The Sun. — 1855-07-24 (London, England)

ACCOUNT OF THE ASSAULT OF SEBASTOPOL,  REPULSED BY THE RUSSIAN TROOPS, JUNE 18. After the third bombardment, which was prolonged in a terrible manner for five entire days, from June 6 to June 11, the line of the defences of Sebastopol bad been completely restored to its primitive strength in a very short time. The valorous defenders of the place, strangers alike to fatigue and fear, had repaired their half-destroyed works under a terrible fire, and with the greatest sang field raised new batteries against the enemy's approaches. On the 17th of June, at 3 o'clock in the morning, at a signal given, the enemy opened a violent fire from all his batteries against the bastions of the Karabelnaia suburb. For two hours his artillery acted by salvos almost continuous. Our batteries replied to them with a  rapid fire. At 2 o'clock in the afternoon the besiegers commenced  a violent cannonade against our right line of defence ; the fire became general, and continued so until a late hour of the evening. As soon as it was dark, and for the remainder of the night, the enemy bombarded the  place most furiously, causing bombs and shell to rain down, so to speak, upon the town, the roadstead, and the northern side. One of the enemy's frigates fired  broadsides against our coast batteries, the roads, and the  :own.  Notwithstanding the vertical and sweeping fire which beat upon our works, the repair of these last and the replacement of the dismounted guns was kept up with activity. I should particularly mention the infantry regiment of Sevek, which, on the night of the 17th, performed service of this kind in the Korniloff bastion with extraordinary activity under a murderous fire. The extreme severity of the bombardment and the unusual movement of columns on the right flank cf the besiegers led to the conclusion that the enemy meditated decisive operations against the fortifications of the Karabelnaia suburb. Conformably to orders given beforehand to the garrison by Count Osten-Sacken, the troops wero in readiness to repel an assault. On the 18th, at dawn, the enemy advancing, sustained by strong supporting columns, and by large masses of reserves, placed at a distance, attacked simultaneously the left half of our line of defence from Bastion No. 1 as far as to Pe ressype. On the right flank, and in the centre of the attack, were the French '• on the left flank the English. The ravine of the doeke served as a line of demarcation between the French and English troops. _ _ _  From the depositions made by officers who have been taken prisoners,* it appears that the instructions given to the attacking force were to make themselves masters of the whole eastern part of Sebastopol, as far as the southern bay. The French were to take possession of the bastions Korniloff, and those marked 1 and 2 ; the English were to make themselves masters of that marked 3.  The following was the order of the attack :—Five French divisions—the 2d, sth, Bth, 9th, and that of the Guard, amounting to about 30,000 men. In addition to this were five English divisions—the Ist, 2d, 3d, 4th, and the Light Division, from 15,000 to 20,000 men. The French troops were divided into two great divisions. The first, or the right, under the command of General Mayran, was directed against bastions Nos. 1 and 2. The other, under the command of General Brunet, was directed against the Malakhoff Mamelon. To the third, or left, consisting of the English, under Lord Raglan. was entrusted the mission of taking the bastion No. 3. The first line of the French columns was composed of a dense mass of riflemen, supported by continual reinforcements in the rear. The first line of the English was composed of volunteers, taken at the rate of 30 from each regiment, and amounted in the whole to 1,500. The second line was composed of three regiments of each division ; in all 15 regiments, about 10,500 men. The rest of th English and Scotch regiments formed the general reserve. The events of the day took place in the following order :