744 



TURKEY. 



movements were undertaken to relieve Osman 

 Pasha in Plevna, but were unsuccessful. 



The main object of the Russian commander 

 before Plevna, during October, was to complete 

 the investment of that place, and for that pur- 

 pose it was necessary to secure the road lead- 

 ing to the west. Although smaller bodies of 

 Russian troops had been west of Plevna, and 

 along the Vid River, for some time, it was not 

 until October 24th that the Russians gained a 

 firm foothold on the road leading to Orkhanie. 

 On that day General Gourko stormed the town 

 of Gorni Dabnik ; four days later he stormed 

 Telis. On October 31st, Osman Pasha evac- 

 uated Dolni Dabnik, situated half-way be- 

 tween Gorni Dabnik and Plevna, on the Sophia 

 road, and thus enabled the Russians to advance 

 about six miles nearer to Plevna. This advance 

 completed the investment of it, and from this 

 time until its surrender it was entirely cut 

 off from the outer world. An attempt made 

 by Shevket Pasha on October 31st, to introduce 

 an ammunition train into Plevna, was repulsed 

 by the Russians. During the month of N ovem- 

 ber the Russian lines were drawn still closer. 

 On November 9th, General Skobeleff stormed 

 the Green Hill, a wooded eminence south of 

 Plevna, and within three miles of that town, 

 and held it. against several Turkish attacks dur- 

 ing the following days. On the north side, the 

 Roumanian troops, on the 12th, also advanced 

 to within about three miles. On the 12th Os- 

 man Pasha was called upon to surrender, but 

 decidedly refused. In order to secure the army 

 of investment on the west, where Mehemet Ali 

 was gathering a fresh army at Sophia, the Rus- 

 sians sent out considerable bodies of troops, 

 which, on November 9th, took the town of 

 Vratza, situated on the road from Rahova on 

 the Danube to Sophia. On the 21st Rahova 

 was taken by the Roumanians ; on the 22d 

 Pravetz or Pravza, four or five miles east of 

 Orkhanie, was taken by the Russians, and on 

 the 24th Etropol fell into their hands. These 

 successes gave the Russians the entire line from 

 Rahova to Etropol, which completely protected 

 the investing lines on the west, as well as the 

 important pass of Baba Konak. In Plevna the 

 situation became daily more desperate. In spite 

 of Osman Pasha's boast that there were suffi- 

 cient provisions to last until spring, the want 

 thereof made itself bitterly felt, while the en- 

 tire absence of proper hospital accommodations 

 produced great suffering and large numbers of 

 deaths within the Turkish army, which in turn 

 bred disease among the garrison and the in- 

 habitants of the town. On December 9th, 144 

 days after Osman Pasha's first arrival, 45 days 

 after the complete investment, and about 60 

 days after the arrival of the last ammunition 

 train, Osman Pasha decided upon a sortie. For 

 three days previous the Russians knew that he 

 had exhausted his provisions, and was prepar- 

 ing such a movement. On the evening of Sun- 

 day, December 9th, they received news that he 

 would concentrate all his army near the bridge 



over the Vid. This was confirmed in the night 

 by Skobeleff, who perceived that the Turks had 

 abandoned in silence the Krishina redoubt and 

 all the positions on the "Green Hill." All 

 these positions he occupied. About seven 

 o'clock on Monday morning the Turks crossed 

 the Vid by the old bridge and the new one 

 which they had constructed, and flung them- 

 selves upon the Russian positions to the north 

 of the road defended by the grenadiers. The 

 line extended from the road to the Roumanian 

 positions. The Turks dashed against it with 

 such ardor and fury that in a few moments 

 they almost annihilated the Sibirsky regiment 

 of grenadiers, and they captured a complete 

 battery placed there. A terrible struggle fol- 

 lowed. The Turks here were under the fire of 

 the second line of investment and of one hun- 

 dred cannons, and the grenadiers resolved to 

 recapture the lost guns, and again advanced. A 

 bayonet fight then took place, which lasted a 

 quarter of an hour, in which a large number of 

 men were killed; and finally the Turks were 

 defeated and driven back. They fell back on 

 the Vid, pursued by the Russian infantry and 

 the fire of the artillery. There, sheltered be- 

 hind the banks of the river, they replied, and 

 the battle lasted until half-past twelve, when 

 the firing ceased on both sides. It had not 

 ceased more than half an hour when a parle- 

 mentaire arrived with the important news that 

 Osman Pasha was disposed to treat for the sur- 

 render of the place and of his army. The Rus- 

 sian infantry slowly advanced toward the 

 bridge, and the officers, on reaching the bridge, 

 mixed with the Turkish soldiers and opened a 

 conversation with them. Soon afterward, Tefik 

 Bey, head of the Turkish staff, arrived and said 

 that Osman Pasha was wounded. 



The conditions of the surrender were ar- 

 ranged in a quarter of an hour. They were the 

 complete surrender of the place, of the mmy, 

 and of the arms. All tliis was settled wiih as- 

 tonishing rapidity, so that when the Grand- 

 Duke arrived, half an hour later, the Turks had 

 laid down their arms, and all was over. Os- 

 man Pasha did not attempt to cut his way 

 through, as it was supposed he would, without 

 artillery and without baggage. He had, on the 

 contrary, a considerable train, more than 500 

 vehicles 5 , which had started, and a large force 

 of artillery, \vhich supported the attack of the 

 infantry. The sortie was a brilliant affair, but 

 it never had a chance of success, and it cannot 

 be imagined that Osman Pasha expected it to 

 succeed, but he made it, probably, to satisfy his 

 own sense of duty. His wound was in the leg, 

 and was not serious. He was treated with the 

 utmost courtesy and consideration by the Grand- 

 Duke and all the Russian officers. The fall of 

 Plevna virtually ended the war in Europe. In 

 the Western Balkans Mehemet Ali was super- 

 seded by Nedjib Pasha, one of the younger 

 generals, who gained considerable distinction as 

 chief of staff in the campaign against Servia ir 

 1876. 



