285 years ago, on April 28, 1732, the words were written on the paper: "We have ordered Captain-Commander Bering to send packs to Kamchatka."
Empress Anna Ioannovna, who signed the document, did not even think that she had determined the fate of Russia for centuries to come.
The modern outlines of our country, the concept of an "energy superpower" and "Eurasian cooperation" … All this became possible because the Great Northern Expedition once took place under the general leadership of Vitus Bering.
For what purpose?
Initially, the purpose of the expedition was formulated as follows: "One should make efforts to continue visiting the land from Anadyr (Anadyr) and bringing the Gentiles living there into citizenship." It is believed that the definition "and beyond" meant Alaska. However, this was supposed to be: "Between the famous Kamchatka and American shores from the aforementioned Chukotskago nose (Chukotka) to the Gishpan possession of the province of Mexico."
The "Project on the Conquest of Great and Rich Lands, with Respect for the Secret Proposed" was submitted to the Imperial Chancellery. In the Izvestia section it says: “The lands in Magellania, Uragvoi, Parana, middle Brazil, Amazon are fertile, healthy air, also sugar, coca, indigo, leather, wool, copper, iron, lead, tin, saltpeter, rich mines (mines) silver and gold, golden sand in the ground. That is, the South American colonies were supposed to conquer. 12 thousand soldiers, 60 transport, 30 river vessels, 10 warships were allocated for this. The total estimate is 400 thousand guilders. The “Profits” section promised an annual income of 40 million guilders. It was supposed to "keep there two or three patriarchs and viceroys (governors), so that the spiritual benefit and humility of those peoples were produced."
That is, I wanted to step from Siberia almost to Brazil. The idea of such a global Russian expedition to the Pacific Ocean made a lot of noise in the world.
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Why did they steal the cards?
Already Bering's first expedition became the object of a real spy game. The fact that Bering discovered the strait between Asia and America and proved the possibility of a sea route from Siberia to the south was quickly learned. The British Ambassador in St. Petersburg, Lord John Gindford, wrote to London Secretary of State for Northern Affairs, Lord Chesterfield: “I was lucky to get a copy of the magazine and map of the famous Captain Bering. I hope to send them to Your Excellency by the next courier. But this must be kept secret, because if the Russians find out, then many will be sent to end their lives in that country."
A leak also occurred with the plans for the Second Kamchatka Expedition. A year before the signing of the decree appointing Bering its head, the Spanish representative at the St. Petersburg court hands the English resident a note: "On the intention of the Russian government to establish a settlement in that part of America, which, according to the Madrid court, belongs to the Spanish Catholic Majesty." King George II of England himself intervenes in the matter. Russian Vice-Chancellor Andrei Osterman "is given an unofficial presentation in a friendly and courteous tone so that threats do not slip through." In Russia, they quickly drew conclusions. Bering's plans for the expedition were urgently outplayed, deciding to confine themselves only to Siberia, Kamchatka and Alaska.
What paid for the opening?
It is generally accepted that the reign of Anna Ioannovna was a continuous darkness of corruption, embezzlement and non-reckoning led by Biron. In reality, this "darkness" equipped a complex expedition unprecedented in history. 7 squads: 6 naval and 1 academic, land. Result: complete detailed mapping of the entire northern and eastern coast of Eurasia - from Arkhangelsk to Japan. Primary development of the future Northern Sea Route. Collection of information about peoples, history, minerals and "other wealth of those lands."
The total cost of the project was 360 thousand rubles, an enormous sum for those times. But the price was even higher - human lives. The leader of the expedition Vitus Bering died from scurvy and exhaustion. Vasily Pronchishchev, the head of the Lensko-Yenisei detachment, dies from a broken hip during a storm. At the grave of Pronchishchev, his wife Tatyana, the world's first woman - a polar explorer, dies. Diseases and frosts ruin ordinary participants “without number”. And yet they are successful. For 10 years, the general goals and objectives have been achieved. Russian priority was confirmed by the leading powers. In 1778, the famous Captain James Cook, on his last voyage six months before his death in the stomachs of savages, visited the Alaska region and passed the strait dividing America and Eurasia. And he managed to glorify the name of his colleague: “I must give just praise to the memory of the venerable Captain Bering. His observations are so accurate, and the positions of the shores are so correct, that the strait and the sea itself deserve to be named after him. So Alaska became Russian in the eyes of the world community.
What is the payoff?
At first glance, Russia in this game around the Bering expedition should write down defeat. Indeed, to abandon the promising southern direction with silver and gold, to cede this sphere of influence to Spain, England and Holland is a clear failure. Instead of rich India and Brazil, we got the icy Arctic and cold Siberia, which at first did not really seem the best option. What to take from her? Fur? Fish? Place of exile for convicts?
But interesting things have emerged in the long-term strategy. America's silver and gold mines are depleted. The English and Spanish colonies gained independence, successfully fought against the mother countries and drove out the invaders. And 7 detachments of the Great Northern Expedition on their funny ships, two-thirds of which were broken by ice and sank, gave Russia Siberia. A unique resource pantry, almost inexhaustible, a kind of wonder of the world. And they didn't just donate it, but made it Russia. For ever.