Khivan campaign of 1873

Did You Know?

• Twice before, Russia had failed to subjugate Khiva: in 1717 under Prince Bekovitch-Cherkassky and in 1839 under Count Perovsky.
• After the campaign, the Khan was reinstated on June 14 and a treaty was signed on August 24, 1873.
• Kaufmann attacked the Yomud Turkomans, demanding an impossibly large tax, leading to a campaign with unnecessary slaughter.

Preparations

In 1869, Fyodor Radetsky established the settlement of Krasnovodsk, which would eventually serve as the base for the Trans-Caspian Military District and the starting point of the Trans-Caspian railway. The choice to move against Khiva came in March 1870. Since Khiva was an oasis ringed by hundreds of miles of desert, that desert needed to be charted and its water sources located before any army could advance. Mikhail Skobelev surveyed a path from Krasnovodsk to the edge of the oasis, and Colonel Vasily Markozov later conducted a more detailed exploration of the area.

Nikolai Lomakin surveyed the Mangyshlak Peninsula. In September 1872, Colonel Markozov set out from Krasnovodsk and Chikishlyar, intending to make a rapid thrust toward Khiva, but the Viceroy of the Caucasus ordered him back. To the east, Konstantin Kaufman dispatched reconnaissance parties into the desert south of the Syr-Darya River. The Czar gave the final go-ahead for the attack in December 1872.

The assembled force consisted of 61 infantry companies, 26 Cossack cavalry companies, 54 artillery pieces, 4 mortars, and 5 rocket detachments. The plan called for five separate columns to converge on Khiva. General von Kaufmann, the overall commander, would march west from Tashkent and link up with a second column moving south from Fort Aralsk. They were to meet at Min Bulak in the middle of the Kyzylkum Desert, then head southwest toward the head of the Oxus River delta.

Meanwhile, Veryovkin would advance south from Orenburg along the western shore of the Aral Sea and join forces with Lomakin, who was coming directly east from the Caspian Sea. At the same time, Markozov would march northeast from Krasnovodsk, a plan later shifted to Chikishlyar. This unusual five-pronged approach may have stemmed from bureaucratic infighting. The governor of Orenburg had historically held primary responsibility for Central Asia.

Kaufmann’s recently acquired Turkestan Province was full of ambitious officers, while the Viceroy of the Caucasus commanded the largest pool of troops.

The two eastern armies

The Aralsk column departed on March 11, 1873, and Kaufmann’s force left Jizzakh on March 23. On April 13, Kaufmann redirected both groups to converge at Khala-Ata, roughly 130 miles east of the delta’s head, before pushing west to the Oxus River. This unplotted route was a serious gamble in the desert. The two columns met at Khala-Ata on May 6, rested, dug wells, and moved out on May 12.

On May 17, they set off with what they believed was a three-day water supply, but it ran out by nightfall. A Kazakh guide located a small waterhole a few miles north, so camels were sent back to fetch more water. By then, many camels were weak or dying, forcing the troops to abandon most of their supplies. They reached the Oxus at Uch-Uchak on May 23.

After silencing a Khivan battery at Sheik-Arik, they crossed the river unopposed over three days. On the inhabited side, Kaufmann promised to pay for any supplies—and did—but warned he would seize them if none appeared. On June 4, he occupied the empty fort at Hazarasp. There, he received a letter from the Khan proposing terms, along with word from Veryovkin that Kungrad had just fallen. The campaign was nearly finished, save for sorting out the western forces.

The three western armies

Markozov, instead of starting from Krasnovodsk as planned, started from Chikishlyar near the southwest corner of the Caspian where he could find more camels. He left on March 31 and reached Igdi at the bend of the Uzboy River a month later. He pushed forward, ran out of water and was forced to retreat. The last stragglers reached Krasnovodsk on May 26.

Later in the year Skobelev led a detachment from near Khiva and reported that the desert beyond Markozov's turning point was impassible for an army. The Orenburg forces under Veryovkin started from Orenburg, Orsk and Uralsk in late February, had a difficult time because of the cold and reached the Emba River on March 15–17. He moved out on April 7, the weather had warmed, he had no difficulty moving down the west shore of the Aral Sea and reached the edge of the oasis on May 14.

On May 20 he took the abandoned fort of Kungard at the northwest corner of the delta. He moved out on May 23, won two small battles and was joined by Lomakin's force on May 24. Lomakin started from Kinderli, which was perhaps unwise since there were not enough camels at that place. He left on April 26.

The heat was intense, the wells far apart, the water poor, camels began to die and soldiers grew sick and had to be carried. On May 10 they ran out of water and would have been lost had not a small well been found. On the 17th Skobelev captured a caravan with provisions and 150 camels. They joined Veryovkin on May 24.

Khiva captured (June 10, 1873)

Veryovkin operated from the delta’s northwest corner while Kaufmann held the south. Contact between them was only established on June 4 and 5 via messengers. Taking charge of Lomakin’s forces, Veryovkin departed Kungard on May 27. He captured Khojali, fifty-five miles south, then Mangit, another thirty-five miles southeast.

After shots were fired from Mangit, the village was burned and its people killed. The Khivans mounted several efforts to halt his advance. By June 7, Veryovkin reached Khiva’s outskirts. Two days earlier, he had learned that Kaufmann had crossed the Oxus.

On June 9, an advance unit came under intense fire and realized it had unknowingly arrived at the city’s North Gate. They seized a barricade and requested scaling ladders, but Veryovkin ordered them back, planning only a bombardment. During this action, a wound struck his right eye. The bombardment commenced, and at 4 p.m. an envoy arrived with an offer of surrender.

Because firing continued from the walls, the bombardment resumed, soon setting parts of the city ablaze. It halted again at 11 p.m. when a message from Kaufmann reported that the Khan had surrendered. The following day, some Turkmen opened fire from the walls. Artillery responded, and a few lucky shots shattered the gate.

Skobelev led a thousand men through, reaching near the Khan’s residence, only to learn that Kaufmann was entering peacefully through the West Gate. Skobelev withdrew and waited for Kaufmann.