Seizure of Dorpat by Russian Army during the Northern War of 1700-1721

13 (24) July 1704, during the Northern War of 1700-1721 Russian troops took the Swedish fortress Dorpat (Old Russian city Yuriev, at present Estonian city of Tartu).

The siege of Dorpat was assigned to the army of B. P. Sheremetev that wintered near Pskov. After the success at the River Embach (Russian Omovzha) in the spring of 1704, when the Russian force commanded by Major-General Karl Verdun captured most of the ships of the Swedish flotilla led by Losher, Peter I ordered to take Dorpat.

In early June 1704 near the Dorpat arrived a vanguard of the army of Field Marshal Sheremetev commanded by Major Cobert. By the time of the arrival of Russians Dorpat was fortified relatively weakly, the construction of earthen ramparts was not completed. Fortress armament consisted of 84 guns, 18 mortars, six howitzers and 16 shotguns. The garrison included five thousand men under the command of Colonel Schutte.

9 (20) June main Russian forces led by Sheremetev neared Dorpat. 10 (21) June the siege of the fortress began. In the direct siege participated five dragoon regiments of 4, 975 men and six infantry regiments numbering 5, 702 men. They were supported by 55 guns and 159 gun-workers. In the area of Dorpat by that time there were more than 20, 000 Russian soldiers, although only about 10, 000 of them were directly engaged in the siege and storming of the fortress.

At first, the siege progressed slowly, as the direction for the siege works were badly chosen: against the strongest part of the fortress. Peter I, being at that time at the siege of Narva, entrusted the command of the siege corps to Marshal Ogilvy, and went to Dorpat himself. Having arrived there on 3 (14) July, he ordered to change the direction of the attack, determined to storm the fortress from the north-east, between the Powder Tower and the Russian gates where the "wall is as if waiting for the order, which way to fall."

6 (17) and 7 (18) July, 24 guns and 11 mortars of Russians fired on the Russian gate pulling down to the base the tower above them. On the night of 10 (21) July, Russians made trenches from the gate of St. James to the Powder Tower, approaching the point of attack from two sides. By the evening of 12 (23) July all was ready for the assault. On the opposite side of the Russian Gate, under the cover of smoke from a burning wood depot on the Swedish coast, Russians quickly elevated a bridge across the river Embach.

Storming of the fortress began on the night of 13 (24) July, after a powerful artillery preparation and lasted for 7 hours in a row. The soldiers taking part in the storm, moved up to the palisade in front of the ramparts and cut it down. Superior forces of the Russians drove Swedes from ravelin; 6 abandoned Swedish guns were used to bombard the fortress. The fire of these guns smashed the Russian Gate; despite the fierce resistance of the Swedes the Powder Tower was also captured. In this situation, 13 (24) July Colonel Schutte decided to capitulate and surrender the fortress.

Surviving Swedish soldiers with families and property were allowed to leave the city.

During the siege and storming Russians lost about 700-900 men killed or died of wounds, and more than two thousand wounded. The Swedes lost only killed 1, 300 – 2, 000 men.

Taking Dorpat, founded by Russians as a foothold in the Chud lands under the name of Yuriev, (and the following seizure of Narva) Peter I secured the Peipsi from Swedish ships and strengthened the Russian presence in the Baltics.

Lit.: Военно-походный журнал (с 3 июня 1701-го года по 12 сентября 1705 года) генерал-фельдмаршала Бориса Петровича Шереметева, посланного по Высочайшему повелению в Новгород и Псков для охранения тех городов и иных тамошних мест от войск шведского короля // Материалы Военно-Ученого Архива Главного Штаба. Т. 1. Ч. 3. СПб., 1871; То же [Электронный ресурс]. URL:http://www.vostlit.info/Texts/Dokumenty/Russ/XVIII/1700-1720/VPZh_Seremetev/text3.htm; Дерпт [Электронный ресурс] // Военная энциклопедия. Под ред. Новицкого В. Ф. СПб., 1911. Т. 1. URL: http://www.runivers.ru/bookreader/book9613/#page/60/mode/1up; Широкорад А. Б. Северныевойны России. М., 2001 http://militera.lib.ru/h/shirokorad1/index.html.

Based on the Presidential Library’s materials:

Карцов А. П. Военно-исторический обзор Северной войны. СПб., 1851. С. 52.