rtures, besides pianoforte pieces. His
orchestral works are of the "programme-music" order, but all are brilliant
examples of the highly coloured, elaborate style characteristic of modern
Russian composers, and developed by Balakirev's disciples, such as Borodin
and Rimsky-Korsakov.

BALAKLAVA, a village in the Crimea, east of Sevastopol, famous for a battle
in the Crimean War. The action of Balaklava (October 25th, 1854) was
brought about by the advance of a Russian field army under General Liprandi
to attack the allied English, French and Turkish forces besieging
Sevastopol. The ground on which the engagement took place was the Vorontsov
ridge (see CRIMEAN WAR), and the valleys on either side of it. Liprandi's
corps formed near Traktir Bridge, and early on the 25th of October its
advanced guard moved southward to attack the ridge, which was weakly
occupied by Turkish battalions behind slight entrenchments. The two nearest
British divisions were put into motion as soon as the firing became
serious, but were prevented by their orders from descending at once into
the plain, and the Turks had to meet the assault of greatly superior
numbers. They made a gallant resistance, but the Russians quickly cleared
the ridge, capturing several guns, and their first line was followed by a
heavy mass of cavalry which crossed the ridge and descended into the
Balaklava plain. At this moment the British cavalry division under the earl
of Lucan was in the plain, but their commander was prevented from engaging
the Russians by the tenor of his orders. One of his brigades, the Heavy
(4th and 5th Dragoon Guards, 1st, 2nd and 6th Dragoons) under
Brigadier-General J. Y. Scarlett, was in the Balaklava plain; the other,
the Light Brigade under Lord Cardigan (4th and 13th Light Dragoons now
Hussars, 8th and 11th Hussars and 17th Lancers) in the valley to the north
of the Vorontsov ridge. All these regiments were very weak in numbers. The
Russian cavalry mass, after crossing the ridge, moved towards Balaklava; a
few shots were fired into it by a Turkish battery and a moment later the
Heavy Brigade charged. The attack was impeded at first by obstacles of
ground, but in the _melee_ the weight of the British troopers gradually
broke up the enemy, and the charge of the 4th Dragoon Guards, delivered
against the flank of the Russian mass, was decisive. The whole of the
Russian cavalry broke and fled to the ridge. This famous charge occupied
less than five