Pleven Panorama - Siege of Plevna

Siege of Plevna

The Pleven Panorama depicts the events of the Siege of Plevna which consisted of four major battles over a five-month period (20 July–10 December 1877). The siege was pivotal in the outcome in the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-78 which eventually resulted in the liberation of Bulgaria as well as Serbia and Romania from 500 years of Ottoman control. The Panorama primarily focuses on the events of the third battle, which began on 31 August and culminated on 11 September 1877. At the time, Plevna was under Turkish control as Field Marshal Osman Pasha had set up fortifications there following his defeat at Nikopol on 16 July. Osman was successful at fending off the Russian attacks on his fortifications during the first two battles.

In the third battle, Russian forces, under the command of General Mikhail Skobelev, took two Turkish redoubts and a Romanian division took a third, the Grivitsa redoubt. Osman's troops were able to recapture the two redoubts taken by the Russians, but they were unable to dislodge the Romanians from Grivitsa. The third battle was the bloodiest for the Russian forces, with roughly 20,000 losses, but was also the turning point in the Siege. By 24 October, Russian and Romanian forces had surrounded Plevna. Osman requested permission to retreat, but the Ottoman high command would not allow him to do so. On 9 December Osman and his troops made a brief stand, losing 5,000 men. The next day, Osman surrendered the city to Romanian colonel Mihail Cerchez.