Siege of Silistria
The siege of Silistria, or siege of Silistra, took place during the Crimean War, from 11 May to 23 June 1854, when Russian forces besieged the Ottoman fortress of Silistria (present-day Bulgaria). Sustained Ottoman resistance had allowed French and British troops to build up a significant army in nearby Varna. The Russian command, which wanted to capture the fortress but feared a trap, ordered its troops to lift the siege and retreat from the area, thus ending the Danubian phase of the war.