Н. P. Rezanov on the struggle for colonies in the Pacific North in the early XIX century, new archival documents

Scientific article

doi 10.28995/2073-0101-2024-4-1215-1227

For citation

Petrov, Aleksandr Yu., (2024). Н. P. Rezanov on the struggle for colonies in the Pacific North in the early XIX century, new archival documents, Herald of an Archivist, no. 4, pp. 1215-1227, doi 10.28995/2073-0101-2024-4-1215-1227

Petrov, Aleksandr Yu., Institute of World History Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia

Н. P. Rezanov on the struggle for colonies in the Pacific North in the early XIX century, new archival documents

Abstract

The topic of the study is related to the study of the activities of N. P. Rezanov, a full state councilor, chamberlain of His Imperial Majesty's court, chief procurator of the Senate, leader of the First Russian Round-the-World Expedition, founder of the Russian-American Company and the first official envoy of the Russian Empire to Japan. The year 2024 marks the 200th anniversary of the Russian-American Convention on Friendly Relations, Trade, Navigation and Fishing, and in 2025 - the Anglo-Russian Convention, which defined the boundaries in the North Pacific Ocean and showed that the United States of America and Great Britain were becoming the main rivals of the Russian Empire in this region. Meanwhile, N.P. Rezanov wrote about the peculiarities of interaction with these countries back in the early 19th century. Subsequent events have shown the validity of his words and their relevance today in analyzing the Asia-Pacific region (APR). The author cites two documents found in the manuscript departments of the Russian State Library (OR RGB) and the Russian National Library (OR RNB). The text from the OR RGB is more extensive, as this document has not yet been published, unlike the first one, which was partially published in the American Yearbook, but it is difficult to present the ideas of N. P. Rezanov in general without using this document. In each of these documents, N. P. Rezanov addresses the peculiarities of the colonial struggle in the North Pacific. He explains the reasons for the confrontation between the powers and offers his methods of solutions in case of conflict situations. He believed that the interest of foreign countries in the northwest of America increased after the expedition of the English captain J. Cook. The documents are unique in that for the first time they most consistently consider how Russia should act in the North Pacific. N. P. Rezanov shows the importance of private capital and merchants in advancing to the Aleutian Islands and America, the importance of Russia's trade with China, and notes the importance of the Russian Orthodox Church. The possibilities and difficulties in establishing diplomatic relations with Japan are shown. At the same time, special attention is paid to the Kuril Islands, where, according to Rezanov, it is necessary to strengthen ties with the indigenous inhabitants - “furry Kurils” or Ainu. Later on, a number of Rezanov's proposals were adopted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Empire. The research was conducted using traditional methods of historical analysis, as well as an interdisciplinary approach in studying and searching for the meanings of rare and difficult-to-understand words and expressions, to which comments are given. The aim of the publication is to draw the attention of the general scientific community to the identification of new sources of the history of colonization in the North Pacific.

Keywords

Historical sources, N. P. Rezanov, USA, Great Britain, colonies, Pacific Ocean.

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About authors

Petrov Aleksandr Yu., Doctor of Historical Sciences, Russian Academy of Sciences, Institute of World History, chief researcher, Moscow State Linguistic University, professor, Moscow, Russia, +7-495-938-13-44, +7-916-717-89-87, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

ORCID: 0000-0002-1688-4096.

The article was received in the editorial office on 22.04.2024, recommended for publication on 20.09.2024.