From Borodino to Bulgaria: Russian Military History in the 19th Century
"...purely from a perspective of numbers, Russia should have had a critical advantage in the manpower and resources they themselves possessed - this was already history's largest land empire, after all - even before taking into account Rumanian forces that buffeted their efforts. 300,000 men were mobilized for the Russian invasion, against 200,000 Ottoman soldiers, half of whom were committed to fortified garrisons. The fortified nature of the Ottoman forces offset whatever advantage the Russians may have enjoyed, as did the more modern German and American artillery possessed by Ottoman forces, and their repeating rather than single-shot rifles. This disadvantage was compounded by the fact that the reconstituted Black Sea Fleet was essentially coastal monitors built in short order and impressed merchant vessels outfitted with cannon, against the third largest Navy in the world. The Russian offensive strategy was reliant on Ottoman passivity and thrusting into Bulgaria near Nikopol, far west of the fortified Ottoman positions in Dobruja, but also stretching Russian supply lines further through Romania and requiring a more difficult Danube crossing. Critically, the number of men earmarked to cross the river - 185,000 - were fewer than the Ottomans had stationed in the Balkans prewar.
The first such attempt to cross the Danube near Shvishtov, in June, was an outright disaster for Russia thanks largely to the Ottoman's command of the river, resulting in Russia having to retreat from its efforts to seize the south shore at four times the casualties of the Ottomans. Istanbul deployed Osman Pasha and his 30,000 men from Vidin in the far west - still stationed there due to the recently-ended war with Serbia - to the central Danube, at Nikopol. From Istanbul, Defense Minister Huseyin Pasha also redeployed men from the Middle East, particularly elite Circassians, to defend the mountain passes and even withdrew some men from the Dobruja fortifications to prevent any potential Russian incursions through the Balkan Mountains.
In mid-July, the Russians were able to finally cross the Danube with a successful sinking of Ottoman monitors with Romanian torpedo boats, deploying their own mines, and constructing a pontoon bridge near Nikopol. In bloody fighting they were able to cross the river, taking once again nearly three times the casualties of the Ottomans..."
- From Borodino to Bulgaria: Russian Military History in the 19th Century
The first such attempt to cross the Danube near Shvishtov, in June, was an outright disaster for Russia thanks largely to the Ottoman's command of the river, resulting in Russia having to retreat from its efforts to seize the south shore at four times the casualties of the Ottomans. Istanbul deployed Osman Pasha and his 30,000 men from Vidin in the far west - still stationed there due to the recently-ended war with Serbia - to the central Danube, at Nikopol. From Istanbul, Defense Minister Huseyin Pasha also redeployed men from the Middle East, particularly elite Circassians, to defend the mountain passes and even withdrew some men from the Dobruja fortifications to prevent any potential Russian incursions through the Balkan Mountains.
In mid-July, the Russians were able to finally cross the Danube with a successful sinking of Ottoman monitors with Romanian torpedo boats, deploying their own mines, and constructing a pontoon bridge near Nikopol. In bloody fighting they were able to cross the river, taking once again nearly three times the casualties of the Ottomans..."
- From Borodino to Bulgaria: Russian Military History in the 19th Century