How Suvorov was taken by the impregnable Ishmael. Izmail: where it is, map, fortress and other attractions

Izmail is a fortress where everything that remains of the ancient city is located, the history of which has not yet been fully explored.

The emergence of Ishmael, its early history

The appearance of Ishmael is covered in legends. Historian scientists claim that the first human settlements were here already in the second millennium BC, during the Bronze Age.

There is an assumption that in the sixth millennium BC a settlement of the Gumelnitsa culture was based in the Izmail area. In 1979, during excavations, various artifacts of ancient cultures were discovered. These are amphorae and other ceramic products. The Izmail fortress did not yet exist, but in its area there were Greek, Geto-Thracian and Sarmatian settlements.

In the 11th-12th centuries AD, the Galician-Volyn principality was located here. In the 12th century, Genoese merchants built a fort that allowed them to live and protect themselves from attacks by nomadic tribes. In the 15th century, the Turks captured the fort, began to rebuild it, and thus created a defensive structure that became a checkpoint between Russia and Turkey.

Turkish troops in Izmail

The thirteenth century for the Smil fortress was marked by the fact that it was almost completely destroyed by the troops of the Golden Horde. A hundred years later, the city of Sinil appeared on this site, and in 1538 the troops of the Turkish Sultan rushed here. The Turks plundered the city and devastated it, but did not completely destroy it. The city was named Ishmasl (which translated means “hear, Lord”).

The Ottoman conquerors pursued harsh policies, and therefore the population of Budjak protested. Soon its inhabitants united with the Zaporozhye Cossacks and in 1594 attacked Ishmasl. The Sultan's troops desperately defended themselves, and soon built the Izmail fortress.

The fortress was built with the help of specialists who were invited from Europe. They created massive stone walls, up to ten meters high. Deep ditches were dug around the fortress and water was immediately poured into them. Thirty thousand Janissaries occupied the fortress of Ishmael, and woe to those who tried to take it by storm. 265 guns installed there shot at enemy troops. The fortress was considered impregnable for a long time.

Attempts to storm the fortress

The end of the eighteenth century for the history of Russia is marked by constant conflicts with Turkey. The war of 1768-1774 did not end the dispute between the two states. The Izmail fortress was taken on July 26, 1770 by troops under the leadership of Prince N. Repnin, and in 1771 the Russian Danube flotilla was even formed here, but in 1774 the fortress was returned back to the Turks. These were the terms of the peace treaty concluded at that time.

In 1789, war broke out again between Russia and Turkey. This time Ishmael became a fortified garrison. Many believed that this fortress could not be taken. But the Russian army again tried to take possession of this stronghold.

In 1790, the commander-in-chief of the Russian army, General Potemkin, gave the order to take Izmail. The Russians moved forward reluctantly, and there was little success. Then it was decided to use Suvorov’s troops.

Commander Alexander Vasilievich Suvorov

Alexander Vasilyevich Suvorov was a weak and sickly child as a child. Everyone told him that due to his health, he was unlikely to become a military man and would not be able to handle heavy weapons. And no one knew then that this boy was the future commander Suvorov, for whom the Izmail fortress would become the most important achievement in his career.

In the winter cold, Suvorov walked down the street in a light jacket. In the spring he swam in rivers in icy water. He traveled often and rode horses well. He did all this in order to prepare for military service. As a result, he turned out to be a great commander, who gave more than fifty years to the army. At the very beginning of his service he was a soldier, and at the end he became a generalissimo and field marshal. He has more than thirty-five battles to his name.

Preparations for the capture of Izmail under the leadership of Suvorov

Suvorov came to the capture of Izmail as an already experienced commander. He established himself as a good boss who treated his soldiers warmly and caringly, thanks to which he repeatedly won victories. In 1787, Russian soldiers under his leadership completely dispersed and destroyed the six-thousand-strong Turkish army, and then brilliant victories followed in Rymnik and near Focsani. The Izmail fortress, for which 1790 was a turning point, was considered invincible at that time. In addition, the Turkish Sultan gave the order to execute all his soldiers who surrendered to Russian soldiers.

In December 1790, the Supreme Council of the Russian army decided that it was better not to storm the Izmail fortress for now, and proposed moving to winter quarters. Russian troops at this time suffered greatly from hunger, cold, and illness began. The arrival of Suvorov instilled cheerfulness, because everyone in the Russian army knew that this commander did not like to wait long. And so it turned out. It was Suvorov who took the Izmail fortress. He decided to do this in the very near future, but first he should prepare properly.

When Suvorov appeared, the Izmail fortress looked down on the Russian soldiers. For ten days he actively prepared soldiers for the assault. On his orders, a ditch was dug, a rampart was built next to it, and now the troops began to train. Suvorov himself showed the soldiers how to climb the walls and stab the Turks (they were represented by stuffed animals). At sixty years old, he was a very active and youthful-looking man.

The beginning of the assault on Izmail

On December 9, 1790, Russian troops began an assault on the Turkish fortress. Before this, on December 7, Suvorov sent an ultimatum to the Turkish Pasha, who ruled Izmail, with a proposal to surrender. Pasha flatly refused and replied that the sky would sooner fall to earth than Ishmael would succumb to the onslaught of foreign troops.

Then Suvorov decided that Izmail was a Turkish fortress that thought a lot about itself, and began to carefully prepare the offensive. The Russians constantly fired flares and gradually lulled the vigilance of the Turkish rank and file. The assault on the city began early in the morning, at eight o'clock, and by 11 o'clock in the afternoon it was already clear which side would win.

Before the battle, Suvorov divided his army into three parts. The Izmail fortress, the year 1790 being a turning point in its history, was attacked from three sides. The troops of Pavel Potemkin were advancing from the west and north, the army of General Kutuzov was advancing from the east, its commanders were Orlov and Platov. The army of General Deribas took part in the battle; it consisted of 3,000 people and advanced from the Danube.

The culmination of the battle for Ishmael

The Russian army suffered great difficulties during the battle for Izmail. The fourth column, consisting of Cossacks, commanded by the St. George commander Vasily Orlov, broke into the Izmail fortress from the Bendery Gate. The Cossacks were poorly trained in military affairs. While they were storming the fortress, the Bendery Gate opened. The Turks jumped out and began to exterminate the Cossacks with sabers.

Suvorov found out about this and sent the Voronezh hussars and the squadron of Colonel Sychov to help. A battalion of soldiers from Kutuzov also arrived. In this way, they managed to drive away the Turks, and they were partially destroyed.

At this time, the commandant of the fortress, Izmail, decided to blow up the bridge in front of it in order to prevent the Russians from entering there. The hussar commander Volkov nevertheless organized a crossing, three of his squadrons broke into the city and captured eight hundred people. Soon the city fortifications were captured, and fighting began in the city itself. The fight with the Turks lasted until 16 hours, then the Russian army finally took possession of it.

The brother of the Crimean Khan, Kaplan Giray, made an attempt to recapture the city from the Russians. He gathered a detachment of several thousand Tatars who went to attack. They did not succeed, since Suvorov sent a detachment of rangers to meet them, and they led the Tatars into the coastal floodplains. Kaplan Giray and his sons were killed.

The end of the battle for Izmail

The assault on the Izmail fortress led to huge losses among the Turks. They killed about thirty thousand people, the Russians lost four thousand. The Russians captured all the guns, as well as jewelry worth 10 million francs. Mikhail Illarionovich Kutuzov became the commandant of the captured fortress.

The bodies of the Russian killed were buried in cemeteries, while the Turks were thrown into the Danube, and prisoners did this. A hospital was opened in the city itself.

For the capture of Izmail, Suvorov received the rank of lieutenant colonel of the Preobrazhensky regiment. The soldiers who took part in the assault were awarded silver medals, the officers who led the battles were awarded gold crosses with St. George's ribbon.

Ishmael in the twentieth century

In the twentieth century, Ishmael is experiencing an era of rapid development. This time is marked by the creation of the Russian-Danube Shipping Company. The Izmail port is operational. During the imperialist war, the city experienced famine and lack of basic necessities.

In 1918, Izmail became part of the lands of royal Romania. There he remained until 1940. Old-timers remember Izmail of that time as a well-groomed, patriarchal city. The cultural life there was very developed. Theatrical performances were constantly held. The city had women's and men's gymnasiums, in which various subjects were studied.

In the history of the Great Patriotic War, the Danube Flotilla showed its best side. Before the start of the war on June 22, 1941, Soviet soldiers in Izmail had already entered combat positions. And one and a half thousand Soviet soldiers successfully defended themselves against twenty thousand Romanians for a long time. Only when the order was given to leave Ishmael and go to defend Odessa, did they leave it. But three years later, Soviet troops returned and liberated Izmail.

Diorama of the Izmail fortress

Twentieth century artists decided to immortalize the storming of the Izmail fortress. A diorama “The Assault on the Izmail Fortress” was created, with the help of which it was possible to disassemble it in all details. The diorama was installed in 1973 in the building of a Turkish mosque. It was created by military artists E. Danilevsky and V. Sibirsky. The diorama presents the audience with the turning point of the capture of the fortress. You can see Russian soldiers crossing the moat and climbing the walls. They desperately fight the defenders of the fortress. The flag of the Russian army is already installed on the main tower. In general, the diorama depicts the city of Izmail, the fortress. Many people have taken photos of this diorama more than once.

The main gates of the fortress are already open, and the Russian grenadiers are heading into the city. On the right you can see the Russian flotilla moving along the Danube, and the Black Sea Cossacks approaching the shore. On the bank on the left is the figure of Suvorov, who is leading the battle.

Izmail Fortress in the modern era

Now the Izmail fortress is not in the best condition. Work is underway to create new buildings and an arboretum in its place. At the same time, the fortress that was once taken by the commander Alexander Suvorov is destroyed. Archaeologists penetrate into the landfills created with the help of construction equipment, whose main task is not to study antiquity, but to search for treasures.

Back on December 19, 1946, by decree of the Izmail City Executive Committee, the territory of the fortress was declared a protected area. But a lot has changed since then, and now the barbaric destruction of the architectural monument is taking place. Employees of the Department for the Protection of Monuments in the Odessa Region believe that the city authorities should do everything to preserve ancient artifacts that were not destroyed.

On December 24, Russia celebrates Military Glory Day, established in honor of the capture of the Turkish fortress of Izmail in 1790. This was the most important victory for Russia, clearly demonstrating both the military genius of Suvorov and the valor of the Russian soldiers.

During the era of the Russian-Turkish War of 1787-1791. Izmail was a powerful, modern fortress, rebuilt according to the design of European specialists. The citadel was surrounded by a 7 km long rampart, the height of which in some areas reached 8 meters. A ditch was built in front of the rampart, the width of which reached 12 meters. The basis of the Turkish position were the 7 bastions of the fortress. Inside the fortress circuit there were a number of fortifications and many stone buildings, which could also be used for defense. In total, the Turks installed up to 200 guns on the rampart and bastions. The weaker section of the defense was the section adjacent to the Danube. Here the Turks had mostly field-type fortifications and less than 100 guns. In total, the fortress garrison numbered up to 35 thousand people. However, in the Turkish army, as a rule, up to a third of the army's strength were units intended primarily to perform various jobs, and their combat value was low. The exact number of the Turkish garrison at the time of the storming of the fortress, most likely, will no longer be possible to accurately determine.

Siege or assault

In the 18th century, large fortresses in Europe, as a rule, were taken by a long siege, forcing the garrison, weakened by deprivation and disease, to capitulate, or by successive capture of the fortifications, often stretching over weeks or even months. A.V. Suvorov, who was appointed commander of the Russian troops near Izmail in November 1790, did not have this time. A further siege of the fortress would cost the Russian army thousands of dead from disease, and would not at all guarantee the surrender of the Turkish stronghold. Time also worked for the Turks in the foreign policy aspect. Russia's recent ally, Austria, pursued an openly hostile policy, which, under certain conditions, could even lead to armed confrontation. Prussia and England also became more active in this regard. Russia needed a major military victory, not only in the military aspect itself, but also politically, therefore, the outcome of not only the campaign of 1790, but also the entire war, depended on the capture of Izmail or failure under the walls of this fortress.

"More sweat, less blood"

Immediately after the decision of the military council to take Izmail by storm, Suvorov began vigorous preparations, which were carried out in an extremely short time - in 7 days. The equipment and food of the troops was improved (Suvorov had extensive experience in quartermaster service and combating abuses in this matter). The soldiers trained in overcoming fortifications, for which a special town was built, reproducing a section of the fortress perimeter. For the assault, ladders and fascines necessary to overcome the ditch and rampart were prepared; Batteries were equipped that were supposed to suppress the fire of the defenders and ensure the success of the columns going on the attack.

Suvorov's disposition

According to Suvorov's plan, the fortress was to be taken by a simultaneous attack of troops divided into three groups. The western front of the fortress was to be attacked by up to 7,500 people under the command of P. Potemkin. From the opposite side, Samoilov’s group (12 thousand people) was attacking. Finally, de Ribas's group (9 thousand) was supposed to land and attack from the Danube. As part of these three groups, 9 columns were formed under the command of Lvov, Lassi, Meknob, Orlov, Platov, Kutuzov, Arsenyev, Chepega and Markov. Thus, up to half of all Russian troops attacked from the river, where the Turkish defense was most vulnerable. According to the plan, at the beginning it was necessary to take the external fortifications and only then, taking into account the strength of the garrison, at the same time begin street fighting and capture the interior of the fortress.

At about 6 a.m. on December 10, Russian troops launched an assault. The attack was preceded by a long two-day artillery bombardment. Having with difficulty overcome the outer fortifications, the Russian troops began a battle for the inside of the fortress, which turned out to be no less bloody. During the street battles, artillery was actively used - by order of Suvorov, 20 guns were brought up, which repelled Turkish counterattacks with grapeshot and stormed fortified buildings. By 4 p.m. Izmail was completely taken by Russian troops. The peculiarity of the capture of the fortress was the extremely short preparation of the assault, the delivery of the main attack on the least fortified part of the enemy’s defense, the skillful organization of the actions of the army and flotilla that ensured the landing, and the competent conduct of street fighting, where the Turks could not use their numerical superiority.

Capture of Ishmael

The assault on Izmail is the siege and assault in 1790 of the Turkish fortress of Izmail by Russian troops under the command of Chief General A.V. Suvorov, during the Russian-Turkish War of 1787-1791.

The assault on Izmail in 1790 was undertaken on the orders of the commander-in-chief of the Southern Army, Field Marshal General G. A. Potemkin. Neither N.V. Repnin (1789), nor I.V. Gudovich, nor P.S. Potemkin (1790) could solve this problem, after which G.A. Potemkin entrusted the task to A.V. Suvorov.

Having arrived near Izmail on December 2 (13), Suvorov spent six days preparing for the assault, including training troops to storm models of the high fortress walls of Izmail. Near Izmail, in the area of the present village of Safyany, earthen and wooden analogues of the ditch and walls of Izmail were built in the shortest possible time - the military personnel trained to throw a Nazi ditch into the ditch, quickly set up ladders, after climbing the wall they quickly stabbed and chopped down the effigies installed there, simulating defenders. Suvorov inspected the exercises and was generally satisfied: his trusted troops did everything as they should. But, undoubtedly, he understood the complexity of the assault and its unpredictability. Even in the first days of the siege, having just arrived near Izmail, Suvorov, inconspicuously dressed and on a lousy horse (so as not to attract the attention of the Turks), accompanied by only one orderly, rode around the perimeter of the fortress. The conclusion was disappointing: “A fortress without weak points,” were his words to the headquarters based on the results of its inspection. Many years later, Suvorov more than once confessed about Izmail in a fit of frankness: “You could only decide to storm such a fortress once in your life...”. Shortly before the assault, Suvorov sent an extremely short and clear letter-ultimatum in Suvorov style to the commander of the fortress, the great serasker Aidozle-Mehmet Pasha: “I arrived here with the troops. Twenty-four hours for reflection - and freedom. My first shot is already bondage. Assault is death." The great serasker’s answer was worthy: “The Danube would sooner flow backwards and the sky would fall to the ground than Ishmael would surrender.” It was clear to Suvorov and his headquarters: the Turks would fight to the death, especially since the Sultan’s firman was known, where he promised to execute everyone who left the Izmail fortress - the remnants of the Turkish troops defeated in Bessarabia gathered in Izmail, whom the Sultan actually sentenced for his failures to either die with honor in battle with the Russians, or with shame from their executioners. For two days, Suvorov conducted artillery preparation, and on December 11 (22), at 5:30 a.m., the assault on the fortress began. By 8 a.m. all the fortifications were occupied, but resistance on the city streets continued until 4 p.m.

Turkish losses amounted to 29 thousand people killed. The losses of the Russian army amounted to 4 thousand people killed and 6 thousand wounded. All the guns, 400 banners, huge reserves of provisions and jewelry worth 10 million piastres were captured. M. I. Kutuzov, the future famous commander, winner of Napoleon, was appointed commandant of the fortress.

December 24 is the Day of Military Glory of Russia - the Day of the capture of the Turkish fortress of Izmail by Russian troops under the command of A.V. Suvorov.

Assault on Izmail

Background

Not wanting to come to terms with the results of the Russian-Turkish war of 1768-1774, Turkey in July 1787 demanded from Russia the return of Crimea, the renunciation of Georgian protection and consent to inspect Russian merchant ships passing through the straits. Having not received a satisfactory answer, the Turkish government declared war on Russia on August 12 (23), 1787. In turn, Russia decided to take advantage of the situation to expand its possessions in the Northern Black Sea region by completely displacing Turkish troops from there.

In October 1787, Russian troops under the command of A.V. Suvorov almost completely destroyed the 6,000-strong Turkish landing force that intended to capture the mouth of the Dnieper on the Kinburn Spit. Despite the brilliant victories of the Russian army near Ochakov in 1788, at Focshan and on the Rymnik River in 1789, as well as the victories of the Russian fleet at Ochakov and Fidonisi in 1788, in the Kerch Strait and near Tendra Island in 1790, the enemy did not agree accept the peace terms that Russia insisted on, and in every possible way delayed the negotiations. Russian military leaders and diplomats were aware that the successful completion of peace negotiations with Turkey would be greatly facilitated by the capture of Izmail.

The Izmail fortress lay on the left bank of the Kiliya branch of the Danube between lakes Yalpukh and Katlabukh, on a gently sloping slope ending at the Danube bed with a low but rather steep slope. The strategic importance of Izmail was very great: the routes from Galati, Khotin, Bender and Kilia converged here; here was the most convenient place for an invasion from the north across the Danube into Dobruja. By the beginning of the Russian-Turkish War of 1787-1792, the Turks, under the leadership of German and French engineers, turned Izmail into a powerful fortress with a high rampart and a wide ditch with a depth of 3 to 5 fathoms (6.4 - 10.7 m), in places filled with water. There were 260 guns on 11 bastions. The garrison of Izmail consisted of 35 thousand people under the command of serasker Aidozly Muhammad Pasha. However, according to other sources, the Turkish garrison at the time of the assault on Izmail consisted of up to 15 thousand people, and it could have increased at the expense of local residents. Part of the garrison was commanded by Kaplan Giray, the brother of the Crimean Khan, who was assisted by his five sons. The Sultan was very angry with his troops for all the previous capitulations and ordered with a firman that in the event of the fall of Ishmael, everyone from his garrison should be executed, wherever he was found.

Siege and assault of Izmail

In 1790, after capturing the fortresses of Kiliya, Tulcha and Isakcha, the commander-in-chief of the Russian army, Prince G. A. Potemkin-Tavrichesky, gave the order to the detachments of generals I. V. Gudovich, P. S. Potemkin and the flotilla of General de Ribas to capture Izmail. However, their actions were hesitant.

On November 26, the military council decided to lift the siege of the fortress due to the approach of winter. The commander-in-chief did not approve this decision and ordered General-in-Chief A.V. Suvorov, whose troops were stationed at Galati, to take command of the units besieging Izmail. Having taken command on December 2, Suvorov returned the troops retreating from the fortress to Izmail and blocked it from land and from the Danube River. Having completed the preparations for the assault in 6 days, Suvorov sent an ultimatum to the commandant of Izmail on December 7 (18), 1790, demanding that he surrender the fortress no later than 24 hours from the date of delivery of the ultimatum. The ultimatum was rejected. On December 9, the military council assembled by Suvorov decided to immediately begin the assault, which was scheduled for December 11.

The attacking troops were divided into 3 detachments (wings) of 3 columns each. Major General de Ribas's detachment (9,000 people) attacked from the river side; the right wing under the command of Lieutenant General P. S. Potemkin (7,500 people) was supposed to strike from the western part of the fortress; the left wing of Lieutenant General A.N. Samoilov (12,000 people) - from the east. Brigadier Westphalen's cavalry reserves (2,500 men) were on the land side. In total, Suvorov's army numbered 31 thousand people, including 15 thousand irregulars. Suvorov planned to begin the assault at 5 a.m., about 2 hours before dawn. Darkness was needed for the surprise of the first blow and the capture of the rampart; then it was unprofitable to fight in the dark, since it made it difficult to control the troops. Anticipating stubborn resistance, Suvorov wanted to have as much daylight as possible at his disposal.

On December 10 (21), at sunrise, preparations began for an assault by fire from the flank batteries, from the island and from the flotilla ships. It lasted almost a day and ended 2.5 hours before the start of the assault. On this day, the Russians lost 3 officers and 155 lower ranks killed, 6 officers and 224 lower ranks wounded. The assault did not come as a surprise to the Turks. They were prepared every night for a Russian attack; in addition, several defectors revealed Suvorov's plan to them.

Beginning of the assault (dark)

At 3 o'clock in the morning on December 11 (22), 1790, the first signal flare went up, according to which the troops left the camp and, forming columns, set out to the places designated by distance. At half past five in the morning the columns moved to attack.

Before the others, the 2nd column of Major General Boris Lassi approached the fortress. At 6 o'clock in the morning, under a hail of enemy bullets, Lassi's rangers overcame the rampart, and a fierce battle ensued at the top. The Absheron riflemen and Phanagorian grenadiers of the 1st column of Major General S. L. Lvov overthrew the enemy and, having captured the first batteries and the Khotyn Gate, united with the 2nd column. The Khotyn gates were open to the cavalry. At the same time, at the opposite end of the fortress, the 6th column of Major General M.I. Golenishchev-Kutuzov captured the bastion at the Kiliya Gate and occupied the rampart up to the neighboring bastions.

The greatest difficulties befell the 3rd column of Fyodor Meknob. She stormed the large northern bastion, adjacent to it to the east, and the curtain wall between them. In this place, the depth of the ditch and the height of the rampart were so great that the ladders of 5.5 fathoms (about 11.7 m) turned out to be short, and they had to be tied together two at a time under fire. The main bastion was taken.

The fourth and fifth columns (Colonel V.P. Orlov and Brigadier M.I. Platov, respectively) also completed the tasks assigned to them, overcoming the rampart in their sectors.

The landing troops of Major General Osip Deribas in three columns, under the cover of the rowing fleet, moved at a signal to the fortress and formed a battle formation in two lines. The landing began at about 7 o'clock in the morning. It was carried out quickly and accurately, despite the resistance of more than 10 thousand Turks and Tatars. The success of the landing was greatly facilitated by Lvov's column, which attacked the Danube coastal batteries in the flank, and by the actions of ground forces on the eastern side of the fortress.

The first column of Major General N.D. Arsenyev, which sailed on 20 ships, landed on the shore and divided into several parts. A battalion of Kherson grenadiers under the command of Colonel V.A. Zubov captured a very tough cavalier, losing 2/3 of its people. The battalion of Livonian rangers, Colonel Count Roger Damas, occupied the battery that lined the shore.

Other units also captured the fortifications lying in front of them. The third column of brigadier E.I. Markov landed at the western end of the fortress under grapeshot fire from the Tabiy redoubt.

Fighting inside the city (day)

When daylight arrived, it became clear that the rampart had been taken, the enemy had been driven out of the fortress tops and was retreating into the inner part of the city. Russian columns from different sides moved towards the city center - Potemkin on the right, Cossacks from the north, Kutuzov on the left, de Ribas on the river side.

A new battle has begun. Particularly fierce resistance continued until 11 am. Several thousand horses, rushing out of the burning stables, raced madly through the streets and increased the confusion. Almost every house had to be taken in battle. Around noon, Lassi, who was the first to climb the ramparts, was the first to reach the middle of the city. Here he met a thousand Tatars under the command of Maksud Giray, a prince of Genghis Khan's blood. Maksud Giray defended himself stubbornly, and only when most of his detachment was killed, he surrendered with 300 soldiers remaining alive.

To support the infantry and ensure success, Suvorov ordered the introduction of 20 light guns into the city to clear the streets of the Turks with grapeshot. At one o'clock in the afternoon, in essence, victory was won. However, the battle was not over yet. The enemy tried to attack individual Russian detachments or settled in strong buildings as citadels.

At two o'clock in the afternoon all columns penetrated into the city center. By 4 p.m., the last defenders were killed, and some of the exhausted and wounded Turks surrendered. The noise of battle ceased, Ishmael fell.

Results of the assault

The losses of the Turks were enormous; more than 26 thousand people were killed alone. 9 thousand were taken prisoner, of which 2 thousand died from their wounds the next day. In Izmail, 265 guns, up to 3 thousand pounds of gunpowder, 20 thousand cannonballs and many other military supplies, up to 400 banners, blood-stained defenders, 8 lançons, 12 ferries, 22 light ships and a lot of rich booty that went to the army, totaling up to 10 million piastres (over 1 million rubles). In the Russian army, 64 officers (1 brigadier, 17 staff officers, 46 chief officers) and 1816 privates were killed; 253 officers (including three major generals) and 2,450 lower ranks were wounded. The total losses of the army during the assault amounted to 4,582 people. The fleet lost 95 killed and 278 wounded.

Suvorov took measures to ensure order. Kutuzov, appointed commandant of Izmail, placed guards in the most important places. A huge hospital was opened inside the city. The bodies of the killed Russians were taken outside the city and buried according to church rites. There were so many Turkish corpses that the order was given to throw the bodies into the Danube, and prisoners were assigned to this work, divided into queues. But even with this method, Ishmael was cleared of corpses only after 6 days. The prisoners were sent in batches to Nikolaev under the escort of Cossacks.

Suvorov expected to receive the rank of field marshal general for the assault on Izmail, but Potemkin, petitioning the empress for his award, proposed awarding him with a medal and the rank of guard lieutenant colonel or adjutant general. The medal was knocked out, and Suvorov was appointed lieutenant colonel of the Preobrazhensky Regiment. There were already ten such lieutenant colonels; Suvorov became eleventh. The commander-in-chief of the Russian army, Prince G. A. Potemkin-Tavrichesky, having arrived in St. Petersburg, received as a reward a field marshal's uniform, embroidered with diamonds, worth 200 thousand rubles, the Tauride Palace; In Tsarskoe Selo, it was planned to build an obelisk for the prince depicting his victories and conquests. Oval silver medals were distributed to the lower ranks; for officers who have not received the Order of St. George or Vladimir, a golden cross is installed on the St. George ribbon; the chiefs received orders or golden swords, some received ranks.

The conquest of Ishmael was of great political significance. It influenced the further course of the war and the conclusion of the Peace of Iasi between Russia and Turkey in 1792, which confirmed the annexation of Crimea to Russia and established the Russian-Turkish border along the Dniester River. Thus, the entire northern Black Sea region from the Dniester to the Kuban was assigned to Russia.

The anthem “The Thunder of Victory, Ring Out!”, which until 1816 was considered the unofficial anthem of the Russian Empire, was dedicated to the victory at Izmail.

One day in December 1790, Alexander Vasilyevich Suvorov appeared to the commandant of the Izmail fortress, Aidozle-Mekhmet Pasha, and amicably offered to surrender. Well, it’s as if an intelligent young man approached a group of big men on the street and offered to give him all the money and valuables - the fortress, which the Russians had already taken in 1770, was rebuilt with the latest technology, and at that time it was believed that they would take it assault is impossible. Pasha replied: “Rather, the sky will collapse to Earth, dam the Danube with its fragments and force it to flow backwards, than Ishmael will fall!”, and of course, after that answer, Suvorov could not help but go on the assault.
Everyone knows what happened next. The invincible fortress was taken in one day, and the Turks lost ten times more killed than the Russians. Russia took possession of the Black Sea coast from the Dniester to the Kuban, which made it possible to found Odessa. Many heroes of the assault became famous for their further victories. The assault on Ishmael shocked his contemporaries (for example, Byron) and went down in history forever. And although the fortress itself, by that time hopelessly outdated, was demolished in 1856, I propose to look at the site of those events.

The Izmail fortress was grandiose - the perimeter of its curtains reached six kilometers, it was significantly superior to the district center of present-day Izmail. Here in this diagram you can roughly estimate its territory in comparison with the current stadiums and residential areas:

Actually, Turkish Izmail was not a city - it was just a fortress with infrastructure. It is possible to examine only a small section of it, the so-called Old Fortress - on the diagram between the "Tourist Hotel Danube", "PUVKH" and "Zhilmassiv". To the west is the former New Fortress, to the south is the former Citadel, but their territories are mostly built up. Most of the fortress now looks like this:

From the center to the fortress it is about three kilometers along Kutuzov Street, which departs from Suvorovsky Prospekt at this Romanian-built house and, passing through the old quarters, ends at the gate... not of the fortress itself, but of a former military cemetery:

A little-known fact, but the Russians took Izmail three times. 20 years before Suvorov, Nikolai Repnin took the fortress, but then Izmail was completely different: the Turks learned lessons from that war and actually built the fortress anew. A decade and a half after Suvorov, in 1806-09 they also tried to take Izmail - but they were able to do this only on the third attempt (Richelieu, Michelson, Zass): the thoroughly shabby and obsolete fortress was still very formidable, and Suvorov’s genius here is very not enough. After this, Izmail finally became part of Russia, and the fortress was liquidated in 1856, when the city had to be given to the Turkish protectorate of Moldova following the Crimean War.
This diagram clearly shows the layout of the fortress, but the main thing is to take a closer look at these names:

I don’t think it’s even worth explaining who Kutuzov is. It was here that he became one-eyed. Jose de Ribas, the founder of Odessa, took part in the assault; Zaporozhye atamans Zakhary Chapega - the founder of Krasnodar, and Anton Golovaty - the founder of Taman and the Kuban Cossacks in general; Don Ataman Matvey Platov - founder of Novocherkassk and great reformer of the Cossacks; Catherine's favorites Zubov and Orlov. It is unlikely that in the history of Russia there have been short battles in which so many outstanding military leaders took part. And although this assault was successful primarily thanks to the genius and energy of Suvorov, everyone made their contribution - for example, it was the Cossacks of Holovaty who were the first to enter the fortress.

Behind the gate is the Cavalier bastion of the New Fortress, which was considered the most powerful. The assault on Cavalier was the key episode of the assault on Izmail, and the bloodiest - 2/3 of the attackers died in the battle for Cavalier... However, the total losses of the Russian army were relatively small - 2136 people versus 26 thousand among the Turks. Nowadays, the Cavalier site, which was a military cemetery until the mid-twentieth century, is densely studded with monuments, which, moreover, were greatly thinned out during Soviet times:

For example, the mausoleum (1909) was previously crowned with an obelisk with an eagle:

(from here)

And the inside now looks like this:

Next door in 1930, the Romanians staged “Trinity” - after all, for them, the Russian-Turkish wars were directly related to gaining independence, so the words on the poster - at least from the point of view of the Romanians, Bulgarians, and Greeks - are not such hypocrisy:

The cemetery was destroyed in the 1970s, and yet on the banks of the Danube there remains a fragment of its fence, stylized as a battlement:

The Danube bed in “Cavaliera” is visible all the way to Romania - from here you can see how wide this river actually is, only a third smaller than the Volga:

View along the Danube - the seaport and shipping company in the distance:

Going down the slope, you somehow don’t expect that a completely sheer bank drops off towards the Danube:

Although it is only 14 meters high, due to the steepness from above it seems that it is at least fifty:

From here you can see other buildings of the fortress - of the authentic ones, only the Small Mosque of the 16th century above the city beach has been preserved:

And two churches - Assumption (1841, in the foreground) and Nikolskaya (1852), on the basis of which a monastery that operated under the Turks has now been revived:

Judging by its form, the Assumption Church was a garrison church of a Russian fortress, and Nikolskaya was apparently a parish church:

Somewhere here, in the ravines along Matrosskaya Street, the miraculously surviving foundations of authentic fortifications were preserved... but we did not find them. But this small building, a garrison mosque that has lost its minarets, is the last witness of Suvorov’s assault:

You can go into it - under the arcade is now the museum hall:

Even some architectural details have been preserved:

And where there once was a prayer hall, there is now a diorama museum, opened in 1973:

I advise you to take 20 minutes and take a good look at it. More precisely, it is almost like watching a movie - the diorama is accompanied by an audio lecture, and here you can quickly and clearly understand how the fortress was built, who stormed it and how, and in what places to look for traces of certain episodes. And I cannot help but note that the lecture is in Russian and without any attempts to tell visitors the “truth” relevant to the political situation.

And in general, gentlemen, six months ago a Belarusian opposition noble explained to me that Suvorov, mainly in Lithuania and Poland, “cut children with a saber,” and they honor him in this way in Russia only due to a natural aversion to the noble Polish-Lithuanian culture. I answer with full responsibility: not for this, but for the assault on Ishmael and the Alpine campaign. There have not been many commanders in history who were able to defeat enemy forces 2-3 times greater on their territory with minimal losses. Even Napoleon could not do this - in terms of his tactical genius, Suvorov can be put on a par with Alexander the Great.

Around the mosque there are cannons from different eras:

Stones and shards - either fragments of the fortress, or ancient finds:

Bugs crawled out of the sun-warmed stones:

Most of the fortress is now a park and a beach with outdoor cafes, strolling mothers with children and drinking young people. On the beach, although it was +18, some already tried to swim. And this water, before approaching Izmail, managed to wash the foothills of the castles of Germany, the embankments of Bratislava, Vienna, Budapest, Belgrade, hundreds of kilometers of the coast of Romania and Bulgaria. Officially, this is the most international river in the world, and it is unlikely that the banks of any other river have seen so many historical events.

In the following parts we will examine two more cities of the Ukrainian Danube region - Kiliya and Vilkovo. More precisely, even three, but more on that in the next part.

NOVOROSSIYA-2011
. Introduction.
ROAD TO THE SEA
Across Russia

Bottom line

Victory of the Russian Empire

Parties Strengths of the parties

Russo-Turkish War (1787-1792) Austro-Turkish War (1787-1791)

Assault on Izmail- siege and assault in 1790 of the Turkish fortress of Izmail by Russian troops under the command of Chief General A.V. Suvorov during the Russian-Turkish War of 1787-1792

Captions: "For excellent courage" on the front side and "Ishmael taken December 11, 1790" on the reverse.

The anthem “The Thunder of Victory, Ring Out!” was dedicated to the victory at Ishmael! ", considered until 1816 the unofficial anthem of the Russian Empire.