The first Russian circumnavigation of the Earth occurred between August 1803 and August 1806. It was carried out by two ships, the Nadezhda and the Neva, under the commands of Adam Johann von Krusenstern and Yuri Lisyansky, respectively.
The main goal was to establish diplomatic and economic relations between Russia and Japan and facilitate fur trading through Chinese ports. The Chinese leg of the expedition was tied to a mission and planned embassy headed by Yury Golovkin. Likewise, the party included a sizeable diplomatic delegation bound for Japan, headed by the court chamberlain and plenipotentiary ambassador Nikolai Rezanov. Rezanov was also the "High Representative" of the Russian-American Company. Rezanov and Krusenstern frequently fought over priorities during the voyage.
The ships set off from Kronstadt on August 7, stopping at Copenhagen, Falmouth, Tenerife, Brazil, Nuku Hiva, and Hawaii. When the expedition reached the Hawaiian Islands in June 1804, the two vessels parted ways – the Nadezhda went to Kamchatka and Japan, while the Neva headed to Kodiak Island, Alaska, where it spent 14 months and participated in the Russian-Tlingit war. The ships reunited in Guangzhou in December 1805, and after leaving China, they sailed together for a short time before returning independently to Kronstadt in August 1806.
In its goal of establishing relations with the Japanese, the expedition failed as Japanese authorities did not allow the envoy to enter the country and refused to establish diplomatic ties. In 1805, Rezanov and his retinue landed in Kamchatka and later began to insert themselves in local politics. For instance, they played a role in the Khvostov Incident and the further deterioration of Russo-Japanese relations.
The expedition made several discoveries in the Pacific, including the naming and mapping of islands, archipelagos, capes, reefs, and straits. In addition to geographical exploration, the crew collected extensive botanical, zoological, and ethnographic information. Many participants in the expedition later published accounts of their travels in multiple languages, while some diaries and journals remained unpublished until the 21st century.
Background
The historian Nikolay Bolhovitinov argues that although the first Russian circumnavigation was carried out in the 19th century, it could have been possible as early as the 18th century. During the 1780s, growing activity by Great Britain, France, and the United States in the North Pacific, threatened Russian interests in the Far East – notably, the Aleutian Islands where the Chukchi people resisted colonization through force. At that time, territorial claims among colonial powers were often justified using comprehensive and original cartographic data. However, Russian cartographers had left large parts of Alaska uncharted, sections that were instead present on James Cook's maps.
On December 22, 1786, Empress Catherine the Great of Russia signed an order directing the Admiralty Board to send the Baltic fleet to Kamchatka via the Cape of Good Hope and Sunda Strait. The 1st rank captain, Grigory Mulovsky headed the squadron; in April 1787, the Admiralty board sent him his orders. Mulovsky was instructed to map the Kuril Islands, pass Sakhalin, and then reaching Nootka Island, annex to Russia "all banks to the starting point of Aleksei Chirikov's discoveries." Russian claims were to be "established" by the planting of cast-iron pillars bearing the state emblem, as well as the distribution of 1,700 medals among the Indigenous population. Mulovsky would not have to go to Europe as his ships were instructed to remain in the Far East and Russian America.
In early 1787, James Trevenen submitted his proposal to Catherine for developing the fur trade in the Pacific. Trevenen's plan called for three ships to sail from Kronstadt to Cape Horn; two ships would stay in Kamchatka while the third delivered furs to China and Japan. Subsequently, Trevenen was appointed as a 2nd Rank captain of the Russian Navy. However, the start of the Russo-Turkish War and Russo-Swedish War led to the cancellation of the expedition.
Between 1791 and 1802, the wealthy merchant Thorkler from Reval (Tallinn) undertook several round-the-world and half-round-the-world expeditions on French ships, visiting places such as Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Nootka Island, Canton, and Kolkata. Correspondence between Thorkler and Count Nikolay Rumyantsev indicates that Thorkler played a significant role in lobbying for Adam Johann von Krusenstern's expedition and organizing his voyages to Kolkata and Canton from 1805 to 1807. Archival documents, like the 1819 Overview of the Russian-American Company, confirm that Russian ships had crossed the equator before Krusenstern's trip.
Krusenstern served under Mulovsky and was likely familiar with his plans for a Pacific expedition. Alongside Lisyansky and Yakov Bering, Krusenstern joined an expedition with the British merchant fleet. Between 1793 and 1799, Krusenstern, Lisyansky, and Bering journeyed to North and South America, India, and China. In 1799, Krusenstern submitted a plan to statesman Petr Soymonov emphasizing the importance of supplying Russian America and trading with China. Irkutsk Governor Larion Nagel also submitted a plan on establishing diplomatic and trading relations with Japan. However, due to the ongoing war with France, none of the projects were implemented.
Plan and equipment
Krusenstern's project and the report of the Russian-American company
After failing to garner government interest in sponsoring his expedition in 1799 and 1800, Krusenstern retreated to his Estonian estate, settling into married life. A new opportunity arose under the rule of Alexander I, as the Russian government faced financial strain due to its involvement in the Second and Third Coalitions against France, leading Krusenstern to resubmit his plan.
Krusenstern's 25-page manuscript, dated January 1, 1802, eventually reached Nikolay Mordvinov, the vice-president of the Admiralty Board just, as the Kamchatka marine expedition was developing. Krusenstern highlighted Russian commercial interests "from which the country was excluded out of its neglect." He argued for robust state support for large, private enterprises to develop shipping in the Pacific and proposed using ports in Northwest America and Kamchatka to strengthen the Russian position in the fur trade while reducing the strength of England and the US.
Goods received in the Far East would be delivered to the Saint Petersburg sea, bypassing Kyakhta, which could, over time, grant the Russian Empire access to Southeast Asian and Indian markets and help establish the Russian East India Company. On July 26, 1802, Alexander I approved the project, granting Krusenstern permission to implement it independently.
On July 29, 1802, Minister of Commerce Nikolay Rumyantsev and Nikolai Rezanov, representing the Main Board of the Russian-American Company, submitted a similar project, referring to Krusenstern's original 1799 proposal. The project sought to free the citizens of the Yakutsk region from heavy overland traffic, strengthen Russian positions in the Pacific, and expand trade with China. Drawing on Krusenstern's suggestion, the project proposed populating Urup Island and establishing trade with Japan through the mediation of the indigenous Ainu. The project required a state loan of 250,000 rubles for eight years to finance the expedition at 2% per annum. Additionally, the plan also suggested granting the merchant Alexander Baranov a title.
Travel plans and command
The government approved the plan proposed by the Russian-American Company (RAC); however, appointing a commander proved complicated. On April 17, 1802, Yuri Lisyansky wrote to Krusenstern, noting that vice-president Mordvinov had inquired about Krusenstern's personal qualities. Initially, however, the RAC's directorate appointed an English skipper, Makmeister, as commander. Only after Count Rumyantsev had intervened on August 7, 1802, was Krusenstern officially designated as the expedition's commander. Lisyansky was also recruited to the RAC shortly after, on August 21.
By July 1802, the RAC was on the verge of bankruptcy and could only sponsor one ship. The directors agreed that the state would fully back the second vessel. During the expedition, the RAC flag had not yet been approved. As a result, the Nadezhda (under the command of Krusenstern) primarily flew St. Andrew's flag, while the Neva flew the national flag.
The expedition aimed to explore the Amur River and nearby areas, find convenient ports for the Russian Pacific fleet, bring cargo to Alaska, and establish trading relations with Japan and Canton. After Alexander I's coronation, the expedition was granted 325 medals distribute among natives and settlers.
On February 20, 1803, Rezanov proposed that he be appointed Ambassador to Japan, a plan officially approved on June 10. At that time, relations between Krusenstern and Rezanov remained neutral. The RAC instructed Captain Krusenstern on May 29, 1803, that he was the "main commander" of the expedition, outranking the embassy officials on his ship. Rezanov's authority extended only to the company clerks bound for Canton.
Before departure, both sloops were stocked with two years of food, supplies, and promised wages. The crew and officers of the Nadezhda were employees of the Imperial Navy, while those aboard the Neva fell under the RAC.
Nikolai Rezanov, though not a professional diplomat, started his court service in Derzhavin's office during the reign of Catherine II. On June 26, 1803, he was elected as an honorary member of the Academy of Science. Later, on July 10, Rezanov received the rank of Court Chamberlain and the Order of Saint Anna, First Class. Leveraging his connections with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he secured the status of a diplomatic agent of the second rank – Extraordinary Envoy and Minister Plenipotentiary.
Historians suggest that Rezanov's appointment to the expedition may have been politically motivated as a form of exile, as he allegedly conspired against Platon Zubov and Peter Ludwig von der Pahlen. The decline of Derzhavin's career also may have sealed Rezanov's fate.
According to the RAC instructions dated July 10, 1803, and a letter from Rumyantsev to Rezanov on May 28, 1803, the expedition was to sail to Kamchatka and Alaska, navigating around Cape Horn through Cape Verde and port Valparaíso in Chile. On return, the ships were to visit Canton and ports in South Asia and India. Additionally, Lisyansky and the Neva were tasked with exploring the Bering Strait. On June 18, 1803, Baron J. K. Odeleben proposed adding stops in Africa to organize the resettlement of Africans to Far Eastern Russia as free colonists. However, the plan was ultimately rejected.
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Chancellor Alexander Vorontsov, ordered Russian embassies in England, Spain, the Netherlands, Portugal, and France to ask their local governments to help the expedition. The British consulate in St. Petersburg allowed the expedition to act on British lands freely.
Finally, both ships were to reach the Hawaiian islands, where Lisyansky would lead the Neva to Russian America while Nadezhda would seek Japan. After wintering on Kamchatka or Kodiak Island, the sloops would reunite and head to Canton. Krusenstern was given the authority to choose the return route independently.
Expedition and purchase of vessels
It is unclear why the RAC bought foreign ships. At the time, the Russian navy had 10 suitable vessels, excluding cargo ships. Rezanov also mentioned that shipbuilder Daniil Masalsky would build a vessel of any size specifically for the voyage. However, the directors decided to buy ships abroad and sent Lisyansky to complete the task.
On September 24, 1802, Lisyansky and shipbuilder Ilya Razumov left for Hamburg but could not find any ships that met the expedition's requirements. They bought two sloops in England: the 16-gun 450-ton Leander (renamed Nadezhda) and the 14-gun 370-ton Thames (renamed Neva). Some officers claimed that Lisyansky conspired with the seller and embezzled the money by buying old ships for the price of new ones. Nadezhda was built around 1795 and had previously been captured by France. Its foremast had been damaged by canister shot, and pieces of the hull had rotted. Having previously sailed to India, Neva was better suited for a circumnavigation, but its rigging needed replacement.
Repairs were not performed in Kronstadt to avoid disciplinary action against Lisyansky. Instead, the foremast and the main mast were replaced in Brazil at the expense of the RAC, even though £5000 had already been spent on initial repairs in England. Krusenstern claimed that both vessels cost around £17000. However, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the cost was £25000. According to the History of the Russian-American Company, Nadezhda cost 82024 silver rubles and, Neva cost 89214 silver rubles. Lisyansky calculated that the overall expedition budget was around 700000 assignation rubles, including £24000 (270000 rubles) for both vessels. In addition, an extra sum of 20,000 Mexican dollars was allocated to maintain Rezanov's retinue.
The ships' poor conditions became clear in Kronstadt on June 5, 1803. The Nadezhda was in a particularly deplorable state. In stormy weather, its hull was constantly leaking and was at risk of flooding. Upon arrival at Kamchatka, the expedition leadership even suggested abandoning the vessel.