The Capitulation of Kars, Crimean War, 28 November 1855, Thomas Jones Barker, circa 1860

In june 1855, during the crimean war (1854–1856), kars, a city in north-eastern turkey, was besieged by a russian army of 25,000 men. Demoralised by their defeats at the hands of the russians, the turks left the defence of kars to brevet colonel (later general sir) william fenwick williams who was the british commissioner with the ottoman army in anatolia. Through his brilliant organisation, the garrison was able to repulse three major russian attacks, but eventually cold, famine and an outbreak of cholera forced it to surrender on 26 november 1855. In the foreground, the commander of the garrison of kars, the british brevet colonel william fenwick williams. In the background, the governor of the caucasus and the commander-in-chief of the caucasian army (from the end of 1854), the russian general of the infantry n. N. Muravyov, accepting the capitulation of kars. Object Type: painting. Date: circa 1860. Dimensions: height: 252 cm (99.2 in); width: 440 cm (14.4 ft). Medium: oil on canvas. Collection: National Army Museum. Thomas Jones Barker The Capitulation of Kars 1855