The allies' crossing of the Rymna That evening, as the sun set, infantry marched out in columns, led by cavalry. "The night was pleasant, the sky speckled with stars." They moved silently. Major Voyevodsky, a
military engineer, discovered a crossing point on the Rymna River. Advance troops cleared the steep banks for easy passage of guns, wagons, and other equipment. Once across, they formed 6 squares with cavalry behind and advanced towards the Ottoman
camp at Tyrgo Kukuli, to the south. Turkish cannons fired as Suvorov's guns retaliated. On the far left, the Russian square was almost at a deep gully when 12,000 troops surged out to break it up. Lieutenant-Colonel Khastatov's
grenadiers struggled to hold their ground. The square's edges were breached in multiple places, and the reserve soldiers inside fought desperately to maintain formation. They grew tired of pushing Turks off their bayonets. The nearby square fired a barrage of bullets at the mass attacking them. After half an hour, the Turks retreated, chased by Austrian
hussars alongside the Russians.
Sergeant Major Kanatov and a group of Ryazan Carabiniers captured a
standard from a group of 40 Turks. Suvorov's corps shifted left to assist Coburg, who was under attack by 20,000 men led by Hadji Soytar after crossing the river later than the Russians.
In the midst of fighting Suvorov faced difficulties near the village of
Bogza (
Vrancea) when 6,000 Turks attacked a group of 50 Smolensk musketeers. Suvorov, having taken his sword from the
Cossack attendant, called for the Rostov Regiment from the second line to shoot at the attacking Turks. The Russians defended themselves for an hour. Despite the bayonets of the Smolensk infantry covered in Ottoman blood, the mounted janissaries charged repeatedly, causing the Chernigov Carabiniers and Bakov Hussars to retreat after their unsuccessful attempts to break superior men with
scimitars and horses. As the ground filled with bodies, the Turkish onslaught weakened until a third cavalry charge relieved the pressure. The Turks eventually retreated into Kryngior Melor wood, about away from the Russian front, where 15,000 janissaries hastily constructed earthworks. Suvorov regrouped his scattered formations and allowed his men a brief rest before continuing their march eastwards. At the same time, Coburg, after two hours of continuous fighting, found himself engaged in a battle with 40,000 Turks, mainly cavalry. Despite heroic resistance, the Austrians were facing difficulties — their left wing was almost surrounded. Upon hearing this, Suvorov hurried to align his troops parallel to Coburg's. The squares advanced, sometimes breaking up when the commander rode forward to get a closer look at the situation. Soon they came under fire, and they continued to advance, trying to capture the artillery, but each time the Turks dragged them aside so they could not reach their goal. As they approached the forest, they encountered Coburg's right wing. Suvorov instructed the
carabiniers to position themselves between the first three Russian squares, while the hussars covered the flanks and connected with the Austrians. Suvorov then sent Colonel Zolotukhin to Coburg, requesting an immediate advance. The Austrians agreed, and the long line, stretching , moved forward, shouting "
Joseph" and "
Catharine", converging on the Turkish positions. The Russian artillery on the flanks engaged the enemy guns, while the squares advanced within 100 yards of the earthworks, firing in all directions. The carabiniers behind them charged forward, galloping between the squares. They broke through the earthworks, and as their horses hesitated upon encountering the enemy, the riders attacked the dismounted Turks with their sabres. Colonel Miklashevsky's 400 men captured 4 guns and killed all the Turks who didn't retreat into the forest, as only the mortally wounded surrendered. The carabiniers couldn't maneuver effectively in the woods, so the
jaeger entered through the dense undergrowth to engage in intense skirmishes.
Final phase Suvorov defeated the weak Turkish left, forcing them to retreat towards their camp on the Rymnik. Russian troops across the front line seized the opportunity to continue their attacks. Musketeers, carabiniers, jaegers, Cossacks, grenadiers, and
irregular Arnauts all pushed forward. "Each man fought his opponent to the death." Despite a long and tiring march, the Russian forces maintained their formation and stood strong against the Turkish cavalry. The Turkish assaults faltered, and the Russians engaged with an enemy whose strength had diminished. The battle became more about skill than numbers. The allied forces prevented the Turks from spreading out and utilizing their full force. In the forest, the jaegers and Arnauts faced larger numbers without being at a disadvantage.
The Grand Vizier, located in Kryngior Melor wood, could no longer oversee the unfolding events. He returned to his main camp on the Rymnik and confronted his retreating army, holding out the Koran and urging them to turn and confront the enemy. They argued that they couldn't withstand the attacks and passed by him. The Vizier tried to convince the fleeing gunners to stay, but they ignored him. Feeling hopeless, he also rode away towards Brailov. The Austrians sensed the pressure easing off. Suvorov's attack on the right wing had forced the opposing strong forces to retreat. Seeing the vulnerability of their superior enemy, the Austrians aligned with the Russian advance. By nightfall, the allies had secured the field up to the Rymnik, and the soldiers settled in for the night amidst 5,000 Ottoman casualties, while unattended
pack-animals, mules, buffaloes and camels wandered among their camps. In the
military history, the Battle of Rymnik is a classic example of complex manoeuvring of troops on heavily rugged terrain. The Russian-Austrian troops, having concentrated stealthily, struck a swift blow at the numerically superior enemy and defeated him in detail. ==The allied pursuit==