter. 1930s

The arrival of Russian naval forces in the Ionian Sea coincided with changes in the foreign policy arena. The successes of the French troops in Italy and the capture of the Genoese Republic accelerated the conclusion of a new allied treaty between Russia and England - it was signed in St. Petersburg on March 30 (April 11) 1805. This treaty marked the beginning of the third anti-French coalition, which Austria joined in the same year. Sweden, Denmark and the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies. Allocating an army of many thousands to help the Austrians for actions in the land theater, Emperor Alexander ordered to reinforce the detachment of A.S. Greig to prepare an additional squadron, and appointed Vice Admiral Dmitry Nikolaevich Senyavin as commander-in-chief of the naval and land forces in the Mediterranean.

On the twentieth of August 1805, the 74-gun ships Yaroslav (DN Senyavin's flag), St. Peter "," Moscow "," Selafail ", 80-gun" Uriel "and 23-gun transport" Kildyuin "stretched out on the Kronstadt roadstead. On board were two battalions of the 2nd Naval Regiment under the command of Lieutenant Colonel F.I. Boassel, and a total of 3350 people. On September 10, 1805, the squadron left for its intended purpose, on December 17, it safely passed Gibraltar and left the Atlantic Ocean for the Mediterranean Sea, and on January 19 of the new, 1806, it came to Corfu.

During March - May, Russian sailors were continuously cruising in the Adriatic Sea, established contact with the leader of the resistance movement of Montenegro, Metropolitan P.P. Negoshem. The armed support of the Montenegrins made it possible for D.N. Senyavin will receive an operational base in the Adriatic, Boco di Cataro, and move the theater of operations from Corfu to the Dalmatian coast.

On August 20, 1806, the third squadron, commanded by Captain-Commander I.A., left Kronstadt to strengthen the Russian forces in the Ionian Sea. Ignatiev with three naval regiments; the squadron consisted of new ships that had just landed on the water "Strong" (flag of IA Ignatiev), "Raphael", "Tverdy", "Powerful", "Fast" and the frigate "Light". The squadron had to follow in difficult conditions, since almost the entire coast of Italy was occupied by French troops. Upon arrival in Corfu, the Russian naval forces in the Ionian Sea and in the Adriatic consisted of 14 battleships, five frigates, three military brigs, two transports, two corvettes and several small ships, including prize money taken from the French, as well as a frigate "Gregory the Great Armenia", converted into a hospital ship.

At that time, the Russian Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Minister in Constantinople (Istanbul) A.Ya. Italinsky repeatedly warned D.N. Senyavin "about the poor disposition of the Port and her ill will" towards Russia. Italinsky also reported that ten warships were in full readiness on the roadstead of Constantinople, and there were up to 35 combat-ready ships and frigates in the Turkish fleet. In other words, the fleet of Sultan Selim III was many times superior to the naval forces of Russia in the Black Sea.

Plan of the Athonite battle from the book of VB Bronevsky "Notes of a naval officer". 1836 g.

With the onset of autumn 1806, Russia's relations with Turkey deteriorated even more, which was facilitated by the intensified activity of French diplomacy: the new French ambassador to Constantinople, O. Sebastiani, regularly carried out Napoleon's instructions. In contrast to the successful actions on land, the position of the French at sea looked truly disastrous. In 1798, France lost most of the ships off the coast of Egypt in the battle of Abukir, then lost the Ionian Islands and Malta, and in October 1805 followed by the complete defeat of the French-Spanish fleet at Trafalgar by Vice Admiral G. Nelson. Then the "Emperor of the French" decided to resort to the old proven method - to push the Turks to war with Russia, which he instructed his ambassador to do, and in the meantime prepare forces for an attack on Russia.

At the insistence of the French ambassador, Sultan Selim III annulled the Russian-Turkish treaty of 1798, closed the Straits and prohibited the passage of Russian warships to the Mediterranean Sea and back to the Black Sea. This immediately impeded the supply from Sevastopol and Kherson to the squadron of D.N. Senyavin, based in Corfu, and cut it off from the Black Sea ports.

On October 15, 1806, the High Port (Turkey) announced the Russian envoy and minister plenipotentiary A.Ya. Italian persona non grata, and on December 18 (30), Turkey declared war on Russia.

In January 1807, Emperor Alexander I ordered Vice-Admiral Senyavin "at every possible encounter with the enemy, not only repel, but defeat, and if necessary, completely exterminate him." Leaving four ships, five frigates, two corvettes and five brigs for the protection of the Ionian Islands, Boca di Cataro and Dalmatia, on February 10 (22) 1807 Senyavin with eight ships, the frigate Venus and the sloop Svalbard sailed from Corfu to the Aegean Sea, closer to the Dardanelles. The following ships entered the Archipelago: "Solid" (Senyavin's flag, 74 guns, could carry up to 90 guns), "Retvizan" (the flag of Rear Admiral Greig), "Strong", "Raphael", "Powerful", "Fast", " Selafail "," Yaroslav ". The squadron had two battalions (950 people) of the Kozlov Musketeer Regiment under the command of Colonel F.F. Padeysky, 36 garrison artillerymen and 250 Albanian light riflemen.

In the early days of March 1807, when approaching the island of Tenedos, Senyavin was informed about an English squadron at anchor there, consisting of the ships Royal George (100 guns, Duckworth flag), Canopus (80 guns), Pompee ( 74), "Windsor Castle" (98) and two bombarding ships. Two days later, the two admirals met, and Dukworth spoke of the failed attempt to break through the strait. Dukworth began his actions to force the Dardanelles on February 7 (19), and the poor condition of the fortifications on both banks, European and Asian, allowed the British to safely pass them - shots from the coastal batteries did not cause any harm to the ships. At the entrance to the strait, the British met a Turkish detachment of ships, consisting of one 64-gun ship, four frigates, four corvettes and two brigs; with the exception of the corvette, Duckworth burned these ships and proceeded unhindered.

On February 9 (21), Duckworth's squadron anchored in the Sea of \u200b\u200bMarmara. While the British were awaiting an answer to the ultimatum presented to Turkey, the Turks strengthened the defenses of the strait, erected additional fortifications, and placed the ships in such a disposition that, in an attempt to break through, the British squadron would inevitably be set in three fires. Dukworth decided not to risk it and retreat to Tenedos, but as soon as his squadron prepared to wean anchor, calm fell, which lasted eight days. The sails sagged, the ships stood motionless, and the position of the British became even more dangerous. On the tenth day, a fresh wind blew, the squadron began to move back, and the Turks met it with heavy fire from all the coastal batteries. The ships received severe damage - so that large stone cannonballs knocked down the masts (one even had a mainmast) and pierced the wooden hulls right through. Dukworth lost 100 personnel, and abandoning a second breakthrough, soon took the ships to Malta.

On February 28 (March 12), 1807, a military council was held on Senyavin's flagship Tverdom: the flagships and captains decided not to risk the squadron and refuse to break through to Constantinople, as was planned earlier with the support of the Black Sea Fleet from the Bosphorus. Instead of crossing the Strait, Senyavin decided to occupy the island of Tenedos for an operational base, limit the blockade of the Dardanelles, disrupt enemy communications and cut off the supply of food to the Turkish capital from the Archipelago. This decision of the commander was carried out. The blockade of the Dardanelles began, the delivery of food to Constantinople from the Archipelago and Egypt became impossible, and the Turkish capital was shaken by popular unrest caused by hunger and soaring prices for food and grain.

On May 8 (20), the Turkish fleet consisting of four ships (one 120-, three 80-gun), six frigates and 50 gunboats under the command of the famous combat admiral Seyid-Ali left the Dardanelles with the intention of liberating Tenedos. The eve of the Dardanelles battle, which preceded the Athos, came.

On May 10 (22), Nord-Ost was blowing - opposite to D.N. Senyavin, but at 2 o'clock in the afternoon the wind changed and passed to Z-W. On the flagship "Tverd" they raised the signal: to carry all the sails, and after a while, according to the records in the logbooks, "on the vice admiral's ship, with a cannon shot, the signal ordered the entire fleet to line up in the cruise line as in the battle line. The signal ordered the entire division to drive on the indicated course to ONO. " The admiral ordered the ship "Selafail" to go forward, and the rear ones to enter the wake of "Tverdiy".

There were ten Russian ships in the order of the battle, but the wind began to subside, and by evening a fresh vest was blowing - favorable for the retreat of the Turks into the strait under the protection of coastal batteries in case of their evasion from the battle. Then Senyavin made a decision: despite the approaching darkness, go into the strait and give the enemy a battle, even if at risk due to the proximity of Turkish fortresses.

A participant in the Dardanelles battle recalled: “Our ships, anticipating the enemy, passing between them forward, bypassing from the stern or from the bow, fought on both sides. Selafail, the first to overtake the 100 cannon ship of the kapudan pasha, gave him a salvo in the stern, and when he began to switch to starboard tack to avoid fire, Selafail, crossing the fordewind, forestalled him and again attacked him from the stern. Uriel got on so closely with the Turkish vice-admiral's ship that he broke his wagon with his rigging. "

Senyavin on "Tverdy" rushed to the ship Seyid-Ali, but on the way he had another Turkish ship, which Senyavin attacked from the other side. Then the "Solid" caught up with the ship Seid-Ali - so that the yards almost crossed, but the Turks managed to retreat under the cover of coastal batteries, and Seid-Ali stubbornly evaded battle.

At eight o'clock it was completely dark. The fleets have mixed. The Dardanelles current carried the ships either to the Asian coast, then to the European one, marble balls were fired from Turkish fortresses, which fell into both their own and Russian ships. For identification Senyavin ordered to raise three lanterns on the Tverdoy's mainmast - after a while the Turks did the same. "Hard" came so close to the European coast that several people were wounded by bullets, and then the admiral ordered to close the lights and tow the ship with boats.

After that Dmitry Nikolaevich will write to the emperor: “The battle lasted almost 2 hours. After the cessation of firing on both squadrons, after catching off from the strait, behind the quiet wind they stopped at anchor near the islets of Mavri. In this battle, Rear Admiral Greig, the captains of the ships, officers and crews showed perfect serviceability, courage and agility, fighting almost under the walls of the batteries. Passing among the Turkish squadron, they fought temporarily on both sides and at a very close distance. The ship Uriel only passed the Turkish vice-admiral ship close, so that the last man got caught on the Erens tal and broke. The flight of the Turkish ships was so haste that three ships ran aground between the batteries. "

In the Dardanelles battle, the Russians lost 26 people killed, 60 wounded. Among those killed was Captain-Commander Ivan Alexandrovich Ignatiev, who led the third auxiliary squadron to Corfu. During the battle, when he was on the left waist of the ship "Strong", a Turkish cannonball hit Ignatiev in the head, mortally wounding him. The ship "Strong" suffered a hole in the hull as a result of being hit by a 60-pound stone core. On May 12 (24), Captain-Commander I.A. Ignatiev was buried on the territory of the Tenedos Monastery.

The losses of the Turks were many times higher; three ships were finally put out of action.

On June 10, at 6 am, Russian patrol ships "telegraph let know" that the Turkish squadron, stationed in the Dardanelles, was being removed from anchor: they counted eight Turkish ships (one three-deck), five frigates, two sloops and two brigs. In the next two days, two more ships, a frigate and a sloop, left the strait and joined the main forces.

On June 12, the commanders of the ships Raphael, Strong, Powerful, Yaroslav, Selafail and Uriel were read out the command of the commander: You know the real circumstances that oblige us to give a decisive battle. But as long as the enemy flagships are not defeated, then a very stubborn battle should be expected. And so, for these circumstances, I suppose I make the attack in the following order. According to the number of enemy flagships, in order to attack each of our two, ships are assigned: Raphael with the Strong, Powerful with Yaroslav, and Selafail with Uriel. Upon making signal No. 1 at the French jack, immediately sort out the prescribed ships for their intended purpose and keep comfortably close to me and Rear Admiral Greig, keeping a moderate distance between themselves. After making signal No. 2 with French jack, repair the performance in the same way as indicated under No. 1 with the same jack. And at the given signal No. 3 at the French jack, immediately descend the prescribed ships on the enemy flagships and pack them for their destination two and one with all possible determination. The past battle on May 10 showed us: the closer to the enemy, the less harm from him. Therefore, if we happened to fall with an enemy ship, then even then we can expect great success. In other words, due to many unforeseen cases, it is impossible to make positive instructions for everyone. I hope that you will be honored to fulfill your duty in a glorious manner. "

Senyavin intended to concentrate the blow on the enemy's flagships, for which he built a battle formation for tactical groups.

A repeated battle took place on June 19 (July 1) 1807 between Lemnos and the Athos peninsula, which went down in history as Athos. D.N. Senyavin reported to Alexander I: "At dawn on the 19th we saw 9 ships, three large frigates, 3 sloops and two brigs." In the center of the Turkish line was the three-deck ship "Missudiye" (carrying 120 guns, the flag of the kapudan Pasha Seyid Ali) and the 80-gun ship of Admiral Bekir Bey "Sed? El-Bahr" ("Bulwark of the Sea"), later captured by Russian sailors. In total, the Turkish fleet had about 1140 guns.

D.N. Senyavin had 728 guns on 10 ships:

"Solid", commander Captain 1st Rank D.I. Maleev; flag of Vice Admiral D.N. Senyavin;

"Fast" - Captain 1st Rank R.P. Shelting;

"Retvizan" - Captain 2nd Rank M.M. Rtishchev. Rear Admiral A.S. Greig;

"Saint Helena" - Captain 1st Rank I.T. Bychensky;

"Raphael" - Captain 1st Rank D.A. Lukin;

"Strong" - Captain 2nd Rank A.P. Malygin;

"Selafail" - Captain 2nd Rank P.M. Rozhnov;

"Uriel" - Captain 2nd Rank M.T. Bychensky;

"Powerful" - Captain 1st Rank V. Krove;

"Yaroslav" - Captain 2nd Rank F.K. Mitkov.

On the morning of June 19 (July 1), a quiet, brahmsel wind was blowing, and to add speed, perform the necessary maneuvers and build up in a battle order, Senyavin's squadron set upper sails - bom-bramsels. Dmitry Nikolaevich gave the order: "Attack the enemy flagships in pairs," which meant the division of the squadron into small tactical groups. The following ships were assigned to the attack: "Solid" - "Fast", "Selafail" - "Uriel", "Raphael" - "Strong", "Powerful" - "Yaroslav", "Retvizan" - "Elena". "Fast" followed in the wake of "Solid". In such a battle formation, they descended on the Turkish line, then lay in a drift and prepared boats in case of towing enemy fire ships.

Turkish ships, built by French craftsmen using new technologies and sheathed with copper, were fast. In terms of the number of artillery weapons, the balance of forces also did not look in favor of the Russians - the Turks had a clear advantage in an onboard salvo: about 1200 guns versus 754. Therefore, to achieve the maximum density of fire, Senyavin decided to attack the enemy so that for each Turkish flagship there were two Russian ones. For this purpose, he appointed tactical groups so that, having taken upwind position, on the starboard tack, attack the enemy from one side. This formation is recognized as a new effective tactical technique of the admiral. Senyavin also took into account the low moral and fighting qualities of the Turks. He knew from previous experience that they fought as long as their flagships were in service.

The Turks, being under the wind, opened fire from a long distance. The Russians did not respond to shots until they approached the enemy. As recorded in the logbook, "from a two-deck Turkish admiral's ship a cannon was fired at our leading ships, but the nucleus was not enough." At about 8 o'clock in the morning from the flagship "Solid" signaled to Greig to attack the enemy vanguard, then "the signal ordered the entire squadron to approach the enemy and keep to the wind. The signal ordered the ship Selafail to approach the enemy ship. The signal ordered the entire squadron to approach the enemy. Then the ship Raphael, being near the Turkish admiral's ship, descended into the interval under the wind between the admiral's ships and from the ongoing fierce firing closed in smoke. The leading enemy ships and one frigate were motionless, then, through a negotiation with the vice admiral's ship, we were ordered to descend and attack the leading enemy ships and fire at whatever we liked. Soon the vice admiral's ship descended to the enemy. Soon Elena and the vice-admiral's ship closed in smoke, and we, approaching the very close range, firing at the Turkish admiral's ship, finally came to a pistol shot, lay down in parallel with it and entered into battle with it. Then another enemy ship approached from the right side, putting us in 2 fire, why they were reflected on both sides with cannonballs, buckshot, on the left side from rifles, blunderbuss and pistols, then from the admiral's ship. We were in this position for more than ½ hour, waiting to board. At 1/2 to 11 o'clock the enemy ship on the right withdrew forward and the firing between us ceased. The admiral's ship, which was to the left, began to stick to the right and went under the stern of us so close that the bowsprit jumper almost touched the rigging, and passed, went to the right side, which is why they continued to fight with it on the right side. Soon a Turkish frigate came from the left side and, approaching a pistol shot, entered into battle with us, which is why we fought a second time on both sides.

In the course of this battle, the enemy ship fighting with us, having received great damage in the rigging, having all the sails shot, the utlegar that was broken on the bowsprit, withdrew from us. At the beginning of 12 o'clock, 2 enemy ships approached from the left side, of which one was a 3-deck admiral. The frigate fighting us, having received great damage in the mast, left in thick smoke, descending into the wind. And the aforementioned ships fired fiercely, and we, using all possible actions, fired cannonballs, brunches, and being already under the wind of the rear enemy ships. The mast of our ship, the standing and running rigging, had already been broken by then, and the sails had already been shot, the topmast cruises were knocked down a little higher with tops. "

The admiral reported to the emperor: “I was descending on the leading Turkish ships and frigates with the Skoriy ship and ordered Rear Admiral Greig to attack the enemy vanguard, one ship and two large frigates. Soon then the leading frigate was shot down, and the ship held on for a few more, then lay down on a drift and with that movement stopped everyone following it. Then Raphael seemed to me, although with padded sails, but passed the Turkish line fairly well, and operated with artillery very regularly. The leading Turkish ship, being badly beaten, began to descend to act along the ship to Raphael, but I managed to warn him, to be on the enemy's line before and to act on the left side of almost three Turkish ships. "

"Tverdiy" fired at the ship of the captain-bey, which approached it, which was passing under the side of "Tverdiy". Between 11 and 12 o'clock "Tverdiy" entered into battle with the Turkish rearguard, which was marching to the aid of the center. An eyewitness recalled: hundreds of guns “spewed death and thunder, shaking not only the air, but the very depths of the sea. Struck by two blows by the messenger holding the telescope. Buckshot tore off his arm when he handed the pipe to the admiral, and at the same moment the cannonball tore him in half and killed two more sailors. Admiral Senyavin, being on the quarterdeck and quarterdecks of "Tverdiy", never for a minute lost his initiative and, most importantly, his presence of mind. His biographer said wonderful words: F.F. Ushakov “left him a legacy of a maneuver and again a maneuver. And never before has Senyavin maneuvered so freely and brilliantly as in the Athos battle. "

By 1 o'clock in the afternoon, the Turkish ships, finding themselves under the wind, began to leave the battlefield and go to the Athos peninsula. At 1 h 30 min calm came; the Russian squadron remained in place and ceased fire. The commander ordered to repair the damage, mainly in the mast, and intended to wait for the wind to continue the battle. Towards evening, they noticed how two Turkish ships and two frigates were far behind their own, and the admiral ordered to catch up with them and cut them off from the main forces. At night, the "Selafail" caught up with the 80-gun Turkish ship of Admiral Bekir-bey "Sed-El-Bahr" ("Stronghold of the Sea") and captured it. The Russians got rich trophies: excellent copper artillery of 42, 22 and 12-pound caliber was stationed on the Sed-El-Bahra, but, most importantly, there were eleven Russian prisoners of war from the corvette Flora on this ship, crashed off the coast of Albania. Diplomatic official Pavel Svinin, who was on the squadron and witnessed the battle, recalled: "Poor people, almost naked, were chained to guns with heavy chains and were forced to shoot" at their compatriots. "Janissaries with drawn sabers watched their actions," but the most amazing thing is that during the entire battle, not a single Russian nucleus never hit them. "

At Athos, the Russians lost 80 people killed, 160 wounded and not a single ship, the Turks lost three ships of the line, four frigates, over 1000 people killed and 774 captured. A contemporary testified: "The Turks fought desperately and courageously, up to 500 people were killed and wounded on the ship of Seyid Ali, and out of 20 enemy ships on the eve of the battle, 12 entered the Dardanelles." Captured Turkish Admiral Bekir Bey, giving his flag to Senyavin, said: "If fate forced me to lose the flag, then I have not lost my honor and I hope that my winner will testify that I defended it to the last extreme." Having accepted the flag, Senyavin returned the saber to Bekir-Bey, invited him to his cabin and “with sincere manner tied him to himself so that at parting they parted as sincere friends. Bekir Bey is very witty. When the broken Turkish fleet entered the Dardanelles, he was asked why on all ships gilded lions were placed instead of bow figures, and Bekir Bey, sighing, replied: "Good Muslims have lion hearts, it is a pity that the heads are donkey's."

The Russian sailors won, and in those conditions, with a sharp inequality of forces and an incapable wind, Dmitry Nikolaevich did everything he could. The strong headwinds that blew over the next day did not allow him to pursue the Turks, moreover, he was worried about the fate of the Kozlovsky musketeer regiment, which remained on Tenedos and withstood heavy battles with the enemy. Therefore, the admiral ordered to follow to Tenedos.

Following the results of the Athos battle, “for the difference shown in the battle with the Turkish squadron on the 19th of June last and in the defense of the fortresses on the island of Tenedos, His Imperial Majesty all-mercifully deigned to the 8th fleet, the captain of the lieutenants, golden swords with the inscription:“ For bravery ", 13 legion of light riflemen to officials of the saber, and the priest of this legion a golden cross." Two Albanian officers also received gold sabers. D.N. Senyavin was bestowed by the emperor with the Order of St. Alexander Nevsky, Greig - with the Order of St. Anna, 1st degree; other naval officers received the same Order of St. Anna of the 2nd degree. The chief of the Kozlovsky musketeer regiment, Colonel F. Padeisky, became the Georgievsky cavalier of the 3rd class.

The emperor also did not deprive the lower ranks of the squadron with awards, which received "three hundred and fifty insignia of the military order." “30 insignia of the military order” were received by “600 lower servicemen of the Kozlovsky musketeer regiment”. And the exploits of the naval gunners testify to their skill and, most importantly, to the fact that the battle took place at close distances.

Episode of the Battle of Athos June 19 (July 1) 1807
Copy of L.D. Blinov from the painting by A.P. Bogolyubov.

Many ships were severely damaged in gear, sails were broken and they lost steering control. In an important source - the logbook of "Yaroslav" it is written: "Having caught up against 100 cannon Pashin ship, we fought with this and the two ships closest to it. At 1/2 to 11 o'clock they had a broken main topsail and broken rigging. " The ship did not listen well to the helm, and having shot all the ammunition of one side, made a turn and began to shoot with the other side (right side), and the enemy ships evaded the battle. Having corrected the broken rigging, on the Yaroslav “they added as many sails as possible, followed in line to their place. Fighting, they descended from the wind behind the enemies "and continued to fight with the Turkish ship and frigate. On "Yaroslav" they saw and recognized all signals from the flagship "Tverdoy" and clearly followed them, until Senyavin signaled to stop the attack. And the "figure of a half compass" mentioned by Senyavin, midshipman Vladimir Bronevsky, who served on the frigate "Venus", explained by the fact that Russian ships were in such a position at the moment when they were pushing the Turkish ships that had huddled together. Bronevsky concretized the climax of the battle: “Some of our ships, being upholstered in sails, changed them. Captain P.M. Rozhnov, in the heat of the battle, changed the broken rey under grape-shot shots. Many captains repaired the damage without stopping to fight. "

The Battle of Athos on June 19 (July 1), 1807, is inscribed in gold letters in the combat chronicle of the Russian Navy and serves as an example of patriotism and honest performance by sailors of their military duty. Naval historians of the XIX century attributed the Athos battle to the same outstanding as Trafalgar, when in October 1805 the British defeated the Spanish-French fleet with small forces, and appointed Admiral D.N. Senyavin on the same level with the English admiral Lord H. Nelson.

Galina Grebenshchikova,
Professor of the St. Petersburg State
Marine Technical University,
Doctor of Historical Sciences