Strange Anglo-Russian war. Encyclopedia

WAR OF ENGLAND WITH RUSSIA IN 1807-1812.

IV. ANAPA IN 1807–1812

Russia's accession to the continental system after the Treaty of Tilsit in 1807 led to a breakdown in relations between St. Petersburg and London. And after England attacked Denmark (the Danes also decided to join the continental blockade), France and Russia went to war with Britain. There were no significant military actions between Russia and Britain, but in 1808 Sweden entered the war on the side of England. During the Russian-Swedish war of 1808-1809. The Swedes were defeated. Finland was included in Russia.

The epic of Senyavin's squadron

The British fleet operated in the Atlantic Ocean, Mediterranean and Baltic Seas. Thus, the squadron of Dmitry Nikolaevich Senyavin, consisting of 9 battleships and 1 frigate, after the conclusion of the Slobodzeya Truce with the Turks on August 12 (24), 1807, went from the Mediterranean Sea to the Baltic Sea, and the war found Russian ships in Lisbon (they took refuge in the port in early November from -for storms). The situation was extremely difficult: Junot’s French army invaded Portugal - the Portuguese squadron left Lisbon, taking the Portuguese prince regent, the royal family and the government to Brazil (then a colony of Portugal); The British blocked the city from the sea. The British admiral had 13 battleships, 11 frigates and 5 small craft. By the end of November 1807, Portuguese territory was completely occupied by French troops. General Junot received the title of Duke d'Abrantes and entered Lisbon. The Russian squadron found itself between two fires. Both forces had the opportunity to destroy the Russian squadron. The order of Alexander I obliged Senyavin to comply with the interests of Napoleon, at the same time Russian Emperor did not want to enter into an open war with England. And France would benefit if the Russians entered into a direct battle with the British.

Senyavin asked the tsar for instructions, but did not receive them. Napoleon wanted the Russian admiral to henceforth receive orders not from Russia, but from France, from the Russian ambassador in Paris, Count Tolstoy, who would simply forward Senyavin the instructions of the French emperor. At the beginning of 1808, Dubachevsky, who was the Russian representative in Lisbon, received instructions mandatory for all Russian military personnel. They said that the actions of the military should correspond to the friendly disposition that Russia currently enjoys with France. On March 1, 1808, an even clearer imperial decree followed to the three commanders of the Russian Naval Forces located in foreign lands, including D. Senyavin. It spoke of placing naval forces outside Russia at the disposal of the French emperor to harm the enemy. The French were notified of this order.

Start people's war The Spaniards against French rule sharply worsened the position of General Junot and his army in Portugal. In addition, the British saw in Lisbon and Portugal in general a long-awaited springboard for landing significant troops on the Iberian Peninsula. It is clear that the Russian squadron could not bring a turning point in the struggle between France and England for the peninsula. But the symbol of the joint struggle of the two powers against Britain was important. Guerrilla warfare In Spain, the war was becoming more and more heated, and reports were coming from Vienna about the military preparations of the Austrians. There was a possibility that, having seen the fact of a real military alliance between Russia and France, Vienna would refrain from war with Napoleon. Therefore, the pressure on Senyavin from the Duke d'Abrantes intensified day by day. But Senyavin still did not want to destroy his squadron in order to make a political demonstration pleasing to the French emperor. It must be said that Admiral Senyavin was extremely hostile to the Treaty of Tilsit and sudden "friendship" of Russia with France. He continued to ignore the proposals of Napoleon and Junot. He was convinced that the alliance of Napoleon with Alexander was a short-lived construction, and refused to help the French emperor and Junot. It is clear that he tried to do this in a diplomatic manner, finding pretexts for the squadron's inaction.

In July 1808, Junot several times ordered Senyavin to land forces ashore to fight the British landings, and to send the fleet to attack the weakened British fleet (some of the ships covered the landings). Senyavin rejected all these proposals. He refused to land Russian sailors to protect Lisbon. On August 4, Junot withdrew almost all his forces from the capital of Portugal and went to Torres Vedras. On August 9, 1808, a battle took place near the town of Vemieiro, and French troops suffered complete defeat. Junot, after the battle in which he lost more than 4 thousand people, returned to Lisbon. On August 12, Divisional General Kellerman came to the Russian admiral from Junot; he notified Senyavin of the planned truce between Junot and the commander-in-chief of the British forces. But the negotiations ended unsuccessfully. On August 13, Senyavin received a letter from Junot, which proposed that the entire crew of the squadron join the French forces (a similar proposal had been made earlier) and prevent the British from occupying Lisbon and the forts. Senyavin again refused, emphasizing that he did not have the authority to fight with the Portuguese and Spaniards who had sided with the British. On August 16, Senyavin received the last letter from the French general, in which he instructed the Russian admiral to directly negotiate with the British about the fate of the Russian squadron. The British occupied Lisbon.

The British were aware of Senyavin's skirmishes with the French and already in July entered into relations with the admiral. They wanted to induce Senyavin to come over to their side and deal a heavy blow to the Russian-French alliance. Even if Alexander had subsequently disavowed Senyavin’s actions, the opinion would still have been established on the Iberian Peninsula that the Russians were enemies, not allies, of the French emperor. On July 16, Admiral Senyavin received “through a certain Portuguese” a letter from the British admiral with an offer to send his representatives for negotiations. On July 18, the representatives who traveled from the Russian squadron to the British - collegiate adviser Zass and flag officer Makarov - returned to their squadron. They reported that the British were notifying Senyavin about hostile actions against Russia that had begun on the part of the French and about the detention in French ports of all Russian ships that had entered there. And also the beginning of peace negotiations between Russia and Sweden and England. But Senyavin refused to enter into direct negotiations.

After the departure of the French forces, it was necessary to think about the problem, lest the British military declare the squadron their war booty, and the Russian admiral with all the crews of the ships - prisoners of war. After all, England at that moment was formally at war with the Russian Empire. Senyavin reported to the British that during their ten months in Lisbon the Russians had consistently refused to take part in hostilities against the British. The squadron occupied a neutral position. In addition, the Russian Admiral Senyavin told Cotton that after the departure of the French occupiers, the capital of Portugal returned to the legal possession of the Portuguese government, and St. Petersburg was not at war with Lisbon, so he considered himself and his squadron to be in a neutral port. It was a skillful diplomatic move. After all, British troops landed in Portugal, solemnly declaring to all of Europe that their goal was to liberate the country from Napoleonic capture and return it to the legitimate government, which fled from the occupiers to Brazil. Legally, the position of the Russian admiral was thus very strong and binding on the British.

After some reflection, the commander of the British squadron, Cotton, reported that he had ordered British flags to be hung on the forts and that he did not consider the city a neutral port. The moment was critical: British troops were strengthening their presence in the city, their fleet was approaching the Russian squadron. Strength was on the side of the British. At the same time, Cotton realized that Senyavin would not agree to unconditional surrender and there will be a bloody battle. Cotton entered into negotiations and, after quite persistent arguments, recognized the need to sign a special convention with Senyavin. On September 4 it was signed. The British command accepted Senyavin's condition: the Russian squadron was not considered captured, it was heading to England and was supposed to remain there until peace was concluded between London and St. Petersburg. After peace was concluded, the ships could return to Russia with the same crew and all their property. Senyavin even insisted on a point according to which he himself and all his officers, sailors and soldiers (marines) could immediately return to Russia without any conditions, that is, they had the right, having returned to their homeland, to take part in military actions against Great Britain.

It is clear that Cotton agreed to such conditions not only because he did not want losses, but also for political reasons. A new turn could soon take place in relations between Russia and England (and it did), and it was stupid to irritate St. Petersburg by sinking the Russian squadron.

On August 31 (September 12), 1808, Senyavin with his squadron, consisting of seven battleships and one frigate, left Lisbon for Portsmouth. Two ships - "Raphael" and "Yaroslav" - were so damaged that they had to be left in the Portuguese capital for repairs. The British promised to return them. On September 27, the squadron arrived in Portsmouth. The British Admiralty believed that Cotton had made a mistake and tried to revise the convention. Two battleships in Lisbon were captured, despite Senyavin's protests. Not wanting to immediately release (as should have been according to the Cotton-Senyavin agreement) Russian officers, sailors and soldiers to Russia, the British initially delayed the matter for months until the winter of 1808-1809 arrived and Russian ports became inaccessible until the opening of spring navigation. Then the British Admiralty began to express concern whether the Swedes, who were at war with Russia, would remove Russian military personnel from British transports. In addition, the Admiralty insisted that the Russian landings take place in Arkhangelsk. The Russian admiral insisted that it take place in one of the ports Baltic Sea. The British officials fed the Russian crews disgustingly. Only on June 12, 1809, the inventory of ships and property was completed. On July 31, 1809, the Russian crews were finally transferred to 21 British transport ships and sailed from Portsmouth on August 5. On September 9, 1809, the ships arrived in Riga, and people were able to go to the Russian coast.

Officers and sailors highly appreciated the commander's skills. But Alexander I thought differently. The talented naval commander Senyavin, who participated in the campaign of F. F. Ushakov’s squadron in the Mediterranean Sea, successfully fought with the French in 1805, and was defeated on May 10-11, 1807 Turkish fleet in the Dardanelles, and on June 19, 1807 in the Battle of Athos, despite the numerical superiority of the enemy, he fell into disgrace. The British would return the ships in 1813.

Dmitry Nikolaevich Senyavin.

Other events

On May 17, 1809, an English squadron consisting of 3 battleships, 4 frigates and 1 brig attacked the Russian detachment of captain 1st rank Bychevsky consisting of 5 battleships, 1 frigate and 2 corvettes in Trieste, but, having received rebuff, retreated.

In the Baltic Sea, the British fleet operated jointly with the Swedish Navy in the areas of Revel, Porkkala-Udd, Baltic Harbor, Vyborg, etc. British ships carried out raids on coastal areas, sabotage and shelling of coastal objects. Their privateers attacked merchant ships in the Baltic and North Seas. The British tried to damage the Russian economy.

The Russian command undertook serious measures to strengthen the defense of St. Petersburg from the sea. 15 batteries with 120 guns were built in the capital. The fairway north of Kotlin Island was blocked with a barrier made of stone and wood - a red barrier. Kronstadt was prepared for defense. The squadron of Admiral Pyotr Ivanovich Khanykov based in the Baltic harbor (9 battleships, 7 frigates, 13 small ships) could not resist the British-Swedish Navy. The ships were in poor condition and could not carry out active actions. Overall, the British fleet was unable to provide significant assistance to Sweden. The outcome of the war was decided by the actions of Russian ground forces. After the defeat of Sweden, the British withdrew ships from the Baltic. In 1810 - 1811 fighting there were no negotiations between Britain and Russia at all.

Confrontation in the East

The British launched active activities against Russia in Turkey and Persia. The British had long feared Russian penetration into the South and East. The Russians could seize the approaches to India. London was especially concerned about the fact voluntary accession parts of Georgia and a number of Azerbaijani khanates to Russia in 1801-1806. In 1809, the British government entered into an agreement with the Shah of Iran; the British pledged to facilitate the annexation of Transcaucasia to Persia. But the actions of the Shah's troops were not successful, and Iran began to seek peace. Under pressure from British agent Jones, the negotiations broke down. Soon Malcolm's mission arrived in Persia, which handed over 12 guns and 7 thousand rifles to the Persians. In 1810, the Iranian army tried to go on the offensive, but was defeated in Armenia.

The British took on Persia more seriously: the reorganization of the Persian army began, they sent an English squadron to the Persian Gulf, and in 1811 the Iranians were given another 32 cannons and 12 thousand rifles. Small cannon and rifle factories were built in Tabriz. But this did not help Persia either. At the end of 1811, Russian troops inflicted a new defeat on the Shah's troops and captured Akhalkalaki.

At the beginning of 1812, London sent its ambassador to Iran, who concluded a new Anglo-Iranian treaty. The British allocated money to strengthen the Iranian army. British instructor officers also arrived in the country to prepare the Shah's army for the invasion of Transcaucasia. True, in June 1812 London pretended that it was ready to facilitate the conclusion of peace between Persia and Russia. But on the conditions of the withdrawal of Russian forces from territories that previously belonged to Iran. The Iranians tried to assert their rights by force and began military operations. The best units of the Iranian army were completely defeated at Aslanduz by General Kotlyarevsky. The Shah's artillery was also captured. Then Russian troops captured the Lankaran fortress. As a result, the British attempt to oust Russia from Transcaucasia failed. In 1813, the Shah of Persia agreed to the Treaty of Gulistan.

At the same time, the British played against Russia and Ottoman Empire. Here the British tasks were similar to the French. They wanted to oust Russia from the Balkans and prevent the Russians from capturing Istanbul and the straits. The British prevented the conclusion of peace between Turkey and Russia. Repeatedly, the British and French ambassadors spoke in Istanbul with demarches aimed at continuing the war. However, here too the Russian’s successes brought Russia victory. The Turks signed a peace treaty in Bucharest.

Union of Russia and Britain

Having failed to achieve success in the confrontation with the Russian Empire, British diplomacy entered into peace negotiations when it became clear that war between Russia and France was inevitable. The threat of Napoleon was paramount to London. True, there was the possibility of peace between Paris and London. In April 1812, the French Emperor approached the British government with a formal peace proposal. Napoleon agreed to recognize the dominance of the British in the colonies, but in return asked to recognize the dominance of France in Europe. British troops had to leave Spain and Portugal. But the British did not agree to this.

On July 6 (18), 1812, in the Swedish city of Örebro, a peace treaty was signed between Russia and England and at the same time between Great Britain and Sweden. The agreements ended the Anglo-Russian and Anglo-Swedish wars and concluded alliances directed against French Empire. The Peace of Orebro became the basis for the creation of the 6th anti-French coalition in 1813. On August 4 (16), Russian ports were opened to English ships. This was a success of Russian diplomacy. But the agreement had little effect on the outcome of the War of 1812. St. Petersburg's hopes for London's practical assistance, including financial, were not justified. The British government sold Russia 50 thousand incomplete guns, which ended British participation in the War of 1812. London hoped for a protracted war between France and Russia, which would exhaust both empires. Such a war made England the master of the situation in Europe.

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The war, which lasted from 1807 to 1812, was the strangest Anglo-Russian war. She walked for five years. Clashes between opponents took place in the most different parts the globe, but no significant battles were observed. We will talk more about this, as well as about the participation of Russians in the Anglo-Boer War, in our review.

Causes of the war

First, let's look at the reasons. In the military campaigns against France carried out in 1806 and 1807, Russia was defeated. Therefore, she was forced to negotiate peace. On June 25, 1807, Russian Emperor Alexander I and Napoleon Bonaparte met in Tilsit, where an agreement was signed according to which Russia supported the economic blockade of Great Britain. As a result, this step negatively affected the economies of both countries - Russia and the United Kingdom.

Denmark, which had entered into an alliance with Napoleon, was also ready to join the continental blockade of England. During the war with France, the English fleet inflicted great damage on the Danish kingdom. However, on August 16, 1807, the British landed their troops on the Danish coast, and the war began. As a result, Copenhagen was captured on November 7, 1807. Since Denmark was a long-time ally of Russia in the Baltic, St. Petersburg was very dissatisfied with this fact.

Fighting

Military conflicts between Russia and Great Britain were not large-scale; they were expressed in individual clashes of small forces. At the same time, the geography of the battles was very extensive. Enemy ships fought in the waters of the Atlantic Ocean, Adriatic, Baltic, Barents and Mediterranean seas. Next, we will briefly consider the events of the Anglo-Russian war.

• On May 15, 1808, the British detained the Russian sloop “Diana” in the port of Simonstown in southern Africa, commanded by V. M. Golovin. The ship was heading to the Pacific Ocean to carry out scientific work.
• In July 1808, two battles took place in the Baltic Sea, which were the bloodiest in the Anglo-Russian war. Among the Russian losses was a battleship with 74 guns and 3 gunboats. The crews of all ships were almost completely destroyed. At the same time, all British ships remained intact, and casualties were insignificant.
• In August of the same year, Russian ships caught in a severe storm were forced to enter the Lisbon port for repairs. The British fleet also entered the same harbor. The commander of the Russian fleet was taken by surprise. But British representatives did not attack the Russian ships at anchor, broken by the storm. The admiral entered into an agreement with the British that the ships would be given to them for storage and should be returned 6 months after the end of the Anglo-Russian war. This was done in 1813.

• On June 12, 1809, on the way from the city of Revel to Sveaborg, the British attacked the boat “Experience” with 14 guns. On the other hand, the 44-gun frigate Salset took part in the operation. As a result, four Russian sailors were killed, the captain was wounded, and the ship was captured by the enemy. At the port of Libau, the crew members were released, having given a written promise not to fight against the British Empire until the end of the war.
• In May 1809, the British attacked the city of Kola and destroyed the fishing shelters on the shore White Sea in Murmansk.

In fact, hostilities between Great Britain and Russia during the Anglo-Russian War ceased after the conclusion of a peace agreement between the Russians and the Swedes, and in 1810-1811 they did not take place at all.

End of the war

The continental blockade that the Russian Empire was forced to declare on the United Kingdom after the Tilsit meeting of the Russian and French emperors was lifted. Trade relations necessary for both sides were restored. On July 18, 1812, a peace treaty was signed between Great Britain and Russia in Örebro (a city in Sweden). The Anglo-Russian war is over.

According to this treaty, not only did bilateral trade resume, but also the British were to provide Russia with support in the Patriotic War with Napoleon Bonaparte that began in 1812. Although this agreement was big step V political sense, as such, he did not have a significant impact on the outcome of the war between Russia and France.

In addition to the events described, some Russian citizens also participated in the Boer War as volunteers.

Two Boer Wars

Under this name two military conflicts that took place in South Africa between Great Britain and various Boer republics are known.

• The first of them occurs in 1880-1881. This war is also called the Transvaal War; it was fought by England against the Transvaal, a state located on the site of present-day South Africa.
• The second war - between the Transvaal, the Orange Republic on the one side and the United Kingdom on the other - occurred in 1899-1902. It ended with the victory of the latter.

When talking about the Anglo-Boer or Boer War, they usually mean the second of the two. This is what we will talk about.

Who fought against England?

The Republic of South Africa, which existed in southern Africa in the 2nd half of the 19th century, is a country of independent Boers. Boers are a subethnic group that is part of the Afrikaners living in South Africa and Namibia. These are Afrikaner farmers, rural whites and simply poor whites. As for the Afrikaners, they descend from colonists who once arrived in South Africa, among whom were the Dutch, French, and Germans.

The Orange Republic, otherwise known as the Orange Free State, was also an independent country at the time, settled by Europeans in the 1930s. At this time, the Boers (Dutch colonists) fled from British rule from the Cape Colony inland. It then became part of South Africa as a province.

Causes and results of the conflict

The cause of the 2nd Anglo-Boer War was the desire of the United Kingdom, represented by its financial and industrial circles, as well as the administration of Natal and the Cape Colony, headed by Cecil Rhodes, to seize ownership of gold deposits.

As an ideological justification for the British invasion of the Boer republics, the idea of ​​all-African domination of Great Britain was put forward.

The reason for the military conflict was the ban imposed by Transvaal President S. Kruger on granting voting rights to European settlers of 1870-1890, who were called “Uitlanders,” that is, “foreigners.” And also ignoring the demands of the ultimatum presented by the British government regarding their political equality.

The defeat of the Boers in this war became obvious already at the end of 1901. On May 21, 1902, the parties signed an agreement in Pretoria, according to which the Orange Republic and the Transvaal completely lost their independence, coming under the control of the British administration.

Russian volunteers in the Anglo-Boer War

Representatives of those nations who, for one reason or another, felt either sympathy for the Boers or antipathy towards the British, fought as volunteers on the side of the Boers. Among them were Dutch, Germans, French, Americans, Norwegians, Swedes, as well as nationals Russian Empire. Among the latter were 225 people. Let's talk about the most famous of them.

• Maksimov Evgeniy Yakovlevich, lieutenant colonel in reserve. First, the commander of the Foreign Legion, and then the head of the Dutch Corps. He was seriously wounded in the head.
• Nikoloz Bagrationi-Mukhrani, Georgian prince, nicknamed "Niko Bur". He fought as part of a French detachment, then in the Foreign Legion, and was captured. Returning to his homeland, he wrote the book “At the Boers”.
• Guchkov Alexander Ivanovich, future statesman, politician, Chairman of the State Duma, minister. He fought in Africa with his brother. He was wounded in the leg and was taken prisoner.
• Augustus Evgeniy Fedorovich, officer. To participate in the Anglo-Boer War, he took leave from the regiment. Arriving in Russia, he published a book of memoirs.
• Vandam Alexey Efimovich, major general, intelligence officer, future specialist in the field of geopolitics and geostrategy. He took part in the war as a war correspondent and published Letters on the Transvaal.

The Decembrist uprising, the events of December 1825, cannot be understood without the background of the Great french revolution and the Napoleonic Wars.

In 1812, while Napoleon was advancing on Russia in order to once again democratize it, none of the collaborating countries, I mean primarily Great Britain, particularly sought to help. Moreover, due to the fact that Alexander I was forced to join the Continental blockade of England in 1807, to the delight of Napoleon, the Anglo-Russian War (1807 - 1812) began.

Russian-English war 1807-1812. too little known to Russian compatriots. Of course, fewer sailors died in it and fewer Russian ships were destroyed than in Crimean War. What happened during the Crimean War, in Sevastopol, defies any description at all. The Eastern War of England against Russia in the Crimea, the sinking of the best fleet, the export of Scythian gold and the containment of Russian Patriotism so that the Russians could not help America, but, as we see, she was not the only one.

The feat of the crew of the Russian 74-gun ship “Vsevolod” is known, when it alone resisted the Ships of the English Squadron, under the leadership of the future English Admiral Martin, who, in the Patriotic War of 1812, would serve as part of the English fleet in the Baltic and, together with Russian gunboats , to conduct operations against Napoleonic troops - “permanent British interests” in Russia.

"Portrait of Sir Thomas Byam Martin 1773-1854" oil on Canvas.
YES, yes, after this inglorious battle in 1808, as if nothing had happened in 1811, he returned to the Baltic, where, with the rank of rear admiral, he participated in the defense of Riga during Patriotic War 1812.

I don’t know how the Russian officers received him after this battle, but it seems to me that here again there is some kind of catch in dividing the single fleet and dividing general history. It was not for nothing that the Decembrists rebelled later.

On August 26, 1808, the Russian squadron moved towards the Baltic port of Rogervik, now the port of Paldiski. And on the morning of August 14 I was already approaching him. Swedish and English ships were on her tail. The previously damaged 74-gun battleship Vsevolod was towed by the frigate Pollux. Six miles from the Baltic port the towing rope broke and the Vsevolod had to anchor. From other ships of the squadron, already sheltered in the harbor, boats and a longboat were sent to the emergency battleship for towing. However, the English ships Implacable and Centaurus managed to attack Vsevolod before our help arrived.

English ships HMS Implacable and HMS Centaur from the British squadron that supported Sweden in Finnish war They caught up and attacked a Russian ship, apparently broken and aground. The Russian 74-gun battleship "Vsevolod" of the squadron of Admiral P. Khanikov, commanded by Captain Rudnev, was very badly damaged. The Russians, under the cover of three other ships, tried to tow it to the port, but six miles from the saving port they still ran it aground. For two days, the Russians attempted to refloat the Vsevolod, while the British continued to fire at it.

English engraving depicting the battle between “Vsevolod” and “Indomitable”.

In the end, the British burned the Russian ship, removing 56 wounded crew members from it as prisoners.

124 Russian sailors died. Well, how do you like it? And Viktor Gubarev assures me that the Russian Fleet never fought with the English Fleet!

On an equal footing, it seems difficult for the British to fight the Russian Fleet.

L. D. Blinov. The battle of the boat "Experience" with the English frigate "Salset" off the island of Nargen on June 11, 1808. Canvas, oil. 1889. Central Naval Museum, St. Petersburg. Russia.

The boat “Experience” was laid down in 1805 at the Main Admiralty of St. Petersburg and after launching on October 9, 1806, it became part of the Baltic Fleet. The construction was led by shipwright I.V. Kurepanov

“For four hours, Captain Nevelsky bravely fought off his formidable enemy.”
Veselago F.F. History of the Russian fleet. - M.; L., 1939. - P.243

More details:
Actions of the naval fleet

The Swedish naval fleet that went to sea consisted of 11 ships and 5 frigates, which were joined by two English ships from the squadron (16 ships and 20 other vessels) that arrived in the Baltic Sea. In addition to the ships sent to the Swedish fleet, part of the English squadron blocked the Sound and Belta; and the other - the shores of Denmark, Prussia, Pomerania and also the port of Riga.

Our naval fleet, which left Kronstadt on July 14, under the command of Admiral Khanykov, consisted of 39 pennants (9 ships, 11 frigates, 4 corvettes and 15 small vessels). The instructions given to Khanykov prescribed: “try to exterminate the Swedish naval forces or take possession of them before uniting them with the British; clear the Finnish skerries from enemy ships and assist ground forces preventing enemy landings."

Leaving Kronstadt on July 14, the fleet unhinderedly reached Gangut, from where it set out on a cruise, and 5 Swedish transports and the brig escorting them were taken. From Gangut Khanykov moved to Jungfruzund; Meanwhile, two English ships joined the Swedes, and the combined enemy fleet left the skerries; Then Khanykov, not considering it possible to engage him in battle on the open sea and far from his harbors, avoided accepting the battle and, pursued by the enemy, retired with the entire fleet to the Baltic port. At the same time, the lagging ship Vsevolod, going around the reef near the island of Maly Rog, ran aground and, in sight of our fleet, after strong resistance, was boarded by the British and burned. In October, after the removal of the enemy squadron blocking the Baltic port, our fleet moved to Kronstadt.

Admiral Khanykov, put on trial, was found guilty “of insufficiently vigilant monitoring of Swedish ships in Jungfruzund, of allowing English ships to join the Swedish squadron, of not accepting the battle, of hasty departure to the Baltic port and of not providing assistance to the ship Vsevolod.” The Admiralty Board, attributing the admiral’s actions to “his oversights, weakness in command, slowness and indecisiveness,” sentenced him to be a sailor for a month.

In response to the board's verdict on demoting the admiral, Alexander I ordered that the trial carried out over Admiral Khanykov be consigned to oblivion, “in honor of his former service.” The loss of Vsevolod was not the only failure of this campaign. Two frigates, Hero in the Baltic port and Argus near Revel, ran aground and crashed; in addition, the frigate Speshny and the transport Wilhelmina were sent in 1807 with money and things for Senyavin’s squadron, which entered Portsmouth upon the declaration of war

Nevelsky's feat

A striking contrast to these failures of the naval fleet was the glorious feat of Lieutenant Nevelsky, commander of the 14-gun boat Opyt. Sent to observe the English cruisers entering the Gulf of Finland, Experience, during a cloudy day, on June 11, met at Nargen with an English 50-gun frigate. Despite the inequality of forces, Nevelsky entered into battle with his enemy, who demanded surrender. The wind that died down during the battle made it possible for the boat, with increased rowing, to move away from the enemy; but when there was a gust of wind, the frigate soon caught up with the boat and opened fire on it. For four hours, Nevelsky bravely fought off his formidable enemy and was forced to surrender only when the boat, with its severely battered spar, received significant damage to the hull; Many of the crew were killed and almost everyone, including the commander himself, was wounded. Having taken possession of the boat, the British, in respect of the brilliant courage of the Russians, freed Nevelsky and all his subordinates from captivity.

Anglo-Russian War of 1807-1812

Anglo-Russian War of 1807-1812, a war between England and Russia, which arose in connection with the aggravation of relations between them during the Napoleonic wars after the conclusion of Peace of Tilsit 1807 with France and its accession to the continental blockade of 1806-1814. In August - September, the English fleet attacked Denmark, an ally of Russia, which on October 26 (November 7), 1807, declared war on England. For Russia, the situation in the Baltic theater became more complicated due to the war against Sweden, supported by England (see Russian-Swedish War of 1808-1809).

In November 1807, the British captured the Russian frigate Speshny and the transport Wilhelmina with cargo and money for the squadron in the Mediterranean Sea, blocked foreign ports where Russian ships were located, captured Russian merchant ships, and raided coastal areas. Vice Admiral's Squadron D. N. Senyavina , blockaded in November 1807 in the port of Lisbon, was forced in August 1808 to move to Portsmouth, where it remained until the end of the war. On April 21 (May 3), 1808, in the South African port of Simonstown, the British detained the Russian sloop "Diana" under the command of V. M. Golovin, heading to the Pacific Ocean for scientific work. From August 19 (31) to September 16 (28), 1808, in the Baltic port (Paldiski), the English squadron together with the Swedish fleet blocked the Russian fleet. At the beginning of June 1809, the English fleet (10 battleships and 17 other vessels) entered the Gulf of Finland and took up positions near the island of Nargen (Naissaar). After the conclusion of peace between Russia and Sweden on September 5 (17), British ships left the Baltic Sea and military operations here practically ceased. The British continued to operate in the Barents and White Seas in subsequent years. During the war, significant damage was caused to Russia's economic ties. Both sides avoided decisive military action. On the approaches to Kronstadt, St. Petersburg and Arkhangelsk, a fairly strong coastal defense was created, which forced the enemy to abandon the attack on Russian bases and ports in the Baltic and the North. After Napoleon's army invaded Russia on July 16 (28), 1812, an Anglo-Russian peace treaty was concluded in Örebro (Sweden). Both sides proclaimed agreement and friendship, and in trade - the principle of mutual most favored nation.

Materials used from the book: Military Encyclopedic Dictionary. M., 1986.