The Russian fleet, under Ushakov, sailed from Sevastopol on 13 July 1790 for the southern Crimea, after hearing a report that the Ottoman fleet had been sighted there. On 19 July it anchored at the mouth of the Kerch Strait and sent privateers out in search of the Ottomans. At 10 am they reported a sighting and 30 minutes later the Ottoman fleet came into view from the east. With the wind from the ENE, Ushakov formed a line on the port tack (i.e. south-east). The Ottomans turned from their group formation and formed a parallel line to the east of the Russian line. Seeing that the Ottoman battle-line contained just their battleships, Ushakov sent 6 frigates to form a second line to leeward of the main line, and between about 12pm and 3pm, 3 hours of indecisive longish-range fighting followed, but then the wind changed direction to NNE and the Russians luffed, turning toward the Ottoman line. The Ottomans reversed course, 2 of their ships colliding as they did so, because some ships turned left and others turned right. As the Russians steered toward the tail-end of the Ottomans line, and with the wind from the north, the Ottoman admiral steered away, to the SW. At about 7pm firing ceased. The Russians followed all night, but by morning, the faster ships of the Ottomans were out of sight. Russian casualties were 29 killed and 68 wounded, with very little damage to ships. The Russian victory prevented the Ottoman Empire from achieving its goal in landing an army in Crimea.[4]
Ships involved
Russia
Rozhdestvo Christovo 84 (flag of Rear-Admiral Fyodor Ushakov[3]) Maria Magdalina 66 Slava Ekateriny 66 Sv. Pavel 66 Sv. Vladimir 66 Sv. Aleksandr Nevskii 50 Sv. Andrei Pervozvannyi 50 Sv. Georgii Pobyedonosets 50 Ioann Bogoslov 46 Sv. Petr Apostol 46 Fanagoria 40 Kinburn 40 Legkii 40 Perun 40 Stryela 40 Taganrog 40 Sv. Ieronim (bomb)
2 fireships
13 privateers Polotsk
^Nafziger G. F. Historical Dictionary of the Napoleonic Era. Scarecrow Press. 2001. P. 283
^Grant R. G. Battle at Sea: 3,000 Years of Naval Warfare. Penguin. 2011. P. 208
^ abcdeWarfare on the Mediterranean in the Age of Sail: A History, 1571-1866. McFarland. 2014. P. 147
^ abcdeВоенное издательство министерства вооруженных сил союза ССР (Military publishing house of the Ministry of Armed Forces of the Union of SSRs), Боевая летопись русского флота (Battle chronicle of the Russian navy), Moscow, 1948, pp. 118-120