UNIT II

The Azov campaigns of Peter the Great and the founding of

the Russian Navy,

1695 – 1699

At the end of the 17th century, Russia was badly in need of way out to the high seas. But the Crimean Tatars and the Turks kept raiding the southern parts of the country, and Russia was unable to establish normal economic relations with other countries. Therefore, she had no alternative but to start a war with countries, which were hindering her economical development.

Peter I launched two campaigns against the Turkish fortress of Azov which, situated at the mouth of the river Don, blocked passage to the Azov Sea. The first campaign took place in 1695, the second, in 1699.

Peter I formed an army consisting of 31,000 men, 144 mortars, 12 howitzers and arquebus guns. A unit of cavalry under a command of B.P. Sheremetyev was sent to the mouth of the river Dnieper to distract the attention of the Turks and Tatars from the forthcoming attack on Azov.

In the spring of 1695, the Russian army set out for Azov. On the way to Azov the army was joined by Don Cossacks. By the 5th of July the whole army had been con­centrated in the Azov area. Peter I decided to take the fortress by assault. On the 5th of August, the fortress was stormed for the first time, but the assault was repulsed. One of the main reasons of the failure was the fact that Russia, having no navy, could not prevent the Turks from getting regular supplies by sea.

The first failure did not discourage Peter I. On the contrary, he started preparing for a new campaign with still greater energy. This time he decided to conduct operation not only on land, but on sea too, so as to isolate the Turkish fortress from the sea. Therefore no time was to be lost in building a fleet. Soon work began at the Voronezh shipyards, which were specially built for this purpose.

In the spring of 1699 the fleet was ready. It consisted of 2 warships, 4 fire-ships, 23 galleys and many transports.

At the same time Peter I gave much attention to the army, which was then 75,000 strong. The combined forces were led by Peter I himself.

At the end of March 1699, the Azov army was concentrated near Voronezh. In April, eight regiments, together with the Tsar's Guards, sailed for Azov on board naval trans­ports. The rest of army went by land, and in May the galley fleet set out. The first squadron was under command of Peter I.

On the 27th of May, the Russian fleet entered the sea, destroyed the Turkish navy and blocked Azov from the sea, while the army stormed fortress by land. The combined ac­tion of the army and the navy led to the seizure of Azov on the 18th of July, 1699.

The victory at Azov strengthened Russia’s position on the Azov sea. Soon a port named Taganrog was founded on its coast.

In August 1699, for the first time in the history of Russia, a 46-gun warship, the Krepost, entered the Black Sea and sailed to Constantinople on a diplomatic mission.

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