A century and a half ago, in Washington, Russia and the United States signed an agreement on the transfer of Alaska to America. For many years, there has been heated debate about why this event happened and how to relate to it. The Yegor Gaidar Foundation and the Free Historical Society organized a discussion in which doctors of historical sciences Yuri Bulatov and Alexander Petrov made an attempt to answer all possible questions that arise in connection with this event.
Thus, according to Alexander Petrov, 150 years ago, Russia ceded rather than sold Alaska to the United States. During this time, both sides rethought what happened, which led to the emergence of diametrically opposed points of view on both sides of the ocean. At the same time, those distant events still excite society.
There are several important reasons for this. First, Russia sold a huge territory, which currently occupies key positions in the Asia-Pacific region due to the development of mining and oil extraction. At the same time, it should be noted that this deal concerned not only America and Russia. Countries such as France, Great Britain, Spain, as well as various state structures of these countries were also involved in it.
The sale of Alaska was carried out from December 1866 to March 1867, the money came much later. It was with these funds that the railway communication in the Ryazan direction was built. Until 1880, dividends were paid on the shares of the Russian-American company that controlled these territories.
This structure was organized in 1799. Merchants from certain regions - Irkutsk and Vologda provinces - stood at its origins. The company was organized by them at their own peril and risk. According to the merchants Golikov and Shelekhov, Catherine II was wrong. Shelekhov sent her a detailed message in which he asked his company to approve monopoly privileges for 20 years and give a huge interest-free loan for that period of time, the amount of which was 200 thousand rubles. Ekaterina refused, explaining her refusal by the fact that the main attention was paid to the Crimea, and she was not at all interested in the monopoly.
However, the merchants were very persistent, and with all available means crowded out competitors. Paul I actually recorded the formation of a monopoly company as a fait accompli and granted it privileges and rights in 1799. The merchants also sought to transfer the headquarters to St. Petersburg from Irkutsk, and the adoption of the flag. In other words, it was originally a truly private organization. Over time, representatives of the navy began to be appointed to the places of merchants.
The process of transferring Alaska began with the famous letter from Prince Konstantin Nikolaevich, who was the brother of Emperor Alexander II, to Alexander Gorchakov, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, in which it was discussed the need to cede this territory to the United States of America. Later, he only strengthened his position, not accepting a single amendment.
The transaction itself was completed without notifying the Russian-American company. After its completion, the approval of the Emperor and the Government Senate from Russia became a mere formality. Interestingly, this letter was written exactly ten years before the sale of Alaska.
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According to Petrov, there have always been more partnerships between Russia and the United States than conflicts. For a long period of time after the sale of Alaska, there was an almost friendly relationship between the two countries. Therefore, in relation to Alaska, the scientist is sure, it is inappropriate to use the word "rivalry".
If we talk about the position of Konstantin Nikolaevich, then it is inexplicable and untimely, but not criminal. No specific norms, rules and attitudes that existed in society at that time were violated. From a formal point of view, everything was done correctly. However, how the deal was signed raises many questions.
According to Petrov, the only alternative that existed at that time was to allow the Russian-American company to operate in the region further, to populate this region with immigrants from the center of Russia and Siberia and continue to develop vast territories within the framework of peasant reform and the abolition of serfdom. But the question is whether there would be enough strength for all this or not.
Yuri Bulatov noted that a lot of attention is currently being paid to the sale of Alaska. When the UK handed over Hong Kong to China in 1997, the systemic opposition began to say that Russia needed to return Alaska, which had been taken away from it. Alaska was allegedly not sold, so the Americans must pay interest on the territory.
This topic is of interest not only to scientists, but also to the general public. There are many interesting, emotional publications about this. When in 2014, when Russia annexed Crimea, in a live broadcast of an interview with the President of Russia, in which he was asked a question about Alaska. To this he replied that one should not get excited, and Russia does not need Russian America.
The problem is that Russia does not have any documents that would help establish what actually happened. It is known that on December 16, 1866, a special meeting was held, however, according to the scientist, such meetings were always illegitimate, and the decisions made at them were illegal.
In addition, Bulatov notes, it is necessary to find out what was the reason for such a great sympathy for America of the Romanov dynasty and the secret of selling Alaska, since the secret is present here. The agreement stipulated that all archival documents that existed at that time in Russian America were completely transferred to the United States. It is likely that the Americans had something to hide, and in this way they tried to hedge.
At the same time, the word of the sovereign is the law, if he decided that Alaska should be sold, then it should be so. Konstantin Nikolaevich's letter to Gorchakov in 1857 had its reasons. The minister had to, by the nature of his duties, report on him to the sovereign, despite the fact that he avoided this issue in every possible way. This time, however, the emperor wrote that this idea is worth considering.
The arguments presented in the letter, according to Bulatov, are dangerous in our time. In particular, Konstantin Nikolaevich, being the chairman of the Russian Geographical Society, unexpectedly made the discovery that Alaska was too far from the center of the empire. But the question is, why is it necessary to sell Alaska, and not Kamchatka, Chukotka or Sakhalin?
Another argument given in the letter is that the Russian-American company is not profitable. In reality, this was not the case, since there is documentary evidence that indicates that the income was, albeit not very large. The third point is that the treasury is supposedly empty. Indeed, it was true, but the amount of $ 7.2 million could not significantly change the situation. In those years, the empire's budget was 500 million rubles. $ 7.2 million was only 10 million rubles. In addition, Russia's debt at that time amounted to 1.5 billion rubles.
The letter also said that in the event of a military conflict, Russia will not be able to hold this territory. However, according to the scientist, this is not true. The Crimean War in 1854 was fought not only in the Crimea, but also in the Far East and the Baltic. The fleet, led by the future Admiral Zavoiko, in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, managed to repel the attack of the Anglo-French squadron. By order of Konstantin Nikolaevich in 1863, two squadrons were sent to New York and San Francisco, thereby preventing the civil war in America from becoming an international conflict.
And finally, the last argument, which was cited in the letter - if Russia sells Alaska to America, then wonderful relations between the countries will be restored. In this case, Bulatov notes, it would be better to sell Alaska to Great Britain, since at that time Russia and America did not have a single common border, and it would be much more profitable to conclude a deal with the British.
Such arguments, according to the scientist, are criminal. Currently, on their basis, you can sell any territory, be it the Kuril Islands or the Kaliningrad region. They are also far from the center, the state treasury is empty, there are certain questions regarding the retention of these territories in the event of a military conflict. The relationship with the customer will also improve, but for how long? As the experience of selling Alaska has shown, not for long.
Relations between Russia and America were not friendly, as evidenced by the speed of the transaction and certain facts.
Interesting fact: Russia in 1863 signed an agreement with the United States to conduct a telegraph through Siberia with access to the territory of Russian America. However, in February 1867, about a month before the sale of Alaska, the Americans canceled this agreement, stating that they intended to conduct a telegraph across the Atlantic. The public's attitude to this fact was extremely negative. For four years, the Americans actually conducted intelligence activities in Russia, after which they suddenly abandoned the project.
If we talk about the deal to sell Alaska, Bulatov notes, then it can be called an agreement between the winner and the loser. The wording speaks for itself: America has the right, and Russia is obliged to fulfill the conditions.
Thus, the scientist summed up, the Romanov dynasty had mercantile relations with the United States, and not at all friendly. Plus, society didn't know what was going on. Interior Minister Valuev, Prime Minister Gagarin and Minister of War Milyutin learned about the fact of the transaction from the newspapers. If they were not informed, then there was a danger that they would be against it. Relations between Russia and the United States of America were not friendly.