Digitized by the Internet Archive 
 in 2019 with funding from 
 Getty Research Institute 
 
 https://archive.org/details/descriptionofvie00burf_36 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
pattnoraiwa, 
 
 A DESCRIPTION OF A 
 
 VIEW OF SEBASTOPOL. 
 
 41 
 
 1. Zouaves. 
 
 2. Siege Train. 
 
 3. Cape Chersonesus. 
 
 4. Kazatch Bay. 
 
 5. Kamiesch Bay. 
 
 6. Paschana Bay. 
 
 7. French Cauip. 
 
 8. Streletskaia Bay (Arrow Bay). 
 
 9. French Parallels. 
 
 10. Cemetery, and French Batteries. 
 
 11. Chersonesus Bay. 
 
 12. Star Battery and Ancient Church. 
 
 13. Quarantine Bay. 
 
 14. Round Tower Battery—44 Guns. 
 
 15. Fort Alexander. 
 
 16. Fort Constantine and Cape—104 Guns. 
 17- Wasp Fort. 
 
 18. For.. Cathe ine—80 Gum. 
 
 19. City of Sebastopol. 
 
 20. Flagstaff Battery. 
 
 21. Sievernaia Battery. 
 
 22. Star Fort. 
 
 23. St. Nicholas Fort—192 Guns. 
 
 24. Fort St. Paul—80 Guns. 
 
 25. Military Harbour. 
 
 26. Barrack Battery. 
 
 27. Hospital, Barracks, and Docks. 
 
 28. Great Harbour. 
 
 29. Golandiya. 
 
 30. Careening Bay. 
 
 31. Malakhoff Tower and Battery. 
 
 32. Redan Battery. 
 
 33. Sailors’ Battery. 
 
 34. Chapman’s Battery. 
 
 35. Gordon’s Battery. 
 
 36 . Lancaster Guns. 
 
 37. Mamelon Hill. 
 
 38. Navy Baking House. 
 
 39. Inkerman Light, West. 
 
 40. Ruins of Inkerman. 
 
 41. Inkerman Light, East. 
 
 42. Caves of Inkerman. 
 
 43. Three Gun Battery. 
 
 44. Commissariat Train. 
 
 45. Mackenzie Farm. 
 
 46. British Camp. 
 
 47. Commissariat Department. 
 
 48. Tchadir Dagh, or Tent Mountain. 
 
 49. Woronzoff Road. 
 
 50. Jeuzde-Oter Farm. 
 
 51. Redoubt. 
 
 52. Lord Raglan and Staff. 
 
 53. Telegraph. 
 
 54. Babugan Mountain. 
 
 55. Defence Works. 
 
 56. Cavalry and Artillery Camp. 
 
 57. Lord Raglan’s Head Quarters. 
 
 58. Balaklava. 
 
 59. Redoubt and Batteries. 
 
 60. Turkish Battery. 
 
 61. Redoubt. 
 
 62. Farms. 
 
 63. General Canrobert’s Head Quarters. 
 
 64. Chasseurs de Cheval. 
 
 65. Road to Balaklava. 
 
 66. General Canrobert and Staff. 
 
 Printed by W. J. Golbocrn, 6, Prince*-Sireet, Leicester Square. 
 
DESCRIPTION 
 
 OF 
 
 A VIEW 
 
 THE CITY OF 
 
 SEBASTOPOL, 
 
 AND THE 
 
 SURROUNDING FORTIFICATIONS; 
 
 €\)t Mark nf tfjr Mirk Mmirs; 
 
 THE BRITISH & FRENCH CAMPS, &c. 
 
 !f<0>W 1M2B2T2M<S> 
 
 THE PANORAMA, LEICESTER SQUARE 
 
 ——- 
 
 PAINTED BY THE PROPRIETOR, 
 
 M K ROBERT BURFORD, 
 
 THE FIGURES BY H. C. SELOUS. 
 
 Edition: 
 
 PRINTED BY W. J. GOLBOURN, 6, PRINCES STREET, LEICESTER SQUARE. 
 
 PRICE SIXPENCE. 
 
 1855 . 
 

 — 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 ' 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
SEBASTOPOL. 
 
 Sebastopol, the finest port and harbour possessed by the Russians in 
 western Europe, and acknowledged by every competent judge to be 
 one of the strongest naval stations in the world, at the present moment 
 engrosses in an intense degree public attention, and has become an 
 object of deep and absorbing interest to all civilized nations. The 
 present struggle for its possession is doubtless one of the most impor¬ 
 tant in history, for its issue will exercise a mighty influence over the 
 future destiny of Europe. Already it has withstood for more than 
 eight months the combined attacks of the allied armies of England, 
 France, and Turkey, and has acquired a melancholy celebrity in the 
 annals of Great Britain, from the circumstance, that before its walls 
 have perished some of her noblest and most gallant sons, and thousands 
 of the flower of her army ; not alone by the honorable death of the 
 soldier, but by far more fearful enemies—want, pestilence, and disease. 
 It is, however, to be hoped by the vigorous measures now being pur¬ 
 sued, the tremendous crisis of the campaign is approaching, and that 
 by a crowning effort, no long time will elapse before this proud for¬ 
 tress will be either totally destroyed, or that it will be surrendered 
 into the hands of the allies by a just, honorable, and permanent peace. 
 
 The Panorama of this important Fortress, upon which millions of 
 money and thousands of lives have been expended, is taken from the 
 centre of the vast plateau occupied by the allied armies, on the south 
 side of the city, close to a gorge that separates the English from the 
 French approaches, and from whence the ground gradually slopes down¬ 
 wards to the harbour. Immediately in front of the spectator, the city 
 commands attention; from this distance, about a mile-and-a-half, it 
 has the appearance of being a handsome, regular, well-built place, 
 composed of white stone, which, sparkling in the sun, has a new 
 and beautiful effect. The towers and spires of the churches, reading 
 rooms, and telegraph, rising conspicuously above the vast masses of 
 buildings, agreeably break the monotony of the long lines of green 
 and red roofs. 
 
 The whole of the military or lesser harbour is distinctly seen, as 
 well as the two important Forts of Nicholas and Paul that defend its 
 entrance from the great harbour. On the left of it are the cathedral, 
 the church of St. Paul, and many public and private buildings of 
 handsome elevation; to the right are the Docks, two very extensive 
 
4 
 
 and massive buildings the great barracks and military hospital, the 
 arsenal, and the extensive suburb of the Karabalnaia. 
 
 Towers, walls, batteries, earthworks, and defences of every de¬ 
 scription enclose the city on this side, most of them constructed and 
 armed since its investment by the allies. Towards the left the most 
 conspicuous are the Barrack and Garden Batteries, the often mentioned 
 Blag Staff Battery, and several strong towers and fortified walls terminating 
 at the sea in Quarantine Fort, and the strong Fort of Alexander at 
 the entrance of the harbour. Towards the right is the long wall 
 called the Redan, with its numerous batteries; the Redan Fort, and 
 the Malakhoflf Tower now become celebrated, from the numerous 
 and deadly struggles that have taken place in its vicinity. 
 
 Beyond Sebastopol, towards the north, is seen the full extent of 
 the noble harbour, with the strong forts that defend its entrance from 
 the Black Sea, as well as the numerous batteries that line it on both 
 sides; and at a greater distance is the Wasp Battery, and an immense 
 work called the Star Fort; beyond which, in the direction of Belbec 
 and Alma, is a considerable extent of undulating country bounded on 
 the west by the sea. 
 
 Towards the east are seen the batteries, entrenchments, zigzags, and 
 other approaches of the British, traced on the sloping ground in the 
 angle formed by the outer and inner harbours, and occupying a front 
 of at least four miles in length, on the extreme right of which, at the 
 termination of the plateau, are Inkerman Heights, above the Valley of 
 Tchernaya, celebrated for its two most gallant battles of Oct. 26 and Nov. 5. 
 On the opposite side of the valley is the Hill of Inkerman, with its 
 singular caverns, surmounted by some ancient fortifications now occupied 
 by the Russians; and in the low ground may be seen the head of the 
 great harbour into which falls the Tchernaya, the partially destroyed 
 aqueduct; and still more distant, the east and west Inkerman Lighthouses. 
 
 Towards the west the cordon is continued on ground comparatively flat 
 and unbroken, by the works of the French, their trenches, batteries, &c. 
 being formed in the angle between the inner harbour and the sea, directly 
 facing the principal part of the city, their extreme left resting, as will be 
 seen, on the Quarantine Harbour. 
 
 Towards the south are the British and French camps, placed two or 
 three hundred feet below the rise of the plateau, so as to be protected 
 from the guns of the Russians, and enclosed in the rear by a long line of 
 redoubts and other defences, occupying the heights from above Tchernaya 
 to the heights above Balaklava, which town, laying low between two 
 considerable headlands, cannot be seen; but the whole line of bold cliffs 
 bounding the peninsula from that place to Cape Fiorente, thence to Cape 
 Chersonese, the extreme point of laud, and thence to Quarantine Bay, 
 including Kamiesh, Streletskaia, and other considerable inlets, is dis¬ 
 tinctly visible, bounded by a fine expanse of the Black Sea, on which the 
 combined fleets of the allies are seen riding about or at anchor. 
 
 In the opposite direction the view is bounded by a fine range of hills 
 stretching towards the east, the picturesque summits of which are covered 
 with snow during the winter months, which in May is replaced by a fine 
 rich verdure, and the slopes and valleys arc covered with timber and fruit 
 
5 
 
 trees. The most conspicuous of the range is Tchadir Dagli, the highest 
 mountain of the Crimea. 
 
 Nothing can be imagined more bare and barren than the plateau, and 
 the country immediately surrounding Sebastopol; although an elevated 
 table land, it is so extensive that it produces the effect of an undulating 
 plain, the general coloring of which is a drabbish brown; it was originally 
 covered with a short dry turf, scarcely clothing the grey rock which every 
 here and there pushed its fragments through it; there were also a few 
 patches of coppice or short oak scrub, and some trees round the farms, and 
 at intervals down the several ravines that intersect the plain, but these 
 have all been cut for fire-wood and other purposes; all is now bare, 
 brown, well-trodden earth, strewn with stones, without the least vege¬ 
 tation ; the cultivated strips at the bottoms of the gorges, and the 
 woods and vineyards in the valleys, lying too low to affect the 
 general landscape. 
 
 A great portion of this extensive foreground is occupied and enlivened 
 by thousands of figures, presenting a most varied and interesting picture of 
 war in all its pomp and circumstance, as well as in many of its 
 attendant trials and sacrifices. Two prominent groups represent the two 
 gallant commanders, Lord Raglan and General Canrobert, each surrounded 
 by a brilliant staff', making their daily inspection of the progress of the 
 siege; close to them is a large battery in full operation. Vast supplies of 
 stores and munitions of war are seen arriving in a long line of waggons, 
 bullock carts, and native Arabas, drawn by that useful animal the 
 Bactrian Camel. Carts conveying gabions, fascines, and other material, 
 are hastening to the front, and working parties are departing to the 
 trenches, whilst others are returning, bringing in the wounded and dead. 
 Some regiments are being paraded, others are employed in the necessary 
 duties of the camp, or are wiling away the tedious hours with the best 
 amusements they can devise; the whole presenting a most truthful and 
 spirited representation of every-day life in the camp. 
 
 The Crimea, the Taurida Chersonesus of ancient geographers, from its 
 central position between Europe and Asia, its salubrious climate, its 
 fertile plains, and especially its indented shores, affording noble harbours 
 and positions of defence, lias, from the remotest antiquity, been regarded by 
 every enterprising people—pastoral, commercial, or Avar-like—as one of the 
 most important possessions in the old world. Here the enterprising sons of 
 ancient Greece founded colonies, which continued to flourish in all that 
 contributes to man’s civilization, until the advent of the Romans, by 
 whom, after long protracted wars, they were driven out. After the 
 decline of the Roman Empire, it became subject to many masters, having 
 been over-run in succession by Celts, Scythians, Goths, and Huns, who 
 spread ruin and desolation. Towards the end of the eleventh century 
 the Genoese were in possession, who in their turn were expelled by the 
 Criin Tartars in 1474, who retained it as tributaries to the Porte until 
 1774, when it was finally taken by the Russians, avIio, from the time of 
 Peter the Great, had aimed at dispossessing the Sultan of his dominions, 
 from the shores of the Baltic to the Gulf of Venice, and thus opening a 
 path to the whole of western Europe. 
 
 Peter the Great was, unquestionably, the founder of the Russian 
 
6 
 
 Empire; he radically changed the aspect of affairs in that country, 
 and gave it a degree of importance it had never before possessed. A 
 country scantily inhabited and ill cultivated he enriched by agriculture 
 and trade; he planted colonies, and raised towns where there had been 
 nothing but forests and swamps, and raised the people, in spite of 
 themselves, from a state of barbarism and moral degradation; but to 
 crown his efforts with complete success, he clearly saw that he must 
 possess strong sea ports and a powerful fleet, to enable him to struggle 
 against the numerous foes by whom he was surrounded, and ensure 
 security at home, and political importance abroad. “ It is not land I 
 want, but water,” was his frequent exclamation, and he exerted all his 
 energies to obtain it, both on the Baltic and the Black Sea. Nor was his 
 work ill-seconded by his successors. At the time of his death, the 
 empire contained 4,381,040 square miles; in less than a century and-a- 
 half it has been extended to 6,006,010 square miles. The acquisition of 
 the Crimea, and the construction of a vast naval arsenal in one of its fine 
 harbours, to secure the Black Sea as an outlet for the growing trade of 
 the empire, as well as with a view to the further acquisition of territory 
 in western Europe, were essential points in the vast scheme of policy of 
 Peter. In 1689 he invaded the Crimea, but was defeated with the loss of 
 nearly 6000 of his best troops. In 1696 he was more successful, and 
 took Azoph and Taganrog, and fought several other battles with various 
 success until 1711, when, by the celebrated treaty of Prutb, all his 
 advantages were given up. 
 
 The Tartar princes of the Golden Horde still reigned, when the 
 political intrigues of Russia effected that which their arms had been 
 unable to accomplish ; exterminating dissensions were fermented, suc¬ 
 cessive invasions followed, and in a few years the annexation of the 
 Crimea to the empire of Russia, was consummated by its complete cession 
 by the Turks in 1784. Catherine, having thus obtained what her great 
 ancestor so earnestly sought, quitted her capital with a retinue of 40,000 
 men, under the pretence of visiting the remote parts of her dominions, and 
 appeared on the shores of the Euxine, before the Turks were even in¬ 
 formed of her departure from St. Petersburg, and here indeed, whilst 
 preparing plans for the future strength of Sebastopol, she might have 
 uttered with some degree of truth, her proud but delusive hope, “ here lies 
 the road to Byzantium.” 
 
 From the time the absolute domination of Russia commenced over the 
 peninsula and its coasts, a southern hemisphere was opened to their arms, 
 and in all their subsequent struggles the Turks have been more or less 
 losers. The Circassian coast was conquered and occupied ; the Danube 
 became a Russian stream by the seizure of the right bank of the Sulina 
 mouth; Odessa rose into commercial importance and prosperity; the 
 Euxine became a Russian lake, the whole coast of Asia Minor being at 
 the mercy of the fleet at Sebastopol, and the treaty of Unkiar Skelessi 
 proved with what facility an army might land in tire Sultan’s valley, and 
 proclaim a Russian protectorate at Constantinople. An occasion was only 
 needed, to be the signal for the complete subjugation of Turkey, and to 
 enter the waters of the Mediterranean; and it is impossible to say where 
 the visions of universal domination might cease, unless some powerful 
 
7 
 
 means were devised to stop this insatiable thirst for extension of 
 power. 
 
 The causes which led to the present war—the alliance with France—the 
 transport and landing the immense armies of the allies, in a country where 
 no soldier of the western world had trodden since the Crusaders—the 
 glorious Battle of the Alma—the famous flank movement through a 
 difficult and almost unknown country—the arrival at Balaklava—and 
 the investment of Sebastopol on the south side instead of the north, 
 as originally intended, are events too vividly in the recollection of every¬ 
 one to need recapitulation. By this movement the basis of operations was 
 entirely changed, the north side of the city being left completely open, the 
 south side being alone the object of attack; and here, so completely were 
 the Russians taken by surprise, no preparations whatever had been made 
 for defence. A general panic prevailed in the city when the allies first 
 appeared on the heights, and it is the universal opinion, that the place 
 might at once have been carried by a coup de main; this, however, it 
 was not deemed prudent to attempt, and subsequently, from the small 
 force at the disposal of the commanders, they have been unable to prevent 
 the enemy from throwing in unlimited supplies of men and ammunition. 
 
 The allies reached Balaklava on the 26th of September, 1854, and took 
 possession of the town and harbour, without the least opposition. The 
 post was one of immense importance, for the small harbour being com¬ 
 pletely land-locked, affords admirable facilities for the debarkation of 
 troops, artillery, and stores, whilst the town itself is naturally well 
 protected from attack on the land side. The French occupied at the 
 same time Kamiesch and Streletskaia—two bays on the north-west coast, 
 much nearer Sebastopol—for the purpose of landing their material. 
 Having thus secured uninterrupted communication with the fleets, the 
 armies, after a few days spent in landing and bringing up the armament 
 for the attack, commenced opening the trenches on the 10th of October, 
 and proceeded to throw up and arm formidable works on every available 
 poiut. Owing, however, to various interruptions and difficulties, they 
 were unable to open their fire for several days. In the mean time the 
 Russians were not idle, taking advantage of the time thus allowed, they 
 made unparalleled exertions—men, women, and children were compelled 
 to assist the garrison—working night and day, without intermission, at 
 the defences, so that fresh batteries and earthworks, solid and extensive, 
 rose every day; in fact, most of the works which have caused the allies 
 so much trouble and annoyance, were raised in that brief period. 
 
 The 17th of October, the first day’s combined attack by sea and land, 
 served to show that the enemy’s resources had been much under-rated, 
 and that a prolonged and fearful struggle must ensue. Fire was simul¬ 
 taneously opened from 128 pieces of artillery—75 English, 53 French— 
 and continued during a great part of the day, also from the allied fleets, 
 consisting of 28 line of battle ships, besides steamers and frigates, but 
 without any marked results, beyond knocking down the embrasures of, 
 and silencing one or two of the minor forts. The numerical strength of 
 the allies was found insufficient, and their guns too few and too weak to 
 attack even one side of the city; in fact, that they were totally unprepared 
 for so gigantic an undertaking, whilst the enemy having free access to the 
 
8 
 
 interior, by the road to Simpheropol being open, could constantly gain 
 fresh accessions of strength. 
 
 The various works were now continued by the besiegers with increased 
 activity, by night as well as day, with but little to vary the monotony of 
 the siege, excepting now and then a nocturnal sortie from the city, which 
 kept the advanced posts and pickets constantly on the alert, and were 
 sometimes of a very sanguinary character. Incessant slaving in the 
 trenches, exposed to the enemy’s shot and to all sorts of weather, and 
 outlying pickets five nights out of the seven, together with very scanty 
 supplies of shelter, clothing, or food, began to tell fearfully on the armies. 
 The British especially, suffered most severely from sickness and death, 
 so that towards the end of October, they barely numbered 16,500 
 effective men out of 35,800, their original strength. 
 
 In the city new works were constantly being thrown up, and those 
 injured were immediately repaired. Large detachments of troops were 
 continually arriving, not only to act on the defensive, but also to take the 
 field; eleven fresh battalions having crossed the Tchernaya and taken a 
 position in the rear of the British toward Balaklava. On the 25tli of 
 October a most sanguinary engagement took place, which resulted in the 
 total defeat of the Russians, but with great loss to the British, especially 
 to the light brigade of cavalry, which was nearly annihilated. The 
 following day an attack was made by about 8000 Russians, which was 
 also most gallantly repulsed, as was also a similar assault on the right 
 wing of the British, on the heights above Inkerman. 
 
 Matters now remained tolerably quiet until the 5th of November. The 
 various works progressed but very slowly, for sickness prevailed to a 
 frightful extent; the British infantry, already reduced below 15,000 effective 
 men, were further dwindling away at the rate of four or five hundred per 
 week, and nothing but the hope of soon commencing more active opera¬ 
 tions could have sustained the men under such severe trials and privations; 
 indeed the position of the allied armies would have been more critical, but 
 from the great security of the ground they occupied. On Sunday, the 5th 
 of November, one of the most bloody battles was fought, and one of the 
 most gallant defences was made, ever recorded in the annals of war. 
 Under the cloak of a thick autumnal fog, the enemy commenced an attack 
 on the right wing of the British, on the heights above the valley of 
 Inkerman, and. before they were aware of their approach, were actually 
 within their lines. For several hours they successfully repulsed the 
 repeated assaults of the Russians, who were at least 60,000 strong, and 
 although they numbered only 8000 men, held their position until the 
 arrival of 5000 French decided the victory, and the enemy were forced to 
 retreat, leaving dead, wounded, and prisoners on the field, a greater 
 number than the whole force opposed to them. 
 
 After the Battle of Inkerman, engineers were set to work to fortify 
 the camp with a complete line of entrenchments, covering the crest of the 
 range of hills in the rear, which were from 600 to 1200 feet in height; 
 the latter were scarped where required, and redans and other works 
 thrown out, with redoubts at the most important and commanding 
 points. 
 
 The weather, hitherto fine and sunny, now grew foggy, moist, and 
 
9 
 
 cold, and severe frosts shortly followed. The Russian army retired into 
 Sebastopol, leaving strong detachments in some of the neighbouring 
 villages, and at the bridge crossing the Tchernaya; the works for a 
 time were partially suspended, and but few events, beyond occasional 
 sorties and repeated contests between the advanced posts, attended with a 
 small loss on either side, occurred to break the monotony of the siege. 
 Vast supplies of huts, warm clothing, and other comforts arrived from 
 England, the health of the army improved, and with the exception of the 
 inevitable toils, exposures, and dangers of war, the winter passed as 
 comfortably as could well be expected. 
 
 The highest authority was quoted for the opinion that the Russian 
 batteries would be silenced in a few hours, even the less sanguine gave 
 but three days as the limit of the contest: eight months have passed, and 
 the end is not yet attained. Since the return of open weather, the works 
 have been carried forward with increased energy and perseverance, and 
 with extraordinary labour, skill, and energy. In some parts, in spite of 
 all opposition, they have been pushed to within three or four hundred 
 yards of the enemy’s trenches, and deadly contests between the working 
 parties are of daily occurrence. New batteries have been erected, and 
 armed with guns of a heavier calibre ; a railroad has been made from 
 Balaklava, by which immense supplies of projectiles have been transported 
 to the front, and the combined armies, numbering at least 100,000 
 effective men, are in a state of good health and anxious for the assault ; 
 altogether the preparations are now on so vast and deadly a scale, that no 
 reasonable doubt can be entertained of a decisive result. 
 
 The Russians, in the mean time, have received extraordinary sup¬ 
 plies into the city, and have not only strengthened their old works, 
 but have erected new; opposing battery to battery, and advancing so 
 forward as to become, in some instances, the assaulting party. The siege 
 has thus become a most singular operation of war, the common order of 
 things being inverted; instead of the besieging army working up to the 
 walls of the city by regular approaches, the besieged garrison throws out 
 fresh works, which brings them closer to their invaders, and the space 
 between the two antagonists is progressively narrowed, until they are in 
 parts but a very few hundred yards from each other. The enemy is also 
 in great strength on the Tchernaya and in the adjacent valleys, and has 
 occupied and fortified all the heights from Karabalnaia to the head of the 
 great Harbour; thus everything betokens a stern and most determined 
 resistance, and the battle, whichever way it may terminate, will be a 
 most fearful one. 
 
 On the 9th of May the bombardment recommenced, and continued for 
 16 days without intermission, when, from the exhaustion of both men 
 and material, it was for a time suspended. The magnitude of attack is 
 without parallel in military history, the British alone having fired during 
 the first six days the immense amount of between 16,000 and 17,000 
 32 and 68-pounder shot, 78<0 thirteen inch shells, and 4500 ten inch 
 shells, making about 2200 tons of shot and 500 tons of powder. The 
 French, being much stronger in artillery, will swell the gross amount to 
 at least 6000 tons of shot and shell, and nearly 1600 tons of powder. 
 
 I Prince Gortschakoff says, in one of his despatches, that 20,000 projectiles 
 
10 
 
 were thrown against the city on the 9th : to sustain such a fire for 16 
 consecutive days argues an abundance of resources, a solidity in the 
 ordnance employed, and an endurance on the part of the men, beyond 
 anything ever heard of, yet the result has not produced that permanent 
 effect that might have been expected from a cannonade of such unexam¬ 
 pled severity, constancy, and accuracy, assisted by the exertions of the 
 fleet, some ships of which nightly poured their broadsides into the devoted 
 city. Many of the enemy’s guns have been dismounted and disabled, and 
 some of their batteries abandoned or silenced, still such is the extra¬ 
 ordinary energy and endurance of the Russians, that they mostly repair 
 during the night the damage done in the day, and the works, to all 
 appearance, remain nearly in the same state as at first. Many fierce 
 encounters have taken place in the trenches and rifle pits, in which the 
 allies have always been victorious, and their works have steadily ad¬ 
 vanced, new parallels having been opened, fresh batteries erected, and sap 
 and mine carried much nearer the defences, but to the present time no 
 assault has been attempted. 
 
DESCRIPTION OF THE PLATE 
 
 No. 3.—Cape Chersonesus. 
 
 Cape Parthenium of the Greeks, the most westernly point of the Crimea; it is about 
 five miles from Sebastopol, and about 300 miles from Constantinople, to which place 
 it is the nearest point in the Russian dominions. On the low promontory stands a 
 lighthouse 116 feet above the level of the sea, the light from which may be seen at the 
 distance of 16 miles. Midway between Cape Chersonesus and Balaklava is Cape St. 
 George (Cape Fiorente of the Genoese), a majestic headland on which stood the 
 celebrated temple of Diana Tauripolitana. The whole of this coast was named 
 inhospitable, from the horrid custom the inhabitants had of sacrificing every stranger 
 whom chance or foul weather led thither; the well-known history of Orestes and his 
 sister Iphigenia, the high priestess of the temple of Diana, would alone render the 
 site celebrated. A small monastery dedicated to St. George gives its present name to 
 the cape ; it is beautifully situated on a terrace amongst the rocks, 900 feet above the 
 level of the sea. Beyond the cliffs spread the vast expanse of the Black Sea, with the 
 Allied fleets sailing about or at anchor. The Axenas or inhospitable, or the Euxinos 
 or hospitable sea of the Greeks, the Pontus of the Romans, and the Black Sea of the 
 Turks, who have many black seas and rivers, giving that name indiscriminately to all 
 waters of difficult or dangerous navigation, is larger than the Baltic, but smaller than 
 the North Sea. It is not affected by tides, but is subject to terrific storms from the 
 north. One of the worst ever known occurred between the 13tli and 16th of October, 
 1854, during which the fleets suffered most severely, every vessel being more or less 
 damaged, and the magnificent steam ship the Prince, the Sea Nymph, and many 
 transports and other ships, French and English, having been totally lost. 
 
 No. 5.—Kamiesch Bay , 
 
 One of the deep narrow recesses of Cape Chersonesus, more spacious and convenient 
 than Balaklava, but very much exposed to the north wind ; the depth of water is from 
 twelve fathoms at the entrance to four at the upper end. The French landed a portion 
 of their siege material here, and have erected quays and storehouses, and formed a good 
 road, connecting it with their camp. 
 
 No. 8 . —Streletskaia Bay , 
 
 A considerable inlet of the sea, not so large as Kamiesch Bay, but more immediately 
 in the camp of the French, who here landed a great portion of their siege material, and 
 continue to receive most of their supplies into the depot here constructed. The place 
 cannot be easily molested by the enemy, owing to the absence of hills in the 
 neighbourhood, and its being protected by war ships that lie close into the shore. 
 
 No. 11 .—Chersonesus Bay. 
 
 On this bay and on the promontory west of Quarantine Harbour stood a great 
 portion of the ancient city of Chersonesus, founded 600 years before the Christian era 
 by Greek colonists from the city of Heraclea, in Bythinia, in conjunction with the 
 Delians. It was one of the most flourishing cities of Eastern Europe, and extended 
 
12 
 
 over an area of thirty miles ; the inhabitants were independent, but, annoyed by the 
 invasions of the Scythians, sought the protection of Mithridates. Ir. the time of the 
 Romans this part of the Crimea formed an independent state, and in the reign of 
 Dioclesian they assisted the Roman arms against the Sarmatians, and afterwards 
 furnished troops to Constantine the Great against the Goths on the Danube. In 835 
 the city became the seat of a Greek metropolitan, and it was here in the church of 
 St. Basil, since named St. Vladimar, that Vladimar the first Christian Grand Duke of 
 Russia was baptised in 988, and from hence, under his direction, Greek Christianity was 
 introduced into Russia. 
 
 At no very distant date vast and magnificent ruins of the ancient city remained, but 
 Russian vandalism soon swept them away for building materials, or mutilated them 
 through sheer vvantonness. The Emperor Alexander, who visited them in 1818, strictly 
 enjoined the preservation of what then remained, but it was too late, all of any value 
 was gone, and mere fragments of stone and marble are now strewn over tbe country. 
 The French have erected a strong work, called the Star Battery, at the church. 
 
 No. 13 .—Quarantine Harbour, 
 
 A considerable bay outside of the Great Harbour. It is defended by a strong fort 
 of the same name, mounting 51 large guns, also by a battery and numerous earthworks. 
 The extreme left of the French attack being in this position, it has been the scene 
 of many gallant assaults, sorties, and deadly engagements. In the attack of the 
 17th of October, the fort was much injured, and completely silenced by the fire from 
 the shipping. 
 
 No. 15 .—Fort Alexander, 
 
 A large and strong fort, defending the entrance to the harbour on the southern side. 
 It stands on a small cape, projecting some distance into the water, and mounts 84 guns 
 of large calibre, in two tiers. 
 
 No. 16 .—Fort Constantine, 
 
 A very strong fort at the entrance to the harbour on the northern side. It stands on 
 a projecting cape, and is built of a fine sound white limestone, which becomes very 
 hard by exposure, and, being very durable, is used for all the large forts round 
 Sebastopol. Fort Constantine is built on the casemate principle, and is mounted with 
 104 guns in three tiers, capable of throwing shells or solid 68 pound shots ; it is also 
 furnished with the necessary furnaces for heating shot red hot. A shallow shoal with 
 scarcely two fathoms of water surrounds the point, so that vessels of war cannot 
 approach nearer than 600 yards. On the 17th of October it was assaulted by the 
 Agamemnon, who is said to have fired from one broadside 2700 shot and shells against 
 it without producing any visible result. 
 
 No. 17 .— Wasp Fort , 
 
 A small fort on a commanding elevation northward from the entrance to the great 
 harbour. It has been but recently erected, and is surrounded by considerable earth¬ 
 works. It mounts 8 guns. Near the Wasp Fort is the Telegraph Battery, mounting 
 28 guns. 
 
 No. 19 .— Sebastopol, 
 
 “ The Imperial City,” the Ctanus of the ancients, as described by Strabo, and the 
 Aktiar, or White City of the Turks. It is situated on the south-west coast of the 
 Crimea, near its southern extremity, in such a position that it is, as it were, in the 
 very centre of the Black Sea, at almost equal distances from the Danube and Sinope, 
 and equally commanding the Bosphorus and Trebizonde. History it has none, having 
 been almost unknown until it was chosen by the great Catherine, in 1786, as a site 
 whereon to erect a fortress and arsenal, to protect the vast naval force which should 
 establish the dominion of Russia over the Black Sea and its surrounding coasts ; and 
 it would perhaps be impossible to find a point more favorable for the purpose. 
 
13 
 
 Admirably adapted by nature, on the side towards the sea, for the formation of a strong 
 position, the natural advantages have been improved by all that engineering and skill 
 could suggest, regardless of expense; so that it has become one of the most strongly 
 fortified places that can well be imagined. 
 
 The town is built on a hill of chalk, which gradually rises from the water’s edge 
 in a series of platforms or steppes, to the height of 240 feet; its greatest length being 
 somewhat more than a mile, and its width being about three-quarters of a mile. The 
 inner harbour runs into the neck of the land on which it stands, and divides the larger 
 and best portion of the city from the docks, naval arsenal, military hospital, barracks, 
 storehouses, and a large suburb called Karabalnaia, the Wapping of Sebastopol, in 
 which the sailors and artisans connected with the docks reside. The interior of the 
 city, although it does not quite correspond with the brilliant appearance it makes 
 from a distance, is handsome and regular ; the streets are wide, especially that named 
 after Catherine, in which some of the best buildings are situated ; they run in nearly 
 parallel lines from north to south, and are intersected at right angles by others from 
 east to west. Amongst the most prominent public buildings may be enumerated the 
 Cathedral, a handsome edifice, with high towering spires ; the Armenian Church of 
 St. Paul, a copy of the Temple of Theseus, at Athens ; a basilica, surrounded by 
 Doric columns, extremely simple, neither externally overloaded with ornament, nor 
 internally decorated with bad or indifferent pictures, like most of the Russian places 
 of worship; and the public library and reading rooms, erected by the late Emperor, for 
 the naval and military officers, a conspicuous and handsome building of Grecian 
 architecture, standing on a high point; the large club house, opera house, and several 
 of the official buildings are also handsome erections. The house is also scrupulously 
 preserved in which Catherine stayed during her short residence here, from which she 
 was obliged to retire precipitately, in order to escape the designs of some fanatical 
 Tartars, who had conspired together to assassinate her. The houses are generally 
 large, and well built of the white stone of the country, intermixed with the remains 
 of antiquity, plundered from the ruins of many ancient cities of the vicinity, entablatures, 
 capitals, and other sculptures being built into many of the walls ; altogether they have 
 a substantial and clean appearance, their cheerful aspect being much increased by 
 the trees and vines planted in front of them : many are now without roofs or windows 
 the walls shattered and broken, and altogether become tenantless, from the countless 
 missiles thrown amongst them. South of the city was a pleasant boulevard and many 
 gardens, whence the inhabitants enjoyed a fine view of the harbour, opposite coast, 
 and the sea; and near the hospital and barracks was a fine grove of oaks: both 
 however, have been destroyed by the erection of batteries. 
 
 The inhabitants generally consisted of half-pay officers, and persons connected with, 
 the two services, and a few shopkeepers, workmen and fishermen, usually numbering 
 from 15,000 to 20,000 persons; and the garrison and navy, before the war, might 
 amount to about 20,000 more : the garrison alone is said, at the present time, to exceed 
 100,000 men. Commerce scarcely exists; indeed, the only articles imported are those 
 required for materials of war or provisions tor the residents. A few years back all 
 the Jews were expelled bylaw; but a few have crept in again—for what would a 
 sea-port be without them ? the remaining permanent residents are Russians, all others 
 being rigorously excluded. 
 
 Sebastopol is by no means a healthy place, especially in the summer months, when 
 it is said there are seldom less than a thousand persons in the hospital. Ophthalmia 
 and cataract are also very prevalent. 
 
 Before the arrival of the Allies the city was very badiy defended on the south, or 
 land side. From the neighbourhood of Fort Alexander, a crenelated wall for musketry, 
 ran nearly a mile to the top of a steep hill, terminating in a large round fort, mounting 
 20 guns ; from thence the wall was continued to the head of the inner harbour. A 
 strong redan wall also surrounded the port and arsenal, terminating at Malakhoff Tower. 
 These works have been repaired, enlarged, and strengthened, and the barracks fortified, 
 and flanked by strong works. The Flagstafi' Battery mid Garden Battery have been 
 erected and armed ; also strong works thrown out to cover the ground between the 
 wall and the Quarantine Harbour, as well as every description of defences advanced 
 in all directions. The front attacked being above three miles in extent, the space at the 
 disposal of the garrison enables them to reply with at least as many guns as the 
 besiegers can bring against them ; and it is said that altogether there are not less than 
 1000 pieces displayed on this side. 
 
14 
 
 No. 20 .—Flagstaff Battery. 
 
 The redoubtable and so often mentioned Flagstaff Battery is a very strong work 
 standing on an elevation, and completely commanding the French line of approaches. 
 At the commencement of the war it mounted about 40 guns in two tiers, it now 
 presents at least 150, and on the summit are several large mortars. This being one 
 of the principal defences of the city, the most strenuous endeavours have been made 
 either to take or demolish it, but as yet without success, the enemy having always been 
 able to frustrate the most vigorous assaults, and to repair the most extensive damage. 
 Three considerable mines were exploded by the French under the works on the 15th 
 of April, but without any very serious damage being effected. 
 
 No. 21 .—Sievernaia Battery, 
 
 A large and very strong work situated at Port Sievernaia, or the north ravine ; it mounts 
 120 large guns, casemated. It is sometimes mentioned as Fort Catherine. The Port 
 is small, with about two-and-a-half fathoms of water. 
 
 No. 22 .—Star Fort, 
 
 A large polygonic fort occupying an elevated crest behind Port Sievernaia. Since the 
 commencement of the war it has been much strengthened, and batteries have been 
 erected round the brow of the crest; an entrenched camp capable of containing 60,000 
 men has also been formed under its protection. 
 
 No. 23 .—Fort Nicholas, 
 
 The largest of the forts. It stands on a low promontory between the entrance to the 
 inner harbour and Artillery Bay, which it equally defends, and is itself surrounded by 
 a dangerous reef of rocks. It mounts 192 guns in three tiers. 
 
 No. 24 .—Fort St. Paul, 
 
 A strong work on the eastern side of the entrance to the inner harbour ; it stands on a 
 small cape surrounded by rocks, and mounts 80 guns in three tiers. 
 
 No. 25 .—Military Harbour. 
 
 The inner, or Military Harbour, is the largest of the four bays. It runs in a 
 southerly direction nearly two miles, its average width being 400 yards. The depth 
 of water at the entrance is eight fathoms, at its farthest extremity four fathoms, so that 
 ships of the largest size can lie close to the quays, with all their stores on board—and 
 it is also land locked on every side. Ships of war only are allowed to enter, and it 
 is here that the Black Sea Fleet is safely moored during the winter, and vast stores 
 of material of all kinds are kept in the arsenal and numerous storehouses. 
 
 It was from this bay the Russian ship of war The Twelve Apostles, did so much 
 damage by throwing shot and shells into the English and French batteries, until she 
 was compelled to retire by the fire of an English battery, at the head of the ravine 
 leading down to the harbour. 
 
 The telegraph, or semaphore, at the head of the harbour, is the centre of the 
 telegraphic communication with the whole of the Crimea, and by way of Kherson, on 
 the main land, with St. Petersburgh, to which place, in clear weather, a despatch can 
 be forwarded in nine hours. 
 
 In a small harbour, on the eastern side of the Military Harbour, are the fine docks, 
 projected in 1832, and constructed, under great engineering difficulties, by Col. Upton, 
 an Englishman, and pupil of the celebrated Telford. They are in many respects 
 perfect, and can scarcely be matched in Europe for convenience. They consist of a 
 vast fitting basin, into which open a series of five docks, each capable of holding two 
 ships ; one is for men-of-war of the largest size, two for seventy-fours, and two for 
 frigates. As there is no tide, the lock principle has been adopted, and the ships are 
 raised by a series of three locks, each with a rise of 10 feet, ,so that the water in 
 
15 
 
 the docks is 30 feet above that in the basin, and each can be separately laid dry by 
 means of subterranean channels. The masonry is all most beautifully finished, much 
 granite having been brought from a great distance for the purpose. The machinery 
 is all British, and the sluices alone are said to have cost £34,875. To supply water 
 for the outer basin, a fine canal and aqueduct was formed, by which it is brought from 
 the village of Tchergana, a distance of eleven miles, where it has an elevation of 
 62 feet. The watercourse is 10 feet in width, and passing over difficult ground, there 
 was a necessity for a considerable embankment, three aqueducts, and two tunnels ; one 
 of the latter, at the hill of Inkerman, is cut entirely through the freestone rock, at 
 which eighty sailors are said to have worked night and day for fifteen months: it is 
 about 900 feet in length. There are two vast reservoirs to provide against the failure 
 of the springs in hot weather, also a large filter, from which pipes are carried to the 
 quays, so that ships are supplied with water with great facility. 
 
 In order to make room for the dock, it was necessary to cut away a considerable 
 portion of the hill; on the top of the perpendicular wall, thus formed, stands a massive 
 pile of stone buildings, used for the sailors’ home in winter. 
 
 No. 26 .—Barrack Battery , 
 
 Named after a long line of barracks that stand immediately behind it, in the angle 
 of the outer and inner harbours. This was one of the new works thrown up simul¬ 
 taneously with the offensive works of the Allies; it mounts many large guns, which 
 command the left of the British, and the right of the French attacks. 
 
 No. 28 .— Great Harbour , 
 
 A fine bay, running in a south-easterly direction for nearly four miles. At its 
 entrance it is 1050 yards across; opposite the city, about 50 yards wider; from whence 
 it gradually diminishes to about 400 yards at the upper end, where it receives the 
 waters of the Tchernaya, or Black River. The average depth is about eight fathoms, 
 and the bottom is mud in the centre, with gravel at the sides. The entrance is 
 protected by four very strong forts, two on each side, built on the casemate principle, 
 three having three tiers of guns each, the fourth only two, altogether mounting 500 
 guns, 64 pounders. On the south side, the harbour js further defended by six principal 
 fortresses and batteries, mounting from 50 to 190 guns each ; and on the north side by 
 four, having from 18 to 120 guns each ; besides which, there are several small batteries, 
 all of which were designed by a French Officer of Engineers. The two outer forts are 
 named Constantine and Alexander; the two next, Nicholas and Catherine. From 
 these a most fearful cross-fire can be maintained on anything attempting to enter, but 
 they are nearly useless on the land side, being commanded by higher ground in the 
 rear. As a farther protection, Prince Menschikoff, immediately after the Battle of 
 the Alma, caused eight ships of the line to be sunk, in two rows, between the forts, 
 where the harbour is not more than 700 yards in width, the second row covering the 
 interstices of the first in such a way that the entrance is completely barred to ships of 
 war, although steamers might make their way through ; had the passage remained 
 open, the fleet might have entered, and have supported the land attack with good 
 effect. In February, three or four more ships were sunk, as far within as the former 
 were without the bar ; so that the harbour is now defended by two barriers of booms 
 and two of sunken ships. 
 
 The Harbour of Sebastopol owes its excellence entirely to nature, which has, without 
 the aid of art, provided a safe and most magnificent roadstead, with ramifications, 
 forming so many secure basins, admirably adapted to the wants of a great naval station. 
 Northward it is bounded by a very high coast; on the south, the banks, although 
 tolerably precipitous, are not so high ; on this side, four small creeks or bays run 
 into the tongue of land on which the city stands : the first, near the entrance, is the 
 mercantile harbour, or Artillery Bay, into which merchant vessels only are permitted 
 to enter; the second and third are the military harbours, in which are situated the 
 splendid docks, and the last is called the Careening Bay. 
 
 No. 30 .—Careening Bay , 
 
 A considerable creek, with a depth of water of between four and five fathoms, used for 
 the repair of merchant vessels. It is defended by a battery of heavy guns. Two 
 
large war steamers anchored in this bay completely commanded the British advanced 
 works, and occasioned considerable loss and annoyance by their fire, especially on the 
 22nd and 23rd of February. A battery built by the French, but armed and manned 
 by the English, was pushed forward so as to command the bay, and having fired about 
 60 rounds of shot, 20 of which were red hot, compelled one of the ships to shift her 
 position, the other, named the Gromonnossetz, after receiving eight shots went down. 
 
 No. 31 .—Malakhoff Tower , 
 
 A tower of considerable dimensions, armed with heavy guns, forming the key of the 
 whole line of the southern defences. At the commencement of the siege it mounted 
 only 25 guns, but it was speedily surrounded by substantial earthworks heavily armed. 
 In the attack of the 17th of October, the fire of the British against this tower was very 
 effective; the guns were soon dismounted and its surface deeply scarred by shot from 
 heavy 68 pound guns in the naval battery on the right, practising at a range of more 
 than 2000 yards. The tower was however speedily repaired and strengthened, and 
 being a position of very considerable importance, various new works have been added ; 
 two strong square redoubts, called the Selinghinsk and Volynhia Redoubts, were 
 constructed in advance of the left flank of the fortifications, upon the incline of Mount 
 Sapoune, on the right side of Careening Bay, also a strong redoubt on the Mamelon, 
 and trenches, rifle pits, and other works have been thrown forward in all direction. 
 Many fierce contests for the interruption, possession, or destruction of these works 
 have taken place, and furious attacks made by both the French and the English ; 
 nevertheless, they have steadily progressed, and have occasioned much loss and 
 annoyance to the Allies. The tower and other works is now armed with at least 70 
 guns of large calibre. 
 
 No. 32 .—Redan Battery , 
 
 A very large and formidable work, composed of two faces, meeting in a salient angle, 
 connected by a wall and a strong line of works with the Barrack Battery on the one 
 hand, and the Malakhoff Tower on the other. At the commencement of the war it 
 mounted 45 guns—it has now nearly 300 pieces of heavy ordnance. The Redan is 
 of immense value, whilst the Malakhoff Tower remains intact; but that, once destroyed, 
 will be of little or no use for defence. As, together, they protect the rear of the town 
 and harbour, and cover the shipping, the principal operations of the British have been 
 directed against them, but as yet, so great is their strength, with but little effect. 
 In the attack of the 17th of November, 1854, a large magazine in the Redan was 
 fired by a British shell, and the explosion committed such devastation, that all the 
 guns but three were for a time silenced. 
 
 No. 34 .—Chapman s Battery , 
 
 On Green Hill, so named from the engineer under whose direction most of the works 
 were constructed. It is the principal attack of the British, the fire of the various 
 batteries connected with it commanding the left of the Barrack, Road, and Garden 
 Batteries, the whole of the Redan, and the Careening Battery. On the recommence¬ 
 ment of the siege on the 9th of April, 1855, the strength of the various works was as 
 follows. No. 1, ten 24-pounders, and two 8-inch guns ; No. 2 (worked by sailors), 
 eight 32-pounders, and two 8-inch guns; No. 3 (worked by sailors), eight 24-pounders : 
 No. 4, two 32-pounders, four 24-pounders, two 8-inch, and one 10-inch guns ; No. 5 
 (worked by sailors), one 10-inch, and one 8-inch guns; No. 6, or Pickett House 
 Battery, two 32-pounders, one 24-pounder, and three 10-inch mortars; No. 7, six 
 32-pounders; No. 8, six 32-pounders, and two 8-inch guns; also ten 13 inch and 
 four 10-inch mortars are in various positions to bombard the more distant works. The 
 trenches, parallels, and other approaches, both from this and Gordon’s Battery, have 
 been pushed forward, close to the Redan fort and wall. 
 
 No. 35 .— Gordon's Battery , 
 
 On Frenchman’s Hill, continues the strong line of attack to the right, the fire of the 
 numerous guns and mortars being equally directed against the Redan and the 
 Malakhoff Tower. Gordon’s attack, or 21-gun battery, as it was originally termed 
 
17 
 
 consists of 13 batteries. No. 1 mounting one 24 and one 68 pounder; No. 2, thirteen 
 10-inch mortars ; No. 3, one 68, two 24, and two 32-pounders ; No. 4, six 32, and one 
 68-pounder; No. 5, seven 32, one 68, and one 24-pounder, and one 8-inch gun ; 
 No. 6, one 13-inch and two 10-inch mortars; No. 7, two 10-inch mortars; No. 8, 
 three 10-inch mortars; No. 9, eight 8-inch guns; No. 10, three 13-inch mortars; 
 No. 11, three 13-inch mortars; No. 12, four mortars ; and No. 13, four large guns. 
 
 No. 36 .—Lancaster Guns. 
 
 Several of these formidable pieces of artillery are placed in different positions, at 
 1300, 1500 and 2000 yards from the Russian works, and their fire has occasionally been 
 very effective. Their report is very different from that of other guns, being a sharp 
 crack, similar to that of a rifle on a large scale, and the ball rushes through the air 
 with a noise and regular beat, precisely like the passage of a rapid railway express 
 train at a few yards distance. This peculiarity at first caused shouts of laughter from 
 the men, who thenceforward named them express trains. 
 
 No. 37 .—Mamelon Hill , 
 
 Known as Gordon’s Hill, but now called the Mamelon, a name given it by the French. 
 The hill is in the form of a truncated cone, and is nearly as high as that on which the 
 Malakhoff Tower stands. The Russians, anticipating the advance of the French on 
 the right, took possession of the hill on the 11th of March, and commenced the 
 formation of the strong battery called Kamschatka, which, with the redoubts on the 
 Sapoune Hill, have been so troublesome, and completely enfilade any advance on the 
 Malakhoff Tower. Many fierce assaults have been made to dislodge the enemy from 
 this position, and some deadly encounters have taken place for the possession of the 
 ambuscades and rifle pits in the vicinity, but as yet without any effective result. 
 
 No. 38 .—Navy Baking House , 
 
 A very large building, situated at the end of a small ravine called Suokharnaia Balka, 
 or Biscuit Ravine. The bread for the army and the fleet is made here, and judging by 
 what has been found on the dead, and prisoners, the color is very dark, and the quality 
 by no means good. 
 
 No. 39 .—Inker man West Light , 
 
 Situated on an elevation 413 feet above the level of the sea, and visible at a distance of 
 28 miles. 
 
 No. 40 .— Inkerman, 
 
 For ages a site of peculiar interest. In early days it formed a little principality 
 dependant on the Lower Empire, and was called Theodoras, but in 1475 it was taken 
 by Mohammed II., when it was named by the Turks In-Kerman, Cavern Fortress. On 
 both sides of the valley the faces of the cliffs are completely dotted with excavated 
 grottos of various shapes and sizes, which have evidently been applied to different 
 purposes by different possessors. The researches of de Montpereux fully establish the 
 fact, that they date from the time of the Tauro Scythians, and that they were used as 
 places of refuge and security by the persecuted early Christians in the time of Justinian, 
 for which purpose they were admirably adapted; amongst them are two much larger 
 than the rest, they show evident marks of having been used for religious purposes, 
 and in several are found scraps of fresco painting, fragments of sarcophagi, &c. On 
 the crest of the hill on the left are some ruins of walls, the sole remains of a large 
 castle that formerly crowned the heights, said to have been erected by Diophantes, 
 general to Mithridates Epator, King of Pontus, who called it after his sovereign 
 Eupatorium, a name since transferred to a fortified town on the Bay of Kalamita. 
 
 The Tchernaya or Black River runs between the hills through a fertile valley, which 
 Dr. Clarke calls, perhaps the most beautiful valley in Europe, and the canal after 
 passing through a tunnel in the hills was conveyed across the valley by an aqueduct of 
 many graceful arches, now partially destroyed by the Allies, to the docks. 
 
18 
 
 Inkerman has now acquired an imperishable celebrity as the scene of one of the 
 bloodiest struggles ever witnessed since war first cursed the earth. The extreme right 
 of the British on the heights above the valley of the Tchernaya was badly defended, 
 and Prince Menschikoff determined by a sudden attack, with an overwhelming force, to 
 carry the position and “ drive the enemy into the sea.’’ During the night of the 4th 
 of November, 1854, in a thick fog, he took possession of the heights of Tnkerman, 
 from which early on the 5th a numerous artillery opened on the British camp, whilst 
 dense masses of infantry ascended the hill, and were in the midst of the entrenchments 
 before their approach was even suspected. The British had only a force of 8000 men, 
 the Russians numbered at least 60,000, and were supported by artillery vastly superior 
 both in number and calibre to any opposed to them, yet for five hours did they hold 
 their ground with indomitable resolution and unmistakeable courage, until the arrival 
 of General Bosquet with 6000 French decided the victory in their favour, the enemy 
 leaving on the field killed, wounded, and prisoners, a greater number than the whole 
 Allied force brought against them. The triumph of such a handful of men, wearied, 
 jaded, and fasting, many just returned from toiling in the trenches, over the dense 
 legions of the enemy, covers them with imperishable renown. The battle was mostly 
 fought in obscurity, the army assailed could neither see the number of their assailants, 
 the position they had taken, nor the points at which they were advancing ; whilst the 
 Russians were thoroughly acquainted with the locality, knew precisely the weak points, 
 and were able to plant their artillery, under the cover of darkness, in the most eligible 
 and .commanding positions, and to advance in the fog to the very threshold of the 
 camp ; moreover, they were encouraged by the presence of two of the Emperor’s sons; 
 they had been blessed by their priests, and were drunk with religious enthusiasm, raki, 
 and the promise of immense plunder. 
 
 No. 41 .—Inkerman East Light. 
 
 The east or upper light stands 613 feet above the level of the sea, and may be seen 
 from a distance of 33 miles. The lights mark the entrance to the great harbour of 
 Sebastopol, they are about three miles apart, and the upper ought to be hidden from 
 view by the lower, as vessels enter from the Black Sea. From its great elevation the 
 upper light commands the greater part of the camps, so that every movement is 
 immediately seen, and notice given by means of signals to the lower light, and thence 
 to the city and semaphore. 
 
 No. 46 .—The British Camp. 
 
 The vast plain or plateau on which the Allied Armies are encamped is entirely 
 bounded on the east by a deep valley, extending from the inner end of the Great 
 Harbour to the entrance into Balaklava. A steep range of cliffs rise abruptly from the 
 valley in an unbroken line throughout the whole distance, excepting at the point where 
 the Woronzoff road crosses, which is easily defensible. These cliffs have been fortified 
 with earthworks, redoubts, &c., and mounted with guns, so that the position is one 
 of great strength—on this side, at least, nearly impregnable. Within this line of 
 fortifications, with a slightly rising ground in front, and beyond the range of the guns 
 of the city, is the British Camp, placed in comparative safety. From this, the highest 
 portion, the plain gradually slopes towards Sebastopol, and subsides into the low land 
 that forms the line of coast between it and the extreme point of land at Cape 
 Chersonesus. On this low ground, nearly on a level with the city, is placed the 
 French Camp. The plain is cleft by five deep ravines, descending in courses more 
 or less winding, t6 the harbour and the sea, which have been of great service during 
 the siege operations, forming natural and well protected covered ways to the trenches. 
 The principal one descends from near where the spectator stands to the head of the 
 inner harbour, and divides the works of the British from those of the French: it will 
 therefore be seen, that the former command the city from a considerable elevation, 
 whilst those of the latter are, for the most part, nearly on a level with the Russian 
 defences. 
 
 The British camp occupies a considerable space, the tents or huts, of which there 
 are now a considerable number, being pitched in lines, about 8 yards asunder, and 
 double that distance from those in front or behind, in order to make room for the 
 cooking fires, &c. To the rear, and laterally more distant from each other, are the 
 tents of the generals, field officers and staff; behind these again are the hospital 
 
19 
 
 marquees, bullock waggons, ambulances, picketed horses, &c. Considerable intervals 
 separate the different regiments, and much longer the several divisions. The numerous 
 white, bell-shaped red-tipped tents of the soldiers have a pretty appearance seen 
 from a distance. 
 
 JWo. 48 .— Tclxadir Dagh , 
 
 The tent or table mountain, the culminating point of the Crimea, the Trapezus of 
 ij Strabo. It rises to the height of more than 5000 feet above the sea, and is composed 
 of grey friable lime-stone, perforated with many grottos and caverns, in some of which 
 ! masses of ice remain from winter to winter. The summit, an uneven platform, is 
 attained with little difficulty, and commands a magnificent view of the peninsula. 
 When the condensed vapours gather round the top in thick clouds, the Tartars, who 
 have learned from experience the usual result, augur rain, saying the Tchadir Dagh 
 has put on his night-cap. Spurs from the mountain run westward to the sea, broken 
 by many ravines which embosom fertilizing streams, and the chain is continued eastward, 
 with occasional breaks, to the extreme point of the peninsula, occasionally attaining a 
 great height, the summits forming extensive flats or mountain table lands, the most 
 lofty being covered with snow from the end of October to the close of May, which is 
 then replaced by rich grass, and the slopes and valleys are well covered with timber 
 and fruit trees. 
 
 No. 58. — Balaklava, 
 
 The Portus Symbolorum of Strabo, and the Bella-chiava of the Genoese. It is about 
 ten miles from Sebastopol, and is the base of the British operations, and the point for 
 the supply of troops and munitions of war. It is to its harbour alone that the place 
 owes its existence, it being the only good one on the almost unbroken extent of the 
 southern coast of the Crimea. Although small the water is deep, there is no sand 
 bank at its mouth, and the rocks on either side rise to a very considerable height, so 
 that ships lie in perfect safety whatever the weather may be ; indeed, the place is so 
 strong, that had the Russians availed themselves of its capabilities, it would have been 
 : almost impossible to have dislodged them. The little town cannot be seen, it stands 
 about three hundred yards from the harbour, on a narrow strip of shore about a quarter 
 of a mile in length, and consists of two small churches and a number of mean houses, 
 many of which have recently been removed for the purpose of forming a railway from 
 the port to the advanced positions, which is now fast approaching completion, and will 
 be of vast importance to the army. The town was inhabited by Tartars until the close 
 of the last century, when 8000 expatriated emigrants from the Grecian Archipelago 
 1 implicated in Lambro Kanzonis’ unsuccessful conspiracy, established themselves on 
 the very same spot where 2000 years previously their Milesian countrymen in Asia 
 Minor had also settled, and founded the colony of Symbolum. On the 9th of October 
 ! all the Greek male population were commanded by Lord Raglan to quit the place 
 within three hours, in consequence of a plot having been discovered, that during a 
 sortie from Sebastopol they were to set fire to the town and shipping. On the heights 
 above the port are the ruins of a once magnificent fortress built by the Genoese. 
 
 When the British army advanced to the heights the defences of Balaklava were 
 confided to Sir Colin Campbell, who with the 93rd Highlanders encamped at the 
 entrance of the valley; 1,500 marines and sailors occupied the heights above the 
 town, and 3000 Turkish troops, chiefly Tunisians, held some redoubts, and occupied 
 other positions in the immediate vicinity. On the 25th of October the Russians made 
 a desperate attempt to regain the place, advancing with a strong body of Cossacks, 
 and at least 30,000 infantry to the attack. The Turks were speedily overpowered, and 
 lost two of their redoubts, but the Scotch most gallantly and effectively maintained their 
 ground, until the arrival of other troops to their support. At the close of this action 
 the fatal charge of three regiments of light cavalry, under the command of Lord 
 Cardigan, was made. The following day another attack by the Russians was equally 
 unsuccessful.