Siege of Sevastopol (1854–1855)
The culminating struggle for the strategic Russian port in 1854–55.
The Siege of Sevastopol (at the time called in English the Siege of Sebastopol) lasted from October 1854 until September 1855, during the Crimean War. The allies (French, Sardinian, Ottoman, and British) landed at Eupatoria on 14 September 1854, intending to make a triumphal march to Sevastopol, the capital of the Crimea, with 50,000 men.
- start_date
- October 1854
- end_date
- September 1855
- location
- Sevastopol, Crimea
- belligerents
- Allies (French, Sardinian, Ottoman, British) vs. Russian Empire
- key_commanders
- Vice Admirals Vladimir Kornilov and Pavel Nakhimov (Russian); Lieutenant Colonel Eduard Totleben (Russian engineer)
- allied_landing_force
- 50,000 men at Eupatoria on 14 September 1854
- notable_battles
- Alma, Balaklava, Inkerman, Tchernaya, Redan, Malakoff
Lore & Background
The siege of Sevastopol is one of the last classic sieges in history. The city of Sevastopol was the home of the tsar's Black Sea Fleet, which threatened the Mediterranean. The Russian field army withdrew before the allies could encircle it. The siege was the culminating struggle for the strategic Russian port in 1854–55 and was the final episode in the Crimean War.
Reader's Guide
Major battles along the way were Alma (September 1854), Balaklava (October 1854), Inkerman (November 1854), Tchernaya (August 1855), Redan (September 1855), and, finally, Malakoff (September 1855). During the siege, the allied navy undertook six bombardments of the capital, on 17 October 1854; and on 9 April, 6 June, 17 June, 17 August, and 5 September 1855.
Did You Know?
- The siege was the subject of Leo Tolstoy's Sebastopol Sketches.
- The first Russian feature film, Defence of Sevastopol, was about the siege.
- The Boulevard de Sébastopol in Paris was named for the victory in the 1850s.
- The Battle of Balaklava was made famous by Alfred, Lord Tennyson's poem 'The Charge of the Light Brigade' and Robert Gibb's painting The Thin Red Line.
- A panorama of the siege was painted by Franz Roubaud.
More in Sieges And Battles 1-24
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