210

Messengers on 16 May from General Verevkin "stated that fifteen days before he was but two marches from Lake Aibugir, and that he hoped on the 18th of May to reach Urga, on the Aral Sea. Colonel Lamakin was ordered to proceed, not in a southerly direction towards Lake Aibugir, but to the north, so as to meet Verevkin in Urga. The two columns would proceed together thence through Lake Aibugir to the fortified town of Kungrad.

211

"On receipt of these orders, Colonel Lamakin sent messengers to recall Skobeloff (in command of the advance guard). He, however, received the messenger too late, for, on the 17th, he had an engagement with a considerable body of Turcomans, who were on their way to Khiva with a large caravan. In the attack which ensued several were killed, fifteen were taken prisoners, and 150 camels, with a large amount of provisions, were captured. Skobeloff, however, with another officer, and several of the Cossacks, were wounded.

"The column was now marching northerly towards Urga; but on the 7th another messenge came from Verevkin, with the news that the General had already left the place, and was on his way to Kungrad, whither Lamakin was to follow. Thus once again the line of march was completely changed. Colonel Lamakin now came to the conclusion that, if he were to bring any assistance to the General before meeting the enemy, he should march very rapidly. He resolved, therefore, to go for~ard with the staff and the cavalry only, leaving the main body to follow under Pajaroff, and to make straight for Kungrad by forced marches whether there were wells or no wells on the way.

"The three days' march that followed were the severest the expedition passed through. There was no water the whole time, the only well on the road having been poisoned by the Turcomans, who threw the corpses of putrefying animals into it. On the night of the 22nd, an attempt was made to continue the march, so as to arrive at Kungrad a day earlier. But so dense was the darkness, that the troops, in spite of a number of torches, were continually going astray. So the army had to halt, and pass the night, without food, without water, in the middle of the desert."

212-213

"The same day they reached Kungrad, which they found occupied by a strong body of Cossacks. These had been left behind by General Verevkin, who had the day before taken up his march for the capital."

"...neither General Verevkin nor Colonel Lamakin had met any formidable resistance from the Khivans. They had shown themselves several times, but had never offered any serious opposition. They had simply contented themselves with sending more or less insolent messages, requesting the Russians to return to their homes at their earliest convienence, under pain of the extreme displeasure of the Khan...The day before Verevkin entered Kungrad, he received a message from the governor, with the very extraordinary request that the Russians should wait three days until his cannon arrive; he would then be ready to give battle. But if they blindly persisted in pushing forward before he was ready to meet them, he would simply refuse to fight! As the Russians blindly persisted, he was as good as his word, and abandoned Kungrad without striking a blow.

"Soon after leaving Kungrad, however, the Turcomans commenced showing themselves in considerable numbers; and from this time forward, not a day passed without a skirmish, nor a night without an alarm. Sometimes they hung on the flanks of the army all day, uttering their wild cries, making feigned and real attacks on the train, firing from behind walls and trees, sometimes on the rearguard, sometimes on the advance-guard, and harassing'the troops from morning until night, and from dark until daylight."

216-217

"...on the..26th the troops had arrived at Kara-Baili...Scarcely, however, had the troops stopped, when several shots were heard in the distance. Shortly afterwards a Cossack brought the news that an officer, who had gone forward with an escort of eight or ten Cossacks for the purpose of reconnoitring, had been attacked by a largely superior number of the enemy.

Two sotnias of cavalry immediately rushed forward; but the Turcomans had already disappeared, having captured several horses, killed one Cossack, and wounded several others. Quick as had been their flight, they had found time to cut off the head of the Cossack whom they had killed. The cavalry pressed forward at full gallop for about half an hour, but no sign of the enemy was to be seen. Just as they returned, shots were heard on the flank of the column, where the enemy, whom they had just endeavored in vain to catch, had now made an attack.

Here, too, the enemy had succeeded in killing two camels and two men. The chase was renewed. This time the enemy collected themselves in a body, and were awaiting an attack. Several horses were taken, some prisoners made, and many of the Turcomans killed or wounded. One of the wounded Turcomans, who had received no less than five shots in the hip, and who bore his sufferings with the most wonderful fortitude, was induced, after much persuasion, to give some information. From him it was learned that a body of Turcomans, 400 or 500 strong, was around the army -- a detachment from a force of 6000, mostly cavalry, which the Khan had sent forward, under the command of his brother, to defend the town of Khojali. This force was awiating an attack before the town, and the Khan was resolved to defend hemself to the last extremity.

"Shortly afterwards the enemy appeared in force. At first it looked as if they were about to attack, but afterwards they halted, apparetnly awaiting an assualt. The cavalry were sent forward with a rocket battery, and having fired some shots, the enemy retired.

"After an hour or so they again appeared in force, but after they had advanced within 2000 or 3000 feet of the Russians, they halted, and began to retire slowly on Khojali. A few grenade hurried their retreat, and soon they entirely disappeared, with the exception of some scouts."

218-220

"The enemy was found assembled in force in a plain covered with reeds and tall grass. They had taken position on a number of sand-hills before the town of Manghit, towards which the Russian troops were advancing. The moment the Khivans caught sight of the army, their hosts of cavalry rushed upon them with wild cries. Spreading themselves out into a line seven or eight miles long, they attacked the Russians on all sides, but directed their principal efforts against the train of camels in the rear.

"General Verevkin, who occupied the centre, brought four cannons to bear upon the enemy, and sent three others to the left flank. Nevertheless, the enemy continued to attack desperately, time after time, the cavalry, and at one moment actually approached within 200 yards of the staff of General Verevkin himself.

"The cavalry on the right flank, under Colonel Leoncheff, was at one time very hard pressed, nor could it succeed in keeping back the advance of the enemy. Sweeping past him, they attacked the rear-guard, which they expected to find weak, imagining that all the cannon were at the head of the column. The vigorous resistance which they met there thoroughly took them by surprise, and their confusion was increased by seeing the main part of their own forces retreat over the heights of Manghit. After doing as much injury as they could to the camels, they, in their turn, followed their companions in flight.

"Soon again the enemy renewed the attack. They followed the same tactics as before, but soon had to retreat before the well-directed fire of the artillery and the advance in force of the cavalry. They retired behinf the town of Manghit, and then wholly disappeared. The troops had then advanced and buurnt the village just occupied by the enemy. After a short halt, the army advanced at three o'clock to the town and immediately occupied it. As they marched through, some of the enemy, who had taken refuge in the houses, fired on the troops; enraged by this the soldiers reduced the town to ashes and slaughtered every man, woman, or child they could lay hands on. The losses on the Russian side on this day were one captain and eight men killed, about ten men severely and several slightly wounded.

"The losses of the enemy must have been very large, and from this time forth they seemed to have lost all hope. Their resistance became feeble, and their operations, losing all unity of plan, degenerated into a mere guerilla warfare. If the Khivans had only properly understood their own advantages, they might have, with little trouble and no cost, placed insurmountable obstacles to the march of the Russians on their capital -- possibly they might have even blocked up the road to Khiva. They could have destroyed all the bridges; and the column, which carried with it only a bridge with at most a span of forty yards, would have been unable to cross the canals, which were often forty to a hundred feet broad, and were for the most part very deep and swift."

221

"On the 7th of June the column reached the extensive gardens of a country palace of the Khan, Shanah-Tchik, and were thus within two miles and a half of the northern gate of the city. There a stay of three days was made, during which there were several engagements great and small -- with the Khivan troops. In one of these the enemy lost between 400 and 500 men.

222

"No news had recently come of the advance of General Kaufmann: a report...was current that he had been obliged, from want of provisions and wagons to return to the Oxus, and that he was now sixty-five miles from Khiva. These facts, together with the harrassing effects upon the men and horses of hourly encounters with the enemy, and the report that the Khan was preparing for a great battle before the walls of the town, convinced General Verevkin that he would not be justified in any longer delaying an attack on Khiva.

"...the proper dispositions were made for reconnoitering the city on the following day."

"...an advance was made, General Verevkin...leading the head of the column. The enemy occasionally appeared in large masses, but made no attempt at an attack. After a while, the troops found themselves in a narrow road, not more than four yards wide. The road was inclosed by walls; and all around there was an impassible network of houses, gardens, and canals.

"They proceeded along this narrow path silently and cautiously, raising a cloud of dust so thick that no man could see his neighbour. Suddenly broke upon their ears...a crash of musketry and roar of artillery, followed by a volley of bullets that went shrieking overhead, and the heavy thud of round shot striking in the mud walls beyond them. It was a surprise, almost an ambuscade. Owing to the trees, the walls, and the clouds of dust which enveloped them, they had approached within 200 yards of the walls of Khiva without being aware of it; and the Khivans had opened on them at point-blank range."

223-224

"Discharge after discharge followed, but, fortunately for the Russians, the aim of the Khivans was too high, and the greater part of the bullets passed overhead. The men began to fall, however, and it became necessary to act at once. Retreat would have been impossible...The only course open to them was to advance towards the walls under a fire which at every step became more destructive.

"General Verevkin gave the order, and the troops started forward at a run. In a moment they found themselves in an open field before the walls of the city, in front of one of the gates. Right in front of them, at the distance of 100 yards, and the same distance from the walls, was a kind of earthwork thrown up across the road, defended by four pieces of cannon. The artillery was ordered to advance; but, in the meantime, the fire from this battery proved so galling that General Verevkin determined to capture it.

Two companies of infantry...were ordered out for the attack...they rushed forward along the dusty road with a shout. But a few yards in front of the breastwork they found a deep, wide canal, over which was a narrow bridge...They dashed over it, under terrible fire from the walls and gates of the city, as well as from the breastwork itself, leaped over the obstructions with a yell, and bayoneted the gunners. They had virtually possession of the guns, but so many obstructions were in the way, and the fire of the enemy was so deadly, that it was difficult to drag them off. They were obliged to take shelter behind the banks of the canal; and here crouching, returned...the fire from the walls. Their bullets took little effect on the Khivans in their protected position. Had they but scaling ladders, they might have found it less dangerous to storm the walls than to retire. The Russian artillery had now got to work; and the storming party, placed between two fires, heard the solid shot of the Khivans and the shells of the Russians pass shrieking over their heads so low as to almost touch them.

"This continued for a quarter of an hour, and then the Russian artillery, having for a moment silenced the fire of the enemy, ceased, in order to give the storming party a chance to retreat. They seized the opportunity, laid hold of the guns, and commenced dragging them off. But the Khivans instantly reopened their fire, and the Russians were obliged to haul the guns off one at a time over the narrow bridge and then along the straight road 200 yards before they reached shelter. They only succeeded in dragging off three of the guns... "

"In the meantime General Verevkin had been wounded...After giving orders for planting a battery to breach the walls, he retired, and surrendered his command..."

"A regular bombardment was now opened...which was continued until four o'clock.

"The a messenger arrived from the Khan, asking for a suspension of hostilities, and begging that the bombardment might cease, in order to negotiate terms of capitulation.

225

"...the messenger had scarcely left the camp, when the Khivans again opened fire. The Russians immediately recommenced the bombardment.

"Again a messenger arrived from the Khan, assuring the General that he was not responsible for the firing, which was continued contrary to his orders and wishes by the refractory and intractible Turcomans. As this was regarded as an instance of the impudent effrontery of the Khan, the bombardment was continued. It turned out, however, that the khan was in earnest, and that he had no control over the Turcomans.

"About sunset, orders came from Kaufmann, with whom communication had been established, to stop the bombardment, which order was obeyed somewhat reluctantly."

230-231

"...The Turcomans, in spite of the fact that Said Emir Ul-Umar was surrendering the city on the Hazar-Asp side, still kept up an irregular fire on Verevkin's troops, against whom they seemed to have a grudge...they chafing under the fire of the Turcomans, determined to take the town by storm.

"Accordingly a few shells were thrown against the Hazavat gate, which was soon battered down...about 1000 men, rushed to the assualt, under a lively fire of small arms from the walls. As soon as the Russians got possession of the gate, the Turcomans retired from the walls into the streets and houses, and still kept up a discharge of small arms. The Russians cleared the streets of them with rockets, and thus advanced in a kind of running fight, into the city, until they reached the palace of the Khan.

"They had scarcely been there five minutes when the Tashkent detachment was reported entering by the Hazar-Asp gate, in grand state, with music and flying colours. Skobeloff instantly gave the order to retreat, and retired by the gate which he had entered."

More Part 2: Russia in Asia

Kaufmann and Supplies
Surrender of Hazar-Asp Fortress
Col. Markosoff's Expedition
Gen. Verevkin's March to the Capital
Fort Siting
Large Map of Khiva area (slow: 158K)

Part 1: Russia in Asia (in Heliograph #102)

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