Russia in Pacific Waters, 1715-1825
A Survey of the Origins of Russia's Naval Presence in the North and South Pacific
This is the first study in Russian or Western literature of the riseand fall of Russian naval influence in the North Pacific Ocean from thetime of Peter the Great to Tsar Nicholas I. The author deals with aneglected area: inherent tension between Russian naval and mercantileinterests and the origins of international rivalry in the North Pacificat large.
Barratt shows that Russia's motives for early expeditions to thePacific were to promote science, exploration, and trade. But whenimperialist powers vied for territory and resources in the area,military confrontation became a possibility. Rivalries within Russia,and government caution curbed the build-up of any effectivecounterforce and dealt the final blow to Russia's naval ambitions.Her hopes for hegemony in the North Pacific and in Russian NorthAmerica collapsed in 1825, marking the end of an enterprising era forthe Russian navy in Pacific waters. The navy learned from these earlyexperiences that it was incapable of a "great power" role inthe Pacific without an independent, self-sufficient, Pacific-basedfleet.
This book is a major original contribution to its subject. Animpressive list of sources includes accounts in Russian and valuablematerials from Russian archives.
1 The Sea-Route to Kamchatka and the Strait of Anian
2 The Bering Expeditions
3 Furs and Spaniards: Sindt and Krenitsyn
4 Cook's Final Voyage and the Billings and MulovskiiExpeditions
5 The North Pacific Fur Trade and the Navy: Growing Strains
6 The Kruzenshtern-Lisianskii Voyages
7 Rezanov and Baranov: Response and Legacy
8 V.M. Golovnin and Diana
9 The Company under Attack
10 Imperial Ambition in Peacetime: Trade, Discovery, Science
11 The Aftermath of Victory Conclusion and Reflections
Notes
Bibliography
Index