Skip to content

← Home

The Crimean (Eastern) War of 1853–1856 in Kherson Region

The Crimean (Eastern) War of 1853–1856 became a severe trial for the residents of Kherson and Taurida Governorates, on whose territories hostilities unfolded. The Kherson region simultaneously suffered from shellings by the enemy fleet and served as one of the closest rear areas for the russian army, while its inhabitants took part in the 349-day defense of Sevastopol.

Overview

The Crimean War caused particular suffering to the population of Kherson and Taurida Governorates, who found themselves in the combat zone. The region simultaneously acted as a theater of war (shellings of coastal settlements) and the nearest rear area, where human and material reserves of the russian army were concentrated. Residents of the governorates became direct participants in the main event of the war — the defense of Sevastopol.

Key Details / Subtopics

  • Background and Deployment of Hostilities: An army of almost 150,000 under Omar Pasha advanced against the 82,000-strong army of General M. D. Gorchakov. On November 18, 1853, in the Battle of Sinop, the Turkish fleet was destroyed by the squadron of P. S. Nakhimov. On September 3, 1854, Anglo-French-Turkish troops landed near Yevpatoria, and on September 14, 62,000 foreign soldiers with 134 cannons approached Sevastopol, where the defense was led by V. A. Kornilov and P. S. Nakhimov.
  • Shellings and Landing Attempts (October 1855): The Anglo-French fleet subjected settlements of Kherson Governorate on the shore of the Dnieper Estuary — Stanislav and Shiroka Balka — to bombardment. On the Azov coast, Henichesk and settlements on the Arabat Spit suffered from enemy shelling. In addition, a destructive bombardment of Odesa by the enemy took place, along with failed landing attempts near Arabat and Henichesk. Naval shellings damaged the Great Mithradates Staircase in Kerch.
  • 349-Day Defense of Sevastopol: Residents of Kherson Governorate (in particular Kherson) and Taurida became participants in the main event of the war — the 349-day defense of Sevastopol. Among its celebrated heroes was the sailor-reconnaissance scout Petro Kishka, whose Ukrainian origin and surname were distorted by imperial historiography into "Koshka". Participants also included Kherson residents — naval officers, graduates of the Kherson School of Merchant Navigation, and members of the Society of Free Sailors from Kherson and Oleshky.
  • Captured Skippers and Sailors of the Black Sea Fleet: In the lists of those captured by the British, Ukrainian sailors were recorded (for example, free pilot Kostiantyn Maslovskyi, sailor Vasyl Yakymenko, and others), many of whom were later released.
  • Political Context: Defeats convincingly demonstrated the Empire's technical backwardness. Nicholas I died (poisoned himself, unable to endure the disgrace). The young Alexander II ascended the throne and initiated fundamental reforms in the state.
  • Participation in the Black Sea Fleet: The proportion of Kherson inhabitants in the Black Sea Fleet was particularly significant; after the scuttling of ships, its crews fought on the Sevastopol bastions.
  • Kherson Region as the Rear: The region turned out to be one of the closest rear areas. From artillery warehouses in Kherson alone in 1854, 6,000 poods of gunpowder were delivered to Sevastopol. Vadon's iron foundry and mechanical plant in Kherson produced 60 gun carriages for Ochakiv Fortress. The primary burden of supplying the army with food, horses, forage, and transport vehicles fell on the governorate's population.
  • Hospitals and Care for the Wounded: Day and night, troops moved along the roads of Kherson Region toward Crimea, while supply columns with wounded and sick soldiers moved from Sevastopol, receiving aid in hospitals, infirmaries, and charitable hospitals in Kakhovka, Beryslav, Kherson, and other towns and villages of the region.
  • Archival Documents of the War: Primary archival materials of the State Archives of Kherson Region have been preserved — lists of Black Sea Fleet skippers and sailors captured by the British (dated August 13, 1854), instructions from the commander-in-chief of the Southern Army to the Kherson civil governor regarding evacuation, and reports on the appearance of the enemy squadron in the Dnieper-Bug Estuary near the village of Stanislav (dated November 10, 1855), as well as parish registers recording soldiers' deaths in hospitals.
  • Burden of Supply on Ukrainian Governorates: The primary burden of supplying the army with fuel and food fell precisely on the Ukrainian governorates; peasants of border governorates kept round-the-clock guards, militia units were formed from them, and a reserve army was concentrated in the Kherson region. Retrenchments were built on Quarantine Island (Kherson), in Holaya Pristan, and near Dnieper crossings, while gun carriages were manufactured at Vadon's plant.
  • Military Hospitals and the Gozadinov Sisters: Military hospitals operated in Kherson, Beryslav, Henichesk, Liubymivka, Oleshky, and other settlements. Among those evacuated from Crimea were young teachers — the Gozadinov sisters, who settled permanently in Kherson, opening the first women's gymnasium.
  • Thematic Document Collection "Archive Library": An issue of the "Archive Library" series of the State Archives of Kherson Region is dedicated to the events of the Crimean War of 1853–1855 in Kherson region. Key facts: southern Ukraine became the primary base for conducting the war; military hospitals operated in Kherson region settlements (some wounded stayed in private Ukrainian homes); thousands of refugees were evacuated from Crimea to mainland Ukraine; most soldiers and sailors were Ukrainians; and the war itself connected Ukraine and Crimea like never before.
  • Military-Technical Backwardness and Defeat of the russian empire: Research by V. Verkhovskyi highlights that only 3–4% of the russian army had rifled weapons compared to over 33–50% among the French and British, and the fleet was in decay. The defeat at Alma (September 1855) opened the path to blocking Sevastopol from the rear, which had not been anticipated by any strategic plan.
  • Ukrainian Formations on Both Sides of the Front: Ethnic Ukrainians made up over 60% of the land army and Black Sea Fleet crews. At the same time, Danubian Cossacks led by Mykhailo Chaykovskyy (Mehmet Sadyk Pasha) fought as part of the Ottoman army, liberating Bucharest from russian troops in February 1854.
  • Charge of the Light Brigade at Balaclava (October 1854): Due to a misinterpreted order from General Raglan, a light cavalry brigade attacked Menshikov's russian artillery battery, broke through the lines of Ural Cossacks, and suffered losses (365 people out of 600). The episode entered world literature and rock music (poems by Alfred Tennyson, Rudyard Kipling, Iron Maiden song "The Trooper").