Battle of Kozludzha
| Battle of Kozludzha | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Russo-Turkish War of 1768–1774 | |||||||||
Battle of Kozludzha by Johann Friedrich Anthing | |||||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||||
| Ottoman Empire | Russian Empire | ||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
| Abdul-Rezak Pasha |
Alexander Suvorov Mikhail Kamensky | ||||||||
| Strength | |||||||||
| 40,000 | 8,000 | ||||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||||
|
3,000 29 guns107 standards | 209 | ||||||||
The Battle of Kozludzha (also known as the Battle of Kozludža or the Battle of Kozluca), fought on 20 June (Old Style — June 9) 1774 near the village of Kozludzha (now Suvorovo, Bulgaria), was one of the final and decisive battles of the Russo-Turkish War (1768–1774). The Russians managed to rout the Ottoman army, scoring a major victory. This battle, alongside several others in this campaign, established the reputation of the Russian Lieutenant-General Alexander Suvorov as one of the brilliant commanders of his time. As a result of the council, however, the Russians did not undertake a further offensive beyond Balkan Mountains deep into Ottoman territory due to the bad local roads and the lack of provisions, which were available only until 12 July. The commander-in-chief General-Feldmarshal Pyotr Rumyantsev-Zadunaisky was furious at the operational outcome and placed the responsibility for not moving the TO beyond Balkan mountains on Lieutenant-General Count Mikhail Kamensky, Suvorov's assistant at the battle of Kozludzha and the senior among the 6 generals (including Suvorov) who were at the council. Nevertheless, a peace treaty favorable to Russia would soon be signed—owing to the battle.
The Ottoman forces are estimated at 40,000. Russian numbers were much lower, 8,000 men who participated in the battle. All in all, Suvorov had about 19,500 men available. This is his corps (14,000), and part of Kamensky's forces (approximately 5,500 out of 11,000). The Ottoman forces were demoralized due to previous defeats and had poor logistics (including a year of withheld back pay).