Siege of Ochakov

Overview

The siege of Ochakov or the siege of Özi, now Ochakiv, Ukraine, was one of the major events of the Russo-Turkish War (1787–1792). The Ochakov Fortress had the appearance of an irregular quadrangle, consisting of low bastions with a dry moat and glacis on the dry side, and a simple stone wall on the sea side. In addition, 10 advanced lunettes built later extended from the dry side. From the sea, fort Hasan Paşa reinforced the defense. By the time the Russians began the siege, the fortress was a strong fence, but was not able to withstand an active, energetic storming for long. Ochakov was not what it was in the old days, under Münnich in 1737, but it still did not represent an impregnable stronghold that required enormous preparations and expenditure of time. Besieging in summer and autumn, with the arrival of winter, the supreme commander Potemkin decided to stop the siege works and begin the storming of Ochakov on 17 December [O.S. 6 December] 1788, which ended in Russian success and capture of Hüseyin Pasha, the chief of garrison.

Overview adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Forces & casualties

Commanders (5)