Battle of Shipka Pass
The pass itself crosses the main ridge of the Balkan Mountains near the village of Shipka. It is a part of the main road from North to South, leading from Zistovi by Tirnovo and Eski Zagra to Adrianople. In July 1877, four Russian corps crossed the Danube River and entered Bulgaria. Preceding the main Russian army, Iosif Gurko led a detachment of 11,000 men to capture the vital Balkan Mountain passes. The Ottoman Army made two major attempts to retake the pass in 1877, but was unsuccessful. The defense of the pass was left to the Russian vanguard as well as Bulgarian volunteers.
At the beginning of the war, Shipka Pass was held by an Ottoman garrison of 4,000 soldiers and 12 guns. On the 17th of July, Mirsky and his 2,000 men of the 36th Orlovsky Infantry Regiment plus Cossacks and artillery was ready to act. However, while advancing from South, Gurko's men skirmished with some Ottoman troops so they approached the pass in delay. Mirsky attacked the same day but Turks repulsed this very first assault. Gurko arrived the next day with two infantry battalions and two companies of Cossacks and also attacked the pass. This second attack also failed. On the morning of the 19th of July, while pretending to consider the terms of surrender, the Ottoman garrison slipped away to the west in small groups. They left behind a large cache of explosives, ammunition, and artillery. The strong position was finally occupied by the Russians.
The Second Battle of Shipka Pass took place in August 1877. General Gurko had been resting about the Shipka Pass with 5,000 men, including five battalions of Bulgarians. They were placed on three positions at St. Nicholas, Central Hill and the reserves in between these two points. Süleyman Hüsnü Pasha at Hersek was then ordered to prepare his experienced army and rush to relieve Osman Pasha at Pleven. It was not possible to reach Pleven by land as the terrain was very difficult. Süleyman loaded his 25,000 troops on transport ships at the Montenegrin port of Bar and sailed them through the Adriatic, around Morea, and then through the Aegean Sea. The troops were then loaded on trains to Filibe from which they marched towards the southern slopes of Shipka. Some 15 battalions under Reouf Pasha joined Süleyman until his army reached about 30,000 Ottomans determined to retake the pass instead of simply bypassing it. On August 21, the Ottoman forces bombarded Russian positions and then made an attack against St. Nicholas.
In September 1877, Suleiman Pasha made another attempt to retake the Shipka Pass from the Russians after the failed attempt in August. On September 13, Suleiman began to shell the Russians. The bombardment continued in earnest until the 17th when Suleiman launched a frontal assault against the St. Nicholas position. Capturing the first line of trenches, the Ottoman forces moved towards the peak. General Fyodor Radetzky, now commanding the defenses, brought in reinforcements and a Russian counterattack drove the Ottoman forces from all captured ground. Secondary Ottoman assaults to the north were repulsed as well. The Fourth Battle of Shipka Pass took place the 5th of January 9, 1878. It was the final battle for Shipka Pass and a crushing Ottoman defeat. In December 1877, the fortress of Pleven surrendered to the Russian Army, freeing a significant number of Russian troops. General Gourko now had as many as 65,000 soldiers to contend with the Ottomans.
On August 23, the Ottoman forces attacked all Russian positions, with the main effort again at St. Nicholas where most of the defenders were Bulgarian volunteers. The Ottoman forces thought that the volunteer positions would be easy to capture, but this turned out to be a miscalculation. Instead, the first unit to begin to retreat were the Russians on Central Hill. However, they rallied when the 4th Rifle Brigade, commanded by Fyodor Radetsky, arrived and all Ottoman attacks were repulsed. On the 26th, an Ottoman attack on St. Nicholas reached the Russian trenches but was repulsed again by a Bulgarian bayonet charge. More Russian reinforcements arrived the same day and an attack was made against the Ottoman position but driven back to Central Hill. In these attacks, the Russians lost close on 4,000 men, while Süleyman losses approached 10,000 killed or wounded. Near the end of the fighting, having run out of ammunition, they threw rocks and bodies of fallen comrades to repulse the Ottoman attacks.
The defensive victory at the Shipka Pass had strategic importance for the progress of the war. Had the Ottomans been able to take the pass, they would have been in a position to threaten the supply lines of the Russian and Romanian forces in Northern Bulgaria. The victory at Shipka Pass ensured the fall of the Pleven fortress on the 10th of December 1877, and set the stage for the invasion of Thrace. It allowed Russian forces under Gourko to crush Suleiman Pasha's army at the Battle of Philippopolis several days later and threaten Constantinople. Suleiman Pasha was later court-martialed due to the colossal failure at Shipka. He was initially sentenced to death but then commuted by Sultan Abdulhamid II and sent to exile in Baghdad. Today the Shipka Pass is in the Bulgarka Nature Park and is home to a monument commemorating the warriors who died in the battle.
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Common questions
Who led the Russian forces at the Battle of Shipka Pass?
Iosif Gurko led a detachment of 11,000 men to capture the vital Balkan Mountain passes. General Fyodor Radetzky commanded the defenses during later stages of the fighting.
When did the first assault on Shipka Pass occur in July 1877?
The first assault occurred on the 17th of July when Mirsky attacked with 2,000 men from the 36th Orlovsky Infantry Regiment plus Cossacks and artillery. The Ottoman garrison repulsed this very first assault before Gurko arrived the next day.
How many Ottoman troops did Süleyman Hüsnü Pasha bring to retake the pass in August 1877?
Süleyman Hüsnü Pasha brought about 30,000 Ottomans determined to retake the pass instead of simply bypassing it. Some 15 battalions under Reouf Pasha joined his force after he transported them by sea and rail.
What was the outcome of the Fourth Battle of Shipka Pass on the 5th of January 9 1878?
The Fourth Battle of Shipka Pass resulted in a crushing Ottoman defeat and served as the final battle for Shipka Pass. This victory ensured the fall of the Pleven fortress on the 10th of December 1877 and set the stage for the invasion of Thrace.
Where is the Shipka Pass located today and what monument exists there?
Today the Shipka Pass is in the Bulgarka Nature Park and is home to a monument commemorating the warriors who died in the battle. The pass itself crosses the main ridge of the Balkan Mountains near the village of Shipka.