When exactly pontoons were introduced in our country, no exact indications have been preserved in the archives, but we can positively say that before Peter the Great there were no pontoons in Rosby and that they appeared under the Russian army at the beginning of the war with the Swedes. During the Turkish campaign of 1711, pontoon bridges were built in Russia across the Prut and the Dniester. In 1712, on February 8, as I already said, the staff was approved for the Pontoon Company, consisting of 2 officers and 34 lower ranks. The small number of this team suggests that the pontoon fleet, when it was introduced in our country, was very insignificant, and that, in order to build pontoon bridges during the war, it was necessary to detach soldiers from infantry to help the pontooners. In the journals containing descriptions of the military events of the Great Northern War, there is nowhere positive information about in what cases and what exactly bridges were used, how successfully their installation was carried out, and there is no indication of any particular characterizing the resourcefulness and art of our pontooners of that time 2).
The pontoons introduced by Peter the Great were metal. According to the opinion of General Laskovsky (former professor of the Nikol. Inkh. Academy), Peter |, traveling around Europe, gave preference to Dutch tin pontoons and, introducing them here in Russia, retained the same shape and approximately the same dimensions, namely: the pontoon consisted of a frame, which was upholstered on the outside with tin; the sides of the pontoon, as well as its bow and stern parts, had a very slight inclined position relative to the bottom of the pontoon. The entire pontoon was 18 feet long and 51/2 feet wide. and depth 2 feet. With such dimensions, the lifting force of the pontoon, before it was completely immersed in water, was up to 240 pounds, but it was significantly reduced by the weight that all the accessories of the pontoon bridge had then, especially the enormous thickness of the ropes.
1) East. very good Eng. Ex. in Russia, A. Savelyeva, 1879 2) Mater. for East. Eng. Claim. in Russia, ©. Laskovsky, 1865, part Sh.
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At the end of the reign of Peter the Great, in 1723, the Landgrave of Hesse of Gombursk sent to his son, Prince of Hesse of Gombursk, who was later our General-Fieldmaster, engineer Ludwig with newly invented pontoons that could be laid down and carried on a pack horse. They were then presented to the Emperor, but from what follows it is clear that they were not accepted by us!
In the wars waged with Turshcheya, from 1736 to 1739, we encounter an extensive and, in their own ways, very diverse use of military bridges and crossings. Let us point out more remarkable cases of their application. In the campaign of 1737, at its very opening, a ship bridge 2) of 520 fathoms was built to cross the Dnpr, near Perevolochna, Near Mishurin Roga, Russe. length and 3 fathoms width; it consisted of 320 ships; its guidance began on April 18th and ended on the 20th of the same month. In terms of its length and the number of floating abutments, this bridge, undoubtedly, should be ranked among the most remarkable structures in this type of structure.
With further development of the army, pontoon bridges were repeatedly built across the rivers: Malo-Kamenka, Ingul, Sugokleya and Dead Waters. Since these rivers were not deep and had a weak flow, for the passage of the river, in connection with bridges, roads were built, in which, as one must assume, there were through holes in places for the flow of water.
When crossing the Bug (July 16, 1737) field and siege artillery, the Russians built two pontoon bridges 3); each of them had 23 soot. length and consisted of 14 pontoons; In addition, to cross the river, two bridges were built on barrels; for better communication between them and to give them greater durability, 3 pontoons were attached to each of them. The Armenians crossed over them in 33 days.
Regarding the large use of bridges on barrels during this war, it should be noted that, during the campaign across the steppe, large barrels of water were carried behind the troops, one per company, and each regiment was obliged to have from 8 to 10 of them and the same number of boards, to make a bridge for hunting and light carts; pontoons served for crossing large loads and cavalry +).
So, we see that until half of the seventeenth century, pontoon bridges were used more than once during military operations. Vsld-
1) Mater. for East. Inch. lawsuit in Ross!i ©. Laskovsky, 1865 part 11. 2) Ibid.
3) Mater. for East. Inch. lawsuit in Ross!i ©. Laskovsky, 1865, part Sh. “) Route to the Turkish region to G. Ochakov (1737) (See Appendix HP.
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