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Russian-Turkish war (1877-1878)

Defense of Shipka- one of the key and most famous episodes in the Russian-Turkish war of 1877-78.

Story

After the Russian army crossed the Danube, the commander-in-chief decided to immediately seize the passes through the Balkan ridge, for further movement deep into Turkey. The advance detachment of General Gurko, having crossed the Khainkoisky pass and defeated the Turks near the village of Uflany and the city of Kazanlak, on July 5 approached from the south side the Shipka Pass, occupied by a Turkish detachment (about 5 thousand people) under the command of Hulyussi Pasha. On the same day, a detachment of General Svyatopolk-Mirsky attacked Shipka from the north side, but the attack was repulsed. On July 6, General Gurko launched an attack on the pass from the south and also failed. Nevertheless, Hulyussi Pasha, considering his situation dangerous, on the night of the 6th to the 7th, left by side roads to the city of Kalofer, leaving artillery on his positions. Then Shipka was immediately occupied by the troops of Prince Svyatopolk-Mirsky. After the retreat of the advance detachment of General Gurko from the Trans-Balkan region, Shipka entered the area of ​​​​the southern front of the Russian army, entrusted to the protection of the troops of General Radetsky (8th corps, part of the 2nd, 4th rifle brigade and the Bulgarian militia), which had to be stretched for more than 100 versts; the general reserve is located at Tyrnov.

Memory of heroes

Shipka- one of the most famous names in the history of Bulgaria, the shrine of Bulgarian patriots. The most large-scale and solemn events are held here on March 3 - this is the day of the signing of the San Stefano peace treaty, which brought freedom to Bulgaria after five centuries of Ottoman yoke.

Every August is held here historical reconstruction events of 1877. An important part of the event is a funeral service for the Russian, Belarusian, Ukrainian, Romanian and Finnish soldiers who died here, as well as the Bulgarian militias. Military honors are given to them, state leaders and people of Bulgaria lay wreaths of fresh flowers at the monument on top of the hill as a token of their gratitude.

And to this day, during the Liturgy in all Orthodox Churches in Bulgaria, during Great Entrance The liturgy of the faithful is commemorated by Alexander II and all Russian soldiers who fell on the battlefield for the liberation of Bulgaria in the Russian-Turkish war of 1877-1878: May the Lord God change into this kingdom.”

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An excerpt characterizing the Defense of Shipka

Pierre at this ball for the first time felt insulted by the position that his wife occupied in higher spheres. He was sullen and distracted. There was a wide crease across his forehead, and he, standing at the window, looked through his glasses, seeing no one.
Natasha, on her way to dinner, walked past him.
The gloomy, unhappy face of Pierre struck her. She stopped in front of him. She wanted to help him, to convey to him the surplus of her happiness.
“How fun, Count,” she said, “isn't it?
Pierre smiled absently, obviously not understanding what was being said to him.
“Yes, I am very glad,” he said.
“How can they be dissatisfied with something,” thought Natasha. Especially one as good as this Bezukhov?” In Natasha's eyes, all those who were at the ball were equally kind, sweet, beautiful people loving each other: no one could offend each other, and therefore everyone should have been happy.

The next day, Prince Andrei remembered yesterday's ball, but did not dwell on it for a long time. “Yes, the ball was very brilliant. And yet ... yes, Rostova is very nice. There is something fresh, special, not Petersburg, which distinguishes her. That's all he thought about yesterday's ball, and after drinking tea, he sat down to work.
But from fatigue or insomnia (the day was not good for classes, and Prince Andrei could not do anything), he criticized his work himself, as often happened to him, and was glad when he heard that someone had arrived.
The visitor was Bitsky, who served in various commissions, visited all the societies of St. Petersburg, a passionate admirer of new ideas and Speransky, and an anxious news reporter of St. Petersburg, one of those people who choose a trend like a dress - according to fashion, but who for this reason seem to be the most ardent partisans of trends . He anxiously, barely having time to take off his hat, ran to Prince Andrei and immediately began to speak. He just learned the details of the meeting state council this morning, opened by the sovereign, and enthusiastically talked about it. The emperor's speech was extraordinary. It was one of those speeches only given by constitutional monarchs. “The sovereign directly said that the council and the senate are state estates; he said that government should not be based on arbitrariness, but on firm principles. The sovereign said that the finances should be transformed and the reports should be made public,” Bitsky said, hitting on well-known words and opening his eyes significantly.
“Yes, this event is an era, the greatest era in our history,” he concluded.
Prince Andrei listened to the story of the opening of the State Council, which he looked forward to with such impatience and to which he attributed such importance, and was surprised that this event, now that it had taken place, not only did not touch him, but seemed to him more than insignificant. He listened with quiet mockery to Bitsky's enthusiastic story. The simplest thought came into his head: “What business is it for me and Bitsky, what business is it for us what the sovereign was pleased to say in the council! Can all this make me happier and better?
And this simple reasoning suddenly destroyed for Prince Andrei all the former interest in the transformations being made. On the same day, Prince Andrei was supposed to dine at Speransky's "en petit comite", [in a small meeting,] as the owner told him, inviting him. This dinner in the family and friendly circle of the person whom he admired so much had previously interested Prince Andrei, especially since he had not yet seen Speransky in his home life; but now he did not want to go.
At the appointed hour of dinner, however, Prince Andrei was already entering Speransky's own small house near the Tauride Garden. In the parquet dining room of a small house, distinguished by unusual cleanliness (reminiscent of monastic purity), Prince Andrei, who was somewhat late, had already found at five o'clock the entire company of this petit comite, Speransky's intimate acquaintances, who had gathered. There were no ladies except Speransky's little daughter (with a long face like her father) and her governess. The guests were Gervais, Magnitsky and Stolypin. Even from the hall, Prince Andrei heard loud voices and ringing, distinct laughter - laughter, similar to the one they laugh on the stage. Someone in a voice similar to Speransky's voice distinctly beat out: ha ... ha ... ha ... Prince Andrey had never heard Speransky's laughter, and this sonorous, subtle laughter of a statesman struck him strangely.
Prince Andrei entered the dining room. The whole society stood between two windows at a small table with snacks. Speransky, in a gray tailcoat with a star, apparently in that still white waistcoat and high white tie, in which he was at the famous meeting of the State Council, stood at the table with a cheerful face. The guests surrounded him. Magnitsky, addressing Mikhail Mikhailovich, told an anecdote. Speransky listened, laughing forward at what Magnitsky would say. While Prince Andrei entered the room, Magnitsky's words were again drowned out by laughter. Stolypin boomed loudly, chewing a piece of bread with cheese; Gervais hissed softly, and Speransky laughed thinly and distinctly.
Speransky, still laughing, gave Prince Andrei his white, tender hand.
“Very glad to see you, prince,” he said. - Wait a minute ... he turned to Magnitsky, interrupting his story. - We have an agreement today: a dinner of pleasure, and not a word about business. - And he again turned to the narrator, and again laughed.
Prince Andrei listened to his laughter with surprise and sadness of disappointment and looked at the laughing Speransky. It was not Speransky, but another person, it seemed to Prince Andrei. Everything that previously seemed mysterious and attractive to Prince Andrei in Speransky suddenly became clear and unattractive to him.
At the table, the conversation did not stop for a moment and seemed to consist of a collection of funny anecdotes. Magnitsky had not even finished his story when someone else declared his readiness to tell something that was even funnier. Anecdotes for the most part concerned, if not the service world itself, then officials. It seemed that in this society the insignificance of these persons was so finally decided that the only attitude towards them could only be good-naturedly comic. Speransky told how at this morning's council, when asked by a deaf dignitary about his opinion, this dignitary answered that he was of the same opinion. Gervais told the whole case about the revision, remarkable for the nonsense of all actors. Stolypin stammered into the conversation and began talking with vehemence about the abuses of the old order of things, threatening to make the conversation serious. Magnitsky began to tease Stolypin's vehemence, Gervais interjected a joke, and the conversation again took its former, cheerful direction.
Obviously, after his labors, Speransky liked to relax and have fun in a friendly circle, and all his guests, understanding his desire, tried to amuse him and have fun themselves. But this fun seemed to Prince Andrei heavy and sad. The subtle sound of Speransky's voice struck him unpleasantly, and the incessant laughter with its false note for some reason offended Prince Andrei's feelings. Prince Andrei did not laugh and was afraid that he would be difficult for this society. But no one noticed his inconsistency with the general mood. Everyone seemed to be having a lot of fun.
Several times he wanted to enter into a conversation, but each time his word was thrown out like a cork out of water; and he could not joke with them together.
There was nothing bad or inappropriate in what they said, everything was witty and could have been funny; but something, that very thing that is the salt of fun, not only did not exist, but they did not even know that it happens.
After dinner, Speransky's daughter and her governess got up. Speransky caressed his daughter with his white hand and kissed her. And this gesture seemed unnatural to Prince Andrei.
The men, in English, remained at the table and drinking port. In the middle of the conversation that began about the Spanish affairs of Napoleon, approving of which, everyone was of the same opinion, Prince Andrei began to contradict them. Speransky smiled and, obviously wishing to divert the conversation from the accepted direction, told an anecdote that had nothing to do with the conversation. For a few moments everyone was silent.
After sitting at the table, Speransky corked up a bottle of wine and saying: “Today good wine goes in boots”, gave it to the servant and got up. Everyone stood up and also noisily talking went into the living room. Speransky was given two envelopes brought by a courier. He took them and went into the office. As soon as he left, the general merriment ceased, and the guests began talking judiciously and quietly to each other.
- Well, now the declamation! - said Speransky, leaving the office. - Amazing talent! - he turned to Prince Andrei. Magnitsky immediately struck a pose and began to speak French humorous verses, composed by him on some famous people of St. Petersburg, and was interrupted several times by applause. Prince Andrei, at the end of the poems, went up to Speransky, saying goodbye to him.
- Where are you going so early? Speransky said.
I promised tonight...
They were silent. Prince Andrei looked closely into those mirrored eyes that did not let him in, and it became funny to him how he could expect anything from Speransky and from all his activities connected with him, and how he could attribute importance to what Speransky was doing. This neat, sad laughter did not cease to sound in the ears of Prince Andrei for a long time after he left Speransky.
Returning home, Prince Andrei began to recall his Petersburg life during these four months, as if something new. He recalled his efforts, searches, the history of his draft military regulations, which was taken into account and about which they tried to keep silent solely because another work, very bad, had already been done and presented to the sovereign; remembered the meetings of the committee, of which Berg was a member; I recalled how diligently and at length everything relating to the form and process of committee meetings was discussed in these meetings, and how diligently and briefly everything related to the essence of the matter was dealt with. He remembered his legislative work, how he anxiously translated articles of the Roman and French code into Russian, and he felt ashamed of himself. Then he vividly imagined Bogucharovo, his activities in the countryside, his trip to Ryazan, remembered the peasants, Dron the headman, and applying to them the rights of persons, which he divided into paragraphs, he wondered how he could have been engaged in such idle work for so long.

The next day, Prince Andrei went on visits to some houses where he had not yet been, including the Rostovs, with whom he renewed his acquaintance at the last ball. In addition to the laws of courtesy, according to which he needed to be with the Rostovs, Prince Andrei wanted to see at home this special, lively girl, who left him a pleasant memory.
Natasha was one of the first to meet him. She was in a homely blue dress, in which she seemed to Prince Andrei even better than in the ballroom. She and the entire Rostov family accepted Prince Andrei as an old friend, simply and cordially. The whole family, which Prince Andrei used to strictly judge, now seemed to him made up of beautiful, simple and kind people. The hospitality and good nature of the old count, especially charmingly striking in St. Petersburg, was such that Prince Andrei could not refuse dinner. “Yes, these are kind, glorious people,” thought Bolkonsky, who, of course, did not understand in the slightest degree the treasure that they have in Natasha; but kind people, which make up the best background for this especially poetic, overflowing life, lovely girl to stand out on it!

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Defense of Shipka

A.H. Popov. Defense of the Eagle's Nest August 12, 1877 1893 Oil on canvas. 146x204 cm

The defense of Shipka is one of the key and most famous episodes during the Russian-Turkish war of 1877-1878.

After forcing the Danube and seizing the bridgehead, the Russian army could proceed with the further task - the development of an offensive beyond the Balkans in the direction of Constantinople. From the troops concentrated on the bridgehead, three detachments were formed: Advanced, Eastern (Rushchuksky) and Western. The advance detachment (10.5 thousand people, 32 guns) under the command of a lieutenant general, which included the Bulgarian militia squads, was supposed to advance to Tarnovo, capture the Shipka Pass, transferring part of the troops over the Balkan Range, that is, to the southern regions of Bulgaria.

Temple-monument of the Nativity of Christ in honor of the Russians who fought for the liberation of Bulgaria from the Ottoman Turks. It is located on the southern side of the Shipka Pass, in the vicinity of the city of Shipka

The detachment went on the offensive on June 25 (July 7), 1877 and, having overcome the resistance of the enemy, on the same day liberated ancient capital Bulgaria - Tarnovo. From here, he moved through the hard-to-reach, but unguarded Khainkoisky Pass (30 km east of Shipka) to the rear of the enemy, located on Shipka. Having crossed the pass and defeated the Turks near the village of Uflany and the city of Kazanlak, on July 5 (17) Gurko approached the Shipka Pass, occupied by a Turkish detachment (about 5 thousand people) under the command of Hulyussi Pasha, from the south side.

Bulgaria. Modern look Shipka pass

The Russian command intended to capture the Shipka Pass with a simultaneous attack from the south by a detachment of I.V. Gurko and from the north by the newly formed Gabrovsky detachment of Major General. On July 5-6 (17-18) fierce battles unfolded in the Shipka area. The enemy, considering it impossible to further hold the pass, left his positions on the night of July 7 (19), retreating along the mountain paths to Philippopolis (Plovdiv). On the same day, the Shipka Pass was occupied by Russian troops. The forward detachment completed its task. The way beyond the Balkan Range was open. Gurko's detachment was faced with the task of blocking the path of the enemy, preventing him from reaching the mountain passes. It was decided to advance to Nova Zagora and Stara Zagora, to take up defensive positions at this line, covering the approaches to the Shipka and Khainkioi passes. Fulfilling the task, the troops of the Vanguard Detachment liberated Stara Zagora on July 11 (23), and Nova Zagora on July 18 (30).

The Gurko detachment, located beyond the Balkans, heroically repulsed the onslaught of the advancing 37,000-strong army. The first battle took place on July 19 (31) near Eski-Zagra (Stara Zagora). Shoulder to shoulder with the Russian soldiers selflessly fought the Bulgarian militias. Russian soldiers and Bulgarian militias, led by a major general, inflicted heavy losses on the enemy. But the forces were unequal. The Gurko detachment was forced to retreat to the passes and join the troops of the lieutenant general, who defended the southern sector of the front. After the retreat of Gurko from the Trans-Balkan region, Shipka entered the area of ​​​​the southern front of the Russian army, entrusted to the protection of the troops of General Radetsky (8th Corps, part of the 2nd, 4th Infantry Brigade and Bulgarian militia), the defense of Shipka was entrusted to the newly created Southern Detachment under the command Major General N.G. Stoletov, a third of which were Bulgarian militias.

Taking into account the important strategic importance of Shipka, the Turkish command set the task for Suleiman Pasha's army to seize the pass, and then, developing an offensive to the north, connect with the main forces of the Turkish troops advancing on Ruschuk (Ruse), Shumla, Silistria, defeat the Russian troops and push them back for the Danube.

The position occupied by the Russian troops on Shipka was up to 2 km along the front at a depth of 60 m to 1 km, but did not meet tactical requirements: its only benefit was its inaccessibility. In addition, it was subjected throughout its entire length to crossfire from neighboring dominant heights, presenting neither natural cover nor convenience for going on the offensive. The fortifications of the position included trenches in 2 tiers and 5 battery positions, at the most important directions blockages and wolf pits were built, land mines were placed. By the beginning of August, the equipment of the fortifications had not been completed. However, due to strategic requirements, it was necessary to hold this pass at all costs.

Bulgaria. National Park-Museum on the Shipka Pass. "Steel" battery

Suleiman Pasha sent 12 thousand people to Shipka with 6 guns, which on August 8 (20) concentrated at the pass. The Russian-Bulgarian detachment of Stoletov consisted of the Orlovsky infantry regiment and 5 Bulgarian squads (up to 4 thousand people in total, including 2 thousand Bulgarian volunteers) with 27 guns, to which, already during the battle of the next day, he arrived from the city of Selvi Bryansk Regiment, which increased the number of defenders of Shipka to 6 thousand people.

Guns of the "Steel" battery on Shipka

On the morning of August 9 (21), Turkish artillery, having occupied a mountain east of Shipka, opened fire. The ensuing attacks of the enemy infantry, first from the south, then from the east, were repelled by the Russians. The fight lasted all day; at night, the Russian troops, who were waiting for a repetition of the attack, had to strengthen their positions. On August 10 (22), the Turks did not resume attacks, and the matter was limited to artillery and rifle fire. Meanwhile, Radetsky, having received news of the danger threatening Shipka, moved the general reserve there; but he was able to arrive, and then with reinforced transitions, only on August 11 (23); in addition, another infantry brigade with a battery stationed at Selvi was ordered to go to Shipka, which could only arrive in time on the 12th (24th).

The battle of August 11 (23), which became the most critical for the defenders of the pass, began at dawn; by 10 o'clock in the morning the Russian position was engulfed by the enemy from three sides. The attacks of the Turks, repelled by fire, were renewed with fierce persistence. At 2 o'clock in the afternoon, the Circassians even entered the rear of our location, but were driven back. At 5 p.m., Turkish troops advancing from the western side captured the so-called Side Hill and threatened to break through the central part of the position.

HELL. Kivshenko. Battle on the Shipka Pass August 11, 1877 1893 Oil on canvas. 95x182 cm

The position of the defenders of Shipka was already almost hopeless, when, finally, at 7 o'clock in the evening, part of the reserve arrived at the position - the 16th rifle battalion, raised to the pass on Cossack horses. He was immediately moved to the Side Hill and, with the assistance of other units that went on the offensive, recaptured it from the enemy. The remaining battalions of the 4th Infantry Brigade, who arrived in time, made it possible to stop the pressure of the Turks on other parts of the position. The battle ended at dusk. Russian troops held on to Shipka. However, the Turks also managed to maintain their position - their battle lines were only a few hundred paces from the Russians.

Vanguard of the 4th Infantry Brigade, Major General A.I. Tsvetsinsky hurries to Shipka

On the night of August 12 (24), reinforcements led by a major general approached Shipka. The number of the Russian-Bulgarian detachment increased to 14.2 thousand people with 39 guns. Shells and cartridges, water and food were brought. The next day, the Russian-Bulgarian detachment went on the offensive to knock the Turks down from two heights of the western ridge - the so-called Forest Kurgan and Bald Mountain, from where they had the most convenient approaches to our position and even threatened its rear.

At dawn on August 12 (24), the Turks attacked the central sections of the Russian positions, and at 2 o'clock in the afternoon - the mountain of St. Nicholas. They were repulsed at all points, but the Russian attack on Lesnaya Kurgan was also unsuccessful.

Battles at the Shipka Pass in August 1877

On August 13 (25), Radetsky decided to resume the attack on Lesnaya Kurgan and Lesnaya Gora, having the opportunity to bring more troops into action, due to the arrival of the Volyn regiment with a battery on Shipka. At the same time, Suleiman Pasha significantly strengthened his left flank. Throughout the day there was a battle for the possession of the mentioned heights; the Turks were shot down from the Lesnoy Kurgan, but they failed to capture their fortifications on Lysa Gora. The attacking troops withdrew to the Forest Kurgan and here, during the evening, night, and at dawn on August 14 (26), they were repeatedly attacked by the enemy. All attacks were repulsed, but the Russian troops suffered such heavy losses that Stoletov, having no fresh reinforcements, ordered them to retreat to Side Hill. The forest mound was again occupied by the Turks.

Rice. N.N. Karazin. On the Shipka Pass. Bulgarians looking for Russian wounded in the gorge

In the six-day battle on Shipka, Russian losses amounted to 3350 people (including 500 Bulgarians), 2 generals were put out of action (Dragomirov was wounded, Derozhinsky was killed) and 108 officers; the Turks lost 8.2 thousand (according to other sources - 12 thousand). This battle did not have any significant results; both sides remained in their positions, but our troops, engulfed by the enemy from three sides, were still in a very difficult situation, which soon worsened significantly with the onset of autumn bad weather, and with the onset of autumn and winter - cold and blizzards.

Bulgaria. Obelisk at the cemetery of Russian soldiers on the pass who died defending Shipka

On August 15 (27), Shipka was occupied by the 14th Infantry Division and the 4th Infantry Brigade, under the command of a major general. The Orlovsky and Bryansk regiments, as the most affected, were withdrawn to the reserve, and the Bulgarian squads were transferred to the village of Zeleno Drevo to occupy the path through the Imitliysky pass, bypassing Shipka from the west.

From that time on, the "Shipka sitting" began - one of the most difficult episodes of the war. The defenders of Shipka, doomed to passive defense, were mainly concerned with strengthening their positions and arranging, if possible, closed communications with the rear. The Turks also strengthened and expanded their fortification works and continuously showered bullets and artillery shells on the Russian position. September 5 (17), at 3 am, they again launched an attack from the southern and western sides. They managed to take possession of the so-called Eagle's Nest - a rocky and steep cape, outstanding in front of Mount St. Nicholas, from where they were knocked out only after a desperate hand-to-hand fight. The column advancing from the west (from Lesnoy kurgan) was repelled by fire. After that, the Turks no longer made serious attacks, but limited themselves to shelling the position.

With the onset of winter, the position of the troops on Shipka became extremely difficult: frosts and snowstorms on the mountain tops were especially severe. These deprivations were especially noticeable for the newly arrived Russian troops: three regiments of the 24th division literally melted away from disease in a short time.

V.V. Vereshchagin. Russian positions on Shipka

During the period from September 5 (17) to December 24 (January 5, 1878), only about 700 people were out of action in the Shipka detachment, killed and wounded, and up to 9.5 thousand sick. The end of 1877 was also marked by the end of the Shipka seats", the last act of which was the attack of Turkish positions on the road from Mount St. Nicholas to the village of Shipka.

Bulgaria. National Park-Museum on the Shipka Pass. The sculptural composition "Russian soldiers on the Shipka Pass in the winter of 1877"

The defense of Shipka fettered significant Turkish forces and provided the Russian troops with the shortest path of attack on Istanbul.

Shipka is one of the most famous names in the history of Bulgaria, the shrine of Bulgarian patriots. In commemoration of the defense of Shipka near the pass in 1928-1930. a monument was erected.

Bulgaria. Monument to Russian soldiers on Shipka

The most large-scale and solemn events are held here on March 3 - this is the day of the signing of the San Stefano peace treaty, which brought freedom to Bulgaria after five centuries of Ottoman yoke.

Bulgaria. Monument of Freedom on Shipka Pass

And every August, a historical reconstruction of the events of 1877 is held here. An important part of the event is a memorial service for the Russian, Belarusian, Ukrainian, Romanian and Finnish soldiers who died here, as well as for the Bulgarian militias. Military honors are given to them, state leaders and residents of Bulgaria lay wreaths of fresh flowers at the monument on top of the hill as a token of their gratitude.

In 1877, Russia entered into another war with the Ottoman Empire. Russia's desire to restore positions in Europe, undermined by the defeat in Crimean War coincided with the favorable situation in Europe. New anti-Russian front around Ottoman Empire was not formed, since the attitude towards the Ottomans was extremely negative at that time.

The reason for this was the brutal suppression of the April uprising in Bulgaria, during which over 30 thousand women, the elderly and children were killed by irregular armed detachments of the Ottomans (“Bashi-Bazouks”) in southern Bulgaria alone.

Protecting the Orthodox Slavic peoples of the Balkans from genocide has become an officially declared goal of Russia in the new war. A goal that received wide support in Russian society.

On April 12, 1877, Russia declared war on the Ottoman Empire. Having neutralized the actions of the Ottoman flotilla of ships on the Danube, the Russian army in June 1877 began forcing this river.

The Ottoman army failed to put up serious resistance to the crossing of Russian troops on the Danube.

The command of the Russian army intended, having overcome the Balkan ridge, to go on the offensive against Constantinople. For the implementation of this intention, control over the Shipka Pass, through which the road connecting Northern and Southern Bulgaria passes, acquired key importance.

Hidden threat

At the beginning of July 1877, detachments generals Gurko and Svyatopolk-Mirsky approached Shipka, forcing the 5,000th Turkish corps to retreat Hulyussi Pasha.

Thus, the most important pass was in the hands of the Russian army.

To control the Shipka pass, a detachment of about 5,000 people was left, the basis of which was the Orlovsky infantry regiment, as well as the Bulgarian militias.

Initially, it was not planned to build serious fortifications on the pass. It was assumed that the main forces of the Russian army, having defeated the enemy in the area of ​​​​the city of Plevna, would soon go on the offensive through the pass. But several assaults on Plevna ended in failure, and the Russian army proceeded to lay siege to the city.

At the same time, the Turks, realizing the significance of the Shipka Pass, were preparing to take revenge by regaining control over it. Moreover, the Ottoman army then intended to strike at the rear of the main forces of the Russian army, and then throw it back across the Danube.

Surprisingly, the Russian command did not detect the threat looming over the army in time.

The fact that 100 kilometers from the Shipka Pass is a 35,000-strong army Suleiman Pasha preparing for the offensive, Russian intelligence had no information.

Worse, misjudging the situation, commander of the central grouping of Russian troops in Northern Bulgaria, General Radetsky took away all the reserves from the Shipka Pass, concentrating them near the town of Bebrovo, where the main blow of the Ottoman troops was expected.

Thus, the Russian reserves were in three - four days transition from Shipka.

“I will defend myself to the last extreme”

August 8, 1877 militia commander Russian General Nikolai Stoletov, who led the defense of Shipka, telegraphed to headquarters: “In front of my position, the entire corps of Suleiman Pasha lined up with numerous cavalry, artillery and carts. Tomorrow the enemy will storm Shipka. I will defend myself to the last extreme, but I consider it my duty to report that the disproportion of forces is too great. Considering our position to be very important, I am asking for reinforcements."

Six thousand Russian soldiers and Bulgarian militias with 27 guns in poorly fortified positions found themselves face to face with the 30,000-strong army of Suleiman Pasha, who almost doubled the defenders in artillery.

Suleiman Pasha demanded from his commanders not to spare the soldiers during the assault, to achieve the capture of the Shipka Pass at any cost.

On the night of August 9, Russian and Bulgarian soldiers said goodbye to each other. Both privates and officers understood that it was almost impossible to keep Shipka in such conditions. However, the defenders were not going to retreat, preferring to die in battle.

On the morning of August 9, after artillery shelling, the Turks launched an assault that lasted all day. The defenders managed to repel five attacks, without allowing the Ottoman army to take over the Russian positions.

On August 10, the opponents took a break, during which the Bryansk regiment came to the aid of the Russians, increasing the number of Shipka defenders to 7 thousand people.

A strong word from Colonel Depreradovich

“Let them fall by the thousands, others will take their place,” said the commander of the Turkish army. “Of the signals, only “collection”, “advance” and “commander killed” are allowed.”

Survivors of the battle said that what was happening that day was like hell. The battle was distinguished by extreme bitterness, mountains of corpses lay on the mountain slopes. There was no one not only to remove the dead bodies, but even to take out the wounded from under fire.

The guns of the "Steel Battery" on Shipka. Source: Public Domain

By the evening of August 11, the most difficult situation had developed on Volynskaya Gora, where the "Central" battery held the defense. The Russian soldiers who fought on bare stones without sleep and food had almost no ammunition left, all the officers were killed. The survivors began to gradually succumb to the onslaught of the Ottomans. And at that moment the battery broke through Colonel Fyodor Depreradovich.

— Brothers! he shouted over the din of battle. "Help is near, hold on!"

Exhausted, exhausted people believed the words of the colonel. Having gathered the last forces, the defenders of the "Central" repulsed this attack as well. The Turkish soldiers did not have the strength for the new one either. The bloody and brutal battle of August 11 lasted thirteen hours in a row.

Depreradovich did not lie: the reserves sent to the aid of Stoletov by General Radetsky really made it in time. The bayonet attack of the newly arrived Russian troops made it possible to restore full control over the Volyn Mountains.

Fierce fighting on Shipka continued for another three days, but did not bring serious success to either the Russians or the Turks.

Having retained control over the pass, the Russian and Bulgarian units were blocked from three sides and did not have the opportunity to conduct other actions, except for passive defense.

Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Army Grand Duke Nikolai Nikolaevich ordered the detachment on Shipka to hold out until Plevna was taken.

Cold, sickness and quartermasters

During the six-day bloody battle for Shipka, the losses of the Russian forces amounted to more than 130 officers and more than 3,600 soldiers. The Ottoman army lost over 230 officers as well as 6,000 to 8,000 soldiers.

The battered Russian units and Bulgarian militias on Shipka were partially replaced by fresh forces, but the ability to deliver ammunition and food to the troops defending the pass was extremely limited.

On September 5, 1877, the Ottomans made their last attempt to storm Shipka, having managed to capture the Eagle's Nest rock. However, a furious Russian counterattack, culminating in hand-to-hand combat, restored the previous state of affairs.

From that moment on, the Turkish army was limited to siege operations.

With the onset of autumn, the position of the Russian army deteriorated sharply. The roads were washed away, the clay turned into a mess, dug out dugouts were constantly full of water. Autumn was replaced by early winter with strong winds, which sometimes sent sentries off the cliff, severe frosts and deep snow.

Quartermaster services worked very badly. Winter uniforms were supplied to Shipka in insufficient quantity and of disgusting quality, and the situation with food was no better. General Radetsky, who did not want to spoil relations with the commander-in-chief and went down in history thanks to the duty report, repeated over and over again - “Everything is calm on Shipka”, nevertheless reported to headquarters in November 1877: “If the reserve is not immediately sent to Gabrovo crackers, cereals and alcohol, then the Shipka detachment is threatened with starvation. I have repeatedly communicated with the field commissariat about all this, but there is still no reserve.

The loss statistics speak best of all about what the “Shipka seat” cost the Russian army: in the period from September 5 to December 24, 1877, the Shipka detachment lost 700 people killed and wounded, and 9500 sick and frostbitten.

Last push to the south

On November 28 (December 10, according to a new style), a turning point in the war happened - Plevna fell. The main forces of the Russian army began to implement the original plan of the war, which provided for a breakthrough into southern Bulgaria. The pass, held by the Shipka detachment, played a crucial role in this situation.

On December 24-28, 1877, Russian troops under the command of Generals Skobelev, Svyatopolk-Mirsky and Radetsky carried out an operation against Turkish troops located in front of the Shipka Pass, which went down in history as the “battle of Shipka-Sheinovo”.

The Shipka detachment in this battle with a frontal blow pulled back part of the Turkish forces, which untied the hands of Skobelev, who was acting on the flank, whose breakthrough into the center of the fortified Turkish camp predetermined the overall victory of the Russians.

The victory at Sheinovo opened the way for the Russian army to Constantinople, which horrified not only the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, but also many European politicians. The Ottoman Empire asked for peace, and Russia was strongly advised not to finish off the defeated enemy.

Diplomatic games led to the fact that Russia's victory in the war was significantly devalued. Bulgaria did not receive complete independence - its statehood was restored in the form of a principality, which was in vassal dependence on the Ottoman Empire. However, it was already impossible to turn back history - in 1908 Bulgaria became completely independent.

Subsequent Russian-Bulgarian relations were not easy - the internal struggle of the Bulgarian elites regularly led to the fact that this Slavic country in wars she took the side of the opponents of Russia and the USSR.

Sculptural composition on Shipka - Russian soldiers on the pass in the winter of 1877.

In those days (1877) the shortest road between the northern part of Bulgaria and Turkey went through the Shipka Pass. All other passes or passages in the Balkan Mountains are much less convenient for the passage of troops. The Turks understood the strategic importance of the pass, and instructed the 6,000-strong detachment of Halyussi Pasha to defend it with nine guns.

To capture the pass, the Russian command formed two detachments - Vanguard consisting of 10 battalions, 26 squadrons and hundreds with 14 mountain and 16 horse guns under the command of Lieutenant General Gurko, and the Gabrovsky detachment consisting of 3 battalions and 4 hundreds with 8 field and two horse guns under the command of Major General Derozhinsky.

Gurko led his detachment through the unguarded and impenetrable Khainkoisky Pass, which lies east of Shipka, and on the evening of July 5, 1877, he went out from the south to the Shipka Pass. At dawn on July 6, the Vanguard Detachment attacked the Turks at the Shipka Pass from the rear, while the Gabrovsky Detachment began to advance from the front. The whole day the battle went on with varying success, and on the night of July 6-7, the Turks fled to the mountains. The Turks abandoned all their 9 guns, of which two mountain guns were damaged, and six 8-cm Krupp guns and one mountain gun were in perfect working order, and even with a large supply of ammunition.

80 mm Krupna cannon, made in 1875, captured by the Russians at Shipka

The Turkish command decided to regain control of the Shipka Pass at all costs. The army of Suleiman Pasha moved there. It consisted of 48 infantry battalions, 5 cavalry squadrons, several thousand bashi-bazouks and 8 batteries, a total of 27 thousand people with 48 guns. On the night of August 8-9, the Turks approached the pass. By this time, the pass was defended by 6 thousand Russian soldiers and Bulgarian combatants with 27 guns (8 nine-pound and 8 four-pound field guns, 4 three-pound mountain guns, 6 Krupp 80-mm steel guns and one mountain gun. In Gabrovo there was a reserve of the Shipka detachment: 35th infantry The Bryansk regiment of the 9th infantry division, two squads of the Bulgarian militia, one Cossack hundred and a platoon of the 10th Don Cossack battery, totaling about 3 thousand people with two horse guns.

The position on Shipka, occupied by the Russians, was an irregular quadrangle stretched along the Gabrovo road, short sides which ranged from 60 to 200 meters, and the long ones reached 2000 meters. The position included Mount St. Nicholas from the south, then the Volyn and Shipka mountains with its southeastern and southwestern spurs. The last spur, due to its location and special significance in the defense system, was called Central Mountain. The position had an almost circular front to the east, south and west. The slopes of the mountains that formed it were steep, rocky, with a sparse vegetation cover, which made the position very difficult for enemy attacks. Mount St. Nicholas dominated the surrounding area, except for Mount Maly Beredka and Bald Mountain, which exceeded it by 24 and 8 meters, respectively. This provided, on the one hand, good review the entire surrounding area, and on the other hand, viewing the position itself from individual heights in the enemy’s position. The Russians and Bulgarians erected the simplest earthen fortifications at the top.

On August 9, the Turks launched the first assault on Russian positions (a detailed story about the assault on Shipka on August 9 - 14 can be found). Russian batteries literally bombarded the Turks with shrapnel and forced them to roll back, leaving many corpses on the slopes. Nevertheless, the Turks threw more and more new forces into battle. On August 10-14, Turkish attacks alternated with Russian counterattacks. As a result, the Turks did not succeed in knocking the Russians off the Shipka Pass, although the battle took on an extremely fierce character. Suffice it to say that in 6 days of fighting, the Russians lost two generals, 108 officers, 3338 lower ranks on Shipka. Turkish losses were 2-4 times higher: according to Turkish data - 233 officers and 6527 lower ranks, according to Russian data - over 12 thousand people.

Further struggle for the pass was reduced to artillery skirmishes, followed by Turkish infantry attacks. Neither Russian nor Turkish guns could destroy the enemy's stone and earth fortifications and suppress his artillery. The Russians successfully repulsed Turkish attacks with shrapnel, in some cases, buckshot was used. It is curious that the greatest damage to the Russians was caused not by the latest Krupp artillery, but by a 14-gun mortar battery, located 800 meters from the Russian positions. It was armed with smooth-bore copper 2- and 5-pood mortars - weapons of the “times of Ochakov and the conquest of Crimea”! ...

On the night of September 17, 1877, Suleiman Pasha again threw his camps and even the guard into a crazy attack. But in vain - Shipka turned out to be beyond their strength. At a time when bloody battles were being fought in northern Bulgaria, the gates leading to the Danube valley were tightly locked. Autumn came, followed by early winter. The former defenders were replaced by other regiments of the 24th Infantry Division: the 93rd Irkutsk, the 94th Yenisei and the 95th Krasnoyarsk. Thirty percent of the personnel of the first two regiments were artisans and workers of St. Petersburg factories. The well-known "winter standing on Shipka" began.

Rifled gun of the 1867 system

The documents of these regiments, as well as the correspondence between the headquarters of the VIII Corps and the Headquarters, abound interesting facts, telling about the everyday life of the Shipka guards, who had to fight not only with the enemy, but also with the harsh nature. The stereotypical telegrams of F. F. Radetsky to the “Main Apartment” became well-known “Everything is calm on Shipka”. But in reality, the defenders had to deal with blizzards and snow, stand under the bullets and heavy shells of Turkish mortars. Russian artillery responded to enemy artillery fire.

On December 3, the artilleryman of the "Small" battery, Mikhail Vasilyev, especially distinguished himself. The exact hit of his three shells silenced the "nine-eyed" battery of the enemy. According to contemporaries, “the infantrymen spent days and nights either in trenches covered with snow or buried in mud. And the latter dug where in the summer it was impossible to hide from the rain.

The cold was accompanied by snow blizzards. One participant wrote in his diary:

“Severe frost and a terrible snowstorm: the number of frostbitten reaches terrifying proportions. Connection with the summit of St. Nikola is interrupted. There is no way to start a fire. The overcoats of the soldiers were covered with a thick ice crust. Many cannot bend their arm. Movement has become very difficult, and those who have fallen cannot rise without assistance. Snow covers them up in three or four minutes. The overcoats are so frozen that their floors do not bend, but break. People refuse to eat, gather in groups and are in constant motion to keep warm at least a little. There is nowhere to hide from frost and blizzards.”

And in some reports it was literally the following: “Under such conditions, nothing will remain of our regiments”.

By December 5, the number of patients in the Irkutsk regiment reached 1042 people, and in the Yenisei regiment 1393. Here is an entry dated December 9, 1877, made in one of the documents:

“It's dark all around, it's cold, it's snowing... At the top of St. Nikola is still walking a snowstorm. The number of sick and frostbite has reached horrendous proportions and is increasing every day ... "

Elsewhere it says:

“The dugouts of the regiments are cold ... Due to snow drifts, they are uninhabited, so people spend days and nights in the open air”.

By December 13, the number of patients in the Shipka detachment reached 9 thousand (not counting the Bryansk regiment). Moreover, this figure cannot be considered accurate enough, since many of the frostbitten Russian soldiers were met by the Bulgarians on the way to the hospital, who took them with them and transported them along icy roads to their homes, where they provided them with first aid. At that time, many Bulgarian patriots began to transport coal to the position, to deliver it to the dugouts.

The hands of sentries and soldiers, touching the barrels of guns and rifles, stuck to them. Despite this, the Russian soldier, truly a miracle hero, supported by local Bulgarians, stood on Shipka to the end. This feat is dedicated to the paintings by V.V. Vereshchagin “Winter trenches on Shipka” and a particularly impressive triptych “Everything is calm on Shipka.”

The battles for Shipka lasted 5 months. On December 26, Russian troops, moving from Shipka, approached the village of Sheinovo, where the army of Wessel Pasha was concentrated. During a two-day oncoming battle, Wessel Pasha was surrounded and surrendered on December 28 with 31,000 soldiers. Russian losses amounted to 5123 people killed and wounded.

V.V. Vereshchagin. Shipka-Sheinovo. Skobelev near Shipka.
(In the background is Mount St. Nicholas, on which the batteries were
HELL. Shepeleva)

General F.F. Radetsky subsequently gave the following assessment of the five-month heroic defense of the Shipka Pass.

“Shipka are locked doors: in August they withstood a heavy blow, with which Suleiman Pasha wanted to break through them in order to enter the expanses of Northern Bulgaria, connect with Mehmed Pasha and Osman Pasha and thereby break the Russian army into two parts, after to inflict a decisive defeat on her. And over the next four months, Shipka chained the Turkish army of 40,000 to her, diverting it from other points in the theater of operations, thereby facilitating the successes of our other two fronts. Finally, the same Shipka prepared the surrender of another enemy army, and in January, through her open doors part of our army passed in its victorious march to Constantinople ".

Text taken from books:
A. Shirokorad, Russian-Turkish wars of 1676-1918 (chapter 11)
Genov Tsonko, Russian- Turkish war 1877-1878 and the feat of the liberators (chapter 3)

Shipka in Bulgaria is a peak with a height of 1523m. in the Balkan Mountains, it is also a small town and the famous Shipka Pass through the Balkans.

Shipka - mountain

The original name of the peak is Sveti Nikolay. In 1954, by decision of the Bulgarian Communist Party, it was renamed Stoletov, in honor of General Stoletov, the head of Shipka's defense. But the first name of the general was also Nikolai, and the people continued to call the peak in the old way. In 1977, the name was changed again, this time to Shipka, despite the fact that there is already an elevation with that name. Now the summit and its environs are a national park-museum. At the very top stands the Freedom Monument. Erected in 1934 with voluntary donations from the Bulgarian people.

Shipka - city

The city of Shipka is located at the southern foot of the Balkan Mountains, just before the entrance to the Shipka Pass, 12 km from the city of Kazanlak. Near the city of Shipka is one of the most sacred monuments of the Bulgarian-Russian friendship - the Memorial Church of the Nativity of Christ.

Shipka pass

Shipka pass, (Bulgarian. Shipchen pass) - a mountain pass through the Balkans. Height - 1185 m. A highway between the cities of Kazanlak passes through the pass and Gabrovo, Veliko Tarnovo. The Shipka Pass goes along a narrow spur of the main Balkan Range, gradually rising to Mount St. Nicholas, from where the road descends steeply into the Tundzhi valley.
At present, the project of the Shipka tunnel exists but has not been implemented.

History of Shipka

The Thracians inhabited this place since ancient times. Many archaeological remains (tombs, weapons, armor, coins) of that period have been found in the vicinity of the cities of Shipka and Kazanlak. In the 1st century BC e. the city was conquered by the Romans. When the Turks captured Bulgaria in 1396, they created a garrison in the city of Shipka to guard and control the Shipka Pass. In the vicinity of Shipka and Sheinovo, some of the bloodiest battles were fought in Russian-Turkish war 1877-1878 (Defense of Shipka in the war for the liberation of Bulgaria from the Ottoman yoke). The Freedom Monument on Mount Shipka (Stoletov Peak) is dedicated to the memory of the fallen. In 1954, the feature film Heroes of Shipka was filmed at Lenfilm.

Defense of Shipka

The defense of Shipka is one of the key and most famous episodes in the Russian-Turkish war of 1877-78. After the Russian army crossed the Danube, the commander-in-chief decided to immediately seize the passes through the Balkan ridge, for further movement deep into Turkey. The advance detachment of General Gurko, having crossed the Halinioysky pass and defeated the Turks near the village of Uflany and the city of Kazanlak, on July 5 approached from the south side to the Shipka Pass, occupied by a Turkish detachment (about 5 thousand people) under the command of Hulyussi Pasha. On the same day, a detachment of General Svyatopolk-Mirsky attacked Shipka from the north side, but the attack was repulsed. On July 6, General Gurko launched an attack on the pass from the south and also failed. Nevertheless, Hulyussi Pasha, considering his situation dangerous, on the night of the 6th to the 7th, left by side roads to the city of Kalofer, leaving artillery on his positions. Then Shipka was immediately occupied by the troops of Prince Svyatopolk-Mirsky. After the retreat of the advance detachment of General Gurko from the Trans-Balkan region, Shipka entered the area of ​​​​the southern front of the Russian army, entrusted to the protection of the troops of General Radetsky, which had to be stretched for more than 100 miles; the general reserve is located at Tyrnov. The position occupied by the Russian troops on Shipka did not meet the tactical requirements at all: its only benefit was its inaccessibility. Stretching for several miles in depth, along an extremely narrow (25-30 sazhens) ridge, it was subjected to cross-fire throughout its entire length from neighboring dominant heights, presenting neither natural cover nor convenience for going on the offensive. For all that, due to strategic requirements, it was necessary at all costs to keep this passage in our hands. At the beginning of August 1877, Radetsky had good reason to fear the passage of the army of Suleiman Pasha to northern Bulgaria, along one of the eastern passages, and its advance on Tarnovo. Therefore, when alarming news was received (which later turned out to be an exaggeration) about the strengthening of enemy troops against our detachments near the cities of Elena and Zlataritsa, the general reserve was sent (August 8) to these points and thus moved away from Shipka at a distance of 3-4 large transitions. Meanwhile, Suleiman, after the retreat of General Gurko, set out to capture Shipka and by August 8 concentrated about 28 thousand against her, with 36 guns. At that time, only the Orlovsky infantry regiment and 5 Bulgarian squads (up to 4 thousand people in total) were on the pass, with 27 guns, to which, already during the battle of the next day, the Bryansk regiment arrived from the city of Selvi, which increased the number of Shipka defenders up to 6 thousand. On the morning of August 9, enemy artillery, having occupied Mount Maly Bedek, east of Shipka, opened fire. The subsequent attacks of the Turkish infantry, first from the south, then from the east, were all repulsed by our fire. The fight lasted all day; at night, the Russian troops, who were waiting for a repetition of the attack, had to strengthen their positions. On August 10, the Turks did not resume their attacks, and the matter was limited to artillery and rifle fire. Meanwhile, Radetsky, having received news of the danger threatening Shipka, moved the general reserve there; but he could arrive, and then with reinforced transitions, only on the 11th; in addition, it was ordered to go to Shipka another infantry a brigade with a battery stationed at Selvi, which could arrive in time only on the 12th. August 11 was the most critical day for the defenders of the pass. The battle began at dawn; by 10 o'clock in the morning our position was engulfed by the enemy from three sides. The attacks of the Turks, repulsed by our fire, were renewed with fierce persistence. At 2 p.m., the Turks even entered the rear of our location, but were driven back. At 5 o'clock, the Turkish troops, advancing from the western side, took possession of the so-called Side Hill and threatened to break through the central part of the position. The position of the defenders of Shipka was already almost hopeless, when finally, at 7 o'clock in the evening, part of the reserve arrived at the position - the 16th rifle battalion, raised to the pass on Cossack horses. He was immediately moved to the Side Hill and, with the assistance of other units that went on the offensive, recaptured it from the enemy. The remaining battalions of the 4th Infantry Brigade, under the command of Major General Tsvetsinsky, who then arrived in time, made it possible to stop the pressure of the Turks on other parts of the position. The battle ended at dusk. Our troops held out on Shipka, but the Turks also managed to maintain their disposition that embraced us; their battle lines were only a few hundred paces from ours. On the night of the 12th, the 2nd brigade of the 14th infantry division went up to Shipka, with the arrival of which Radetsky had 20.5 battalions, with 38 guns, and therefore decided the next day to go on the offensive in order to knock down the Turks from two heights the western ridge - the so-called Forest Kurgan and Bald Mountain, from where they had the most convenient approaches to our position and even threatened its rear. The Turks warned us and at dawn on August 12 they attacked the central sections of our position, and at 2 o'clock in the afternoon they attacked Mount St. Nicholas. They were repulsed at all points, but our attack on Lesnoy Kurgan was also unsuccessful. On August 13, Radetsky decided to resume the attack on Lesnaya Kurgan and Lesnaya Gora, having the opportunity to bring more troops into action, due to the arrival of the Volyn regiment with a battery at Shipka. At the same time, Suleiman significantly strengthened his left flank. Throughout the day (August 13) there was a battle for the possession of the mentioned heights; the Turks were shot down from the Lesnoy Kurgan, but they failed to capture their fortifications on Lysa Gora. The attacking troops withdrew to the Forest Kurgan and here, during the evening, night, and at dawn on the 14th, they were repeatedly attacked by the enemy. All attacks were repulsed, but our troops suffered such heavy losses that Radetsky, having no fresh reinforcements, ordered them to retreat to Side Hill. The forest mound was again occupied by the Turks. In the 6-day battle on Shipka, up to 3,350 people fell out of action, including 2 generals (Dragomirov was wounded, Derozhinsky was killed) and 108 officers; the Turks lost more than twice as much. This battle did not have any significant results; both sides remained in their positions, but our troops, engulfed by the enemy from three sides, were still in a very difficult situation, which soon worsened significantly with the onset of autumn bad weather, and then winter cold and blizzards. On August 15, Shipka was occupied by the 14th Infantry Division and the 4th Infantry Brigade, under the command of General Petrushevsky, The Orlovsky and Bryansk regiments, as the most affected, were withdrawn to the reserve, and the Bulgarian squads were transferred to the village of Zeleno Drevo to occupy the path through the Imitli pass, bypassing Shipka from the west. From this time begins the "Shipka seat" - one of the most difficult episodes of the war. The defenders of Shipka, doomed to passive defense, were mainly concerned with strengthening their positions and arranging, if possible, closed communications with the rear. The Turks also strengthened and expanded their fortification works and continuously showered bullets and artillery shells on the Russian position. September 5, at 3 am, they again launched an attack from the south and west sides. They managed to take possession of the so-called Eagle's Nest - a rocky and steep cape, outstanding in front of Mount St. Nicholas, from where they were knocked out only after a desperate hand-to-hand fight. The column advancing from the west (from Lesnoy kurgan) was repelled by fire. After that, the Turks no longer made serious attacks, but limited themselves to shelling the position. With the onset of winter, the position of the troops on Shipka became extremely difficult, frosts and snowstorms on the tops of the mountains were especially sensitive, dugouts built by soldiers poorly protected from cold and dampness; there was a big shortage of warm clothes, there were frequent cases of sentries freezing at their posts. These hardships were especially tangible for the troops who had not yet suffered: three regiments of the 24th division, which had arrived from Russia shortly before and were sent to replace the units occupying Shipka, literally melted away from diseases in a short time. In general, during the period from September 5 to December 24, only about 700 people were out of action in the Shipka detachment, killed and wounded, and up to 9.5 thousand sick. The end of 1877 was also marked by the end of the "Shipka seat", the last act of which was the attack on Turkish positions on the road from Mount St. Nicholas to the village of Shipka.

Transport

You can get to the top of the mountain and the museum either by car or by sightseeing bus. There is an equipped parking lot in front of the top, but you can also go up to the peak by car, although the road is very steep.

Attractions:

Temple-monument of the Nativity of Christ

The temple, also called the Shipka Monastery, is the first monument to the Bulgarian-Russian friendship on the territory of Bulgaria. It is located on the southern side of the Shipka Pass, in the vicinity of the city of Shipka. Inside the temple and on the walls of open galleries there are 34 marble slabs with names military units who participated in the battles for Shipka, as well as the names of Russian soldiers and officers, and Bulgarian volunteers who fell during the defense of Shipka and in the battles near the cities of Kazanlak and Stara Zagora. The remains of heroes are buried in sarcophagi in the crypt of the temple. The bells were cast in Russia - the Russian military department allocated about 30 tons of spent cartridges for their production. In total, there are 17 bells in the temple, the largest bell weighs 11,643 kg and is a personal gift from Emperor Nicholas II. The idea of ​​the temple, its design belongs to Olga Nikolaevna Skobeleva, the mother of the famous General Skobelev. The idea became a nationwide cause, funds for its implementation flowed from civil and military organizations, numerous donors, ordinary citizens of Russia and Bulgaria. The construction committee was headed by Count Nikolai Pavlovich Ignatiev. The will of the donors - the temple was created for the prayerful commemoration of the soldiers-liberators, therefore, like the cathedral of Prince. Alexander Nevsky in Sofia, he received the name of "monument temple". Construction began in 1885 and ended in 1902. The memorial temple consists of a church, a monastery building, a hotel for pilgrims, a shelter and a theological seminary. The temple is cross-domed, with a square naos and three apses, the height of the bell tower is 53.4 meters. The architect A. Tomishko used the motifs of the Yaroslavl school of church architecture of the 17th century. The official opening ceremony took place on September 27, 1902, Count Ignatiev delivered a solemn speech on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the Shipka epic. Especially for this occasion, an imperial delegation arrived from Russia, which included Mikhail Ivanovich Dragomirov, Nikolai Grigoryevich Stoletov, Konstantin Chilyaev, Count Mikhail Pavlovich Tolstoy and others. On the territory of Bulgaria there are over 450 monuments that are dedicated to the Russian liberators (this is how the Bulgarians call all the participants in the Russian-Turkish war of 1877-1878), but this one is considered the most beautiful and impressive. On February 9, 2005, the church-monument of the Nativity of Christ on Shipka was transferred to the ownership of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church. Russian President Vladimir Putin visited it together with Bulgarian President Georgi Parvanov on March 3, 2003 (March 3 is the day the San Stefano peace treaty was signed, which brought freedom to Bulgaria after five centuries of Ottoman rule.)

Monument of Freedom on the Shipka Pass

The monument is a memorial in memory of those who died for the liberation of Bulgaria during the defense of the Shipka Pass in the Russian-Turkish war of 1877-78. The monument is located on Stoletov Peak, towering over the pass. There are 890 steps leading from the car park at the pass to the monument. The monument was opened in 1934. It was built according to the project of architect Atanas Donkov and sculptor Alexander Andreev with donations from the Bulgarian people. The memorial is a stone tower in the form of a truncated pyramid 31.5 m high. A giant bronze lion, 8 m long and 4 m high, is located above the entrance to the tower, and the figure of a woman symbolizes the victory over the Ottoman troops. On the first floor there is a marble sarcophagus with the remains of several who died during the defense. There are four more floors where the exposition of Bulgarian military flags and other relics is located. A breathtaking view of the Shipka Pass and its surroundings opens up from the top of the tower. Every August, a historical reenactment of the events of 1877 is held near the monument. An important part of the event is a funeral service for the Russian, Belarusian, Ukrainian, Romanian and Finnish soldiers who died here, as well as the Bulgarian militias. Military honors are given to them, state leaders and people of Bulgaria lay wreaths of fresh flowers at the monument on top of the hill as a token of their gratitude.