Vol. III.— No. 63.] 
Saturday, March 11, 1854. 
[Gratis. 
SEBASTOPOL 
DBR x> - engineering point of view, chiefly from the recent 
SURVEY OF MAJOR YONVAL, IN FEBRUARY 1854. 
S ebastopol, or Sevastopol, is situated at the southern 
point of the Crimea, which juts out into the Black Sen, 
like an advanced post, near to Cape Chersonese, regarded 
b nau ticnl men as the principal point of reconnaissance of 
the port. On doubling the Cape, bordered with a vast chain 
of rocks and breakers, Sebastopol appears about 01 miles to 
the east ; a remarkable feature, on account of its white 
cliffs and tho amphitheatrical appearance of the town. On I 
the near side are nine ports, three of which are in tho bay of 
Sebastopol itself, and all open to the north. The anchor- 
nfre-m-ound, properly speaking, is about 4 \ miles long by 
jl mile broad, in its widest part. Its direction is from east to 
west with a slight inclination to tho south. Many creeks, or 
bays' are formed by tho indentations of tho mountains, 
which surround it on all sides, and three of them are called 
Quarantine Bay, Artillery Bay, and the largest and finest, 
Ship Bay. These natural basins have a depth of water 
for ships of the largest size, and their sides being perpendi- 
cular, vessels can lie alongside as easily as in a dock. The 
defences of the port are a mile in length, comprising the 
space between the beacon at the mouth to the entrance of 
the arsenal. In this short distance, all the capes advance 
towards the sea north and south, and are covered cither by 
earth-work batteries, or by stono forts of considerable 
dimensions, casemated, and with double stages, and with the 
guns converging towards the entrance of the port. This 
plan of defence is completed by a star-fort, situated on a 
height to the north, which commands both the sea and 
the^approaches by the shore ; to the south, by a considerable 
work which commands the town, and defonds the landing- 
places ; by an entrenched camp in a good strategic position, 
about two miles south of tho town ; and lastly, by 
four fortified barracks, grouped above the naval establish- 
ments and the park of artillery. 
In approuching tho channel, which we have said runs 
nearly cast and west, and which in width, between tho 
buoys that mark the extreme points of the sunken rocks, 
stretches to tho north and south-east nearly half-a-mile, 
tho first defence encountered on the south is composed 
of a fort of two rows of earth-work batteries, armed with 
fifty heavy pieces of ordnance, and a battery called the 
Grand Battery of the Quarantine, so named from its 
proximity to that establishment, and which is armed 
with fifty-one pieces. On the summit of the hill form- 
ing the west syje of Quarantine Bay there is a star 
fort, to complete tho defence to the south, and present- 
ing, towards the cntrauco of tho roads, fifty armed em- 
brasures. At tho base of this system, on tho Cape 
Alexander, is Fort Alexander, which is composed of a 
stone tower and two stages of batteries casemated, of 
precisely similar construction, with their front directed 
so as to protect tho channel. On the platform is a 
third battery (l barbette. Fort Alexander mounts sixty- 
lour cannons. The four forts in stone and casemated being 
constructed upon tho same plan, the description of one will 
6utfice to give a general idea of the whole. These torts 
and casemates are constructed of masonry of a calcareous 
stone, tho hearting being filled with a species of rough 
sandstone. The stone is obtained in the neighbourhood, 
and resembles the shell-limestone of which Odessa is built, I 
and it is so soft, that in caso of a bombardment tho bulls 
would bo buried in them ns in sand. Dr. Kohl, the author 
of “ Reisen in Sud Russland,” states that this stono is so 
extremely perishable, that the houses of Odessa fall to pieces 
of themselves. From all tho information we can collect, the 
strength of the masonry is very questionable, and many 
keystonesof the arches have been displaced merely by the firing 
of ‘salutes, though tho facades are apparently well executed, 
and the works exteriorly have a formidable appearance. 
The ramparts of these forts are upwards of six foet thick, 
but tho embrasures, or openings of the casemates, nro so 
small that it is almost impossible to point either to tho right 
or to the left, an inconvenience considered of little importance 
by the Russians, who confide entirely in tho number and 
calibre of their guns. These casemates serve for barracks, 
and ten men occupy the spneo of two cannons. In winter 
they are warmed by stoves. The canleeus are placed at 
each extremity, and a passage runs through the entire of 
tho battery, between tho cannon and tho hammocks of tho 
men. In the centre of each battery is a furnaco for heating 
the balls red hot. All those forts, in which the system of 
casemates has been adopted, to the exclusion of all other 
principle, are, as regards construction and extent, unique in 
the annals of fortifications, becauso, though casemates are in 
frequent use, they have nover been carried out on such a grand 
scale. All the batteries have consequently the grave dis- 
advantages attached to this system of defence, that each of 
the enemy’s shot, in entering, forms, with the splinters ol 
the stone, a frightful weapon against the cannoniors. The 
artillery cannot serve the guns for any length of time, 
for tho smoko of the powder, accumulating in tho gal- 
lerios renders it impossible to resist tho suffocating 
effect. To obviate the first serious inconvenience, the en- 
gineer has reduced the size of the embrasures ns much 
ns possible ; and, to combat the smoke, has made open- 
ings for ventilation, which have tho double disadvantage 
of weakening the walls, and allowing the shells to 
fall into the casemates by the courts. The Alexander 
Battery, like the others, is masked by a wall, fur- 
nished with loopholes, and gates not to be easily forced ; 
but these works are not constructed to resist an attack by 
land, and, taken in the rear, they could not hold out, be- 
cause the town, being a natural amphitheatre, commands 
the forts in such a manner, that whoever is in possession 
of the town and the heights, becomes master, perforce, of 
all the works. Continuing by the south, after Fort Alex- 
ander comes the Fort of St. Nicholas, mounting 192 guns, 
and which, irrespective of the earthworks in advance, has 
two forts, right and left, one looking towards the channel, 
and the other having in its range every vessel from the 
entrance to the arsenal. Behind this fort, and defending 
the point where is the entrance of the avsenal, arc the 
batteries Paul, mounting 80 guns. To the north, and near 
the telegvaph, are successively a battery, hall-way up the 
hill, of earthwork, mounting 17 guns; Fort Constantine 
' with 104 guns; farther on, to the east, a fort with a double 
I row of batteries of 90 guns casemated; and, lastly, on a 
cape advancing to the south are two batteries of earthwork 
of 34 guns, the fire of which crosses within gunshot that of 
the batteries of Cape Paul. As respects the navigation, 
the entrance of the port of Sebastopol presents no diffi- 
culty, the channel being without sinuosities, and in the 
only direction we have indicated, with a depth of from 8 to 
10 fathoms. Nevertheless, beating up against a wind would 
be difficult on account of tho narrowness of tho mouth 
and the surrounding dangers. The barracks, the park of 
artillery, and the workshops and dry-docks for the repara- 
tion of shipping, are gvouped round the arsenal, which is 
nearly two miles in length and three quarters of a mile 
wide, slightly sinuous, and gradually narrowing towards 
the extremity. The entire fleet of Sebastopol, consisting 
of 20 to 25 vessels, can ride with perfect ease and safety in 
the arsenal, while tho entrance, protected by the forts of 
Nicholas and Paul, could be easily rendered inaccessible 
by a line of vessels moored fore and aft, with chain cables 
between them. In a vast basin to the cast of the arsenal, 
capable also of containing five or six vessels afloat, are five 
naval refitting docks, constructed by Mr. W. Upton and 
Son under the command of Admiral Lazarefi. The plan 
of emptying the basin, and floating the vessels undergoing 
repair, merits special attention. The docks are placed on 
two sides of this great basin; there being no tide, the prin- 
ciple of locks— the iron gates and machinery of which 
were furnished by Messrs. G. and .1. Ilennie — has been 
adopted in the formation of these docks : tho bottom ot 
each is above the level of the sea. The locks being 
arranged in a series of three, cat#l vessel is elevated above 
that preceding it, at least 10 feet. It follows, then, that 
the water in the basin is 30 feet above the level of the sea. 
Each dock can he emptied by a subterranean culvert, ot 
which the valve, opened at will, "permits the water to quickly 
escape to the sea. By this mcaus they can use each dock 
separatelv, and vessels can enter or leave without 
interfering with others. Tho great basin is fed by 
a canal which derives its waters from an enormous 
reservoir situated about 13 miles Irom Sebastopol, and 
which is between GO and 70 feet above tho level of the sea. 
Tho course of this canal passes over a most difficult 
country, by the sides of precipitous mountains, and through 
deep ravines. To overcome these obstacles, it has been 
requisite to construct one dyke, three aqueducts, and 
two tunnels; the tunnel of Yukermann, the longest, is 
nearly 320 yards in length, and is cut through an enormous 
mass of grit stone. After what has preceded, it will 
easily he understood that vessels afloat in the basin can be 
rnised, if needed, upwards of 40 feet above the level of 
the sea, and, in this position, their guns could be used us 
means of defending the entrance to tho arsonnl, that they 
could command on all points. Messrs. Maudesloy and 
Faihl erected a steam-engine to pump up sea-water to 
supply the deficiency of canal water. This same canal 
sends a little branch towards the entrance of the fort, lor 
the supply of fresh water to the shipping. The water ot 
the canal ia received in n vast filter composed ot coal and 
sand. From the entrance of the avsenal to tho roads of 
Sebastopol, that is to say, a space of more than 2 miles, 
extends the ordinary anchorage ground, where the whole 
fleet can find shelter and safety, for it is perfectly protected 
from all winds, and has no shoals. This portion is not 
fortified, nil the means of defence having been concen- 
trated on the entrance to the roads. This summary will 
show the stragetic position of Sebastopol, and how to duly 
appreciate it. The combined works of defence is furnished 
with about 800 pieces of ordnance, and nearly all directed 
towards the sea, the defence by land being incontestibly 
Colonel Chcsney, in his admirable work, The Turco- 
SEBASTOPG& 
ugcrn*na 
IT anti cal Milos 
PLAN OF/.THE TOWN AND FORTIFICATIONS OF SEBASTOPOL. 
