Battle of Chesma

A Russian naval victory over the Ottoman fleet at Chesma Bay on 5–7 July 1770, during the Russo-Turkish War of 1768–1774. Russian fireships and gunfire destroyed much of the Ottoman fleet.

Fireship: A vessel carrying combustible materials, deliberately set alight and directed toward enemy ships or installations. Russian commanders used fireships to ignite Ottoman vessels anchored in Chesma Bay.
Russo-Turkish War (1768–1774): A war between the Russian and Ottoman empires that ended with major territorial and political gains for Russia. The Battle of Chesma was a decisive naval episode in this wider conflict.
Treaty of Küçük Kaynarca: The 1774 treaty that ended the Russo-Turkish War and strengthened Russia's position around the Black Sea. Chesma weakened Ottoman naval power during the war that ended with this treaty.
Battle of Lepanto: A 1571 naval battle in which a Christian coalition defeated the Ottoman fleet in the Gulf of Patras. Lepanto was a major fleet battle fought centuries before Chesma, rather than a night attack on anchored ships.
Grigoriy Spiridov: A Russian admiral who commanded the fleet during the Battle of Chesma. Spiridov led the Russian squadron in the attack that began the Ottoman fleet's destruction.
Russian Mediterranean expedition (1769–1774): A Russian naval campaign sent from the Baltic Sea to fight the Ottoman Empire in the Mediterranean. The expedition brought Russian forces to the Aegean, where they sought to disrupt Ottoman power.
Chesma Column: A monument erected in Tsarskoye Selo to commemorate the Russian victory at Chesma. The column made the battle part of the imperial landscape and public memory.
Battle of the Nile: A 1798 British naval victory over the French fleet in Aboukir Bay during the French campaign in Egypt. The Nile also trapped and destroyed an enemy fleet in a bay, but relied chiefly on conventional ship-to-ship combat.
Samuel Greig: A Scottish-born admiral in Russian service who helped lead the attack at Chesma. Greig directed Russian ships and fireships during the decisive night assault.
Battle of Chios: A naval engagement fought near Chios on 5 July 1770, immediately before the Battle of Chesma. The Russian and Ottoman fleets first clashed off Chios before the Ottoman ships withdrew into Chesma Bay.

Linked from 4 pages