Here is a very helpful historical summary, including of Russia's historical stance as defender of Orthodox Christians against the Ottoman Muslim invaders.
See also my article, The West's Blind Spot Towards Russia, which discusses many of the same issues in continuity with today's Islamic jihad against Christians in the Muslim world.
INTO THE VALLEY OF DEATH RODE THE SIX HUNDRED
by Dr. Peter Hammond, Thanks to Col. Val Finnell
Crimea is much in the news today. Many people may have trouble finding Crimea on the map. Some say that they have never heard of Crimea before this current crisis. However, that is probably not true. Most of us are aware of the Crimean War or at least of Florence Nightingale, who launched the modern nursing movement, caring for wounded and sick British soldiers during the Crimean War.
The Charge of the Light Brigade
Many have surely heard of The Charge of the Light Brigade. That took place during the Crimean War. Lord Alfred Tennyson wrote the poem, The Charge of the Light Brigade poem in 1854:
"Half a league, half a league, half a league onward,
All in the valley of Death rode the six hundred.
Forward, the Light Brigade! Charge for the guns! he said.
Into the valley of Death rode the six hundred.
"Forward, the Light Brigade! Was there a man dismayed?
Not though the soldier knew someone had blundered.
Theirs not to make reply, theirs not to reason why,
Theirs but to do and die.
Into the valley of Death rode the six hundred.
"Cannon to right of them, cannon to left of them,
Cannon in front of them volleyed and thundered;
Stormed at with shot and shell, boldly they rode and well,
into the jaws of Death.
Into the mouth of hell rode the six hundred.
"Flashed all their sabres bare, flashed as they turned in air
sabring the gunners there, charging an army,
while all the world wondered.
Plunged in the battery-smoke, right through the line they broke;
Cossack and Russian reeled from the sabre stroke, shattered and sundered.
Then they rode back, but not the six hundred.
"Cannon to right of them, cannon to left of them,
cannon behind them volleyed and thundered;
Stormed at with shot and shell, while horse and hero fell.
They that had fought so well, came through the jaws of Death,
Back from the mouth of hell.
All that was left of them, left of six hundred.
"When can their glory fade? O the wild charge they made!
All the world wondered.
Honour the charge they made!
Honour the Light Brigade, noble six hundred!"
Courage Despite Confusion
Alfred Tennyson's poem was published 9 December 1854 in The Examiner. Inspired by the term in Psalm 23 of the Valley of the shadow of death, it highlights one of the most famous events of the long and costly Crimean War. The Light Brigade had been ordered into a nearly hopeless situation, due to command confusion and incompetence. Yet incredibly they succeeded in reaching the Russian artillery at the end of a valley lined with artillery on both sides, and they actually succeeded in fighting their way out of a Russian trap. Most of the men made it back to their own lines.
Actually there were 666 men, who charged in the Light Brigade that day. There have been a number of films made on that event.
However, for most people that would be the full extent of their knowledge of Crimea.
The First Modern War
The Crimean War was called one of the first modern wars because it saw the first to use major technology, such as railways and telegraphs. It was also one of the first wars to be documented extensively in photographs and written reports. The Crimean War exposed horrendous logistical failures in both the British and Russian armies.
Military Reforms
The reports of War correspondents led to widespread demands for sweeping reforms in the military. The sale of commissions in the British Army came under scrutiny and was eventually abolished as a result of exposes of incompetence in the field. The war also led to the establishment of the Victoria Cross as the British Army's first universal award for Valour.
Emancipation
The Crimean War was also a contributing factor in Russia abolishing Serfdom in 1861. Czar Alexander II saw the military defeat of the Russian serf army by free troops from Britain and France as proof of the need for emancipating the Serfs. The Russian government also began a major modernisation of its forces as it had seen its technical inferiority in military practices as well as weapons. Russian military medicine saw dramatic progress through the Crimean War as N.I. Pirogov, known as the Father of Russian Field Surgery, developed the use of anaesthetics, plaster casts, enhanced amputation methods and five-stage triage.
Alaska
The debts that Russia incurred from the Crimean War led Alexander II to decide to sell Alaska to the United States to help pay their war debts.
Unasked Reason Why
However, as interesting as all of these developments were, the most important question is seldom asked: Why?
Why were British and French forces fighting the Russians in Crimea in the first place?
The Last Crusade
From the Western media at the time, one would have received the impression that the issue was to protect "poor little Turkey" from the predatory aggressions of imperial Russia. However, the Russians saw it very differently. Some Russians called the war: The Last Crusade.
