Bayazet battle. The feat of a small garrison. How the Russians defended Bayazet from the Turks. "Fifth column" of local residents

Different fates 1991 for us = 1945 for the Germans. During these years, the USSR and the Third Reich, the relay-race empires of Russian and European civilizations, were defeated and dismembered. Only the West treated the Russians and the Germans differently. Germany got the Marshall Plan, and we -

The failure to storm the Zivinsky positions and the abandonment of positions at Kars brought the left flank of the Russian army to the brink of defeat. The Erivan detachment was cut off from their bases, and the Bayazet garrison was blocked by the enemy. Bayazet sitting (June 18 - July 10, 1877) became one of the heroic episodes during the Russian-Turkish war and had an important moral significance.

The Turkish commander-in-chief Mukhtar Pasha, surprised at the departure of the Russian army from Zivin, ordered Ishmael Pasha to lead the campaign against the Erivan detachment, while he himself slowly moved after Geiman's detachment. As a result, after the retreat of the troops of Loris-Melikov and Geiman from Zivin, and the decision to lift the siege of Kars, the Erivan detachment found itself in an extremely dangerous situation. Tergukasov had no information about this. The telegraph line at Bayazet was interrupted by the enemy, who besieged the Bayazet garrison, and Loris-Melikov, having a large mass of cavalry in his hands, did not think of using it to contact the Erivan detachment and inform Tergukasov about the events of recent days and about his plans. Thus, the Tergukasov detachment was actually left to its fate, among the superior forces of the enemy with almost out of ammunition.

Tergukasov decided to start a retreat to his bases in order to replenish his ammunition and rescue Bayazet. On June 27, the detachment set out from the bivouac on the Dram-Dag heights and headed for Zeidekyan, where they arrived on June 28. The detachment went to in perfect order. About 300 Armenian families left with the Russians. From here, Tergukasov hoped to send a flying detachment of Amilokhvari to Bayazet in order to rescue the encircled garrison, but this idea had to be abandoned, as Ishmael Pasha approached. On June 27, the Turkish general arrived in Dayar and took command of the troops operating against the Erivan detachment. At dawn on June 28, having discovered the withdrawal of the Erivan detachment, Izmail Pasha began the pursuit and approached the Russian camp by 11.00. However, the attack of the Turkish forces did not lead to success. The first blow was repelled by Russian artillery. The Turkish troops, under the impression of previous defeats from Tergukasov, acted sluggishly and were in no hurry to attack the Russians. After that, Ishmael Pasha sent numerous cavalry under the command of Gazi-Magomed-Shamil Pasha, the general of the Sultan's retinue and the son of the famous Gunib Shamil, to bypass the right flank of the detachment. The Circassian cavalry was met by artillery and Amilokhvari's cavalry and also retreated. As a result, despite the fact that the troops of Ishmael Pasha outnumbered the Erivan detachment twice in number and that they still had fresh reserves, the Ottomans could not achieve victory.

On the night of June 28-29, the Erivan detachment began a further withdrawal. By June 30, the detachment arrived in Kara-Kilisa. The troops bivouacked to the west of Kara-Kilisa, among the swamps, having uncomfortable positions nearby. Tergukasov expected to change camp on July 1, but did not have time. At 11.00 Turkish troops again went on the offensive and opened fire on the camp. However, the courage and perseverance of the Russian soldiers made it possible to organize and cover the evacuation of a huge convoy. The march to Surp-Oganes was very difficult. The number of Armenian refugees who traveled with convoys increased to 2,500 families. Heavily loaded carts lagged behind, impeding movement. Among the refugees there were many old people, women and children. Therefore, the defeat of the Russian detachment could lead to a large-scale massacre.

In Surp-Oganes, Tergukasov, with the help of scouts, received information that Mukhtar Pasha ordered Faik Pasha to attack the Erivan detachment at Diadin or Surp-Oganes. As a result, the Bayazet garrison could hold out for some time. It predetermined further actions Russian general. He had two options: 1) go straight to Bayazet to save his garrison, but in case of failure, there was a risk of death of the entire huge convoy, the civilian population fleeing from the Turkish cutthroats. The defeat was quite possible - the ammunition was running out, the enemy had a great superiority in strength, Faik Pasha was waiting in front, Izmail Pasha was overtaking from behind; 2) from Surp-Oganes, turn to the Caravanserai Pass and retreat to the Erivan province to Igdyr. There it was possible to get rid of the convoy with civilians, replenish ammunition and immediately move to the rescue of the Bayazet garrison. Tergukasov chose the second option.

Palace of Ishak Pasha. Modern look the citadel in which the Russian garrison took refuge

Bayazet seat

Bayazet, due to its geographical location, was of great operational and strategic importance. For Turkish troops, it served as a stronghold for the offensive on the Erivan province. For the Russians, it was the extreme southeastern stronghold on the communication route for offensive operation Erivan detachment through the Alashkert valley to Erzerum. Possessing Bayazet, Russian troops covered the Erivan province, although it was possible to bypass it. Tergukasov did not have the opportunity to leave a large garrison, so there were about 1,500 regular troops with 2 guns and about 500 policemen in Bayazet. The 11th military hospital was located at the garrison. The commandant of Bayazet was Captain F. E. Shtokvich. Russian troops were in the citadel, the palace of Ishak Pasha, but he did not have serious fortifications. Almost the entire territory of the palace was well shot through.

On June 4 (16), Russian intelligence collided with the enemy. On the night of June 6 (18) a military council of the commanders of all units of the garrison was held. On the initiative of Lieutenant Colonel of the 73rd Crimean Infantry Regiment G. M. Patsevich (he was the commander of the troops of the Bayazet district), it was decided to carry out an enhanced reconnaissance towards Van to identify enemy forces. At dawn at 5 o'clock in the morning, almost the entire garrison set out along the Van road. At the same time, the command did not put up long-range cavalry reconnaissance. This almost led to disaster. The Russian detachment suddenly collided with Faik Pasha's Van detachment, which was many times superior in number. Turkish forces overlaid the Russian detachment with three sides, and Patsevich ordered a general retreat, which became disorderly. Parts mixed up, and the column itself stretched for 2 miles. During the retreat, Lieutenant Colonel A.V. Kovalevsky died. By 12 o'clock, pursued by the enemy, the Russian troops reached the city. Saving the detachment from complete defeat, the 2 companies remaining in the fortress and the newly arrived Erivan militia of Colonel Ismail Khan of Nakhichevan and the Cossack team rushed to his aid. They organized a corridor and drove the enemy back with rifle fire. Ismail Khan repulsed a detour flank attack of the enemy.

Irregular Turkish troops (about 6 thousand people) began to take up positions around the city. Patsevich ordered to dislodge the enemy from the commanding heights and push him away from the city. However, the poorly organized attack failed, leading to the first enemy breakthrough into the city itself. Turks and Kurds began to kill the townspeople (Armenians). Russian soldiers and Cossacks took refuge in the citadel, and began to strengthen the palace as best they could. The gates were filled with stones and slabs, loopholes were hastily built. Soon Faik Pasha arrived with regular troops and 4 mountain guns. The number of enemy troops reached 10-11 thousand people.

Having placed artillery on a hill 500-600 m from the eastern gate of the citadel. The Turks opened fire. Also, the enemy from nearby heights and philistine houses conducted intense rifle fire, and until nightfall tried to take possession of the citadel, but all attacks were repulsed. The soldiers and Cossacks of the garrison tried all night to adapt the palace for defense. Loopholes were pierced in the walls, and windows were blocked with stones and slabs in the rooms of buildings, leaving a small opening for shooting. On the roofs of stones, shooting nests were built for a lying position. Several volunteers made sorties to collect the rest and supplies. On June 7 (19), at dawn, the Turks and Kurds resumed shelling the citadel. The garrison, saving ammunition, rarely responded. Turkish troops occupied new positions, surrounding the Russian stronghold. On the same day, the Turkish command sent a truce with a proposal for surrender. The Turks guaranteed complete security to the entire garrison and promised to deliver them wherever they wished under guard. The offer was rejected.

On June 6 (18), 1877, Turkish troops organized a decisive assault. At dawn, the Turks began an intensive bombardment of the citadel. Russian guns returned fire, periodically destroying enemy firing positions. The Turkish artillery, assessing the hopelessness of the aimed fire of the previous day, opened fire on the citadel. By noon, huge masses of Kurds with violent cries rushed to storm the citadel. Patsevich, assessing the situation as extremely critical, decided to capitulate. At the same time, other officers were against this decision and, despite Patsevich's order to cease fire and prepare for surrender, they ordered the soldiers to continue resisting. So, one of the opponents of surrender was Ismail Khan, and artilleryman Nikolai Tomashevsky rolled out a gun under the arch into the second courtyard and, having loaded it with grapeshot, directed the barrel at the gate, preparing to open fire on the enemy who was already trying to break into the citadel. Around the gun, bristling with bayonets and sabers, the Stavropol men and gunners lined up, ready to die the death of the brave. As a result, while raising the white flag, Patsevich was mortally wounded. Apparently from their own. After that, the defenders of the fortress opened heavy fire on the Kurds, who were waiting for surrender. Hundreds of people were killed, the rest retreated in disarray. Turkish and British sources report that part of the garrison (from the Muslim militia) nevertheless surrendered, but the Kurds cut them out, despite the fact that "they loudly declared to them about their common faith."

On the same day, the Kurds and Turks, brutalized by the battle, massacred the Armenian community of the city. The houses were destroyed and looted, then they were set on fire, the owners were tortured, raped, and thrown into the fire. From the report of the commandant of the city of Bayazet, captain Shtokvich: “At night there was a striking picture, seeing which, the soldiers began to cry: they cut men, women and children and threw them into the fire while still alive; the whole city was engulfed in flames, screams, sobs and groans were heard everywhere ... ". Sergeant S. Sevastyanov recalled: “At night, buildings burned around the city, screams and cries of women and children were heard, it was the Turks who began to rob, kill Armenians and throw them alive into the fire. Thanks to the moonlit night, we could see and hear the terrible groans of the unfortunate inhabitants; but we were powerless to help them. It was hard to see such a terrible picture. Hundreds of people were killed (including Turkish families who tried to hide their neighbors), some of the women and children were taken into slavery by the Kurds, some were able to escape to the citadel.

On June 9 (21), early in the morning, the Russian garrison prepared to repel another assault, but it did not follow. The Turks decided to starve the Russians out, and an exhausting siege began. The Turks once again offered surrender, but they were not answered. The position of the Bayazet garrison was difficult, since food supplies were small, and there was no source of water in the palace. Therefore, the situation of the detachment became more and more threatening every day. Available water supplies were quickly depleted. In all parts, except for the hospital, they stopped cooking hot food. Water had to be extracted from a stream, which was located 300 steps from the fortification. The daredevils made sorties, and crawled to the stream, but they fell under fire and died. In addition, the Turks threw dead bodies of people and animals into the stream, poisoning the water. As a result, the daily ration of water and food was reduced to two tablespoons of water and to 1-2 crackers. True, sometimes during sorties it was possible to get meat and other provisions, then the portions were increased. Illnesses have begun. The sick and wounded were treated by the senior doctor Savitsky and the junior doctor Kitaevsky. They were assisted by the women who were with the detachment. Among them was the wife of the deceased Lieutenant Colonel Kovalevsky. Thanks to the efforts of doctors and women in the garrison, the epidemic was prevented.

In the very first days of the blockade, the garrison tried to notify Tergukasov about the extreme situation of the besieged garrison. Of the volunteers who responded, the Cossack Kirilchuk and the Armenian translator S. Ter-Pogosov of the Khoper regiment were chosen to deliver the note. The Cossack went missing, and the Armenian reached the headquarters of the detachment and reported on the plight of the garrison. Days passed, and there was still no help. The soldiers were so exhausted that the recoil of the gun knocked them off their feet. Sister of Mercy Kovalevskaya fell ill, weakened from hunger. Kitaevsky collapsed, completely exhausted from tending the sick and refusing the food he gave to the dying. Commandant Shtokvich recalled: “2-3 daily crackers and one tablespoon of water at 40-45 degrees of scorching heat did their job for many days of the siege: they did not kill the garrison, but turned it into a crowd of skeletons and living dead, on which shudder and horror could not be seen.

On June 11 (23) the garrison made a big sortie to conduct reconnaissance and draw water. The Turks reacted quickly and drove the Russians into the citadel. However, it was possible to replenish the water supply and find out that the tight blockade persists. On June 12 (24), a small Russian Chingil detachment (over 1,300 fighters) came out to Bayazet under the command of Major General Kelbali Khan of Nakhichevan, who was ordered to "Release the Bayazet garrison, no matter what." However, the Chingil detachment alone could not push back the entire Van detachment of Faik Pasha. After a stubborn battle, on June 13 (25) our troops retreated.

As a result, the courageous garrison was saved from death. On June 26 (July 8), in the early morning, the Erivan detachment set out from Igdir and moved on a forced march to Bayazet. On June 27 (July 9), Tergukasov's detachment went to the fortress and signaled to the besieged about their arrival. On June 28 (July 10) at 5 am, the Erivan detachment launched an offensive. The infantry advanced in loose formation. Part of the Bayazet garrison made a counter sortie. The overall numerical superiority of the Turkish troops was not used by the Ottoman command due to its uncoordinated actions and general passivity. In addition, the Turkish units were at a considerable distance from each other. After the first volleys of Russian artillery, the Kurdish militias rushed to flee. The 3 Turkish battalions that were in the city resisted. But attacked from two sides, and without waiting for help from Faik Pasha, who, in turn, expected the same from Ismail Pasha, retreated. When Ismail Pasha nevertheless decided to go on the attack, his troops were repelled. The Turks in this battle lost up to 500 people only killed, our losses were small - according to official figures, 2 people were killed and 21 wounded. On June 29 (July 11), the Erivan detachment left Bayazet and, in full view of the Turkish troops, headed for the Russian border. Tergukasov sent a telegram to Commander-in-Chief Grand Duke Mikhail Nikolayevich: “The citadel has been liberated, its garrison and all the sick and wounded to the last man have been withdrawn ... I have the happiness to congratulate Your Highness on the liberation of the heroic garrison.”

Thus, the Russian garrison withstood a 23-day siege against an enemy almost ten times superior in strength (taking into account the approaching forces of the Alashkert detachment of Ishmael Pasha). The defenders of Bayazet showed in the most terrible conditions (heat, lack of food and water) iron endurance and unbending will, fought almost to death. All demands for the surrender of the fortress were rejected. One of the participants in the defense of the fortress noted: “If the siege had lasted another 5-6 days, the entire garrison would have been dead from hunger and thirst, or the citadel would have blown up along with the Turks who had burst into the fortress.” The Bayazet defense became at least one of the most terrible and bloody, but at the same time heroic pages of the war of 1877-1878 and the entire Russian military. Contemporaries compared it with the Shipka epic.

Primorskoe direction

The fighting in the coastal direction began immediately after the declaration of war. Russian troops began to move, and the Turks, taking advantage of favorable terrain (mountain rivers, streams, ravines, gorges, etc.) and impassability, stubbornly resisted. Every position had to be stormed. Therefore, the offensive in the direction of Batum developed extremely slowly. Captain B. Kolyubakin, a participant in the campaign, recalled: “Artillery was moving along the narrow road with difficulty. The wheels of the guns got stuck in clay soil, in some places a green vault of thickets formed above the heads of the column, sometimes so low that they had to use checkers and even axes to clear it.

The first battle took place for the heights of Muha Estate. The 1st Gurian squad and the 5th mountain battery, led by Colonel Mushelov, especially distinguished themselves in it. With strong fire, the Turks were knocked out of the gorge. “Our shrapnel,” noted Kolyubakin, “protected both morally and materially the Gurians as they mastered the gorges, heights, beams and saklis.” The Gurian squad fought bravely until the end of the war and earned the respect of Russian soldiers with its courage and valor. As Kolyubakin wrote, Russian soldiers and officers “paid tribute to the selfless courage of the Gurian squad, which these days, like our light infantry and more or less familiar with the area, was always in front and endured the whole burden of the battle on its shoulders.”

Having captured the heights of Mukha-Estate, the Russian troops continued to move and took another fortified enemy point on the way to Batum - the Khutsuban heights. In May, the detachment crossed the Kinshrishi River, occupied Table Mountain and the heights of Sameba with a quick attack. After that, the offensive was halted due to heavy rains, lack of food and other supplies. Meanwhile, the Turkish command, taking advantage of the opportunity to transfer troops by sea, significantly strengthened the garrison of the Batumi Sanjak. New regular troops. Irregular units of the unit were formed from the local Muslim population. The Ajarians had their wives and children taken hostage to go to war. As a result, Dervish Pasha was able to form several irregular units. As the commander of the troops of the Rionsky Territory, General Oklobzhio, noted: “At the very time when we caressed ourselves with pleasant hopes of success, it (the Turkish command - A.S.) took energetic measures to arouse discontent and enmity towards us in its border residents.”

In May 1877, the Turkish fleet landed troops in Sukhum and Ochemchiri. The commander of the Russian Sukhumi detachment, General Kravchenko, did not show the will to resist and left Sukhum without a fight, the Russians went into the mountains and entrenched themselves in Olginskaya. This position made it possible to confront the advancing enemy and take retaliatory actions. To help the Sukhum detachment, a detachment of General Alkhazov, from the Rion detachment, was moved by a forced march. But Kravchenko did not wait for help and, fearing the onset of the enemy, retreated from Olginskaya to the left bank of the river. Kodor. As a result, by June 1877, the entire Black Sea coast from Ochemchir to Adler was in the hands of the Ottomans. The Turks occupied half of Abkhazia, ruled there for more than three months, robbing and burning the villages. Only in August, having received reinforcements, Russian troops drove the Turks out of Abkhazia.

With the appearance of enemy troops in Abkhazia, fresh troops were sent to the Rion valley to protect the rear of the Rion detachment (it was called Kobuletsky). The Russian troops had to overcome the last frontier at Batum - the fortifications of Tsikhisdziri. But here our troops failed. Dervish Pasha was able to concentrate 30,000 troops. corps, which took advantageous positions on the heights. On June 11 (23), the Russians, after shelling, went on the attack and, after a 14-hour stubborn battle, occupied the enemy's advanced positions. But the command was unable to ensure a clear interaction of parts, as a result, the operation did not end in victory. Russian troops lost up to 500 people killed and wounded. Dervish Pasha, seeing the small number of Russians, launched a counteroffensive. The Russians had to retreat to Mukha-Estate.

Thus, the Kobuleti detachment could not fulfill the main task - to take Batum. Difficult natural conditions, insufficiency of troops and command errors. However, the offensive of the coastal detachment pulled back significant forces of the Turkish army. In September, the Turkish Batum Corps already numbered about 40 bayonets and cavalry.

Brief summary the first stage of the battle for the Caucasus

During the first months of the war, Caucasian front The Russian army achieved notable successes: Ardagan and Bayazet were taken, Kars was besieged, our troops reached the Saganlug and Dram-Dag mountain ranges. The Turkish army was defeated in several battles and suffered serious losses. Turkish troops in Anatolia were tied up by the ongoing battle in the Caucasus. This created favorable conditions for the offensive of the main Russian army on the Balkan front. The Russian army showed good fighting qualities, our infantry, artillery and cavalry outnumbered the enemy. Russian fighters showed high morale. The local population, especially the Armenians and Georgians, saw the Russian liberators from the Ottoman oppression, and how they could help.

However, the first successes of the spring-summer offensive were not developed and consolidated due to the mistakes of the supreme command in the person of the commander-in-chief of the Caucasian army, Grand Duke Mikhail Nikolaevich and the commander of the active corps, Loris-Melikov. Also, a number of gross mistakes were made by some generals (in particular, Geiman at Zivin). The Russian command made a mistake in the number of the enemy, exaggerating his strength, dispersed his forces, carried away the siege of fortresses, to the detriment of the development of the offensive and the destruction of the enemy's manpower. As a result, the Russian troops were unable to launch a swift offensive "in Suvorov's way", destroy the still weak and demoralized army of Mukhtar Pasha and take Kars and Erzerum on the move, which would provide the Russian army from attacks by new Turkish formations. The slowness and indecision of the Russian command gave the Ottomans time to form a shock group of troops, allowed them to repel the Russian offensive and go on the counteroffensive. As a result, the failure near Zivin led to the cessation of the siege of Kars and the withdrawal of Russian troops to the border in order to wait for the arrival of reinforcements from the depths of Russia. Loris-Melikov wrote to the commander-in-chief of the Caucasian army: "The war in the local theater is taking a serious turn, which, if neglected, can greatly resonate with the strength of our dominion in the Caucasus."

Thus, due to the mistakes of the high command, the spring-summer offensive of the Russian army did not lead to victory. Vast occupied territories (except for Ardagan and Mukha-Estat positions) were abandoned by our troops. The Caucasian army went on the defensive. Enemy troops reached the Russian border. By the end of June 1877, the main forces of the active corps covered the Alexandropol direction, the Erivan detachment retreated to the Erivan province. The main forces of the Turkish army, leaving the Kars region, occupied the Aladzhin heights. Both sides, not having a clear advantage in numbers, strengthened the defenses and pulled up reinforcements, preparing for new battles.

I can say with confidence that of the huge number of fortresses and castles that I had a chance to see on my travels, this magnificent Bayazit fortress near the town of Dogubayazit in the far east of Turkey will definitely enter the top three most beautiful. The fortress was founded almost 3000 years ago, back in the days of the kingdom of Urartu, then the Armenians took possession of the fortress and it was called Arashkavan. Then there were Kurds, Turks, Russians. Yes, you heard right, the famous film "Bayazet", filmed in 2003 and dedicated to the fighters of a small Russian garrison, who for 24 days, from June 4 to June 28, 1877, held this fortress from the siege of the Turkish army is dedicated to this fortress.

For 23 days, the garrison courageously repulsed all the attacks of the Turks, and on June 28 was finally saved by the troops of the Erivan detachment of General Tergukasov. During the siege, the garrison lost 10 officers and 276 lower ranks killed and wounded. After the war, under the terms of the San Stefano peace treaty, Bayazet and the territories adjacent to it were ceded to Russia. But according to the decisions of the Berlin Congress, Bayazet and the Alashkert valley were returned to Turkey. To the first world war Russian troops again had to storm the fortress of Bayazet and they captured it, but only in order to finally return the fortress to Turkey three years later.

The place is extremely picturesque, but with transport everything is not easy. There is simply no public transport to the fortress, although the town of Dogubayazit is located just 10 km to the west. If you don't have your own car, you will have to take a taxi. By the way, along the way you will inevitably pass a huge tank range of the Turkish army with hundreds of tanks and armored vehicles standing behind a fence right on the road. I do not advise taking pictures of them; we almost ran into trouble with my habit of photographing military objects.

The town of Dogubayazit is well located on the road leading to the border crossing to Iran, which is less than 20 kilometers away. In addition, only 70 km away is the border crossing to the Nakhchivan enclave of Azerbaijan.

Nearby, near the town of Muradiye, there are interesting waterfalls. God knows how impressive, but it's nice to sit next to them in a cafe and relax after a long journey -

A funny puppy lives in a cafe, tell him hello from me -

20,000 Turks against 2300 Russian soldiers, 3 weeks of siege with virtually no food, water or weapons (twenty-seven guns against three).

We recall the defense of the Bayazet fortress, which largely determined the outcome of the Russian-Turkish war of 1877-1878.

"Courage is a virtue by virtue of which people in danger do wonderful deeds." Aristotle

What do we know about the Russian-Turkish war of 1877-1878? Well, yes, Shipka, Plevna (a monument in Moscow, Muscovites are aware), the liberation of Bulgaria (which many of us now regret :). However, few people know the defense of the Bayazet fortress, where the Russian garrison of 2,300 people held out against the Turks of 20,000 people for 3 whole weeks until help arrived.

About Bayazet Fortress

Initially, in the middle of the 4th century, the city of Arshakavan was built on the site of the fortress itself; it received its name in honor of the Armenian king Arshak II, who founded this city. The city itself did not last even a decade. The city resembled a citadel (fortress), which served as a post for the protection of the Silk Road, as well as a place to store the treasury and shelter the royal family.

During the Ottoman era, the city was renamed bayazit. According to one version, the city got its name in honor of Ottoman Sultan Bayezid I ( "Fulminant"), which in 1400, during the war with Tamerlane, ordered to be built on the site of the former Armenian city fortress.

The citadel of Bayazet itself is more a castle than a fortress, but situated on a mountain with such difficult approaches that three or four infantry battalions with a few guns can withstand a long siege. Important conditions for a successful defense were the availability of provisions, water, ammunition and, of course, the enemy's lack of strong artillery.

In the history of the Russian-Turkish wars, Bayazet was at the center of the strategic attention of both countries. Russia sought to seize it, and Türkiye - to prevent this. The Turkish garrison of Bayazet at that time consisted of two weak battalions with three mountain guns and sixty horsemen. Having learned about the approach of large Russian forces, the Turks left the citadel. So, without a single shot, Russian troops calmly settle in the citadel of paradise.

The Turks are advancing - the Russians are carousing

“Those who do not think about distant difficulties will inevitably face close troubles.” Confucius

General of the 3rd Caucasian Cavalry Division Amilakhori made the following entry in his diary:

“On a high mountain, the whole city spread out like an amphitheater, crowned with a beautiful castle, a mosque with a citadel. In the crypts of the castle there are magnificent marble tombs, where the ashes of the family of the former Pasha Bayazet rest. In honor of this pasha, the city itself, built by him, is named. The citadel breathes with moisture, in the middle of a vast pool a powerful spring beats. The city of Bayazet has about 600 houses and up to 6,000 inhabitants. There are three Armenian churches and two mosques. The whole Bayazet has the appearance of a labyrinth and is so cut up by impenetrable slums that it is difficult for neighbors to communicate with each other. Mostly in the city - houses, Asian type and in a rare case- two-story. There is a brisk trade in Persian goods in the bazaar. At the foot of the mountain, on the outskirts of the city, orchards grow green. But the main attraction of the city is abundant springs with wonderful water.”

Let us remember that on the first day of his stay in the city of Bayazet, General Amilokhvari noted that the high-mountainous Bayazet is rich in abundant water sources, and therefore there can be no problems with it.

On the same day, April 18, 1877, honorary representatives of the Muslim and Armenian population were gathered in the citadel, the former governor's residence. They announced the transfer of the city to the power of the Sovereign Emperor of Russia. The Majlis was given the right to conduct its affairs as before, but the members of the Majlis, and through them the entire population of the city, were warned of loyalty to the new government.

The local population was calm about Russian newcomers. Life in the city was in full swing. Burning all day long bright sun, and there was a bazaar such as the world had never seen. Russian officers, proud of the elegance of their uniforms, were daily "at the sights" of beautiful and treacherous local young ladies. Life seemed so sweet. Few people even thought that "the East is a delicate matter."

We must admit the fact that the troops, despite receiving information about the offensive of the Turks, did not take it seriously, exchanging for endless festivities and debauchery. Impunity during the war has always flourished - it's no secret. Partly because of all of the above, the Russian troops failed to properly prepare, not having time to adapt to rifle and artillery defense, which caused a large loss in people in the first days of the siege.

The walls remained unprotected, the guns and the soldiers themselves were an easy target for the Turks, and only in the battle itself did the soldiers make desperate attempts to hide, defend themselves with earthen bags ... Where did the army leadership look? It's simple - they were doing the same as the rest - drinking and relaxing, so to speak - "belligerently prosperous."

A little later, having recovered from the endless festivities, when the Turkish cavalry steals about 1000 head of the herd right in front of the Russian soldiers’ noses - the courage dissipated, the heads sobered up - it became clear that this was the beginning ... They began to count provisions, soldiers, doctors, weapons ...

“Our detachment is indeed formed strangely: no money, no lifting equipment, no infirmaries, no provisions, no fodder, no monotonous weapons! Real Trishkin caftan! Poverty is the greatest, as if after the enemy pogrom. Looking from the outside, right, you might think that we did nothing exactly 20 years before, how we calmly rested on the Sevastopol laurels.

June 6, 1877 was approaching. This memorable day made many in the Bayazet garrison seriously reflect on the fact that human life is far from endless.

The stubbornness and reckless military spirit of Lieutenant Colonel Patsevich, who decided on unthinkable stupidity, led to a fatal mistake in this battle. Late at night, Patsevich hurriedly convenes a military council of the heads of the garrison units to answer the age-old question: what to do?

It is difficult for us to judge what Patsevich believed in and what he hoped for - all this went with him to another world. The expansive nature of Patsevich left more than one puzzle to posterity.

And instead of taking advantage of precious time and taking care of strengthening the fortress and a number of other problems, he decides on a military sortie to counterbalance the superior army of the Turks. That is, in fact - not trusting any rumors and testimonies of scouts, Lieutenant Colonel Patsevich, as it were, decided to see for himself what kind of forces were sent to Bayazet. Having gathered a detachment, about 1200-1300 soldiers, Patsevich advanced in search of the main concentration of Turkish forces.

I will be brief: having traveled 17 versts of the way, Patsevich's garrison landed in the thick of the enemy's superior forces, and without taking proper measures found himself on a voluntary death. When the entire garrison began to be surrounded from three sides, it was decided to retreat to the side of the fortress. Retreating, fighting off a hail of bullets alone, the garrison was treacherously attacked by the local population.

"Fifth column" of local residents.

Expecting the arrival of the Turks, the Muslim population of Bayazet managed to quickly reorient itself and assumed the role of the “fifth column”. Each house on the way of the retreating to the citadel turned into an active loophole. From the windows of their houses, the population fired with might and main at the detachment of Patskeich. Partisan action On the part of the townspeople, the detachment did not expect at all.

“The passage between the houses has become difficult for our business. There were cases when a soldier, sitting behind a wall or behind a pile of stones, focusing on the advancing enemy, died from some boy who crept up behind him.

His majesty "case"

So the Lord ordered that reinforcements approached Bayazet during the retreat - four hundred of the Erivan cavalry regiment, led by an experienced and already elderly commander, Colonel Ismail Khan of Nakhichevan. There were about 500 riders in total. Before the eyes of Ismail Khan, as in the palm of your hand, a dramatic panorama of the retreating detachment of Patsevich and the Turkish Kurds pursuing him with wild, joyful cries opened up.

Ismail Khan had a few seconds to think. He hurried his hundreds and took an advantageous position, from which, with well-aimed fire, he began to counteract the bypass of the enemy cavalry. This attack by Ismail Khan was so unexpected that the bypass of the enemy was actually paralyzed. The entire right flank of the fleeing Russian detachment, where there were also wounded, got the opportunity for a safer retreat to Bayazet itself.

Shocked by the sudden attack of Ismail Khan of Nakhichevan, the enemy suspended his pursuit. At this time, infantrymen from the Crimean and Stavropol battalions arrived from the citadel to help Ismail Khan, who, with their fire attack on both sides of the road, facilitated the retreat.

The fact of Ismail Khan's feat, although with some inaccuracies, is recorded for history in the most authoritative military edition of the Russian Military Encyclopedia.

“Only thanks to the evacuation from the citadel of the newly arrived Colonel Ismail Khan of Nakhichevan with 2 hundred of the Erivan irregular cavalry regiment and both companies remaining in the city, the detachment could continue moving towards the city ..”

Later in his diaries, Ismail Khan recounts:

“At about 10 o’clock in the morning, we started a heated exchange of fire with the advanced crowds of Kurds, which were joined by the Turkish infantry around noon. Against my four hundreds of militia, just recruited from the villages and not yet disciplined, and besides, tired of insomnia and a sixty-verst night march, the Turks deployed a mass of several thousand, which continued to be strengthened by new and new crowds. Nevertheless, having used up all the cartridges, I sent to the fortress for reinforcements.

They sent me 25 people from there with an officer. While with this handful we withstood the hellish fire of the Turkish infantry, crowds of Kurds began to cover my flanks and even galloped to the rear. Fearing to be cut off from the fortress, I began to retreat, and the Kurds settled so energetically that my hundreds seemed to melt away: many were killed, others were captured, and still others fled. Only 28 people remained with me with 4 officers, among whom was my son. Then I ordered my riders to put one soldier on my saddle, and in this form I jumped into the Bayazet citadel.

"Army of rams led by a lion will always triumph over armies of lions led by a ram."

In fairness, let's clarify the aphorism of Napoleon I Bonaparte to our case: there was also no lion at the head of the enemy army of many thousands. And thank God!

In Bayazet, it has already become known about the panicked retreat of Patsevich's detachment and its pursuit by hordes of Kurds and Turkish cavalry. As they approached the garrison, this nightmarish sight was clearly visible from the height of Bayazet and sowed confusion in the garrison. At the same time, a panic began at the gates of the citadel: in such a frenzied turmoil, one's own could involuntarily become more dangerous than the enemy.

As usual, difficulties and problems do not come alone. And as mentioned above, as a result of disorderly festivities, no one bothered to fill the pools and reservoirs with water. And the time was summer - the month of June. Nobody thought to bring water from the spring either. When they missed it, there was no more water, they drank it all on the very first day of the siege. In the future, volunteers extracted water under the shelling of the Turks, from the river under the walls of the fortress - soon the Turks threw the corpses of people and horses into the river, and the besieged drank this water - there was no choice.

At the end of the siege, one (!) Spoon of water per day was given out in the diet.

Meanwhile, as soon as the remnants of the detachment took refuge in the citadel, G. M. Patsevich, as if nothing had happened, as if there was no such confusion outside the window, enjoying tea, he thought about how to take revenge. He was thinking about a new operation - to push the Turks away from the citadel. Now Patsevich has foreseen everything, whom, how much and where to send. Of course, in the heat of the retreat, perhaps he did not appreciate the strength of the enemy. He may still have been in the throes of flight, but he was still in a relentless drive to attack the enemy and drive the Turks back from the citadel. Without a doubt, this brave and honest officer stubbornly acted only according to his own understanding.

Face to death

Almost the entire, miraculously remaining garrison of Bayazet, restless Patsevich, led out of the citadel to a new, now last Stand Hastily biting and obedient soldiers of Bayazet knew that they were again turned to face death and that there was no more return. Surprisingly, no one said a word that they did not want to go to certain death. They took an oath of allegiance to the Tsar and the Fatherland, and this was enough to fulfill the order of the commander. Leaving the citadel, going into battle, as if on command, they shouted to the rest: “Farewell, brothers!” They looked at them sympathetically and answered: “God help!”

As soon as the new detachment of Patsevich went beyond the gates of the citadel, it turned out that the Turks tightly surrounded it from the side of the mountains, and their numerical strength so much exceeded the Russian detachment that it was pointless to attack the heights. All paths were already blocked.

Surprisingly, Lieutenant Colonel Patsevich quickly oriented himself and, in order to avoid useless losses, again ordered to retreat and return back to the fortress.

The food was better, but not much. There should have been 2,000 poods of crackers in the warehouses, but it turned out to be 356 poods. As a result, crackers were given 200 grams per person per day, and ground barley was also given to the besieged.

The Russian bureaucracy is amazing - almost until the end of the siege, horses were not allowed to be slaughtered, because - “how can you account for them later ?!”. That is, by the beginning of the siege on June 6, 1877, there was virtually no food or water in the garrison.

Interestingly, if not for Bayazet, the outcome of the Russian-Turkish war could have been different. The general of the Turks, Faik Pasha, led a 20,000-strong army to the Caucasus, and he would calmly break in there, taking Tiflis, because there were almost no Russian troops in the southern provinces. Further, the road to Azerbaijan and Yekaterinodar would open ... in general, there would be a complete hello and “cheers”.

However, Faik Pasha foolishly reported to Istanbul about the capture of Bayazet, and could not leave until he took him. The 20,000-strong army spent three weeks under the fortress, enabling the Russians in the Caucasus to gather troops.

In fact, the Turkish general understood the gravity of taking the fortress in the conditions of unbearable summer heat. He decides to starve the fortress. He was well versed in information, and that the defenders in the citadel had literally only 2-3 days left of food supplies. Later, for such delay, he will appear before a military tribunal. But that's later.

Revelations of Colonel Ismail - Khan of Nakhichevan

“… — It could have happened worse! one young artillery officer suddenly exclaimed, standing in a crowd of others, but, unfortunately, I don’t remember his last name. - Do not die three times?! We will fight as long as our legs hold, and there, what God will send. I silently extended my hand to this officer and told the others that the main thing was not to lose heart and not to lose hope, because we would be rescued at all costs.

That same evening, I conferred with some officers about our situation, and it turned out that our main grief would lie in the lack of water, for the extraction of which we had the only means - night sorties to a small river that flowed at the foot of the Bayazet rock, steps in one and a half hundred from the walls of the citadel. But the Turks occupied all the buildings around the citadel and so vigilantly guarded the approach to the water that not one of the sorties for water undertaken by the hunters at night was not without dead or wounded. Hunger was also not slow to come into its own: people began to be given only one cracker a day.

On the fourth day of our sitting, the enemy fire suddenly stopped, and a Kurd rode up to us as a truce with a letter from Ishmael Pasha, the content of which was approximately the following: “Your situation is hopeless, hope for help is in vain. Tergukasov is defeated. Follow prudent advice, surrender, earn the mercy of our magnanimous Sultan. The same was repeated several times by the Kurdish parliamentarian, who was finally instructed to convey in words that "as long as at least one soldier is alive, there can be no question of surrender." Half an hour after the removal of the Kurd, the positions of the Turks began to smoke, and their shots thundered with new bitterness ...

Over the following days, the position of the garrison worsened more and more. The number of dead and wounded grew. The dacha of crackers had to be reduced even more. People weakened, among the horses began to die. The heat, meanwhile, became unbearable, and the extraction of water is more difficult every day: opposite the very exit of the trench to the river, the Turks placed a strong guard, which bombarded every daredevil who tried to quench his thirst with a hail of bullets.

A pot of water sometimes cost several lives, and the river at the end of the trench was soon covered with such a mass of decomposing corpses that the water scooped from it could not be brought close to the nose.

The soldiers, however, not only greedily attacked this fetid poison, this almost juice from the corpses, but there were cases that they drank even worse abomination, which it is inconvenient even to name. As a result of all this, various diseases appeared among people, from which they died even more than from enemy shots.

Hunger, heat and thirst did their job - and one of the first people who broke down, unfortunately, was Patsevich himself. He repeatedly gave the order to several soldiers to hang out a white canvas, and then, unable to stand it himself, got up, shouting - in broken Turkish: "enough, enough - we surrender."

An artillery officer suddenly flew in to me. He was excited. "Pacevic raised the white flag, and a huge mass of Turks was already pouring towards the gates." After that, I jumped out into the courtyard, where a mass of officers and soldiers crowded, and I really see: a white flag fluttered high on a huge pole attached to the wall of the citadel, and Patsevich and several officers were standing nearby. “Gentlemen, what are you doing?! I shouted. Did we take an oath for that, in order to dishonor ourselves and Russian weapons with a cowardly surrender!? Ashamed! As long as even a drop of blood remains in our veins, we are obliged to the King to fight and defend Bayazet. Whoever decides to do otherwise is a traitor, and I will order him to be shot immediately! Down with the flag, shoot guys!”

In response to this, there was a loud “cheers” from all those present, and I also heard several exclamations: “We will die, but we will not surrender.”

A few moments later, shots rumbled from our walls and threw back crowds of puzzled Turks who were already approaching the gates of the citadel with axes and stones. The enemy also responded immediately, and the bullets buzzed from all sides, like a swarm of bees, and Lieutenant Colonel Patsevich, who died the next day, was mortally wounded, first of all.

Whether it was his own bullet or the enemy's, I can't decide. There were votes for both, but Patsevich was wounded in the back.

The mortal wound of Patsevich further strengthened the patriotic spirit of the besieged Bayazets. The surrender of the citadel was now out of the question.

So, by the will of the prevailing sad circumstances, without an appointment from above, Colonel Ismail Khan Nakhichevan took command of the garrison. He did not prepare for this at all, did not expect that this would happen. But, being the oldest in the fortress in rank and age (he was then 59 years old), Ismail Khan was aware of his duty not only as an officer of the Russian Army, but also as a citizen of Russia.

Ismail Khan is portrayed by Pikul in Bayazet as a coward and a traitor, and this is not true. It was Ismail Khan who ordered to hang all the Turkish truce envoys with a proposal to surrender (one was hanged, the other was thrown out of the window), and after the end of the siege he was awarded the Order of St. George.

Faik Pasha was furious that his troops could not take the fortress with a tiny garrison. Offers of surrender became more and more honorable, and assaults became more and more fierce. However, the weakened, hungry people, who fell to the floor from the recoil of a gun in the shoulder, held on. During the siege, 317 Russian soldiers died, and approximately 8,000 Turks. The Turks had 27 guns, the Russians had 3

At the very end of the siege, the situation became very bad. The garrison was exhausted from thirst, hunger, heat, lice, but did not give up, and repelled the assaults. Captain Shtokvich replied to Faik Pasha's last proposal:

“If you so strongly desire to take the fortress, come and take us by force. Russians don't give up alive."

However, the cunning Shtokvich also managed to send scouts to Tiflis (there were somehow no telephones then), and there, having learned about the position of the garrison (they had never heard of him), they deployed the army of General Tergukasov.

June 24 is the day of God's grace. Heavy rain fell on the citadel - a fabulous elixir of life. The defenders enjoyed plenty of moisture, and no longer missed the opportunity to make supplies of water, but soon there was no need for them.

It was June 28, 1877. This day became a real holiday for the surviving Bayazets. In the morning, firing began behind the fortress. A detachment under the command of Lieutenant-General A. A. Tergukasov went to the aid of the besieged.

What happened next? Shtokvich and Ismail Khan received the Order of St. George (and Shtokvich was also given a golden weapon). George Cross the artilleryman, Lieutenant Tomashevsky, also acquired: it was he who turned the guns to the gates after the order to open them, and to Patsevich’s threat with a tribunal, he literally answered the lieutenant colonel with noble aristocracy - “Go to ... .., do not interfere with the Russian soldier to die.”

All Bayazet's soldiers received a cash award and promotion to the next rank. But Faik Pasha was demoted from the generals, deprived of all orders, sentenced to 6 months in prison, and after serving time, he was expelled from Istanbul.

But the main award was received by Lieutenant General A. A. Tergukasov, who came to the rescue. The feat and historical role of Colonel Ismail Khan was not mentioned with the same honors.

“Do not be afraid of physical death, but beware of moral death.

Moral death never threatened Ismail Khan of Nakhichevan. This is the main meaning of his long life on Earth.

On February 10, 1909, the Nakhichevan telegraph spread the sad news throughout multinational Russia: “Today at 7 o’clock in the morning, the defender of Bayazet, cavalry general Ismail-Khan Nakhichevan, died.”

An obituary in the Kavkaz newspaper dated March 3, 1909 not only reminded the public of the greatness of this man. For the first time in history, the true historical role of Colonel Ismail Khan was finally declared in the distant days of the gunpowder June 1877 in Bayazet. Did the soaring soul of Ismail Khan feel that the truth, masked for so long, broke out into the white light.

From the point of view of military science and human capabilities, Ismail Khan did the impossible. For three weeks, a thousandth garrison under his leadership defended the fortress without food and water. These events clearly showed the whole world the heroism and glory of Russian weapons, the invincible spirit of our soldiers. The cold-blooded actions of the leadership served as an example for many future military leaders and became a living tool in the fight against betrayal within their army.

The memory of the behavior of the Russian army during the defense of Bayazet is especially relevant today. This is one of the most delightful examples on which to educate the rising generation. In the context of the decline of the national spirit, the crisis in armed forces, it is precisely such historical examples that should help us raise a new generation of people devoted to the Motherland. In the face of a thousand daredevils and their brave commander, the world saw simultaneous manifestations of honor, devotion, courage, dignity, will, contempt for death and danger. Modern Russia there are not enough commanders like Ismail Khan and soldiers like those who served in his army.

Love history - be inquisitive, remember and honor the history of our ancestors, those who were fearless, did not exchange honor and pride in serving their patronymic - Great Russia!