Vladimir Alekseevich Kornilov is one of the greatest Russian naval commanders of the 19th century. His life can be called an example of honest and selfless service to Russia. He earned the fame of a just commander and a talented organizer, and if his life had not been interrupted so suddenly, perhaps the outcome of the Crimean War for Russia could have been completely different.
Childhood and youth
The future hero of the Crimean War was born in 1806 in the Ivanovskoye family estate near Tver.
His father, Alexei Mikhailovich, was a naval officer in his youth. Having risen to the rank of captain-commander, he left the fleet and for a long time held governorships in Siberia. Later he returned to the capital, where he became a senator.
Following family tradition, young Vladimir also decided to connect his life with the sea. After graduating from the St. Petersburg Naval Cadet Corps, he was enrolled in the Guards Naval Crew. The service took place mainly on the shore, and the constant drill weighed heavily on the young man. Ultimately, he was expelledwith the wording "for lack of vigor for the front." On this, the biography of Kornilov as a naval officer could have ended if his father had not intervened.
Azov
After some time, the future admiral of the Russian fleet was again accepted for military service and got on the Azov ship, which had just arrived in the capital from Arkhangelsk.
While serving on the "Azov" in the rank of midshipman, Kornilov participated in the very difficult transition of his ship from Kronstadt to the Mediterranean Sea.
The ship's commander M. Lazarev, who noticed the young officer's outstanding abilities, once threw a whole stack of French novels out of his subordinate's cabin, and instead brought Kornilov books on navigation and maritime affairs. Under the auspices of the captain, the young midshipman began to comprehend the difficult maritime science. As history shows, Kornilov perfectly managed to master it.
Upon arrival in the Mediterranean Sea, "Azov" met with the united squadron of allies, hurrying to the aid of the insurgent Greece. Thus, Kornilov happened to participate in the famous Battle of Navarino in 1827. "Azov" was the flagship of the Russian squadron, and its team proved to be heroic.
During the battle, the young midshipman commanded three Azov guns and for his skill and courage he was awarded several orders from all allied countries. He was awarded the Order of the Bath from England, the Order of the Holy Savior from Greece, the Order of St. Louis from France and the Russian Order of St. Anne, 4th class.
In this terrible battle shoulder to shoulder withKornilov fought the young midshipman Istomin and Lieutenant Nakhimov. It is unnecessary to remind about the great role of these people in the history of the Russian navy.
On the Black Sea
After the Mediterranean campaign, Kornilov continued his service in the B altic. However, his former commander, Admiral Lazarev, who had been transferred to the Black Sea by that time, did not forget about the valiant young man and sent him from St. Petersburg to Sevastopol.
During the Bosphorus expedition of 1833, Kornilov brilliantly coped with his mission of exploring the waters in the area of the straits, for which he was awarded the Order of St. Vladimir 4th degree.
After this operation, Kornilov was appointed commander of the Themistocles brig, and he managed to prove himself an excellent leader. In one of the trips of the Themistocles, the great Russian painter Karl Bryullov turned out to be a passenger on board. During the voyage, Kornilov often had long conversations with this most interesting person. Bryullov at that time was working on one of his masterpieces, the painting The Last Day of Pompeii. During the voyage, the artist managed to paint a portrait of Kornilov, which is now kept in the Hermitage collection.
After Themistocles, under the command of Kornilov, the corvette Orestes, the frigate Flora, and even the large battleship Twelve Apostles with a crew of more than 1000 people went to sea. It was in those years that the future Admiral Kornilov managed to earn the respect of his subordinates and earn among them the glory of a strict but fair boss. Vladimir Alekseevich himself continued to tirelessly study and improve his skills.captain.
Chief of Naval Staff
In 1838, Kornilov was appointed chief of staff of the Black Sea Fleet, and Lazarev again turned out to be his commander, who was very glad to have the opportunity to work again with a capable young man. In close cooperation with Lazarev, Kornilov conducted several naval exercises and participated in small military campaigns in the eastern part of the Black Sea. In this position, he rose to the rank of captain of the 1st rank.
In 1848, Kornilov was sent to England to learn from foreign colleagues and at the same time supervise the construction of several steamships ordered by the Black Sea Fleet. He returned to Sevastopol on one of them - the frigate "Vladimir".
After this business trip, Kornilov's career began to develop rapidly. He received the rank of rear admiral, and soon he was enrolled in the retinue of His Imperial Majesty. Now he has the right to personally report to Nicholas I on the affairs of the Black Sea Fleet.
Defence strengthening activities
In 1851, Lazarev died. Officially, Admiral Berkh was appointed to the post of commander of the Black Sea Fleet, but everyone understood that this was just a formality. All real fleet management on the Black Sea was concentrated in the hands of Kornilov, and he did not have to be bored.
Everyone understood that a big war would soon break out in the south, and Admiral Kornilov was in a hurry to carry out all the necessary work to strengthen the sea lines and build new ships. But he had little time, and events developedrapidly.
Sea battles
In October 1853, Russia entered the war with Turkey. Kornilov was immediately sent on a reconnaissance campaign in order to detect enemy squadrons. Russian ships reached the Bosphorus itself, but the enemy ships were never found. The admiral decided to divide his squadron, sending groups of ships in different directions. Himself on the steamer-frigate "Vladimir" moved to Sevastopol.
Unexpectedly, "Vladimir" stumbled upon a lone enemy ship. It was a Turkish steamship-frigate "Pervaz-Bakhri". A battle ensued, which became the first naval battle in history for ships using steam propulsion. The Russians emerged victorious from the battle. The Turkish ship was captured and towed to Sevastopol. Later it was repaired, and it became part of the Black Sea Fleet under the name "Kornilov". The war was inexorably approaching the Crimean coast, and the fleet was in desperate need of a large number of ships.
A little later, Admiral Kornilov again went to sea as a squadron commander, which hurried to the aid of Nakhimov's squadron. However, by the beginning of the famous Sinop battle, they did not have time. Nakhimov, without outside help, managed to defeat the main forces of the enemy fleet.
But the victorious battle of Sinop turned into new troubles. England and France entered the war on the side of Turkey. Now Kornilov faced a new, almost impossible task to keep the poorly defended Sevastopol from invading the enemy's sea and land forces.
Defense of Sevastopol
Landthe defense organized by Menshikov turned out to be mediocre and ineffective. Soon Sevastopol found itself in a desperate situation.
Admiral Kornilov, who led the Sevastopol garrison, together with the military engineer Totleben began to hastily build fortifications around the city. At this time, a huge Anglo-French squadron approached the Sevastopol Bay. Russian ships were locked in the inner roadstead by three times their superior enemy forces. Kornilov still offered to put the ships out to sea, get involved in battle and sell his life dearly. However, other, more cautious members of the military council did not support this plan. They proposed to flood the Russian fleet in the roadstead, thereby reliably hiding the city from invasion from the sea. It was this plan that was decided to be put into practice. The fleet was flooded, and coastal bastions were additionally strengthened with ship guns.
Death
On September 13, the siege of Sevastopol began and all the inhabitants of the city came out to build fortifications. Less than a month later, the first massive bombardment of the city took place, which, unfortunately, turned out to be the last for the illustrious admiral.
On this day, Vladimir Alekseevich Kornilov, as usual, inspected the fortifications of the city. The bombardment found him on Mamaev Kurgan. Ignoring the falling shells, Kornilov finished his inspection and was about to go to other fortifications, when he was suddenly hit by an enemy core, receiving a fatal head wound. His last words were the demand to defend Sevastopol to the last drop of blood.
Kornilov was buried in the Vladimir Naval Cathedral next to his friend and teacher Admiral Lazarev. A little later, Admirals Nakhimov and Istomin will find their last refuge here.
A brief biography of Kornilov cannot fully reflect all the events of his life and the versatility of his personality. This amazing man managed a lot in his life and will forever remain in the memory of Russian people. He was remembered as an excellent officer and a skilled naval commander. However, few people know that the famous hero of the Crimean War in rare moments of rest was a gentle husband and a loving father of five children.
