Photograph taken on the Plateau of Sevastopol, showing the Reden, Malakoff and Mamelon in the distance. In the foreground there is a hillside strewn with rocks, with Colonel Shadforth seated on a rock to the left with his legs crossed. Another man stands on the hillside behind him. This is one of a series of eleven photographs which create a panoramic picture of the Plateau of Sevastopol. The Siege of Sevastopol was a major component of the Crimean War, lasting from October 1854 to September 1855. The troops engaged in the siege camped in the countryside surrounding the town.