Atlas of Battles

battle, major, nineteenth century

Battle of Shipka Pass

Battle of Shipka Pass was a battle fought on 17 July 1877 at Shipka Pass, in what is now Bulgaria; it lasted 6 months. It was part of the Tenth Russo-Turkish War, which ran from 1877 to 1878. The recorded result: Russo-Bulgarian victory.

See it on the globe Read the article

Battle of Shipka Pass
Alexey Popov, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Fought17 July 1877lasted 6 months
WhereShipka Pass, Bulgaria42.767N, 25.317E
OutcomeRusso-Bulgarian victory
BelligerentsRussian Empire; Bulgarian LegionagainstOttoman Empire
Part ofTenth Russo-Turkish War1877 to 1878

Where it sits in the Tenth Russo-Turkish War

Sukhumi landing, 1877Action off Măcin, 1877Battle of Kızıl Tepe, 1877Battle of Svistov, 1877Battle of Elena, 1877Kavarna massacre, 1877Battle of Sevlievo, 1877Battle of Nikopol, 1877Battle of Shipka Pass, 1877Battle of Juranla, 1877Siege of Plevna, 1877Battle at Stara Zagora, 1877Battle of Pelshat and Zgalevo, 1877Battle of Ablanovo, 1877Battle of Lovcha, 1877Battle at Cairkoi, 1877Battle of Lower Metropolia, 1877Battle of Gorni Dubnik, 1877Battle of Erzurum, 1877Battle of Kars, 1877Battle of Oryahovo, 1877Battle of Aladzha, 1877Battle of Sofia, 1877Battle of Philippopolis, 187818771878Battle of Shipka Pass, 1877
25 placed engagements of the Tenth Russo-Turkish War in time order; taller ticks are more widely documented. Each tick is a link.

Record

Date17 July 1877
to 9 January 1878
PlaceShipka Pass, Bulgaria
42.767N, 25.317E
KindBattle, nineteenth century
StrengthI stage: 5,000; II stage: 5,000 initial; ~2,500 reinforcement 1st day; ~4,000 reinforcement 3rd day; III stage: 7,500–7,900; IV stage: 66,000; Total: 70,000+I stage: 4,000; II stage: 30,000; III stage: 20,000 plus reinforcements; IV stage: 36,000+; Total: 60,000+
Casualties and lossesI stage: 150 or 211; II stage: 4,000 or 3,600; III stage: unknown; IV stage: 5,500 total or 1,122 killed and 4,362 wounded; Total: 13,500 killed and woundedI stage: unknown; II stage: 10,000; III stage: 3,000; IV stage: 36,000 captured incl. 6,000 sick and wounded; killed n.a.; Total: 60,000
Commanders
  • Mehmed Rauf Pasha bin Abdi Pasha
Battle of Shipka PassBattle of Shipka PassBattle of BuzludzhaSiege of Dryanovski MonasteryBattle of VishovgradSiege of TarnovoBattle of BeroiaBattle of BuzludzhaSiege of Dryanovski MonasteryBattle of VishovgradSiege of TarnovoBattle of BeroiaSofiaBurgasRuseEdirnePlevenKhaskovoPlovdivShumen100 km42.767N, 25.317E
The recorded site, with the nearest other engagements in the atlas. Present-day coastlines, rivers and borders; towns from Natural Earth.

The ground today

Relief of the ground around the site of Battle of Shipka Pass
Relief within about 10.0 km of the site, contours every 50 m. Copernicus DEM GLO-30, ESA.
Satellite view of the site of Battle of Shipka Pass today
The same ground from Sentinel-2 on 2024-06-23. Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2024.

The recorded site stands at about 1,184 m; within 10.0 km the ground runs from 481 to 1,433 m, 952 m of relief, mountainous country and today it is 98% tree cover, 2% grassland.

tree cover: 98%grassland: 2%tree cover 98%grassland 2%
west to east, 10.0 km700 to 1,197 mnorth to south, 10.0 km634 to 1,213 m
Elevation from the Copernicus DEM GLO-30 (ESA, Airbus); land cover from ESA WorldCover 2021 (CC BY 4.0), within about 5 km of the recorded site. Computed, not recorded.

Nearest engagements

In the same war

Elsewhere in 1877

Battle of Shipka Pass is one of 3,507 engagements of the 19th century in the atlas and one of 118 in present-day Bulgaria.

Sources

Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q116004, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Battle of Shipka Pass, revision 1370274234, read 2026-11-14, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0; the article's text is not reproduced here. Present-day country and state from Natural Earth. Dates before 1582 follow the Julian calendar as recorded.