Alaska (state). Alaska in literature What seas is Alaska washed by?

On March 18/30, 1867, Alaska and the Aleutian Islands were sold by Alexander II to the United States.

On October 18, 1867, in the capital of Russian America, in common parlance - Alaska, the city of Novoarkhangelsk, an official ceremony was held to transfer Russian possessions on the American continent to the ownership of the United States of America. Thus ended the history of Russian discoveries and economic development of the northwestern part of America.Since then, Alaska has been a US state.

Geography

Country name translated from Aleutian "a-la-as-ka" means "Big Land".

Alaska territory includes into yourself Aleutian Islands (110 islands and many rocks), Alexandra Archipelago (about 1,100 islands and rocks, the total area of ​​which is 36.8 thousand km²), St. Lawrence Island (80 km from Chukotka), Pribilof Islands , Kodiak Island (the second largest US island after the island of Hawaii), and huge continental part . The Alaskan islands extend for almost 1,740 kilometers. The Aleutian Islands are home to many volcanoes, both extinct and active. Alaska is washed by the Arctic and Pacific oceans.

The continental part of Alaska is a peninsula of the same name, approximately 700 km long. In general, Alaska is a mountainous country - there are more volcanoes in Alaska than in all other US states. The highest peak in North America is Mount McKinley (6193m altitude) is also located in Alaska.

McKinley is the highest mountain in the USA

Another feature of Alaska is the huge number of lakes (their number exceeds 3 million!). About 487,747 km² (more than the territory of Sweden) is covered by swamps and permafrost. Glaciers cover about 41,440 km² (which corresponds to the territory of the whole of Holland!).

Alaska is considered a country with a harsh climate. Indeed, in most areas of Alaska the climate is arctic and subarctic continental, with harsh winters, with frosts down to minus 50 degrees. But the climate of the island part and the Pacific coast of Alaska is incomparably better than, for example, in Chukotka. On the Pacific coast of Alaska, the climate is maritime, relatively mild and humid. The warm stream of the Alaska Current turns here from the south and washes Alaska from the south. The mountains block northern cold winds. As a result, winters in coastal and island Alaska are quite mild. Sub-zero temperatures in winter are very rare. The sea in southern Alaska does not freeze in winter.

Alaska has always been rich in fish: salmon, flounder, cod, herring, edible species of shellfish and marine mammals were found in abundance in coastal waters. On the fertile soil of these lands, thousands of species of plants suitable for food grew, and in the forests there were many animals, especially fur-bearing ones. This is precisely why Russian industrialists sought to move to Alaska with its favorable natural conditions and richer fauna than in the Sea of ​​Okhotsk.

Discovery of Alaska by Russian explorers

The history of Alaska before its sale to the United States in 1867 is one of the pages of the history of Russia.

The first people came to Alaska from Siberia about 15-20 thousand years ago. At that time, Eurasia and North America were connected by an isthmus located on the site of the Bering Strait. By the time the Russians arrived in the 18th century, the native inhabitants of Alaska were divided into Aleuts, Eskimos and Indians belonging to the Athabaskan group.

It is assumed that The first Europeans to see the shores of Alaska were members of Semyon Dezhnev's expedition in 1648 , who were the first to sail through the Bering Strait from the Icy Sea to the Warm Sea.According to legend, Dezhnev’s boats, which had gone astray, landed on the shores of Alaska.

In 1697, the conqueror of Kamchatka Vladimir Atlasov reported to Moscow that opposite the “Necessary Nose” (Cape Dezhnev) in the sea there was a large island, from where in winter the ice “foreigners come, speak their own language and bring sables...” Experienced industrialist Atlasov immediately determined that these sables differ from Yakut ones, and for the worse: “Sables are thin, and those sables have striped tails the size of a quarter of an arshin.” It was, of course, not about a sable, but about a raccoon - an animal unknown in Russia at that time.

However, at the end of the 17th century, Peter’s reforms began in Russia, as a result of which the state had no time to open new lands. This explains a certain pause in the further advance of the Russians to the east.

Russian industrialists began to be attracted to new lands only at the beginning of the 18th century, as fur reserves in eastern Siberia were depleted.Peter I immediately, as soon as circumstances allowed, began organizing scientific expeditions in the northern part of the Pacific Ocean.In 1725, shortly before his death, Peter the Great sent Captain Vitus Bering, a Danish navigator in Russian service, to explore the sea shores of Siberia. Peter sent Bering on an expedition to explore and describe the northeastern coast of Siberia . In 1728, the Bering expedition rediscovered the strait, which was first seen by Semyon Dezhnev. However, due to fog, Bering was unable to see the outlines of the North American continent on the horizon.

It is believed that The first Europeans to land on the shores of Alaska were members of the crew of the ship "St. Gabriel" under the command of surveyor Mikhail Gvozdev and navigator Ivan Fedorov. They were participants Chukotka expedition 1729-1735 under the leadership of A.F. Shestakov and D.I. Pavlutsky.

Travelers landed on the coast of Alaska on August 21, 1732 . Fedorov was the first to mark both banks of the Bering Strait on the map. But, having returned to his homeland, Fedorov soon dies, and Gvozdev ends up in Bironov’s dungeons, and the great discovery of the Russian pioneers remains unknown for a long time.

The next stage of the “discovery of Alaska” was Second Kamchatka expedition famous explorer Vitus Bering in 1740 - 1741. The island, the sea and the strait between Chukotka and Alaska - Vitus Bering - were subsequently named after him.

The expedition of Vitus Bering, who by this time had been promoted to captain-commander, set off for the shores of America from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky on June 8, 1741 on two ships: “St. Peter” (under the command of Bering) and “St. Paul” (under the command of Alexei Chirikov). Each ship had its own team of scientists and researchers on board. They crossed the Pacific Ocean and July 15, 1741 discovered the northwestern coast of America. The ship's doctor, Georg Wilhelm Steller, went ashore and collected samples of shells and herbs, discovered new species of birds and animals, from which the researchers concluded that their ship had reached a new continent.

Chirikov's ship "St. Paul" returned on October 8 to Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky. On the way back, the Umnak Islands were discovered, Unalaska and others. Bering's ship was carried by the current and wind to the east of the Kamchatka Peninsula - to the Commander Islands. The ship was wrecked near one of the islands and washed ashore. The travelers were forced to spend the winter on the island, which now bears the name Bering Island . On this island, the captain-commander died without surviving the harsh winter. In the spring, the surviving crew members built a boat from the wreckage of the broken "St. Peter" and returned to Kamchatka only in September. Thus ended the second Russian expedition, which discovered the northwestern coast of the North American continent.

Russian America

The authorities in St. Petersburg reacted with indifference to the discovery of Bering's expedition.The Russian Empress Elizabeth had no interest in the lands of North America. She issued a decree obliging the local population to pay duties on trade, but did not take any further steps towards developing relations with Alaska.For the next 50 years, Russia showed very little interest in this land.

The initiative in developing new lands beyond the Bering Strait was taken by fishermen, who (unlike St. Petersburg) immediately appreciated the reports of members of the Bering expedition about the vast rookeries of sea animals.

In 1743, Russian traders and fur trappers established very close contact with the Aleuts. During 1743-1755, 22 fishing expeditions took place, fishing on the Commander and Near Aleutian Islands. In 1756-1780 48 expeditions fished throughout the Aleutian Islands, the Alaska Peninsula, Kodiak Island and the southern coast of modern Alaska. Fishing expeditions were organized and financed by various private companies of Siberian merchants.

Merchant ships off the coast of Alaska

Until the 1770s, among the merchants and fur harvesters in Alaska, Grigory Ivanovich Shelekhov, Pavel Sergeevich Lebedev-Lastochkin, as well as the brothers Grigory and Pyotr Panov were considered the richest and most famous.

Sloops with a displacement of 30-60 tons were sent from Okhotsk and Kamchatka to the Bering Sea and the Gulf of Alaska. The remoteness of fishing areas meant that expeditions lasted up to 6-10 years. Shipwrecks, famine, scurvy, clashes with the aborigines, and sometimes with the crews of ships of a competing company - all this was the everyday work of the “Russian Columbuses”.

One of the first to establish a permanent Russian settlement on Unalaska (island in the Aleutian Islands archipelago), discovered in 1741 during Bering's Second Expedition.

Unalaska on the map

Subsequently, Analashka became the main Russian port in the region through which the fur trade was carried out. The main base of the future Russian-American Company was located here. It was built in 1825 Russian Orthodox Church of the Ascension of the Lord .

Church of the Ascension on Unalaska

Founder of the parish, Innocent (Veniaminov) - Saint Innocent of Moscow , - created the first Aleut writing with the help of local residents and translated the Bible into the Aleut language.

Unalaska today

In 1778 he arrived in Unalaska English navigator James Cook . According to him, the total number of Russian industrialists located in the Aleutians and in the waters of Alaska was about 500 people.

After 1780, Russian industrialists penetrated far along the Pacific coast of North America. Sooner or later, the Russians would begin to penetrate deep into the mainland of the open lands of America.

The real discoverer and creator of Russian America was Grigory Ivanovich Shelekhov. A merchant, a native of the city of Rylsk in the Kursk province, Shelekhov moved to Siberia, where he became rich in the fur trade. Beginning in 1773, 26-year-old Shelekhov began to independently send ships to sea fishing.

In August 1784, during his main expedition on 3 ships (“Three Saints”, “St. Simeon the God-Receiver and Anna the Prophetess” and “Archangel Michael”), he reached Kodiak Islands , where he began to build a fortress and settlement. From there it was easier to sail to the shores of Alaska. It was thanks to Shelekhov’s energy and foresight that the foundation of Russian possessions was laid in these new lands. In 1784-86. Shelekhov also began to build two more fortified settlements in America. The settlement plans he drew up included smooth streets, schools, libraries, and parks. Returning to European Russia, Shelekhov put forward a proposal to begin the mass resettlement of Russians to new lands.

At the same time, Shelekhov was not in public service. He remained a merchant, industrialist, and entrepreneur operating with the permission of the government. Shelekhov himself, however, was distinguished by a remarkable statesmanship, perfectly understanding Russia's capabilities in this region. No less important was the fact that Shelekhov had a great understanding of people and assembled a team of like-minded people who created Russian America.

In 1791, Shelekhov took as his assistant a 43-year-old man who had just arrived in Alaska. Alexandra Baranova - a merchant from the ancient city of Kargopol, who at one time moved to Siberia for business purposes. Baranov was appointed chief manager at Kodiak Island . He had an amazing selflessness for an entrepreneur - managing Russian America for more than two decades, controlling multimillion-dollar sums, providing high profits to the shareholders of the Russian-American Company, which we will talk about below, he did not leave himself any fortune!

Baranov moved the company's representative office to the new city of Pavlovskaya Gavan, which he founded in the north of Kodiak Island. Now Pavlovsk is the main city of Kodiak Island.

Meanwhile, Shelekhov’s company drove out other competitors from the region. Myself Shelekhov died in 1795 , in the midst of his endeavors. True, his proposals for the further development of American territories with the help of a commercial company, thanks to his like-minded people and associates, were further developed.

Russian-American Company

In 1799, the Russian-American Company (RAC) was created. which became the main owner of all Russian possessions in America (as well as in the Kuril Islands). It received from Paul I monopoly rights to fur fishing, trade and the discovery of new lands in the northeastern part of the Pacific Ocean, designed to represent and protect with its own means the interests of Russia in the Pacific Ocean. Since 1801, the company's shareholders were Alexander I and the grand dukes and major statesmen.

One of the founders of the RAC was Shelekhov's son-in-law Nikolay Rezanov, whose name is known to many today as the name of the hero of the musical “Juno and Avos”. The first head of the company was Alexander Baranov , which was officially called Chief Ruler .

The creation of the RAC was based on Shelekhov’s proposals to create a commercial company of a special kind, capable of carrying out, along with commercial activities, also engaging in the colonization of lands, the construction of forts and cities.

Until the 1820s, the company’s profits allowed them to develop the territories themselves, so, according to Baranov, in 1811 the profit from the sale of sea otter skins amounted to 4.5 million rubles, huge money at that time. The profitability of the Russian-American Company was 700-1100% per year. This was facilitated by the great demand for sea otter skins; their cost from the end of the 18th century to the 20s of the 19th century increased from 100 rubles per skin to 300 (sable cost about 20 times less).

In the early 1800s, Baranov established trade with Hawaii. Baranov was a real Russian statesman, and under other circumstances (for example, another emperor on the throne) The Hawaiian Islands could become a Russian naval base and resort . From Hawaii, Russian ships brought salt, sandalwood, tropical fruits, coffee, and sugar. They planned to populate the islands with Old Believers-Pomors from the Arkhangelsk province. Since the local princelings were constantly at war with each other, Baranov offered one of them patronage. In May 1816, one of the leaders - Tomari (Kaumualia) - officially transferred to Russian citizenship. By 1821, several Russian outposts had been built in Hawaii. The Russians could also take control of the Marshall Islands. By 1825, Russian power was increasingly strengthened, Tomari became king, the children of the leaders studied in the capital of the Russian Empire, and the first Russian-Hawaiian dictionary was created. But in the end, St. Petersburg abandoned the idea of ​​​​making the Hawaiian and Marshall Islands Russian . Although their strategic position is obvious, their development was also economically profitable.

Thanks to Baranov, a number of Russian settlements were founded in Alaska, in particular Novoarkhangelsk (Today - Sitka ).

Novoarkhangelsk

Novoarkhangelsk in the 50-60s. XIX century resembled an average provincial town in outlying Russia. It had a ruler's palace, a theater, a club, a cathedral, a bishop's house, a seminary, a Lutheran prayer house, an observatory, a music school, a museum and a library, a nautical school, two hospitals and a pharmacy, several schools, a spiritual consistory, a drawing room, an admiralty, and port facilities. buildings, an arsenal, several industrial enterprises, shops, stores and warehouses. Houses in Novoarkhangelsk were built on stone foundations and the roofs were made of iron.

Under the leadership of Baranov, the Russian-American Company expanded the scope of its interests: in California, just 80 kilometers north of San Francisco, the southernmost Russian settlement in North America was built - Fort Ross. Russian settlers in California were engaged in sea otter fishing, agriculture and cattle breeding. Trade connections were established with New York, Boston, California and Hawaii. The California colony was to become the main food supplier to Alaska, which at that time belonged to Russia.

Fort Ross in 1828. Russian fortress in California

But hopes were not justified. In general, Fort Ross turned out to be unprofitable for the Russian-American Company. Russia was forced to abandon it. Fort Ross was sold in 1841 for 42,857 rubles to Mexican citizen John Sutter, a German industrialist who went down in California history thanks to his sawmill in Coloma, on the territory of which a gold mine was found in 1848, which began the famous California Gold Rush. In payment, Sutter supplied wheat to Alaska, but, according to P. Golovin, he never paid an additional amount of almost 37.5 thousand rubles.

Russians in Alaska founded settlements, built churches, created schools, a library, a museum, shipyards and hospitals for local residents, and launched Russian ships.

A number of manufacturing industries were established in Alaska. The development of shipbuilding is especially noteworthy. Shipwrights have been building ships in Alaska since 1793. For 1799-1821 15 ships were built in Novoarkhangelsk. In 1853, the first steam ship on the Pacific Ocean was launched in Novoarkhangelsk, and not a single part was imported: absolutely everything, including the steam engine, was manufactured locally. Russian Novoarkhangelsk was the first point of steam shipbuilding on the entire western coast of America.

Novoarkhangelsk

The city of Sitka (formerly Novoarkhangelsk) today

At the same time, formally, the Russian-American Company was not a completely state institution.

In 1824, Russia signed an agreement with the governments of the USA and England. The boundaries of Russian possessions in North America were determined at the state level.

World map 1830

One cannot help but admire the fact that only about 400-800 Russian people managed to develop such vast territories and waters, making their way to California and Hawaii. In 1839, the Russian population of Alaska was 823 people, which was the maximum in the entire history of Russian America. Usually there were slightly fewer Russians.

It was the lack of people that played a fatal role in the history of Russian America. The desire to attract new settlers was a constant and almost impossible desire of all Russian administrators in Alaska.

The basis of the economic life of Russian America remained the production of marine mammals. Average for 1840-60s. up to 18 thousand fur seals were caught per year. River beavers, otters, foxes, arctic foxes, bears, sables, and walrus tusks were also hunted.

The Russian Orthodox Church was active in Russian America. Back in 1794 he began missionary work Valaam monk Herman . By the mid-19th century, most Alaska Natives were baptized. The Aleuts and, to a lesser extent, the Alaska Indians are still Orthodox believers.

In 1841, an episcopal see was created in Alaska. By the time of the sale of Alaska, the Russian Orthodox Church had 13 thousand flocks here. In terms of the number of Orthodox Christians, Alaska still ranks first in the United States. Church ministers made a huge contribution to the spread of literacy among the Alaskan natives. Literacy among the Aleuts was at a high level - on St. Paul's Island the entire adult population could read in their native language.

Selling Alaska

Oddly enough, but the fate of Alaska, according to a number of historians, was decided by Crimea, or more precisely, the Crimean War (1853-1856). Ideas began to mature in the Russian government about strengthening relations with the United States as opposed to Great Britain.

Despite the fact that the Russians in Alaska founded settlements, built churches, created schools and hospitals for local residents, there was no truly deep and thorough development of American lands. After the resignation of Alexander Baranov in 1818 from the post of ruler of the Russian-American Company due to illness, there were no more leaders of this magnitude in Russian America.

The interests of the Russian-American Company were mainly limited to fur production, and by the middle of the 19th century, the number of sea otters in Alaska had sharply decreased due to uncontrolled hunting.

The geopolitical situation did not contribute to the development of Alaska as a Russian colony. In 1856, Russia was defeated in the Crimean War, and relatively close to Alaska was the English colony of British Columbia (the westernmost province of modern Canada).

Contrary to popular belief, The Russians were well aware of the presence of gold in Alaska . In 1848, Russian explorer and mining engineer, Lieutenant Pyotr Doroshin, found small placers of gold on the islands of Kodiak and Sitkha, the shores of the Kenai Bay near the future city of Anchorage (the largest city in Alaska today). However, the volume of precious metal discovered was small. The Russian administration, which had before its eyes the example of the “gold rush” in California, fearing the invasion of thousands of American gold miners, chose to classify this information. Subsequently, gold was found in other parts of Alaska. But this was no longer Russian Alaska.

Besides Oil was discovered in Alaska . It was this fact, as absurd as it may sound, that became one of the incentives to quickly get rid of Alaska. The fact is that American prospectors began to actively arrive in Alaska, and the Russian government rightly feared that American troops would come after them. Russia was not ready for war, and giving up Alaska penniless was completely imprudent.Russia seriously feared that it would not be able to ensure the security of its colony in America in the event of an armed conflict. The United States of America was chosen as a potential buyer of Alaska to compensate for the growing British influence in the region.

Thus, Alaska could become the reason for a new war for Russia.

The initiative to sell Alaska to the United States of America belonged to the emperor's brother, Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolaevich Romanov, who served as head of the Russian Naval Staff. Back in 1857, he suggested to his elder brother, the emperor, to sell the “extra territory”, because the discovery of gold deposits there would certainly attract the attention of England, the long-time sworn enemy of the Russian Empire, and Russia was not able to defend it, and there was no military fleet in the northern seas. . If England captures Alaska, then Russia will receive absolutely nothing for it, but this way it will be possible to gain at least some money, save face and strengthen friendly relations with the United States. It should be noted that in the 19th century, the Russian Empire and the United States developed extremely friendly relations - Russia refused to help the West in regaining control over the North American territories, which infuriated the monarchs of Great Britain and inspired the American colonists to continue the liberation struggle.

However, consultations with the US government about a possible sale, in fact, negotiations began only after the end of the American Civil War.

In December 1866, Emperor Alexander II made the final decision. The boundaries of the territory to be sold and the minimum price were determined - five million dollars.

In March, the Russian Ambassador to the United States Baron Eduard Stekl approached US Secretary of State William Seward with a proposal to sell Alaska.

Signing of the Treaty for the Sale of Alaska, March 30, 1867 Robert S. Chew, William G. Seward, William Hunter, Vladimir Bodisko, Edward Steckl, Charles Sumner, Frederick Seward

The negotiations were successful and have already On March 30, 1867, a treaty was signed in Washington, according to which Russia sold Alaska for $7,200,000 in gold(at 2009 exchange rates - approximately $108 million in gold). The following were transferred to the United States: the entire Alaska Peninsula (along the meridian 141° west of Greenwich), a coastal strip 10 miles wide south of Alaska along the western coast of British Columbia; Alexandra Archipelago; Aleutian Islands with Attu Island; the islands of Blizhnye, Rat, Lisya, Andreyanovskiye, Shumagina, Trinity, Umnak, Unimak, Kodiak, Chirikova, Afognak and other smaller islands; Islands in the Bering Sea: St. Lawrence, St. Matthew, Nunivak and the Pribilof Islands - St. George and St. Paul. The total area of ​​sold territories was more than 1.5 million square meters. km. Russia sold Alaska for less than 5 cents per hectare.

On October 18, 1867, an official ceremony for the transfer of Alaska to the United States was held in Novoarkhangelsk (Sitka). Russian and American soldiers marched solemnly, the Russian flag was lowered and the US flag was raised.

Painting by N. Leitze “Signing of the Agreement for the Sale of Alaska” (1867)

Immediately after the transfer of Alaska to the United States, American troops entered Sitka and plundered the Cathedral of the Archangel Michael, private homes and shops, and General Jefferson Davis ordered all Russians to leave their homes to the Americans.

On August 1, 1868, Baron Steckl was presented with a check from the US Treasury, with which the United States paid Russia for its new lands.

A check issued to the Russian ambassador by the Americans upon the purchase of Alaska

notice, that Russia never received money for Alaska , since part of this money was appropriated by the Russian Ambassador in Washington, Baron Stekl, and part of it was spent on bribes to American senators. Baron Steckle then instructed Riggs Bank to transfer $7.035 million to London, to the Barings Bank. Both of these banks have now ceased to exist. The trace of this money was lost in time, giving rise to a variety of theories. According to one of them, the check was cashed in London, and gold bars were purchased with it, which were planned to be transferred to Russia. However, the cargo was never delivered. The ship "Orkney", which was carrying a precious cargo, sank on July 16, 1868 on the approach to St. Petersburg. Whether it had gold on it at that time, or whether it never left Foggy Albion at all, is unknown. The insurance company that insured the ship and cargo declared bankruptcy, and the damage was only partially compensated. (Currently, the sinking site of the Orkney is located in the territorial waters of Finland. In 1975, a joint Soviet-Finnish expedition examined the area of ​​its sinking and found the wreckage of the ship. The study of these revealed that there was a powerful explosion and a strong fire on the ship. However, gold could not be found - most likely, it remained in England.). As a result, Russia never gained anything from giving up some of its possessions.

It should be noted that There is no official text of the agreement on the sale of Alaska in Russian. The deal was not approved by the Russian Senate and the State Council.

In 1868, the Russian-American Company was liquidated. During its liquidation, some of the Russians were taken from Alaska to their homeland. The last group of Russians, numbering 309 people, left Novoarkhangelsk on November 30, 1868. The other part - about 200 people - was left in Novoarkhangelsk due to a lack of ships. They were simply FORGOTTEN by the St. Petersburg authorities. Most of the Creoles (descendants of mixed marriages of Russians with Aleuts, Eskimos and Indians) also remained in Alaska.

Rise of Alaska

After 1867, the part of the North American continent ceded by Russia to the United States received status "Territory of Alaska".

For the United States, Alaska became the site of the “gold rush” in the 90s. XIX century, glorified by Jack London, and then the “oil rush” in the 70s. XX century.

In 1880, the largest ore deposit in Alaska, Juneau, was discovered. At the beginning of the twentieth century, the largest placer gold deposit was discovered - Fairbanks. By the mid-80s. XX in Alaska, a total of almost a thousand tons of gold were mined.

To dateAlaska ranks 2nd in the United States (after Nevada) in terms of gold production . The state produces about 8% of silver production in the United States. The Red Dog mine in northern Alaska is the world's largest zinc reserve and produces about 10% of the world's production of this metal, as well as significant quantities of silver and lead.

Oil was found in Alaska 100 years after the conclusion of the agreement - in the early 70s. XX century. TodayAlaska ranks second in the United States in the production of “black gold”; 20% of American oil is produced here. Huge reserves of oil and gas have been explored in the north of the state. The Prudhoe Bay field is the largest in the United States (8% of US oil production).

January 3, 1959 territoryAlaska was converted into49th US state.

Alaska is the largest US state by territory - 1,518 thousand km² (17% of the US territory). In general, today Alaska is one of the most promising regions of the world from a transport and energy point of view. For the United States, this is both a nodal point on the way to Asia and a springboard for more active development of resources and the presentation of territorial claims in the Arctic.

The history of Russian America serves as an example not only of the courage of explorers, the energy of Russian entrepreneurs, but also of the corruption and betrayal of the upper spheres of Russia.

Material prepared by Sergey SHULYAK

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• Alaska. Guide, . Alaska can be roughly divided into 8 regions. The state's largest city, Anchorage, is the center of civilization in the wilderness, and the Kenai Peninsula south of Anchorage provides a wide variety of…

In the far northwest of North America is the Alaska Peninsula, which makes up most of the northernmost and largest state in the United States. The state of Alaska is separated from the rest of the United States by Canada. It also shares a maritime border with Russia along a short section of the Bering Strait. The area of ​​Alaska is 1,717,854 km 2, which means that no other state can compare with it in this indicator. Such open spaces open up unprecedented opportunities for economic development, because the geological structure of the territory is diverse, which means that the minerals lying under it are also diverse.

Population of Alaska

Southeast Alaska

There is no official division of Alaska into regions, but geographers and ecologists tend to identify several large geographic regions, each of which has both climatic and geological characteristics. However, Alaska's geography can be examined through several large geographic regions. Each of these regions deserves separate mention. The area of ​​Alaska is so large that geographic and climatic conditions can vary significantly at different ends of it.

The state's southeastern geographic region is characterized by its greatest proximity to the mainland United States. In addition, southeastern Alaska is the northern end of the so-called Inside Passage, which is a water artery with a complex trajectory, consisting of numerous channels, lakes, and canals.

This route was actively used by the Indians to move around the region parallel to the coast in relative safety. This passage was later used by gold miners during the Gold Rush to develop coastal areas. Today, this route is very popular among tourists who choose organized trips on cruise ships, as well as among independent travelers who prefer scheduled ferries carrying passengers, vehicles and cargo.

North Slope of Alaska

On the North Alaskan Slope is located the second largest administrative unit in the entire United States - the North Slope borough. This administrative unit is so large that it is larger than the state of Minnesota and thirty-eight other American states. The North Slope has access to the Beaufort Sea and the Chukchi Sea.

The population of the district barely exceeds seven thousand people, but since 2000 there has been a steady, steady growth due not only to natural growth, but also to migration from other US states.

The largest city in the North Slope is the settlement of Barrow, named after the famous English politician and founder of the Royal Geographical Society. This small town, whose population barely exceeded four thousand people in 2005, is the northernmost city in the United States, located 515 kilometers north of the Arctic Circle and 2,100 kilometers from the North Pole. The city is surrounded by dry tundra, and the soil freezes to a depth of up to four hundred meters.

Aleutian Islands

A completely special region in all respects are the Aleutian Islands, which belong to the state of Alaska and serve as the natural southern border of the Bering Sea.

The archipelago, consisting of one hundred and ten islands and numerous rocks, stretches in an arc from the southwestern coast of Alaska to the shores of the Kamchatka Peninsula. The Aleutian Islands are usually divided into five large groups:

• Nearby islands.
• Rat Islands.
• Andreanivsky Islands.
• Fox Islands.
• Four-hill islands.

Since the islands are the product of volcanic activity, it is not surprising that there are twenty-five active volcanoes on them. The largest of them are the volcanoes Segula, Kanaga, Goreloy, Big Sitkin, Tanaga and Vsevidova. But the highest and most famous volcano is Shishaldin, located on the island of Unimak. It is generally accepted that the height of 2857 meters was first conquered by J. Peterson in 1932, however, given the characteristics of the slope, it is possible that both Russians and indigenous people could climb to the top of the volcano.

Despite the fact that numerous eruptions were recorded on the volcano in the 20th century, it is nevertheless popular among fans of extreme skiing. The length of the route is 1830 meters. Alaska Natives call the volcano Haginak.

The islands are sparsely populated, and many of them are completely uninhabited. The total population is about eight thousand people, and the largest city is Unalaska with a population of 4,283 residents.

Inland Alaska

Most of the peninsula belongs to the region, which in scientific literature is usually called Interior Alaska. The region's territory is bounded by the Wrangel, Denali, Ray and Alaska Ranges.

The largest city in the geographic area is Fairbanks, which serves as the county seat of the Fairbanks-North Star Borough. The city's population exceeds 30 thousand people, making it the second largest population center in Alaska.

The city also holds a special place on the state map due to the fact that it is home to the University of Alaska, the largest educational institution in the region, founded in 1917.

The city appeared on the map of the United States at the beginning of the twentieth century, when the Gold Rush was in full swing in the state. And the place for its construction was not chosen by chance. The city, which bears the name of US Vice President Charles Warren Fairbanks, is located in central Alaska, in the fertile valley of the Tanaka River, in which, despite the harsh climate, there is the opportunity to engage in agriculture.

Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes

The natural phenomenon that deserves special mention is the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes, formed as a result of the eruption of the Katmai volcano. The eruption was so strong that the volcano itself was completely destroyed, and in its place a new one appeared, called Novarupta.

The eruption is considered to be the most powerful in the 20th century, since on an eight-point scale it is estimated at six points. The entire valley, which contained dense forests, a river and numerous springs, was covered with a thick layer of ash, reaching a thickness of two hundred meters in places.

The valley received its name due to the numerous sources of steam that burst out from under the hardened tuff crust. By today, the ash has almost cooled down and the water underneath has stopped evaporating, so steam sources, also called fumaroles, are almost impossible to find. But despite this, every year thousands of tourists come on excursion buses to the valley to see with their own eyes the consequences of one of the greatest natural disasters of the twentieth century.

Economy of Alaska

Having discussed in detail the geographical features of the state, it is worth talking about its economic situation, which, of course, is closely related to the natural resources located on the territory of the peninsula.

The state's lands are extremely rich in various natural resources such as oil, gold and natural gas. The state is second only to Nevada in the number of proven gold reserves. In addition, the state produces up to eight percent of all American silver, and the Red Dog mine has the largest reserves of zinc in the entire United States and supplies more than ten percent of this metal to the international market.

However, the foundation of the entire Alaskan economy is oil production, which forms the basis of the budget and the Welfare Fund for Future Generations. About twenty percent of all United States oil is produced on the peninsula. Through oil pipelines built back in the 70s, oil from the fields is supplied to the large seaport of Valdiz, the population of which is involved not only in transporting oil, but also in fishing, which is carried out mainly by deep-sea trawling.

Alaska, which has a fairly high standard of living compared to many states, is considered one of the most socially oriented regions of the United States. As a result of a referendum held in 1976, it was decided to allocate 25% of the oil revenues received by the state government to a special fund from which all Alaskans are paid an annual benefit. The maximum amount of such a bonus was $3,269 in 2018, while the minimum payment was made in 2010 and was only $1,281.

Anchorage. Largest city in the state

In 2014, the city celebrated its centenary. It was founded at a time when the Gold Rush was in full swing on the peninsula and the cities in the northernmost state of the country were rapidly growing and developing.

One hundred years later, Anchorage has a population of 291 thousand, making it the northernmost city in the United States with a population exceeding one hundred thousand. The fact that more than forty percent of the state's population lives in the city deserves special mention.

The history of the city began with a small tent camp set up in close proximity to the mouth of the Ship Creek River. However, quite quickly the small settlement turned into a strategically important city, of great importance both for the economy and for the security of the United States.

Since World War II, during which a large number of military installations appeared in the city, the city's population has been growing steadily. The constant, stable development of the city is associated not only with its strategic location, but also with the active development of mineral resources in close proximity to the city.

However, the history of the city also had its own disasters, which include, first of all, a powerful earthquake that occurred in 1964 and destroyed a significant part of the city. The epicenter of the earthquake was located just over a hundred kilometers from the city center, which resulted in an amplitude of vibrations of 9.2 points, which means that this earthquake was the strongest of all that have been recorded in the United States.

However, the tragedy was immediately followed by unprecedented economic growth, caused by the discovery of large oil deposits, which coincided with rising prices for this resource on the international commodity market. The city was very quickly restored, and its population increased. This period went down in the history of the city and the entire state as an oil boom.

State capital

The state capital, Juneau, is not one of the major cities in Alaska, since its population only slightly exceeds thirty thousand people. The city received its name in honor of a gold miner when several large gold deposits were discovered in Alaska. However, initially the city had a completely different name.

Like many other towns in Alaska, Juneau began as a campground in 1880. During the first year of its existence, the settlement was called Harrisburg, in honor of Richard Harris, but already in 1881 the miners themselves renamed it Juneau.

When talking about the geography of Alaska, it is impossible not to mention that the city of Juneau is located between the shores of the Gastineau Strait and the slopes of the Coast Range. The city's relative protection from harsh eastern winds makes its climate relatively comfortable for permanent residence, although the entire region has a distinct continental climate. July temperatures average around eighteen degrees Celsius, while in February, the coldest month, it can drop to thirty degrees below zero.

Like all industry in Alaska, the manufacturing sector of the city of Juneau is focused on fishing, transportation and processing of resources. However, as is the case with other state capitals, the backbone of the city's economy is the public administration sector.

In addition to the raw materials and public sector, the tourism sector is also important for the city’s economy. Every year from May to September, numerous cruise ships call at the port of Juneau, bringing tourists from the mainland, and with them money into the city budget. But despite the growth of city income from tourism, many citizens believe that the tourism boom of the last decade is rather harming the city, destroying the usual way of life. However, in general, the population of Alaska, whose standard of living is improved by tourism, looks favorably on the increasing number of visitors from other American states and even foreign countries. But a larger number of travelers come from the United States itself. As in all of Alaska, the nationalities of Juneau's population are very diverse: there are Europeans, Hispanics, and indigenous people.

– plagioclase

Aleutian Islands

In the mid-1970s, countries decided to introduce exclusive economic zones (EEZs) and fishing restriction zones extending 200 nautical miles (370.4 km) from the coastline. If two countries' borders are within 400 miles (740.8 km) of each other, they should agree to divide the seabed according to the "maritime boundary". As a rule, it is equidistant from both coastlines. Among other countries, the United States shares such a border with Canada, Mexico, Cuba and Russia.

The area of ​​the seabed between Alaska and Siberia is enormous: hundreds of thousands of square

miles. The border between the two countries lies between the islands of Little Diomede (Kruzenshtern Island) - USA, and Big Diomede (Ratmanov Island) - Russia, in the Bering Strait, located at a distance of less than 3 miles (4.2 km) from each other.

The State Department, headed by Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, at the end of Ford's presidential term - in January 1977, unilaterally proposed to the Soviets an extremely unsuccessful version of the maritime border, based in particular on the Russian-American treaty of 1867. This part of the border originates in the middle between the Attu and Medny islands of the Aleutian ridge, stretches 1000 miles in a northeast direction, passing between the Kruzenshtern and Ratmanov islands, and then turns north to the Arctic Ocean.

At the same time, eight American islands of Alaska with the accompanying two hundred miles of seabed are given to the Russian side. This is the surrender to the Russians not only of land territories, but also of hundreds of thousands of square miles of seabed. (See the shaded area of ​​the map below.) Neither the state of Alaska nor ordinary Americans will benefit from this. Oil, gas, fish and other seabed resources are valued at billions of dollars. Inferred oil and gas resources are measured in billions of barrels. The annual volume of fish caught is millions of pounds (1 pound = 0.454 kg), making Alaska the number one fishing destination among all states.

The military-strategic significance is due to its location, convenient for intercepting missiles launched into North America from anywhere on the Asian continent with the help of elements of the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI).

In 1977, the Soviets readily accepted the proposed maritime boundary, but no formal agreements were reached until 1990. During the Carter, Reagan, and Bush administrations, at least 10 rounds of secret negotiations were held, in which, thanks to the efforts of the State Department, no participants were involved. not the public, not Congress, not the State of Alaska. According to the State Department, for 13 years the Soviets sought even more seabed areas adjacent to the border in the Bering Sea. They proposed drawing the border along a rhoxodrome, i.e. a straight line between two points on a flat map in the Mercator projection, rather than along a great circle, which corresponds to the shortest distance between two points on a sphere. The Loxodrome would have added another 50,000 square miles of seabed to the Soviets adjacent to the thousand-mile stretch of border. A compromise version of the border was adopted in 1990. Thus, the previously unseen “Special Eastern Zones” and “Special Western Zones” arose, allowing each government to measure sovereignty on both sides of the border. Not once did the State Department attempt to defend the eight American islands and resource-rich maritime territories from the Russians.

Eight American Islands of Alaska

Five of the eight American islands of Alaska are located in the Arctic Ocean, and three are in the Bering Sea. The story of the five Arctic islands is the story of the heroic achievements of Americans who explored the Arctic. They may not have been acquired from the Russians in 1867, as the Russians did not discover or annex them. Three islands in the Bering Sea were obtained under an 1867 agreement.

At 3,000 square miles, Wrangel Island is the largest of the five (as are Rhode Island and Delaware combined). The first landing and formal accession to America took place on August 12, 1881 under the leadership of Calvin Leighton Hooper, captain of the customs ship Thomas Corwin. Among the others who descended on Wrangel Island was the famous explorer John Muir. He wrote of his own "significant contribution... to the growth of the nation's possessions" in his book Corwin's Cruise. Further exploration of the island in 1881 was continued by naval lieutenant Robert Berry, captain of the ship Rogers. The island received its name in honor of Baron Ferdinand Petrovich Wrangel, a Russian navigator and polar explorer, who, however, was not the discoverer of the island and did not land on it. (There is another island with the same name located near the capital of Alaska - the city of Juneau).

The Bennett, Jeannette and Henrietta Islands, also known as the DeLong Islands, were discovered and annexed to America during the famous expedition led by Navy Lieutenant George Washington DeLong in 1879-1881 on the ship Jeannette. One of the organizers of this expedition was the publisher of the New York Herald newspaper, James Gordon Bennett, and a large monument was erected in her honor at the US Naval Academy in Annapolis. The team was awarded the Congressional Order of Honor. The expedition is most fully described in the fascinating book by Leonard Guttridge - “Icebound”, published by Naval Institute Press. These three islands were named after the newspaper publisher, his sister Jeannette and mother Henrietta.

Herald Island was annexed by the United States in the late 1800s after it was abandoned by the British. Named after the British ship Herald.

Copper Island, Steller's Stone and Beaver Stone, located in the Bering Sea, were acquired from Russia in 1867. In accordance with Article 1 of the treaty, "The Boundary ... includes in the ceded territory all the Aleutian Islands lying east of ... the meridian (193 degrees west longitude) . This meridian runs between Medny Island and Bering Island near the western edge of the Aleutian Islands.

Political battle over maritime boundary agreement

All 10 rounds of negotiations held from 1977 to 1990 were conducted in secret from the American public, although the establishment of a border between two superpowers during the Cold War is far from an ordinary event. The State Department currently refuses to name the dates of negotiations, venues, names of participants, or provide official documents.

State Department Watch (SDW) learned of the negotiations in 1984. SDW launched a public campaign against the transfer of the islands and against the establishment of a new maritime boundary by the State Department under the guise of an executive agreement rather than a treaty. The State Department did not inform the US Senate in the manner prescribed by law about any negotiations that could result in a treaty. The treaty must be considered in the Senate, and in this case, in the House of Representatives, because addresses the issue of transfer of government property. The state of Alaska was ignored. SDW assisted the Alaska legislature in drafting several resolutions challenging the transfer of the islands. The rulings, in particular, indicate a violation of the state's constitutional right to participate in negotiations and discussions on issues affecting its territory, property and sovereignty. This right was enshrined by Secretary of State Daniel Webster in the Webster-Ashburton Treaty between the United States and Britain of 1842 establishing the boundary between Maine and the territory of modern Canada.

At least 50 thousand protest letters from citizens were sent to the State Department. Numerous national and local movements have passed protest resolutions. The California legislature supported Alaska. Not a single American or Alaskan social movement supported the maritime boundary agreement.

On June 1, 1990, during a meeting between Mikhail Gorbachev and George W. Bush in Washington, US Secretary of State Baker III and USSR Foreign Minister Shevardnadze signed the “Agreement on the maritime border between the USSR and the USA.” The agreement was presented to the public as a treaty proposal. Under the terms of the agreement, eight American islands in Alaska were transferred to the Russian side.

Also, without the knowledge of the public, Alaska or Congress, Baker and Shevardnadze signed an executive agreement on June 1, 1990, which stated that "...pending the entry into force of the agreement, both governments will adhere to its terms as of June 15, 1990." Thus, the boundary was established without any ratification of the proposed treaty, regardless of the opinion of the public, Alaska or Congress. That is, the State Department wants to make do with an executive agreement where a contract is required by law.

The deception continued at the Senate Foreign Relations Committee's discussion of the proposed treaty on June 13, 1991, chaired by Joseph R. Biden, Jr., where the existence of an implementing agreement was not mentioned at all. SDW was the only organization allowed to speak against the proposed treaty at those hearings. The existence of an implementing agreement was not revealed either in the President's Address to Congress, or in the Committee's report, or during the debate in the Senate on September 26, 1991. The proposed agreement was not ratified by the Soviet-Russian side, and, therefore, never entered into force.

An important difference between a contract and an executory agreement is that a contract is legally stronger than any state law, but an executory agreement does not take precedence over a conflicting state law. The executive agreement can be terminated unilaterally.

In March 1997, the Russian Duma voted overwhelmingly to rescind the executive agreement to require even larger fishing zones in the Bering Sea, thereby depriving the US fishing fleet of 300 million pounds of fish. The Russian president has not yet revoked the executive agreement. The response to the Russian initiative was the State Department conducting active secret negotiations with the Russians regarding these concessions.

The policy of transferring territories in the State Department is entirely controlled by Secretary of State Colin Powell. In this he is assisted by legal adviser William Taft IV, deputy for European and Eurasian affairs - Elizabeth Jones and deputy for scientific and environmental issues of international level and oceans - John Turner. On May 20, 2003, in order to publicize the transfer of the islands, the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs posted on the State Department website an “Information Bulletin” regarding the “Status of Wrangel Island and other Arctic Islands.”

SDW is of the opinion that the State Department is taking a position contrary to the interests of the American people, and the surrender of the American territories of Alaska and vast resource-rich maritime areas is a new form of unofficial "international assistance." Ordinary Americans do not benefit from this.

1. Congress shall enact a law authorizing the modification of maritime boundaries only by treaty and only with the consent of a State if the modification of the maritime boundary affects its territory, sovereignty, authority, or property.

2. Congress should hold hearings and require the State Department to make public (a) all actions, orders and names involved in the maritime boundary enforcement agreement (b) any actions, orders and names involved in recognizing Russian control or sovereignty over the Wrangel Islands, Herald , Bennett, Jeannette, Henrietta, Copper, as well as Steller Stone or Beaver Stone.

3. The State Department should provide an expanded "Information Bulletin" on the "Status of Wrangel Island and Other Arctic Islands" to correct deficiencies and substantiate its claims.

4. Alaska should sue the federal government to assert its rights.

5. Other states should support Alaska. If the State Department is allowed to distribute state territories to other states and draw boundaries between states and other states without approval, then all states will be at risk of losing their federal status.

6. The Department of the Interior should evaluate the resources of oil, gas and other minerals, and the Department of Commerce should evaluate the fishing resources of the disputed Bering Sea and Arctic Ocean, so as not to undercut the Russians.

7. The State Department should renege on the executive agreement signed by Secretary of State James Baker III. The new maritime border should reflect the significant strengthening of the US position relative to Russia since 1990.

8. The Senate must refuse any vote on the proposed treaty because it had never previously been presented to it in full and objectively by the State Department, and the Senate was not informed of the conduct of negotiations between 1977 and 1990 and thus could not exercise its constitutional responsibilities for agreement and recommendations.

9. Legal investigations should be initiated against officials involved in the transfer of the islands who committed civil or criminal offenses under state or federal law.

The Russian Orthodox Church has declared its rights to one of the Alaskan islands. According to the Russian Orthodox Church, when the agreement between Russia and the United States was signed, this island did not become the property of the United States, but remained the property of the Russian Orthodox Church and is considered a holy place.

The mayor of Yakutsk Aisen Nikolaev sent a corresponding appeal to Vladimir Putin, the heads of both houses of parliament and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs

It is necessary to return Spruce Island off the coast of Alaska to the Russian Orthodox Church, to which the Russian Orthodox Church has indisputable rights, according to the agreement on the sale of the territories of Russian America to the United States of America, says the mayor of Yakutsk, Aisen Nikolaev. He sent letters to Russian President Vladimir Putin, speakers of the Federation Council and State Duma Valentina Matvienko and Sergei Naryshkin, as well as Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov with a request to facilitate the return of the island to the Russian Orthodox Church through political and diplomatic means.

Documents proving the right of the Russian Orthodox Church to an island off the coast of Alaska were discovered by a Yakut scientific expedition in the archive of bibliographer Mikhail Vinokurov, who emigrated from Russia after the 1917 revolution, which is stored in the historical library of the city of Juneau (Alaska).

The length of the island is about 10 km, width 7 km, area 46.06 km². The highest point is 408 m. The population is 242 people (2000), most of whom live in the only settlement on the southwestern coast of the island.

Spruce Island. Photo: deathtotheworld.com

Among the documents collected by Vinokurov, the researchers discovered a certificate dated 1868 from the Russian government commissioner for the cession of North American territories to the Russian Empire to the United States, captain of the second rank Alexei Peschurov, that the island of Elovy (New Valaam), on which the Reverend Herman of Alaska lived, preached and was buried, is transferred to the eternal use of the Russian Orthodox Church. It was Alexey Peschurov who signed the protocol on the transfer of Alaska and the Aleutian Islands to the United States in October 1867.

“Elovy Island cannot be sold or rented; it is a holy island and belongs to the Russian Orthodox Church,” the document says. Peschurov's evidence was found back in 2008, but the official authorities of Yakutia paid attention to them only now.

This is not the first year that I have been seriously interested in this story, because Yakut scientists have been studying the papers for several years and have already organized several expeditions to the USA. 2014 marks the 220th anniversary of the activity of the Russian Orthodox Church in North America, namely the Kodiak Mission - when, if not now, to engage in Russian America? - explains Aisen Nikolaev. - I stand for the restoration of historical justice - the return of Elovy Island to its rightful owners, that is, the Russian Orthodox Church.

Spruce Island.

First Deputy Chairman of the State Duma Committee on International Affairs Svetlana Zhurova (United Russia) is confident that such initiatives must be treated with the utmost caution.

Without seeing the document, it is very difficult to say whether there is a subject for discussion there or not. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will have to deal with this. But in any case, the main thing is not to open Pandora's box. If now everyone starts dividing every island that was incorrectly designed, the world will plunge into chaos, the parliamentarian believes.
In her opinion, the American authorities will perceive with alarm any actions by Russia in relation to Alaska.

You can imagine how tense Americans will be when jokes about Alaska that have filled the Internet suddenly turn into reality,” Zhurova noted.

Spruce Island. Photo: deathtotheworld.com

On March 23, on the BBC, Russia's permanent representative to the EU, Vladimir Chizhov, responded to concerns expressed by US Senator John McCain that the next target of Russian expansion could be Moldova and Transnistria, ironically suggesting that he keep an eye on Alaska. Meanwhile, a humorous petition for the return of Alaska to Russia, posted on the White House website on March 21, has already collected more than 20 thousand signatures. To consider it, 100 thousand votes are needed.

The chairman of the Synodal Department of the Russian Orthodox Church for interaction with society, Archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin, believes that for now the most important thing is to thoroughly study the documents found.

We need to look at what documents we are talking about. To the extent that they can be recognized by the United States authorities today, he says.

However, he drew attention to the fact that the parishes of the Russian Orthodox Church in the territories of Russian America, ceded to the United States, have now become part of the autocephalous Orthodox Church in America, although, according to the agreement, they were supposed to remain within the structure of the Russian Orthodox Church.

Alaska and the Aleutian Islands were sold by the Russian Empire to the United States in 1867 for $7.2 million in gold. Spruce Island with an area of ​​44 square meters. km is part of the Kodiak archipelago. The saint of the Russian Orthodox Church, St. Herman of Alaska, one of the first Orthodox preachers in America, is buried there.

A native of Yakutia, bibliographer Mikhail Vinokurov devoted his life to collecting books and documents on the history of Russian America, the missionary activities of the Russian Orthodox Church and St. Herman of Alaska among the Aleut tribes. In 1919, he left Russia forever and went to Alaska, so his archive ended up in the Juneau Historical Library.