Sea battle at Sinope

Sea battle at Sinope

Part of: Crimean War

Sea battle at Sinope by Ivan Ajvazovskij

date	November 30, 1853
place	near Sinope , Turkish Black Sea coast
output	Destruction of the Ottoman fleet

Parties to the conflict
Russia	Ottoman Empire Egypt
Commander
Pavel Nakhimov	Osman Pasha Adolphus Slade
Troop strength
6 ships of the line, 2 frigates, 3 steamers	7 frigates, 5 corvettes, 1 steamer
losses
37 killed, 233 wounded, 3 ships damaged	approx. 3000 killed or wounded, 7 frigates (one sunk and 6 aground), 4 corvettes aground, 2 land batteries destroyed

The sea ​​battle at Sinope took place on November 30, 1853 near the northern Turkish port city of Sinope . In it the fleet of the Russian Empire destroyed the Ottoman ships at anchor. This battle is often viewed as the last great battle of the classic sailing ships and the first great battle of the Crimean War (1853-1856).

Smaller sea battles between the Russians and the Ottoman Empire had been going on for weeks, so that the Ottomans sent several squadrons to the Black Sea , which gathered at Sinope, including Egyptian ships. The Russians, led by Admiral Pavel Nakhimov , came to Sinope in the formation of two lines with three combat ships each and attacked the Turkish lines. The battle lasted two hours. The Russians used destructive “ bomb cannons ” from Paixhans to destroy the Turkish fleet. They fired HE shells for the first time in the history of naval warfare. Several ships exploded, others caught fire and were blown onto the rocks by the wind. The coastal batteries were also destroyed by Russian warships. On the Turkish side, only the Taif, equipped with 12 cannons, survived the fighting. She managed to escape to Constantinople . The commanding Turkish Vice Admiral Osman Pasha was wounded, was taken prisoner by Russia and was taken to Sevastopol .

The Battle of Sinope provided Britain and France with a reason to declare war on Russia a few months later in support of the crumbling Ottoman Empire.

literature

• Roger Charles Anderson: Naval wars in the Levant 1559-1853 . University Press, Liverpool 1952, ISBN 1-57898-538-2

Web links

Commons : Naval Battle of Sinope  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Bernd Langensiepen, Ahmet Güleryüz: The Ottoman Steam Navy 1828–1923 , page 4. Conway Maritime Press, London 1995
2. ↑ Lawrence Sondhaus: Naval Warfare, 1815-1914 , pp. 57f. Routledge, New York 2012
3. ↑ Lawrence Sondhaus: Navies of Europe , 40. Routledge, New York 2014
4. ^ Rolf Hobson: Maritime Imperialism . Sea power ideology, maritime strategic thinking and the Tirpitz Plan 1875-1914. Ed .: Military History Research Office. tape 61 . R. Oldenbourg Verlag, Munich, ISBN 3-486-56671-7 , p. 30 .
5. ↑ Winfried Baumgart: records the history of the Crimean War . June Series III, Volume 2, page 71. Oldenbourg Verlag, Munich 2006