Scientific Readings in the Presidential Library: Russia and the Far East

The Presidential Library hosted scientific readings “History of Relations between Russia and the Far East (marking the 330th Anniversary of the First Russian-Chinese Agreement)”. The event at Senate Square, 3 brought together leading Russian scholars, historians and philologists, whose cooperate with the Far Eastern countries.

Irina Fedorova, Doctor of Historical Sciences, Director of the Institute of Oriental Manuscripts of the Russian Academy of Sciences (the institution is a co-organizer of scientific readings), greeted the public: “Relations between China and Russia have a long history. The conclusion of the Treaty of Nerchinsk between the Russian kingdom and the Qing Empire in 1689 formalized relations that began in the XIII century and developed quite difficult. Our joint event with the Presidential Library has become truly landmark. This is due to the fact that the main reports are devoted to important historical moments, which are still relevant today, since, as you know, there is no future without the past”. 

The Presidential Library as the largest national electronic repository forms a fund that includes numerous unique documents, including those dedicated to the history of the Russian Far East and relations between Russia and border countries. A major electronic collection Point of Attraction - Russian Far East was presented on the institution’s portal in September 2017 during the III Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok,

Materials covering a long period of development and discovery of the Far Eastern territories of our country (more than 700 digital copies) are presented in the form of official certificates, monographs, abstracts, periodicals, albums, photographs, maps, archival files. In addition, there is material which spotlights the current participation of the state in strengthening the Far East as a large economic, geopolitical and cultural region. A short but intuitive video prepared by the specialists of the Presidential Library can give a general idea of ​​this collection.

Historical evidence - reports to the Holy Synod, the first maps of travelers, reports of expeditions in the 18th-19th centuries related to visits to Chukotka, Kamchatka, Sakhalin, Yakutia, Amur Territory and other territories are freely available.

The work of Count Fyodor Petrovich Litke Journey around the world, made by order of Emperor Nicholas I on the sloop of Senyavin in 1826, 1827, 1828 and 1829, of the fleet, captain Fyodor Litke, who was an admiral, a prominent geographer of the XIX century, prominent navigator and scientist, founder of the Russian Geographical Society is also provided. This publication was released as a result of a round-the-world expedition, during which sailors conducted hydrographic, cartographic, magnetic, astronomical studies, discovered new islands, calling them Senyavin islands and visited Russian America.

One of the sections of the collection is devoted to the settlement of the Far East. The Presidential Library’s portal highlights the results of the 1897 census, which were released by the Imperial Russian Geographical Society. The documents give a detailed description of the peoples of the Far East: Yakuts, Chukchi, Koreans, Chinese and many other indigenous people. This historical evidence sentence that the Russian Far East has always been multinational.

The collection also includes modern video materials: films of the series Russia from the Train Window which reflect the beauty of the region without leaving home, videos of the Presidential Library’s multimedia project History of the Russian State: Territories and Borders provide more information about its development.

Another electronic collection Marking the History of Economic Relations in the Far East available on the Presidential Library’s portal, contains digital copies of official documents, studies, including full texts and abstracts of modern dissertations. It reveals the history of economic relations between the countries of the Asia-Pacific region (APR) in the 19th – 21st centuries. For example, Note by the Russian consul in the Philippines Pyotr Dobelle on the opening of maritime trade between Russia, China, Japan, the Philippine Islands and Kamchatka dated 1845, where, in order to develop the Russian Far East, the author sets out in detail the need for economic cooperation with countries APR, and also shows the importance of supporting Russian America.

The collection contains electronic copies of historical materials which spotlight relations with Korea, China and Japan. The development of economic ties, in particular, between Russia and the Land of the Rising Sun makes possible according to many documents, including A letter from the Japanese authorities given to A. Laksman on permission to have one Great Russian state ship have an entrance to Nangasak harbor. It was issued to the Russian embassy during the call to the islands of the world expedition under the command of I. F. Krusenstern. It may also be of interest The draft Emperor Nicholas I letter to the Emperor of Japan on sending Vice Admiral E. V. Putyatin to Japan and the desire to establish trade relations, as well as the Agreement on Trade and Shipping, concluded between Russia and Japan on July 15/28, 1907 of the year.