The Crimean events and the subsequent severance of relations with Turkey can hardly be called interconnected, but they lead to interesting reflections and pull from the historical memory the events of the past years.
Russia fought with the Ottoman Empire for several centuries. Ivan III was just erecting the walls of the Moscow Kremlin, when troops of the Turkish Islamic Empire appeared on the southern borders, which destroyed Byzantium and enslaved almost all the Orthodox peoples of Europe for a long time. From then until 1919, which marked the final collapse of the Ottoman state, the Russians fought with the Turks for the liberation of their Orthodox brothers, for Russia's access to the Black Sea, for the glory of Russian arms.
As a parting word to descendants in 1839 in Sevastopol in honor of Lieutenant-Commander Kazarsky, the commander of the brig "Mercury", and his crew, a monument was erected (by the academician of architecture A. P. Bryullov), glorifying the feat in the name of Russia. On the pedestal there is a laconic inscription: “Kazarsky. For posterity as an example."
It so happened that the greatest feat, the tragic death at the hands of the reckless men and the dishonor of his naval colleague are associated with this name. The story of fate is in the spirit of Shakespeare's tragedies.
FEAT - BY THE EXAMPLE
The Russo-Turkish War of 1828-1829 was fought in the Caucasus and the Balkans. One of the main tasks of the Black Sea Fleet is to prevent the Turks from leaving the Bosphorus to the Black Sea. On May 14, 1829, at dawn, three Russian ships: the frigate "Standart", the brigs "Orpheus" and "Mercury" were on patrol at the Bosphorus. Cruising abeam Penderaclia, they noticed an approaching Turkish squadron of 14 pennants.
The sentinels hurried to warn the command. The commander of the "Shtandart" Lieutenant-Commander Sakhnovsky gave the signal: "Take the course at which the ship has the best course." At this time, there was a weak wind at sea. Two high-speed Russian ships immediately went ahead. "Mercury" was not so agile. All the sails were set on the brig, the oars were also put into operation, seven from each side, but it was not possible to develop speed to break away from the Turks.
The wind freshened up, and the brig seemed easy prey for the best Turkish ships. The Mercury was armed with 18 24-pounder melee coronades and two long-range portable 8-pounder long-barreled cannons. In the era of the sailing fleet, ships of the brig type were used mainly for "parcels", for escorting merchant ships, patrol or reconnaissance activities.
The 110-gun frigate Selimiye under the flag of the commander of the Turkish fleet, where Kapudan Pasha was stationed, and the 74-gun Real Bey under the flag of the junior flagship, set off after the Russian ship. One successful side salvo from these powerful ships of the line would have been enough to turn a brig into floating wreckage or sink it. Before the crew of the "Mercury" loomed the prospect of death or captivity and the descent of the flag. If we turn to the Naval Regulations, written by Peter I, then its 90th article directly indicated to the captain of the Russian fleet: “In the event of a battle, the captain or the commander of the ship should not only bravely fight against the enemy himself, but also people with words, but moreover, giving an image with oneself, to induce, so that they bravely fought to the last opportunity, and should not give the ship to the enemy, in any case, under the loss of belly and honor."
Seeing that it would not be possible to get away from the Turkish ships, the commander convened a military council, at which, according to tradition, the junior ranks were the first to speak, so that they could express their opinion fearlessly, without looking back at the authorities. The lieutenant of the corps of naval navigators Ivan Prokofiev proposed to fight to the last, and when the mast is shot down, a strong leak will open or the brig will be deprived of the opportunity to resist, approach the admiral's ship and, grappling with it, blow up the "Mercury". All were unanimously in favor of the fight.
Shouts of "hurray" were greeted by the decision to fight and the sailors. According to the maritime custom, the sailors put on clean shirts, and the officers put on ceremonial uniforms, for it is necessary to appear before the Creator in "clean". The stern flag on the brig was nailed to the gaff (inclined yard) so that it could not descend during the battle. A loaded pistol was placed on the spire, and the last of the living officers was to light the cruise chamber, where barrels of gunpowder were kept, in order to blow up the ship. At about 2.30 pm, the Turks approached within a shot range and opened fire from their cannons. Their shells began to hit the brig's sails and rigging. One shot hit the oars and knocked the rowers out of their seats between two adjacent guns.
Kazarsky knew his ship well - it was heavy on the move. Skillful maneuvering and accurate shooting could save people and "Mercury". Skillfully maneuvering and using sails and oars for this, he did not allow the enemy to take advantage of multiple superiority in artillery and made it difficult for the enemy to conduct aimed fire. The brig avoided getting hit by the onboard volleys of Turkish ships, which would be like death for him. But the Turks still managed to bypass it from two sides and take it in pincers. Each of them fired two side salvoes at the Mercury. In addition to cannonballs, knippels flew into the brig in a salvo - chain cannonballs for destroying rigging and sails, as well as brandskugels - incendiary shells. Nevertheless, the masts remained unharmed, and the Mercury remained mobile, and the resulting fires were extinguished. From the ship the Kapudan Pasha shouted in Russian: "Surrender, take off the sails!" In response, a loud "hurray" was heard in the brig and fire was opened from all the guns and rifles. As a result, the Turks had to remove ready-made boarding teams from the tops and yards. At the same time Kazarsky, using oars, deftly led the brig out from under the onboard double volleys. This moment of the battle was captured in one of his paintings by the artist Aivazovsky. Small "Mercury" - between two giant Turkish ships. True, many researchers of the sailing fleet subject this episode to great doubt, since in this case it would be almost impossible for a small brig to survive. But it was not for nothing that Gorky sang: "We sing glory to the madness of the brave."
During the battle, from the first minutes, Kazarsky was wounded in the head, but remained at his post and led the team. “We must make the enemy move! Therefore, aim everyone at the rigging! - he commanded the artillerymen. Soon the gunner Ivan Lysenko with a well-aimed shot damaged the main mast on the Selemie and interrupted the water-stays holding the bowsprit from below. Deprived of support, the masts staggered, causing cries of horror from the Turks. To prevent them from collapsing, the sails were removed on the Selemie, and she went into a drift. The other ship continued to operate, changing tacks under the stern of the brig, and hit it with terrible longitudinal shots, which were difficult to evade by movement.
The battle lasted more than three hours with ferocity. The ranks of the brig's small crew were thinning. Kazarsky ordered the gunners to aim independently and shoot one at a time, and not in one gulp. And, finally, the competent decision gave its results, the gunners with happy shots killed several yards on the masts at once. They collapsed, and Real Bay swayed helplessly on the waves. Having fired a "farewell" salvo from retired cannons at the Turkish ship, the "Mercury" headed for its native shores.
When the Russian ships appeared on the horizon, Kazarsky discharged the pistol lying in front of the cruise chamber into the air. As a result of the battle, the "Mercury" received 22 holes in the hull and 297 injuries in the spars, sails and rigging, lost 4 people killed and 8 wounded. Soon, the heavily damaged but undefeated brig entered the Sevastopol bay for repairs.
Russia was jubilant. In those days, the newspaper "Odessa Vestnik" wrote: "This feat is such that there is no other like it in the history of navigation; he is so amazing that one can hardly believe it. The courage, fearlessness and selflessness shown by the commander and crew of the "Mercury" are more glorious than a thousand ordinary victories. " The future hero of Sevastopol, Rear Admiral Istomin, wrote about the sailors of the "Mercury" as follows: "Let them seek such selflessness, such heroic fortitude in other nations with a candle …" obvious death to the dishonor of captivity, the brig commander withstood the three-hour battle with his gigantic opponents with firmness and, finally, forced them to withdraw. The defeat of the Turks in moral terms was complete and complete."
“We could not force him to surrender,” wrote one of the Turkish officers. - He fought, retreating and maneuvering, with all the art of war, so that we, ashamed to admit, stopped the battle, while he, triumphantly, continued on his way … If ancient and new chronicles show us experiences of courage, then this one will outshine all others and his testimony deserves to be inscribed in gold letters in the temple of glory. This captain was Kazarsky, and the brig's name was "Mercury".
The brig was awarded the St. George stern flag and a pennant. Emperor Nicholas I inscribed with his own hand the "highest resolution": "Lieutenant-Commander Kazarsky to be promoted to captain of the 2nd rank, to give George the 4th grade, to appoint adjutants to the wing, leaving him in his previous position, and to add a pistol to the coat of arms. All officers in the next ranks and who do not have Vladimir with a bow, then give one. Give George 4 classes to the navigator officer above the rank. All lower ranks are insignia of the military order and all officers and lower ranks are double salaries in life pension. On the brig "Mercury" - the St. George flag. When a brig comes into dilapidation, I command to replace it with another, new one, continuing this until later times, so that the memory of the significant merits of the command of the brig "Mercury" and his name in the fleet never disappear and, passing from generation to generation, for everlasting times served as an EXAMPLE OF PROPERTY " …
DISHONOR
Earlier, on May 12, 1829, the frigate "Raphael", which was on patrol near the Turkish port of Penderaklia, under the command of Captain 2nd Rank Stroynikov, was taken by surprise by the Turkish squadron and, without even making an attempt to enter the battle, lowered the St. Andrew's flag in front of the Turks. A scarlet Ottoman flag with a star and a crescent soared over the intact Russian ship. Soon the ship received a new name "Fazli Allah", which means "Given by Allah". The case of the Raphael is unprecedented for the Russian fleet, and therefore especially sensitive.
The most interesting thing is that the surrender of the newest frigate "Raphael" took place just three days before the feat of "Mercury". In addition, the commander of the "Raphael" Stroinikov and the other officers of the frigate during the battle of the "Mercury" were aboard the battleship Kapudan Pasha "Selimiye" and witnessed this battle. It is hardly possible to describe what feelings Stroynikov experienced when, in front of his eyes, a brig led by his old colleague, significantly inferior in seaworthiness and combat qualities to the frigate Raphael, which had 44 guns, managed to emerge victorious in the most desperate situation? Just a year ago, commanding the Mercury brig, Stroynikov captured a Turkish landing ship preparing to land 300 people near Gelendzhik. Then no one would dare to call him a coward. He was a holder of military orders, including the Order of St. Vladimir, 4th degree with a bow for bravery.
On May 20, a dispatch was received from the Danish ambassador to Turkey, Baron Gibsch (who represented the interests of Russia), about the capture of the frigate Raphael by the Turkish fleet at Penderaklia. The message was so incredible that it was not believed at first. In a response message, the commander of the Black Sea Fleet, Admiral Greig, asked Gibsch that Stroynikov, the senior officer of the frigate Lieutenant Commander Kiselev and the lieutenant of the corps of naval navigators, Polyakov, provide detailed explanations about the circumstances of the surrender of the frigate.
At the end of July, the Black Sea Fleet received reports from Stroynikov, Kiselev and Polyakov, transported by Baron Gibsh. Here are the main excerpts from the report of the commander of the "Raphael" about the surrender of his frigate.
“… on the 12th, at dawn, being, by reckoning, 45 miles from the nearest Anatolian coast, they saw at N, at a distance of about 5 miles … that it was the vanguard of the Turkish fleet, consisting of 3 ships, 2 frigates and 1 corvette, which were full wind under reefed topsails … The enemy, having an excellent course, with a gradually subsiding wind, was noticeably approaching. At 11 o'clock, a council was drawn up from all the officers, who decided to defend themselves to the last extreme and, if necessary, approach the enemy and blow up the frigate; but the lower ranks, having learned about the intention of the officers, announced that they would not be allowed to burn the frigate. Until 2 o'clock in the afternoon, the Raphael had a speed of about 2.5 knots; the calmness and the continuing swell that became at that time deprived him … of the last ways to protect and harm the enemy. At the close of 4 o'clock, the enemy's vanguard crossed all directions and surrounded the Raphael: two ships were heading directly towards it, to the right of them was a 110-gun ship and a frigate, and on the left side - a frigate and a corvette; the rest of the Turkish fleet was back and about 5 cables away; the move was no more than one quarter of a knot. Soon one of the ships, raising the flag, began to fire, and the trail from which it was necessary to expect an attack from the others; to all this, most of the team from the pitching could not be in their places. Then, seeing himself surrounded by the enemy fleet and being in such a disastrous position, he could not take any measures but to send envoys to the nearest admiral's ship with a proposal to surrender the frigate so that the team would be returned to Russia in a short time. As a result of this intention, having ordered to raise the negotiating flag, he sent Lieutenant-Commander Kiselev and naval artillery non-commissioned officer Pankevich as envoys; having detained them, the Turks sent their officials, who, having announced the admiral's consent to his proposal … expressed a desire that he and all the officers went to the admiral's ship, which was done; only one midshipman Izmailov remained on the frigate with the command.
“You will see from this paper what circumstances this officer justifies the shameful capture of the ship entrusted to him; exposing the crew of this to oppose any defense, he considers this sufficient to cover his own cowardice, by which the Russian flag is dishonored in this case, - wrote Emperor Nicholas I in a decree of June 4, 1829. Black Sea, eager to wash away the infamy of the frigate "Raphael", will not leave it in the hands of the enemy. But when he is returned to our power, then, considering this frigate henceforth unworthy to wear the Russian flag and serve along with other ships of our fleet, I command you to put it on fire."
Admiral Greig, in an order for the fleet, announced the will of Emperor Nicholas I and established a commission under his chairmanship (it included all the flagships, the chief of staff of the fleet and the commanders of the ships). The commission did the appropriate work, but in the report of the commander of the "Raphael" there was much that was unclear, which made it impossible to present a complete picture of the events. Therefore, the commission in the production part limited itself to only three main points: “1. The frigate was handed over to the enemy without resistance. 2. Although the officers decided to fight to the last drop of blood and then blow up the frigate, they did nothing of this. 3. The lower ranks, having learned about the intention of the officers to blow up the frigate, announced that they would not be allowed to burn it, however, and they did not take any measures to induce their commander to defend.
The conclusion of the commission was as follows: “… Whatever the circumstances preceding the surrender, the crew of the frigate must be subject to the laws depicted: Naval Regulations, Book 3, Chapter 1, in Article 90 and Book 5, Chapter 10, in Article 73 … to the position of the lower ranks, who … had absolutely no opportunity to fulfill the rule set in the last article regarding the arrest of a commander and the choice of a worthy one in his place. In addition, this kind of action exceeded the concepts of the lower ranks and was not consistent with their habit of unaccountable obedience to their superiors … As for the announcement of the lower ranks that they would not allow the frigate to be burned, the commission believed that the commander had no right to demand such a sacrifice. …
To perceive the conclusions of the commission, let us present the interpretation of article 90: “However, if the following needs happen, then, after the signing of the council from all chief and non-commissioned officers, the ship can be given to save people: or theca is impossible. 2. If the gunpowder and ammunition do not really become anything. However, if it was spent directly, and not to the wind, it was shot for a deliberate waste. 3. If, in both of the above-described needs, no shallow occurs close, where would the ship be shot, you can lower it aground."
The heroic deeds of the ancestors must not only be honored, but also put the lessons learned into practice.
It is also worth recalling one common requirement of all statutes - the unquestioning subordination of the junior in rank to the senior. At the same time, in the era under consideration, there was a reservation in the Russian charter on this score: "Except for those cases when an order from above is contrary to the sovereign's benefit."
Article 73, on the other hand, defined a harsh punishment: “If officers, sailors and soldiers for no reason allow their commander to surrender their ship, or leave the battle line for no reason, and he will not be discouraged from doing so, or he will not be deterred from doing so, then the officers will be executed by death, and the others will be hanged from the lot on the tenth.
The war soon ended with the Adrianople peace treaty, beneficial to Russia, in 1829, and the frigate's crew returned home from captivity. The last trip to sea on the "Mercury" was significant for Kazarsky. On the traverse of Inada, two ships converged. On board the "Mercury" 70 prisoners were handed over to the Turks. And from the board of the Turkish ship 70 Russian prisoners went to the "Mercury". These were all who, at the time of the conclusion of peace, survived from the crew of the frigate "Raphael", which consisted of 216 people. Among them - and the former commander of "Raphael" S. M. Stroynikov. In Russia, the entire crew of the ship, including its captain, was sentenced to death. The emperor commuted the sentence for the lower ranks, ordered to demote officers to sailors with the right of seniority. Stroynikov was deprived of ranks, orders and nobility. As the legend says, Nicholas I forbade him to marry and have children until the end of his days, saying at the same time: "Only cowards can be born from such a coward, and therefore we will do without them!"
Fulfillment of the will of the emperor to destroy the frigate dragged on for a long time. Even before the end of the war, the Turks, knowing how the Russians hunt for the frigate, transferred it to the Mediterranean Sea. For 24 years, the former Russian ship was in the ranks of the Turkish naval forces. They took care of it and especially willingly showed it to foreigners. This shame ended only on November 18, 1853, when the Russian Black Sea squadron destroyed the entire Turkish fleet in the Battle of Sinop.
“The will of Your Imperial Majesty has been fulfilled, the frigate Raphael does not exist,” with these words, Admiral Pavel Nakhimov began his report on the battle, specifying that the flagship battleship Empress Maria and the battleship Paris played a key role in the burning of the frigate.
So it was fate that among the officers of "Paris" was the youngest son of the former captain of the "Raphael" Alexander Stroinikov, who was born in 1824 from his first marriage. Later, he and his older brother Nikolai participated in the glorious defense of Sevastopol, received military orders and reached the rank of rear admirals of the Russian fleet. Although the shadow of the frigate "Raphael" fell on them, they paid in full with their lives for the shame and dishonor of their father.
DEATH OF A HERO
Alexander Ivanovich Kazarsky, after his feat, made a brilliant career: he was promoted to captain of the 1st rank, became an aide-de-camp of his imperial majesty, and the tsar entrusted him with important assignments. The hero was also known for the fact that he "did not take on his paw."
Under Nicholas I, for the first time, the problem of corruption was raised to the state level. Under him, a Code of Laws was developed to regulate liability for bribery. Nicholas I was ironic about the successes in this area, saying that in his environment only he and his heir did not steal. The English journalist George Mellou, who regularly visited Russia, wrote in 1849: "In this country, everyone is trying by any means to get into the service of the sovereign, so as not to work, but to steal, take expensive gifts and live comfortably."
The Black Sea Fleet, especially its coastal services, was no exception from the general foundations of life in the 20-30s of the XIX century. The fact is that the commander of the Black Sea Fleet at that time was also the chief commander of the Black Sea ports. All ports, including commercial ports, of the Black and Azov Seas, with all services: port facilities, berths, warehouses, customs, quarantine, merchant ships were subordinate to him. It was through the ports of the Black and Azov Seas that the main cargo turnover of foreign trade, and above all its main component - wheat, went at that time. It is difficult to imagine what kind of capital was profited by those who had anything to do with the bottomless Black Sea feeding trough. Suffice it to say that in 1836 the net income of the Odessa budget exceeded the gross receipts of all Russian cities, with the exception of St. Petersburg and Moscow. Odessa was granted in 1817 the "free port" (free port) regime. Duty-free trade facilitated the rapid transformation of Odessa into a center of foreign trade.
On February 17, 1832, Rear Admiral Mikhail Lazarev was appointed Chief of Staff of the Black Sea Fleet. Almost at the same time with him, the captain of the 1st rank Kazarsky went to the Black Sea Fleet and the adjutant wing. Officially, Kazarsky was charged with the obligation to provide the new chief of staff with assistance and organize the dispatch of the squadron to the Bosphorus. In addition, Nicholas I ordered: to carry out a thorough check of all the rear offices of the Black Sea Fleet, to deal with corruption in the leadership of the fleet and in private shipyards, to reveal the mechanisms of embezzlement of money when trading in grain in ports. The emperor wanted to establish law and order in the Black Sea.
On April 2, 1833, Lazarev was promoted "for distinction" to vice admiral and a month later was appointed chief commander of the Black Sea Fleet and ports. Meanwhile, Kazarsky is completing an audit of the Odessa port. The scale of the detected thefts is staggering. After that Kazarsky moved to Nikolaev to sort out the state of affairs in the central directorates of the Black Sea Fleet. In Nikolaev, he continues to work hard, but after only a few days he suddenly dies. The commission investigating the circumstances of Kazarsky's death concluded: "According to the conclusion of a member of this commission, assistant to the fleet, General Staff Doctor Lange, Kazarsky died of pneumonia, which was subsequently accompanied by a nervous fever."
Death occurred on July 16, 1833. Kazarsky was less than thirty-six years old. The most complete study of his life can be found in the book by Vladimir Shigin "The Mystery of the Brig" Mercury ". To the credit of Nicholas I, he made every possible effort to deal with the mysterious death of his aide-de-camp. He entrusted the investigation to the chief of the gendarme corps, General Benckendorff. On October 8, 1833, Benckendorf presented a note to the emperor, which read the following: “Kazarsky's uncle Motskevich, dying, left him a box with 70 thousand rubles, which was plundered at death with the great participation of the Nikolaev police chief Avtamonov. An investigation has been appointed, and Kazarsky has repeatedly said that he will certainly try to reveal the perpetrators. Avtamonov was in touch with the wife of the captain-commander Mikhailova, a woman of a dissolute and enterprising nature; her main friend was a certain Rosa Ivanovna (in other papers she is referred to as Rosa Isakovna), who had a short relationship with the wife of a pharmacist, a Jew by nationality. After dinner at Mikhailova's, Kazarsky, having drunk a cup of coffee, felt the effect of the poison in himself and turned to the head physician Petrushevsky, who explained that Kazarsky was constantly spitting and therefore black spots formed on the floor, which were washed off three times, but remained black. When Kazarsky died, his body was black as coal, his head and chest swelled in an unusual way, his face collapsed, the hair on his head peeled off, his eyes burst, and his feet fell off in the coffin. All this happened in less than two days. The investigation appointed by Greig did not reveal anything, the other investigation also does not promise anything good, because Avtamonov is the closest relative of Adjutant General Lazarev."
From the memoirs of people close to Kazarsky: dying in the house of his distant relative Okhotsky, he only whispered just one phrase "The scoundrels poisoned me!" The last words, according to the testimony of his orderly V. Borisov, were: "God saved me in great dangers, and now they killed me here, it is not known why." It is known that Kazarsky was warned, because even the hostess of the boarding house where he was staying was forced to try the dishes served to him. At receptions at the "hospitable" officials of the city, he tried not to eat or drink anything. But when one of the local secular lionesses from her own hands brought a cup of coffee, the aristocrat of the spirit did not refuse the lady. In a word, the hero of the Russian fleet died not from the enemy's weapons, but from the poison from the hands of his compatriots.
Kazarsky was buried in Nikolaev. Subsequently, a commission arrived from St. Petersburg, the corpse was exhumed, the entrails were removed, taken to the capital, and there was "not a single word of what happened." His grave is in the fence of the All Saints Church. There are also the graves of navigator Prokofiev and some of the sailors of the brig "Mercury", who bequeathed to bury them after death next to their commander.
Chernomorets were very upset by the death of the hero. One of Lazarev's friends wrote to the admiral on the Bosphorus squadron: “… I will not talk about the sad feeling that this news produced in me; it will echo in the soul of every officer of the Russian fleet."
