. Pictorial history of the Russian War, 1854-5-6 : with maps, plans, and wood engravings . orts. The last Russian fort was at StNikolaia, near the boundary between the ancientprovinces of Mingrelia and Gouriel. The Russianforts, from the Straits of Yenikale to the Turkishfrontier, were about sixteen in number. During the summer, many a cruise was made tothese Circassian coasts, first as a matter of recon-naissance, but after the declaration of war, as ameans of conquest or destruction. Fort after fort was visited, and the exact state of all the coast at intervals of ten or
. Pictorial history of the Russian War, 1854-5-6 : with maps, plans, and wood engravings . orts. The last Russian fort was at StNikolaia, near the boundary between the ancientprovinces of Mingrelia and Gouriel. The Russianforts, from the Straits of Yenikale to the Turkishfrontier, were about sixteen in number. During the summer, many a cruise was made tothese Circassian coasts, first as a matter of recon-naissance, but after the declaration of war, as ameans of conquest or destruction. Fort after fort was visited, and the exact state of all the coast at intervals of ten or twentymiles apart, these forts were found to present ageneral family-likeness: they were mostly situatedat the mouths of small mountain rivers, so as tocommand the valleys through which these streamsfind their way to the sea. The country interveningbetween the forts is for the most part hilly andrugged, matted with impenetrable forests. Theforts were found to be mostly constructed of sand-stone, brought from Kertch ; they were square,loopholed for musketry, provided Avith towers at the. angles, and mounted with a few large traversing-guns, with a mortar or two in the centre ; the wallswere somewhat lofty, to frustrate escalade by theCircassians. Each fort had a garrison of 500 to1000 men, living in wooden barracks. A strongstockade on the outside enclosed a few outhouses,a small vegetable garden, and a small number ofcattle and horses. If, on the one hand, the Russianscommanded the whole coast by means of gun-boatscruising from fort to fort, they were, on the otherhand, restricted entirely to the coast; for even inan expedition of a few miles in search of fodder,it was necessary that the troops should sally outin battle-array, lest they should be cut oft by theCircassians. Most of these forts were blown up by theRussians, after removal of the garrisons, to preventcapture by the Allies. When Sir Edmund Lyonswas engaged on one of these expeditions in May, heallowed the officers t
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1850, bookpublisheredinb, bookyear1856
