Attack on Karginsk

The Attack on Karginsk took place on 14 July 1785. Sheikh Mansur attacked Karginsk Redoubt with his army of North Caucasians before advancing on Kizlyar, which ended in a success for the former and his capture and looting of the redoubt. The attack was the first victory of Sheikh Mansur outside of Chechnya.

History
The forces of the highlanders, numbering more than 5,000 people, led by Sheikh Mansur, made their way to Kizlyar to capture and destroy it. On 14 July, the rebels arrived near Karginsk. Mansur's forces approached the Karginsk redoubt, located around 8 kilometers from Kizlyar. Motivated by their victory over Pieri's detachment, the rebels began their attack on the redoubt. Capturing the redoubt only defended by a small garrison turned out to be a difficult task, especially since the garrison was made up of experienced and well trained soldiers. The lack of experience of the North Caucasians in capturing fortresses also played a crucial role. As a result, several attacks by the forces of Mansur were repelled. Sheikh Mansur realized that a direct attack on the redoubt could lead to heavy losses, so he called his commanders into the camp to discuss further actions. The highlanders began gathering everything burnable and built large fires, causing nearby wooden houses to catch fire and burn down. The fire eventually spread to the redoubt walls. The Russian soldiers tried extinguishing the fire with water from a nearby river, but their access to it was cut off by Mansur's troops. A strong wind carried the fire across the redoubt, eventually reaching the powder magazine. The entire fortification, together with most of its defenders, blew up. Following that, the forces of Mansur successfully stormed the bastion and captured the remaining defenders, as well as 4 cannons.