Battle of Navarino
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| Battle of Navarino | |||||||||||||||||
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| Conflict | Greek War of Independence | ||||||||||||||||
| Date | 20 October 1827 | ||||||||||||||||
| Place | Navarino, Greece | ||||||||||||||||
| Result | Turkish defeat | ||||||||||||||||
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The Battle of Navarino was fought on 20 October 1827, during the Greek War of Independence (1821-29). A combined Turkish and Egyptian armada was destroyed by an allied British, French, and Russian naval force at the port of Navarino in Pylos, Greece. The Allied ships were better-armed than their Egyptian and Turkish enemies, and their crews better trained, resulting in a rather quick victory, however, due to the larger number of Turkish ships present, if the Allies hadn't been properly in position the battle could've gone the other way.
The various Greek forces had achieved significant results against the Turkish fleet in 1821-24, but despite this an Egyptian army had reconquered Crete and part of the Morea by mid-1825. The Turkish fleet was then able to return and base itself at places like Navarin and Missolonghi to help its land army. After several more skirmishes between Greece and Turkey, other countries decided to step in to help the Greeks and to protect their shipping, which was being raided by Greek pirates. The Treaty of London (6 July 1827) stipulated that if the treaty was rejected, the allied forces would sail against the Turkish forces. The Turkish/Egyptian fleet, which had been warned by the British and French to stay away, left Alexandria 5 August 1827 and arrived at Navarino (now Pylos), southern Greece 8 September. Codrington arrived 12 September and instituted a blockade. The Turks made several attempts to leave the bay and sail north, but they were repelled each time by both Codrington's presence and adverse weather, and by the arrival of a French squadron under de Rigny 13 October. Codrington tried to arrange an armistice. The Greeks quickly agreed, but the Turks did not. A Russian squadron under Geiden arrived about this time.
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The Battle
Though unable to leave Navarino Bay, Ibrahim Pasha continued to wage war on land. On October 17, the Allied commanders sent a message to Ibrahim Pasha ordering him to stop this. When the answer to this was unsatisfactory (Ibrahim Pasha's officers pretended not to know where he was), the Allied commanders decided to anchor their ships in Navarino Bay, amid the Turko-Egyptian fleet. The Allied fleet entered in two lines, one formed by the English and French ships, the other by the Russian ships. The Turko-Egyptian fleet was anchored in a horseshoe formation, and the Allied fleet anchored in the empty area in the centre of this horseshoe. While the fleet was still anchoring, the captain of Dartmouth sent a boat to a Turkish ship anchored close by in order to demand that a fireship which was close to one of the British ships and appeared to be being set alight be removed. For reasons not quite clear, the Turks fired on the boat, killing the officer in command and several crewmembers. Dartmouth opened fire, and within a short time, the entire Allied fleet became engaged, as well as the Russian ships which were still entering the harbour. Heavier Allied broadsides and better gunnery quickly told, and in a few hours, three quarters of the Turko-Egyptian fleet was either sunk or set on fire by their own crews. On 17 November it was reported that the Turko-Egyptian ships remaining afloat in Navarino Bay were 1 battleship and 4 frigates damaged, and 1 rasee battleship, 2 frigates, 5 corvettes, 11 brigs and 5 schooners ready for sea. In the battle the Allies lost about 181 men killed and about 480 men wounded; Turkish and Egyptian losses are not known, but assumed to be much greater, perhaps 3000-11000 casualties.
After the battle the Allied fleet remained in Navarino Bay until 26 October. Several Allied ships were badly damaged - Azov had been hit 153 times, 7 of them below the waterline, and wasn't fully repaired until March 1828. Gangut and Iezekiil were damaged too. The British arrived at Malta 3 November, and the Russians on 8 November. Albion, Asia and Genoa were sent to England for repairs, while the French ships went to Toulon.
An Egyptian corvette left Navarino Bay 27 October and arrived in Alexandria 2 November with news of the battle. Other survivors made their way to Alexandria around the end of the year.
The most important result of this battle was that it crippled the Turks and Egyptians at sea. Their land forces in Greece were unaffected, however, and it took a small French army being sent there in 1828, helped by some British sailors, before Greece was independent. The last holdout was Morea Castle, near Patrai, which fell 1 November 1828.
Allied ships
British ships (Vice Admiral Sir Edward Codrington)
Battleships:
Asia 84 (fleet flagship)
Genoa 76
Albion 74
Frigates:
Glasgow 50
Cambrian 48
Dartmouth 42
Talbot 28
Brigs and schooners:
Rose 18
Mosquito 10
Brisk 10
Philomel 10
Cutter:
Hind 6
French ships (Rear Admiral Henri de Rigny)
Battleships:
Breslau 84
Scipion 80
Trident 74
Frigates:
Sirene* 60 (flagship)
Armide 44
Brigs and schooners:
Alcyone 10
Daphne 6
* - 2-decker frigate
Russian ships (Rear Admiral Count Login Petrovich Geiden)
Battleships:
Gangut 84
Azov 80 (flagship)
Iezekiil 80
Aleksandr Nevskii 80
Frigates:
Provornyi 48
Konstantin 44
Elena 38
Kastor 36
Turkish-Egyptian ships
(Ibrahim Pasha)- Captain Bei Squadron (Alexandria): 2 battleships, 5 frigates, 12 corvettes
- Mohara Bei Squadron (Alexandria): 4 frigates, 11 corvettes, 21 brigs, 5 schooners, and 6 fireships
- Tunis Squadron (Alexandria): 2 frigates, 1 brig
- Tahir Pasa Squadron (Constantinople): 1 battleship, 6 frigates, 7 corvettes, 6 brigs
There were also perhaps 41 transports.
The line of battle, in order, was:
3 Egyptian fireships
Ihsania 64* - Blew up
Souriya 56* - Aground, destroyed
? 64 - Blew up
Guerriere 60* (Egyptian flagship of Moharem Bey) - Aground, scuttled
Ghyu h Rewan 84 (fleet flagship of Tahir Pasha) - Dismasted and aground
Fatih Bahri 74 - Aground, scuttled
Leone 60* - Damaged, refloated
? 56 - Captured by Albion and blew up
Burj Zafer 74 - Survived
?
?
? 52 (flag of Padrona Bey)
? 64** - Sunk by Gangut
?
? (flag of Reala Bey)
?
"Conquerant" (Fevz Nussret?) 56(64?)**? - Captured by Aleksandr Nevskii, scuttled
?
"Grande Sultane" 54 - Captured by Armide
?
2 or 3 Egyptian fireships (one sunk by Gangut?)
Names of frigates in the above line whose position not known:
Fevz Nussret 64
Ka'id Zafer 64
Bandino Seret
Mejra Zafer 48
Keywan Bahri 48
Feyz Mi''raj 48
The Tunisian ships were to the north of the main Turkish line, near a small island. The other ships were to the East of the main line.
Battleships are listed in bold type; * - Egyptian 2-decker frigates; ** - Turkish 2-decker frigates
Approximate total: 1 84-gun Turkish battleship, 2 74-gun Turkish battleships, 4 2-decker 64-gun Egyptian frigates, 2 2-decker Turkish frigates, 3 48-gun Turkish frigates, 10 42-gun Turkish frigates, 2 or 3 48-gun Tunisian frigates, 8 Egyptian corvettes, 14-18 Turkish 22-gun corvettes, 5 10-gun Turkish brigs, 7 Egyptian brigs, 1 Tunisian brig, 5 or 6 (?) fireships, perhaps 41 transports. Other ships in the harbour included 3 Tunisian, 3 Tripolitan and 4 Algerian warships and 5 European transports. The Turks and Egyptians made use of many hired European transports, mainly Austian.
Note: It is hard to get an accurate list of Muslim ships for this battle. Some of the confusion stems from the smaller ships being counted as transports on leaving Alexandria and warships on their return. There is some uncertainty in the number of guns carried by several ships also.
See also: History of Greece
[Aerial view of Navarino Bay]
[Aerial view of Navarino Bay]
Sources
R. C. Anderson Naval Wars in the Levant 1559-1853 (1952)
de:Schlacht von Navarino
pl:Bitwa pod Navarino
