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Battle of Kaliakra
Part of theFirst Balkan War
Drazki and her crew
Date 21 November 1912 Location offCape Kaliakra,Bulgaria,43°19′N28°29′E / 43.317°N 28.483°E /43.317; 28.483 Result Bulgarian victory
Belligerents
Bulgaria	Ottoman Empire
Commanders and leaders
CaptainDimitar Dobrev	CaptainRauf Orbay
Strength
4 torpedo boats (Drazki,Letyashti,Smeli,Strogi)	1 cruiser (Hamidiye) 2 destroyers
Casualties and losses
1 torpedo boat damaged 1 wounded	1 cruiser damaged 8 killed 30 wounded

TheBattle of Kaliakra, usually known as theAttack of theDrazki (Bulgarian:Атаката на Дръзки) in Bulgaria, was a maritime action between fourBulgarian torpedo boats and theOttoman cruiserHamidiye in theBlack Sea. It took place on 21 November 1912 at 32 miles off Bulgaria's primary port ofVarna.

During the course of theFirst Balkan War, the Ottoman Empire's supplies were dangerously limited after the battles inKirk Kilisse andLule Burgas and the sea route from the Romanian portConstanţa toIstanbul became vital for the Ottomans. The Ottoman navy also imposed a blockade on the Bulgarian coast and on 15 October, the commander of the cruiserHamidiye threatened to destroy Varna andBalchik, unless the two towns surrendered.

On 21 November an Ottoman convoy was attacked by the four Bulgarian torpedo boatsDrazki (Bold),Letyashti (Flying),Smeli (Brave) andStrogi (Strict). The attack was led byLetyashti, whose torpedoes missed, as did those ofSmeli andStrogi,Smeli being damaged by a 150 mm round with one of her crewmen wounded.Drazki however got within 100 meters from the Ottoman cruiser and her torpedoes struck the cruiser's starboard side, causing a 10 square meter hole.

However,Hamidiye was not sunk, due to her well-trained crew, strong forward bulkheads, the functionality of all her water pumps and a very calm sea. She did however have 8 crewmen killed and 30 wounded, and was repaired within months.

After this encounter, the Ottoman blockade of the Bulgarian coast was significantly loosened.

• The attack ofDrazki(in Bulgarian)
• E.R. Horton,Prelude to the First World War: The Balkan Wars 1912–1913
• Büyüktuğrul, Afif (1974).Osmanlı Deniz Harp Tarihi(PDF). Genelkurmay Başkanlığı Deniz Kuvvetleri Komutanlığı. Archived fromthe original(PDF) on 8 October 2020. Retrieved19 December 2022.
• Langensiepen, Bernd; Güleryüz, Ahmet (1995).The Ottoman Steam Navy 1828–1923. London: Conway Maritime Press.ISBN 978-0-85177-610-1.

• Conflicts in 1912
• Naval battles involving Bulgaria
• Naval battles involving the Ottoman Empire
• History of Varna, Bulgaria
• Military history of the Black Sea
• Naval battles of the First Balkan War
• November 1912 in Europe
• 20th-century naval battles

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