Battle of Ablanovo

Battle of Ablanovo
Part of the Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878)
Alexey Timofeev's failed counterattack at Ablanovo
Date 5–6 September 1877 Location Gorsko Ablanovo, Ottoman Empire 43°30′0.281″N 26°4′29.615″E Result Ottoman victory
Belligerents
Ottoman Empire	Russian Empire
Commanders and leaders
Mehmed Ali Pasha	Aleksandr Romanov Aleksandr Driesen Alexey Timofeev Aleksandr Arnoldi Pyotr Vannovsky
Strength
Total at Ablanovo and Katselovo: 29,000, 60 cannons	Total at Ablanovo and Katselovo: 13,000, 54 cannons
Casualties and losses
Total at Ablanovo and Katselovo: 1,700 killed and wounded	Total at Ablanovo and Katselovo: 2,000 killed and wounded (inc. 56 officers)

The battle of Ablanovo, also known as the battle of Gorsko Ablanovo, took place in and around the Ottoman village of Ablanovo between 5 and 6 September 1877 during the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878.

Battle

The Ottoman forces were led by Mehmed Ali Pasha, whilst the Russians were under the general command of Tsesarevich Aleksandr Romanov. Alexander had established his military headquarters up in Katselovo. However, he and his army were dislodged by the Turks from the village on 5 September, prompting them to retreat to Gorsko Ablanovo. Led by Alexey Timofeev, a counterattack was launched once the Turks reached Ablanovo. After an intense battle, the Russian defences effectively fell, forcing them to withdraw their troops from the areas around Rusçuk following a ceasefire proposed by Mehmed Ali Pasha on 6 September.

Mehmed Ali Pasha (born Ludwig Karl Friedrich Detroit) on the right, c. June–July 1878

References

• Bodart, Gaston (1908). Militär-historisches Kriegs–Lexikon (1618–1905) [Military-Historical War Lexicon (1618–1905)] (in German). Vienna: C. W. Stern.
• Wiedstruck, Franz; Grzesicki, Viktor [in Polish] (1902). Der Russisch-Türkische Krieg 1877-1878 auf der Balkan-Halbinsel [The Russo-Turkish War of 1877-1878 in the Balkan Peninsula] (in German). ISBN 9783747758342.