Who was part of the Russian Empire? Territorial composition of the Russian Empire

There were many empires in the world that were famous for their wealth, luxurious palaces and temples, conquests and culture. Among the greatest of them are such powerful states as the Roman, Byzantine, Persian, Holy Roman, Ottoman, and British empires.

Russia on the historical world map

The empires of the world collapsed, disintegrated, and in their place separate independent states were formed. The Russian Empire, which existed for 196 years, from 1721 to 1917, did not escape a similar fate.

It all started with the Principality of Moscow, which, thanks to the conquests of princes and kings, grew to include new lands in the west and east. Victorious wars allowed Russia to take possession of important territories that opened the country's path to the Baltic and Black Seas.

Russia became an empire in 1721, when Tsar Peter the Great accepted the imperial title by decision of the Senate.

Territory and composition of the Russian Empire

In terms of the size and extent of its possessions, Russia ranked second in the world, second only to the British Empire, which owned numerous colonies. At the beginning of the 20th century, the territory of the Russian Empire included:

• 78 provinces + 8 Finnish;
• 21 regions;
• 2 districts.

The provinces consisted of counties, the latter were divided into camps and sections. The empire had the following administrative-territorial administration:

Many lands were annexed to the Russian Empire voluntarily, and some as a result of aggressive campaigns. The territories that became part of it at their own request were:

• Georgia;
• Armenia;
• Abkhazia;
• Tyva Republic;
• Ossetia;
• Ingushetia;
• Ukraine.

During the foreign colonial policy of Catherine II, the Kuril Islands, Chukotka, Crimea, Kabarda (Kabardino-Balkaria), Belarus and the Baltic states became part of the Russian Empire. Part of Ukraine, Belarus and the Baltic states went to Russia after the division of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (modern Poland).

Russian Empire Square

The territory of the state stretched from the Arctic Ocean to the Black Sea and from the Baltic Sea to the Pacific Ocean, occupying two continents - Europe and Asia. In 1914, before World War I, the area of ​​the Russian Empire was 69,245 square meters. kilometers, and the length of its borders was as follows:

Let's stop and talk about individual territories of the Russian Empire.

Grand Duchy of Finland

Finland became part of the Russian Empire in 1809, after a peace treaty was signed with Sweden, according to which it ceded this territory. The capital of the Russian Empire was now covered by new lands, which protected St. Petersburg from the north.

When Finland became part of the Russian Empire, it retained great autonomy, despite Russian absolutism and autocracy. It had its own constitution, according to which power in the principality was divided into executive and legislative. The legislative body was the Sejm. Executive power belonged to the Imperial Finnish Senate, it consisted of eleven people elected by the Diet. Finland had its own currency - Finnish marks, and in 1878 received the right to have a small army.

Finland, as part of the Russian Empire, was famous for the coastal city of Helsingfors, where not only the Russian intelligentsia, but also the reigning house of the Romanovs loved to relax. This city, which is now called Helsinki, was chosen by many Russian people, who happily vacationed at resorts and rented dachas from local residents.

After the strikes of 1917 and thanks to the February Revolution, the independence of Finland was declared and it seceded from Russia.

Annexation of Ukraine to Russia

Right-bank Ukraine became part of the Russian Empire during the reign of Catherine II. The Russian empress first destroyed the hetmanate, and then the Zaporozhye Sich. In 1795, the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth was finally divided, and its lands went to Germany, Austria and Russia. Thus, Belarus and Right Bank Ukraine became part of the Russian Empire.

After the Russian-Turkish War of 1768-1774. Catherine the Great annexed the territory of modern Dnepropetrovsk, Kherson, Odessa, Nikolaev, Lugansk and Zaporozhye regions. As for Left Bank Ukraine, it voluntarily became part of Russia in 1654. Ukrainians fled from social and religious repression of the Poles and asked for help from the Russian Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich. He, together with Bogdan Khmelnitsky, concluded the Pereyaslav Treaty, according to which Left Bank Ukraine became part of the Muscovite kingdom with autonomy rights. Not only Cossacks took part in the Rada, but also ordinary people who made this decision.

Crimea - the pearl of Russia

The Crimean Peninsula was incorporated into the Russian Empire in 1783. On July 9, the famous Manifesto was read out at the Ak-Kaya rock, and the Crimean Tatars expressed their consent to become subjects of Russia. First, the noble Murzas, and then ordinary residents of the peninsula, took an oath of allegiance to the Russian Empire. After this, festivities, games and celebrations began. Crimea became part of the Russian Empire after the successful military campaign of Prince Potemkin.

This was preceded by difficult times. The Crimean coast and Kuban were the possessions of the Turks and Crimean Tatars from the end of the 15th century. During the wars with the Russian Empire, the latter gained a certain independence from Turkey. The rulers of Crimea changed quickly, and some occupied the throne two or three times.

Russian soldiers more than once suppressed revolts organized by the Turks. The last Khan of Crimea, Shahin-Girey, dreamed of making a European power out of the peninsula and wanted to carry out military reform, but no one wanted to support his initiatives. Taking advantage of the confusion, Prince Potemkin recommended that Catherine the Great incorporate Crimea into the Russian Empire through a military campaign. The Empress agreed, but on one condition: that the people themselves express their consent to this. Russian troops treated the residents of Crimea peacefully and showed them kindness and care. Shahin-Girey abdicated power, and the Tatars were guaranteed freedom to practice religion and observe local traditions.

The easternmost edge of the empire

Russian exploration of Alaska began in 1648. Semyon Dezhnev, a Cossack and traveler, led an expedition that reached Anadyr in Chukotka. Having learned about this, Peter I sent Bering to check this information, but the famous navigator did not confirm Dezhnev’s facts - the fog hid the coast of Alaska from his team.

It was only in 1732 that the crew of the ship St. Gabriel first landed in Alaska, and in 1741 Bering studied the coast of both it and the Aleutian Islands in detail. Gradually, exploration of the new area began, merchants arrived and formed settlements, built a capital and called it Sitka. Alaska, as part of the Russian Empire, was not yet famous for its gold, but for its fur-bearing animals. The furs of various animals were mined here, which were in demand both in Russia and in Europe.

Under Paul I, the Russian-American Company was organized, which had the following powers:

• she ruled Alaska;
• could organize an armed army and ships;
• have your own flag.

Russian colonialists found a common language with the local people - the Aleuts. The priests learned their language and translated the Bible. The Aleuts were baptized, girls willingly married Russian men and wore traditional Russian clothes. The Russians never made friends with another tribe, the Koloshi. It was a warlike and very cruel tribe that practiced cannibalism.

Why did they sell Alaska?

These vast territories were sold to the United States for $7.2 million. The agreement was signed in the US capital - Washington. The reasons for the sale of Alaska have recently been called different.

Some say that the reason for the sale was the human factor and the reduction in the number of sable and other fur-bearing animals. There were very few Russians living in Alaska, their number was 1000 people. Others hypothesize that Alexander II was afraid of losing the eastern colonies, so, before it was too late, he decided to sell Alaska for the price that was offered.

Most researchers agree that the Russian Empire decided to get rid of Alaska because there were no human resources to cope with the development of such distant lands. The government was thinking about whether to sell the Ussuri region, which was sparsely populated and poorly managed. However, the hotheads cooled down, and Primorye remained part of Russia.

Russian empire - a state that existed from November 1721 to March 1917.

The empire was created after the end of the Northern War with Sweden, when Tsar Peter the First proclaimed himself emperor, and ended its existence after the February Revolution of 1917 and the last Emperor Nicholas II abdicated his imperial powers and abdicated the throne.

At the beginning of 1917, the population of this huge power was 178 million people.

The Russian Empire had two capitals: from 1721 to 1728 - St. Petersburg, from 1728 to 1730 - Moscow, from 1730 to 1917 - St. Petersburg again.

The Russian Empire had vast territories: from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Black Sea in the south, from the Baltic Sea in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east.

The major cities of the empire were St. Petersburg, Moscow, Warsaw, Odessa, Lodz, Riga, Kiev, Kharkov, Tiflis (modern Tbilisi), Tashkent, Vilna (modern Vilnius), Saratov, Kazan, Rostov-on-Don, Tula, Astrakhan, Ekaterinoslav (modern Dnepropetrovsk), Baku, Chisinau, Helsingfors (modern Helsinki).

The Russian Empire was divided into provinces, regions and districts.

As of 1914, the Russian Empire was divided into:

a) provinces - Arkhangelsk, Astrakhan, Bessarabian, Vilna, Vitebsk, Vladimir, Vologda, Volyn, Voronezh, Vyatka, Grodno, Ekaterinoslav, Kazan, Kaluga, Kiev, Kovno, Kostroma, Courland, Kursk, Livonia, Minsk, Mogilev, Moscow, Nizhny Novgorod, Novgorod, Olonets, Orenburg, Oryol, Penza, Perm, Podolsk, Poltava, Pskov, Ryazan, Samara, St. Petersburg, Saratov, Simbirsk, Smolensk, Tavricheskaya, Tambov, Tver, Tula, Ufa, Kharkov, Kherson, Kholm, Chernihiv, Estland, Yaroslavl, Volyn, Podolsk, Kiev, Vilna, Kovno, Grodno, Minsk, Mogilev, Vitebsk, Courland, Livonia, Estland, Warsaw, Kalisz, Kieleck, Lomzhinsk, Lublin, Petrokovsk, Plock, Radom, Suwalki, Baku, Elizavetpolskaya (Elisavetpolskaya), Kutaisskaya, Stavropolskaya, Tiflisskaya, Black Sea, Erivanskaya, Yeniseiskaya, Irkutskskaya, Tobolskaya, Tomskaya, Abo-Björneborgskaya, Vazaskaya, Vyborgskaya, Kuopioskaya, Nielanskaya (Nylandskaya), St. Michelskaya, Tavastguskaya (Tavastgusskaya), Uleaborgskaya

b) regions - Batumi, Dagestan, Kars, Kuban, Terek, Amur, Transbaikal, Kamchatka, Primorskaya, Sakhalin, Yakut, Akmola, Transcaspian, Samarkand, Semipalatinsk, Semirechensk, Syr-Darya, Turgai, Ural, Fergana, Don Army Region;

c) districts - Sukhumi and Zagatala.

It would be worth mentioning that the Russian Empire in its last years before its collapse included once independent countries - Finland, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia.

The Russian Empire was ruled by one royal dynasty - the Romanovs. Over the 296 years of the empire's existence, it was ruled by 10 emperors and 4 empresses.

The first Russian emperor Peter the Great (reigned in the Russian Empire 1721 - 1725) held this rank for 4 years, although the total time of his reign was 43 years.

Peter the Great set as his goal the transformation of Russia into a civilized country.

Over the last 4 years of his stay on the imperial throne, Peter carried out a number of important reforms.

Peter carried out a reform of public administration, introduced the administrative-territorial division of the Russian Empire into provinces, created a regular army and a powerful navy. Peter also abolished church autonomy and subordinated

church of the imperial power. Even before the formation of the empire, Peter founded St. Petersburg, and in 1712 he moved the capital there from Moscow.

Under Peter, the first newspaper was opened in Russia, many educational institutions were opened for nobles, and in 1705 the first general education gymnasium was opened. Peter also put things in order in the preparation of all official documents, prohibiting the use of half names in them (Ivashka, Senka, etc.), prohibited forced marriage, removing the hat and kneeling when the king appeared, and also allowed marital divorces. Under Peter, a whole network of military and naval schools was opened for the children of soldiers, drunkenness was prohibited at feasts and meetings, and the wearing of a beard by government officials was prohibited.

To improve the educational level of the nobles, Peter introduced compulsory study of a foreign language (in those days - French). The role of the boyars was leveled, many boyars from yesterday's semi-literate peasants turned into educated nobles.

Peter the Great forever deprived Sweden of the status of an aggressor country, defeating the Swedish army led by the Swedish king Charles XII near Poltava in 1709.

During the reign of Peter the Russian Empire annexed to its possessions the territory of modern Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, as well as the Karelian Isthmus and part of Southern Finland. In addition, Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina (the territory of modern Moldova and Ukraine) were included in Russia.

After the death of Peter, Catherine I ascended the imperial throne.

The Empress reigned briefly, only two years (reign 1725 - 1727). However, its power was rather weak and was actually in the hands of Alexander Menshikov, Peter’s comrade-in-arms. Catherine showed interest only in the fleet. In 1726, the Supreme Privy Council was created, which governed the country under the formal chairmanship of Catherine. During Catherine's time, bureaucracy and embezzlement flourished. Catherine only signed all the papers that were handed over to her by representatives of the Supreme Privy Council. There was a struggle for power within the council itself, and reforms in the empire were suspended. During the reign of Catherine the First, Russia did not wage any wars.

The next Russian Emperor Peter II also reigned briefly, only three years (reign 1727 - 1730). Peter the Second became Emperor when he was only eleven years old, and he died at the age of fourteen from smallpox. In fact, Peter did not rule the empire; in such a short period he did not even have time to show interest in state affairs. Real power in the country continued to be in the hands of the Supreme Privy Council and Alexander Menshikov. Under this formal ruler, all the undertakings of Peter the Great were leveled out. The Russian clergy made attempts to secede from the state; the capital was moved from St. Petersburg to Moscow, the historical capital of the former Moscow principality and the Russian state. The army and navy fell into decay. Corruption and massive theft of money from the state treasury flourished.

The next Russian ruler was Empress Anna (reigned 1730 – 1740). However, the country was really ruled by her favorite Ernest Biron, Duke of Courland.

The powers of Anna herself were greatly curtailed. Without the approval of the Supreme Privy Council, the empress could not impose taxes, declare war, spend the state treasury at her own discretion, promote high ranks above the rank of colonel, or appoint an heir to the throne.

Under Anna, the proper maintenance of the fleet and the construction of new ships were resumed.

It was under Anna that the capital of the empire was returned back to St. Petersburg.

After Anna, Ivan VI became emperor (reigned 1740) and became the youngest emperor in the history of Tsarist Russia. He was placed on the throne at the age of two months, but Ernest Biron continued to have real power in the empire.

The reign of Ivan VI turned out to be short. Two weeks later there was a palace coup. Biron was removed from power. The infant emperor remained on the throne for just over a year. During his formal reign, no significant events occurred in the life of the Russian Empire.

And in 1741, Empress Elizabeth ascended to the Russian throne (reigned 1741 – 1762).

During the time of Elizabeth, Russia returned to Peter's reforms. The Supreme Privy Council, which for many years replaced the real power of the Russian emperors, was liquidated. The death penalty was abolished. Noble privileges were formalized by law.

During the reign of Elizabeth, Russia took part in a number of wars. In the Russian-Swedish war (1741 - 1743), Russia again, like Peter the Great, won a convincing victory over the Swedes, winning a significant part of Finland from them. Then followed the brilliant Seven Years' War against Prussia (1753-1760), which ended with the capture of Berlin by Russian troops in 1760.

During the time of Elizabeth, the first university was opened in Russia (in Moscow).

However, the empress herself had weaknesses - she often loved to organize luxurious feasts, which significantly emptied the treasury.

The next Russian emperor, Peter III, reigned for only 186 days (reign year 1762). Peter was energetically involved in state affairs; during his short stay on the throne, he abolished the Office of Secret Affairs, created the State Bank and for the first time introduced paper money into circulation in the Russian Empire. A decree was created prohibiting landowners from killing and maiming peasants. Peter wanted to reform the Orthodox Church according to the Protestant model. The document “Manifesto on the Freedom of the Nobility” was created, which legally established the nobility as a privileged class in Russia. Under this tsar, nobles were exempted from forced military service. All high-ranking nobles exiled during the reign of previous emperors and empresses were released from exile. However, another palace coup prevented this sovereign from further working properly and reigning for the good of the empire.

Empress Catherine II (reigned 1762 – 1796) ascends the throne.

Catherine the Second, along with Peter the Great, is considered one of the best empresses, whose efforts contributed to the development of the Russian Empire. Catherine came to power through a palace coup, overthrowing her husband Peter III from the throne, who was cold towards her and treated her with undisguised disdain.

The period of Catherine's reign had the most tragic consequences for the peasants - they were completely enslaved.

However, under this empress, the Russian Empire significantly moved its borders to the west. After the division of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, Eastern Poland became part of the Russian Empire. Ukraine also joined it.

Catherine carried out the liquidation of the Zaporozhye Sich.

During the reign of Catherine, the Russian Empire victoriously ended the war with the Ottoman Empire, taking Crimea from it. As a result of this war, Kuban also became part of the Russian Empire.

Under Catherine, there was a massive opening of new gymnasiums throughout Russia. Education became available to all city residents, except peasants.

Catherine founded a number of new cities in the empire.

During the time of Catherine, a major uprising took place in the empire led by

Emelyan Pugachev - as a consequence of further enslavement and enslavement of the peasants.

The reign of Paul I that followed Catherine did not last long - only five years. Paul introduced cruel cane discipline in the army. Corporal punishment for nobles was reintroduced. All nobles were required to serve in the army. However, unlike Catherine, Paul improved the situation of the peasants. Corvée was limited to only three days a week. The grain tax in kind from peasants was abolished. The sale of peasants along with land was prohibited. It was forbidden to separate peasant families during sale. Fearing the influence of the recent Great French Revolution, Paul introduced censorship and banned the import of foreign books.

Pavel died unexpectedly in 1801 from apoplexy.

His successor, Emperor Alexander I (reigned 1801 - 1825), during his time on the throne, led a victorious Patriotic War against Napoleonic France in 1812. During the reign of Alexander, the Georgian lands - Megrelia and the Imeretian kingdom - became part of the Russian Empire.

Also during the reign of Alexander the First, a successful war was fought with the Ottoman Empire (1806-1812), which ended with the annexation of part of Persia (the territory of modern Azerbaijan) to Russia.

As a result of the next Russian-Swedish war (1806 - 1809), the territory of all of Finland became part of Russia.

The Emperor died unexpectedly of typhoid fever in Taganrog in 1825.

One of the most despotic emperors of the Russian Empire, Nicholas the First (reigned 1825 - 1855), ascends the throne.

On the very first day of Nicholas's reign, the Decembrist uprising took place in St. Petersburg. The uprising ended disastrously for them - artillery was used against them. The leaders of the uprising were imprisoned in the Peter and Paul Fortress in St. Petersburg and were soon executed.

In 1826, the Russian army had to defend its distant borders from the troops of the Persian Shah who unexpectedly invaded Transcaucasia. The Russian-Persian War lasted two years. At the end of the war, Armenia was taken from Persia.

In 1830, during the reign of Nicholas I, an uprising against the Russian autocracy took place in Poland and Lithuania. In 1831, the uprising was suppressed by Russian regular troops.

Under Nicholas the First, the first railway from St. Petersburg to Tsarskoe Selo was built. And by the end of his reign, the construction of the St. Petersburg-Moscow railway was completed.

During the time of Nicholas I, the Russian Empire waged another war with the Ottoman Empire. The war ended with the preservation of Crimea as part of Russia, but the entire Russian navy, according to the agreement, was removed from the peninsula.

The next emperor, Alexander II (reigned 1855 - 1881), completely abolished serfdom in 1861. Under this tsar, the Caucasian War was carried out against detachments of Chechen highlanders under the leadership of Shamil, and the Polish uprising of 1864 was suppressed. Turkestan (modern Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Turkmenistan) was annexed.

Under this emperor, Alaska was sold to America (1867).

The next war with the Ottoman Empire (1877-1878) ended with the liberation of Bulgaria, Serbia and Montenegro from the Ottoman yoke.

Alexander II is the only Russian emperor to die a violent unnatural death. A member of the Narodnaya Volya organization, Ignatius Grinevetsky, threw a bomb at him while he was walking along the embankment of the Catherine Canal in St. Petersburg. The emperor died on the same day.

Alexander III becomes the penultimate Russian emperor (reigned 1881 - 1894).

Under this tsar, the industrialization of Russia began. Railways were built throughout the European part of the empire. The telegraph became widespread. Telephone communication was introduced. In large cities (Moscow, St. Petersburg) electrification was carried out. A radio appeared.

Under this emperor, Russia did not wage any wars.

The last Russian emperor, Nicholas II (reigned 1894 - 1917), took the throne at a difficult time for the empire.

In 1905-1906, the Russian Empire had to fight with Japan, which captured the Far Eastern port of Port Arthur.

Also in 1905, an armed uprising of the working class took place in the largest cities of the empire, which seriously undermined the foundations of autocracy. The work of the Social Democrats (future communists) led by Vladimir Ulyanov-Lenin unfolded.

After the revolution of 1905, tsarist power was seriously limited and transferred to local city Dumas.

The First World War, which began in 1914, put an end to the further existence of the Russian Empire. Nicholas was not ready for such a protracted and exhausting war. The Russian army suffered a number of crushing defeats from the troops of the Kaiser's Germany. This accelerated the collapse of the empire. Cases of desertions from the front have become more frequent among the troops. Looting flourished in the rear cities.

The Tsar's inability to cope with the difficulties that arose in the war and within Russia provoked a domino effect, in which within two or three months the huge and once powerful Russian Empire was on the verge of collapse. In addition to this, revolutionary sentiments intensified in Petrograd and Moscow.

In February 1917, a provisional government came to power in Petrograd, staging a palace coup and depriving Nicholas II of real power. The last emperor was asked to leave Petrograd with his family, which Nicholas immediately took advantage of.

On March 3, 1917, at Pskov station in the carriage of his imperial train, Nicholas II officially abdicated the throne, deposing himself as the Russian emperor.

The Russian Empire quietly and peacefully ceased to exist, giving way to the future empire of socialism - the USSR.

At the beginning of the 19th century. The borders of Russian possessions in North America and northern Europe were officially consolidated. The St. Petersburg Conventions of 1824 determined the boundaries with American () and English possessions. The Americans pledged not to settle north of 54°40′ N. w. on the coast, and the Russians to the south. The border of Russian and British possessions ran along the Pacific coast from 54° N. w. up to 60° N. w. at a distance of 10 miles from the ocean's edge, taking into account all the curves of the coast. The Russian-Norwegian border was established by the St. Petersburg Russian-Swedish Convention of 1826.

New wars with Turkey and Iran led to further expansion of the territory of the Russian Empire. According to the Akkerman Convention with Turkey in 1826, it secured Sukhum, Anaklia and Redoubt-Kale. In accordance with the Treaty of Adrianople of 1829, Russia received the mouth of the Danube and the Black Sea coast from the mouth of the Kuban to the post of St. Nicholas, including Anapa and Poti, as well as the Akhaltsikhe pashalyk. During these same years, Balkaria and Karachay joined Russia. In 1859-1864. Russia included Chechnya, mountainous Dagestan and mountain peoples (Adygs, etc.), who fought wars with Russia for their independence.

After the Russian-Persian War of 1826-1828. Russia received Eastern Armenia (Erivan and Nakhichevan khanates), which was recognized by the Turkmanchay Treaty of 1828.

Russia's defeat in the Crimean War with Turkey, which acted in alliance with Great Britain, France and the Kingdom of Sardinia, led to its loss of the mouth of the Danube and the southern part of Bessarabia, which was approved by the Peace of Paris in 1856. At the same time, the Black Sea was recognized as neutral. Russian-Turkish War 1877-1878 ended with the annexation of Ardahan, Batum and Kars and the return of the Danube part of Bessarabia (without the mouths of the Danube).

The borders of the Russian Empire in the Far East were established, which had previously been largely uncertain and controversial. According to the Treaty of Shimoda with Japan in 1855, a Russian-Japanese maritime border was drawn in the area of ​​the Kuril Islands along the Frieze Strait (between the islands of Urup and Iturup), and Sakhalin Island was recognized as undivided between Russia and Japan (in 1867 it was declared the joint possession of these countries). The differentiation of Russian and Japanese island possessions continued in 1875, when Russia, under the Treaty of St. Petersburg, ceded the Kuril Islands (north of the Frieze Strait) to Japan in exchange for recognition of Sakhalin as Russian possession. However, after the war with Japan of 1904-1905. According to the Treaty of Portsmouth, Russia was forced to cede to Japan the southern half of Sakhalin Island (from the 50th parallel).

Under the terms of the Aigun Treaty (1858) with China, Russia received territories along the left bank of the Amur from the Argun to the mouth, previously considered undivided, and Primorye (Ussuri Territory) was recognized as common possession. The Beijing Treaty of 1860 formalized the final annexation of Primorye to Russia. In 1871, Russia annexed the Ili region with the city of Gulja, which belonged to the Qing Empire, but after 10 years it was returned to China. At the same time, the border in the area of ​​Lake Zaisan and the Black Irtysh was corrected in favor of Russia.

In 1867, the Tsarist government ceded all of its colonies to the United States for $7.2 million.

From the middle of the 19th century. continued what began in the 18th century. advancement of Russian possessions into Central Asia. In 1846, the Kazakh Senior Zhuz (Great Horde) announced the voluntary acceptance of Russian citizenship, and in 1853 the Kokand fortress of Ak-Mosque was conquered. In 1860, the annexation of Semirechye was completed, and in 1864-1867. parts of the Kokand Khanate (Chimkent, Tashkent, Khojent, Zachirchik region) and the Bukhara Emirate (Ura-Tube, Jizzakh, Yany-Kurgan) were annexed. In 1868, the Bukhara emir recognized himself as a vassal of the Russian Tsar, and the Samarkand and Katta-Kurgan districts of the emirate and the Zeravshan region were annexed to Russia. In 1869, the coast of the Krasnovodsk Bay was annexed to Russia, and the following year the Mangyshlak Peninsula. According to the Gendemian Peace Treaty with the Khiva Khanate in 1873, the latter recognized vassal dependence on Russia, and the lands along the right bank of the Amu Darya became part of Russia. In 1875, the Khanate of Kokand became a vassal of Russia, and in 1876 it was included in the Russian Empire as the Fergana region. In 1881-1884. lands inhabited by Turkmens were annexed to Russia, and in 1885 the Eastern Pamirs were annexed. Agreements of 1887 and 1895 Russian and Afghan possessions were demarcated along the Amu Darya and the Pamirs. Thus, the formation of the border of the Russian Empire in Central Asia was completed.

In addition to the lands annexed to Russia as a result of wars and peace treaties, the country's territory increased due to newly discovered lands in the Arctic: Wrangel Island was discovered in 1867, in 1879-1881. - De Long Islands, in 1913 - Severnaya Zemlya Islands.

Pre-revolutionary changes in Russian territory culminated in the establishment of a protectorate over the Uriankhai region (Tuva) in 1914.

Geographical exploration, discovery and mapping

European part

Among the geographical discoveries in the European part of Russia, the discovery of the Donetsk Ridge and the Donetsk Coal Basin made by E.P. Kovalevsky in 1810-1816 should be mentioned. and in 1828

Despite some setbacks (in particular, the defeat in the Crimean War of 1853-1856 and the loss of territory as a result of the Russian-Japanese War of 1904-1905), the Russian Empire at the beginning of the First World War possessed vast territories and was the largest country in the world by area.

Academic expeditions of V. M. Severgin and A. I. Sherer in 1802-1804. to the north-west of Russia, Belarus, the Baltic states and Finland were devoted mainly to mineralogical research.

The period of geographical discoveries in the populated European part of Russia is over. In the 19th century expeditionary research and its scientific synthesis were mainly thematic. Of these, we can name the zoning (mainly agricultural) of European Russia into eight latitudinal stripes, proposed by E. F. Kankrin in 1834; botanical and geographical zoning of European Russia by R. E. Trautfetter (1851); studies of the natural conditions of the Baltic and Caspian Seas, the state of fishing and other industries there (1851-1857), carried out by K. M. Baer; N. A. Severtsov’s work (1855) on the fauna of the Voronezh province, in which he showed deep connections between the fauna and physical-geographical conditions, and also established patterns of distribution of forests and steppes in connection with the nature of the relief and soils; classical soil research by V.V. Dokuchaev in the chernozem zone, begun in 1877; a special expedition led by V.V. Dokuchaev, organized by the Forestry Department to comprehensively study the nature of the steppes and find ways to combat drought. In this expedition, a stationary research method was used for the first time.

Caucasus

The annexation of the Caucasus to Russia necessitated the study of new Russian lands, the knowledge of which was poor. In 1829, the Caucasian expedition of the Academy of Sciences, led by A. Ya. Kupfer and E. X. Lenz, explored the Rocky Range in the Greater Caucasus system and determined the exact heights of many mountain peaks of the Caucasus. In 1844-1865 The natural conditions of the Caucasus were studied by G.V. Abikh. He studied in detail the orography and geology of the Greater and Lesser Caucasus, Dagestan, and the Colchis Lowland, and compiled the first general orographic diagram of the Caucasus.

Ural

Among the works that developed the geographical understanding of the Urals are the description of the Middle and Southern Urals, made in 1825-1836. A. Ya. Kupfer, E. K. Hoffman, G. P. Gelmersen; publication of “Natural History of the Orenburg Region” by E. A. Eversman (1840), which provides a comprehensive description of the nature of this territory with a well-founded natural division; expedition of the Russian Geographical Society to the Northern and Polar Urals (E.K. Goffman, V.G. Bragin), during which the peak of Konstantinov Kamen was discovered, the Pai-Khoi ridge was discovered and explored, an inventory was compiled, which served as the basis for drawing up a map of the explored part of the Urals . A notable event was the journey in 1829 of the outstanding German naturalist A. Humboldt to the Urals, Rudny Altai and the shores of the Caspian Sea.

Siberia

In the 19th century Research continued in Siberia, many areas of which were very poorly studied. In Altai in the 1st half of the century the sources of the river were discovered. Katun, Lake Teletskoye was explored (1825-1836, A. A. Bunge, F. V. Gebler), the Chulyshman and Abakan rivers (1840-1845, P. A. Chikhachev). During his travels, P. A. Chikhachev carried out physical, geographical and geological research.

In 1843-1844. A.F. Middendorf collected extensive material on orography, geology, climate, permafrost and the organic world of Eastern Siberia and the Far East; for the first time, information was obtained about the nature of Taimyr, the Aldan Highlands, and the Stanovoy Range. Based on the travel materials, A. F. Middendorf wrote in 1860-1878. published “Journey to the North and East of Siberia” - one of the best examples of systematic reports on the nature of the explored territories. This work provides characteristics of all the main natural components, as well as the population, shows the relief features of Central Siberia, the uniqueness of its climate, presents the results of the first scientific study of permafrost, and gives the zoogeographic division of Siberia.

In 1853-1855. R. K. Maak and A. K. Sondgagen studied the orography, geology and life of the population of the Central Yakut Plain, the Central Siberian Plateau, the Vilyui Plateau, and surveyed the Vilyui River.

In 1855-1862. The Siberian expedition of the Russian Geographical Society carried out topographic surveys, astronomical determinations, geological and other studies in the south of Eastern Siberia and the Amur region.

A large amount of research was carried out in the second half of the century in the mountains of southern Eastern Siberia. In 1858, geographical research in the Sayan Mountains was carried out by L. E. Schwartz. During them, topographer Kryzhin carried out a topographic survey. In 1863-1866. Research in Eastern Siberia and the Far East was carried out by P. A. Kropotkin, who paid special attention to the relief and geological structure. He explored the Oka, Amur, Ussuri rivers, the Sayan ridges, and discovered the Patom Highlands. The Khamar-Daban ridge, the coast of Lake Baikal, the Angara region, the Selenga basin, the Eastern Sayan were explored by A. L. Chekanovsky (1869-1875), I. D. Chersky (1872-1882). In addition, A. L. Chekanovsky explored the basins of the Lower Tunguska and Olenyok rivers, and I. D. Chersky explored the upper reaches of the Lower Tunguska. A geographical, geological and botanical survey of the Eastern Sayan was carried out during the Sayan expedition by N.P. Bobyr, L.A. Yachevsky, and Ya.P. Prein. The study of the Sayan mountain system in 1903 was continued by V.L. Popov. In 1910, he also carried out a geographical study of the border strip between Russia and China from Altai to Kyakhta.

In 1891-1892 During his last expedition, I. D. Chersky explored the Momsky ridge, the Nerskoye Plateau, and discovered three high mountain ranges behind the Verkhoyansk ridge: Tas-Kystabyt, Ulakhan-Chistai and Tomuskhay.

Far East

Research continued on Sakhalin, the Kuril Islands and the adjacent seas. In 1805, I. F. Kruzenshtern explored the eastern and northern shores of Sakhalin and the northern Kuril Islands, and in 1811, V. M. Golovnin made an inventory of the middle and southern parts of the Kuril ridge. In 1849, G.I. Nevelskoy confirmed and proved the navigability of the Amur mouth for large ships. In 1850-1853. G.I. Nevelsky and others continued their studies of the Tatar Strait, Sakhalin, and adjacent parts of the mainland. In 1860-1867 Sakhalin was explored by F.B. Schmidt, P.P. Glen, G.W. Shebunin. In 1852-1853 N. K Boshnyak explored and described the basins of the Amgun and Tym rivers, lakes Everon and Chukchagirskoe, the Bureinsky ridge, and Khadzhi Bay (Sovetskaya Gavan).

In 1842-1845. A.F. Middendorf and V.V. Vaganov explored the Shantar Islands.

In the 50-60s. XIX century The coastal parts of Primorye were explored: in 1853 -1855. I. S. Unkovsky discovered the bays of Posyet and Olga; in 1860-1867 V. Babkin surveyed the northern shore of the Sea of ​​Japan and Peter the Great Bay. The Lower Amur and the northern part of Sikhote-Alin were explored in 1850-1853. G. I. Nevelsky, N. K. Boshnyak, D. I. Orlov and others; in 1860-1867 - A. Budishchev. In 1858, M. Venyukov explored the Ussuri River. In 1863-1866. the Amur and Ussuri rivers were studied by P.A. Kropotkin. In 1867-1869 N. M. Przhevalsky made a major trip to the Ussuri region. He conducted comprehensive studies of the nature of the Ussuri and Suchan river basins and crossed the Sikhote-Alin ridge.

middle Asia

As certain parts of Kazakhstan and Central Asia joined the Russian Empire, and sometimes even preceding it, Russian geographers, biologists and other scientists explored and studied their nature. In 1820-1836. the organic world of Mugodzhar, General Syrt and the Ustyurt plateau was explored by E. A. Eversman. In 1825-1836 carried out a description of the eastern coast of the Caspian Sea, the Mangystau and Bolshoi Balkhan ridges, the Krasnovodsk plateau G. S. Karelin and I. Blaramberg. In 1837-1842. A.I. Shrenk studied Eastern Kazakhstan.

In 1840-1845 The Balkhash-Alakol basin was discovered (A.I. Shrenk, T.F. Nifantiev). From 1852 to 1863 T.F. Nifantiev carried out the first surveys of lakes Balkhash, Issyk-Kul, Zaisan. In 1848-1849 A.I. Butakov carried out the first survey of the Aral Sea, a number of islands and Chernyshev Bay were discovered.

Valuable scientific results, especially in the field of biogeography, were brought by the 1857 expedition of I. G. Borschov and N. A. Severtsov to Mugodzhary, the Emba River basin and the Big Barsuki sands. In 1865, I. G. Borshchov continued research on the vegetation and natural conditions of the Aral-Caspian region. He considered steppes and deserts as natural geographical complexes and analyzed the mutual relationships between relief, moisture, soils and vegetation.

Since the 1840s exploration of the highlands of Central Asia began. In 1840-1845 A.A. Leman and Ya.P. Yakovlev discovered the Turkestan and Zeravshan ranges. In 1856-1857 P.P. Semenov laid the foundation for the scientific study of the Tien Shan. The heyday of research in the mountains of Central Asia occurred during the period of the expeditionary leadership of P. P. Semenov (Semyonov-Tyan-Shansky). In 1860-1867 N.A. Severtsov explored the Kirghiz and Karatau ridges, discovered the Karzhantau, Pskem and Kakshaal-Too ridges in the Tien Shan, in 1868-1871. A.P. Fedchenko explored the Tien Shan, Kukhistan, Alai and Trans-Alai ranges. N.A. Severtsov, A.I. Scassi discovered the Rushansky ridge and the Fedchenko glacier (1877-1879). The research carried out made it possible to identify the Pamirs as a separate mountain system.

Research in the desert regions of Central Asia was carried out by N. A. Severtsov (1866-1868) and A. P. Fedchenko in 1868-1871. (Kyzylkum desert), V. A. Obruchev in 1886-1888. (Karakum desert and ancient Uzboy valley).

Comprehensive studies of the Aral Sea in 1899-1902. conducted by L. S. Berg.

North and Arctic

At the beginning of the 19th century. The discovery of the New Siberian Islands ended. In 1800-1806. Y. Sannikov made an inventory of the islands of Stolbovoy, Faddeevsky, and New Siberia. In 1808, Belkov discovered an island, which received the name of its discoverer - Belkovsky. In 1809-1811 The expedition of M. M. Gedenstrom visited the New Siberian Islands. In 1815, M. Lyakhov discovered the islands of Vasilyevsky and Semyonovsky. In 1821-1823 P.F. Anjou and P.I. Ilyin carried out instrumental research, culminating in the compilation of an accurate map of the New Siberian Islands, explored and described the islands of Semenovsky, Vasilyevsky, Stolbovoy, the coast between the mouths of the Indigirka and Olenyok rivers, and discovered the East Siberian polynya.

In 1820-1824. F.P. Wrangel, in very difficult natural conditions, traveled through the north of Siberia and the Arctic Ocean, explored and described the coast from the mouth of the Indigirka to the Kolyuchinskaya Bay (Chukchi Peninsula), and predicted the existence of Wrangel Island.

Research was carried out in Russian possessions in North America: in 1816, O. E. Kotzebue discovered a large bay in the Chukchi Sea off the western coast of Alaska, named after him. In 1818-1819 The eastern coast of the Bering Sea was explored by P.G. Korsakovsky and P.A. Ustyugov, the delta of the largest river in Alaska, the Yukon, was discovered. In 1835-1838. The lower and middle reaches of the Yukon were studied by A. Glazunov and V.I. Malakhov, and in 1842-1843. - Russian naval officer L. A. Zagoskin. He also described the interior regions of Alaska. In 1829-1835 The coast of Alaska was explored by F.P. Wrangel and D.F. Zarembo. In 1838 A.F. Kashevarov described the northwestern coast of Alaska, and P.F. Kolmakov discovered the Innoko River and the Kuskokwim (Kuskokwim) ridge. In 1835-1841. D.F. Zarembo and P. Mitkov completed the discovery of the Alexander Archipelago.

The Novaya Zemlya archipelago was intensively explored. In 1821-1824. F.P. Litke on the brig “Novaya Zemlya” explored, described and compiled a map of the western coast of Novaya Zemlya. Attempts to inventory and map the eastern coast of Novaya Zemlya were unsuccessful. In 1832-1833 The first inventory of the entire eastern coast of the South Island of Novaya Zemlya was made by P.K. Pakhtusov. In 1834-1835 P.K. Pakhtusov and in 1837-1838. A.K. Tsivolka and S.A. Moiseev described the eastern coast of the North Island up to 74.5° N. sh., the Matochkin Shar Strait is described in detail, Pakhtusov Island is discovered. A description of the northern part of Novaya Zemlya was made only in 1907-1911. V. A. Rusanov. Expeditions led by I. N. Ivanov in 1826-1829. managed to compile an inventory of the southwestern part of the Kara Sea from Cape Kanin Nos to the mouth of the Ob. The research carried out made it possible to begin the study of vegetation, fauna and the geological structure of Novaya Zemlya (K. M. Baer, ​​1837). In 1834-1839, especially during a major expedition in 1837, A.I. Shrenk explored the Czech Bay, the coast of the Kara Sea, the Timan Ridge, Vaygach Island, the Pai-Khoi ridge, and the polar Urals. Explorations of this area in 1840-1845. continued A.A. Keyserling, who surveyed the Pechora River, explored the Timan Ridge and the Pechora Lowland. He conducted comprehensive studies of the nature of the Taimyr Peninsula, the Putorana Plateau, and the North Siberian Lowland in 1842-1845. A. F. Middendorf. In 1847-1850 The Russian Geographical Society organized an expedition to the Northern and Polar Urals, during which the Pai-Khoi ridge was thoroughly explored.

In 1867, Wrangel Island was discovered, an inventory of the southern coast of which was made by the captain of the American whaling ship T. Long. In 1881, the American researcher R. Berry described the eastern, western and most of the northern coast of the island, and the interior of the island was explored for the first time.

In 1901, the Russian icebreaker Ermak, under the command of S. O. Makarov, visited Franz Josef Land. In 1913-1914 A Russian expedition led by G. Ya. Sedov wintered on the archipelago. At the same time, a group of participants from G.L. Brusilov’s expedition in distress on the ship “St. Anna”, headed by navigator V.I. Albanov. Despite the difficult conditions, when all energy was aimed at preserving life, V.I. Albanov proved that Petermann Land and King Oscar Land, which appeared on the map of J. Payer, do not exist.

In 1878-1879 During two navigations, a Russian-Swedish expedition led by the Swedish scientist N.A.E. Nordenskiöld on the small sailing-steam vessel “Vega” for the first time traversed the Northern Sea Route from west to east. This proved the possibility of navigation along the entire Eurasian Arctic coast.

In 1913, the Hydrographic Expedition of the Arctic Ocean under the leadership of B. A. Vilkitsky on the icebreaking steamships “Taimyr” and “Vaigach”, exploring the possibilities of passing the Northern Sea Route north of Taimyr, encountered solid ice and, following along their edge to the north, discovered islands called the Land of Emperor Nicholas II (now Severnaya Zemlya), approximately mapping its eastern, and the following year - southern shores, as well as the island of Tsarevich Alexei (now Maly Taimyr). The western and northern shores of Severnaya Zemlya remained completely unknown.

Russian Geographical Society

The Russian Geographical Society (RGS), founded in 1845, (since 1850 - the Imperial Russian Geographical Society - IRGO) has great merit in the development of domestic cartography.

In 1881, the American polar explorer J. DeLong discovered the islands of Jeannette, Henrietta and Bennett northeast of the island of New Siberia. This group of islands was named after its discoverer. In 1885-1886 A study of the Arctic coast between the Lena and Kolyma rivers and the New Siberian Islands was carried out by A. A. Bunge and E. V. Toll.

Already at the beginning of 1852, it published its first twenty-five-verst (1:1,050,000) map of the Northern Urals and the Pai-Khoi coastal ridge, compiled based on materials from the Ural Expedition of the Russian Geographical Society of 1847-1850. For the first time, the Northern Urals and the Pai-Khoi coastal ridge were depicted with great accuracy and detail.

The Geographical Society also published 40-verst maps of the river areas of the Amur, the southern part of the Lena and Yenisei and about. Sakhalin on 7 sheets (1891).

Sixteen large expeditions of the IRGO, led by N. M. Przhevalsky, G. N. Potanin, M. V. Pevtsov, G. E. Grumm-Grzhimailo, V. I. Roborovsky, P. K. Kozlov and V. A. Obruchev, made a great contribution to the filming of Central Asia. During these expeditions, 95,473 km were covered and filmed (of which over 30,000 km were accounted for by N. M. Przhevalsky), 363 astronomical points were determined and the altitudes of 3,533 points were measured. The position of the main mountain ranges and river systems, as well as lake basins of Central Asia, was clarified. All this significantly contributed to the creation of a modern physical map of Central Asia.

The heyday of the expeditionary activities of the IRGO occurred in 1873-1914, when the head of the society was Grand Duke Constantine, and P.P. Semyonov-Tyan-Shansky was the vice-chairman. During this period, expeditions were organized to Central Asia, Eastern Siberia and other regions of the country; two polar stations were created. Since the mid-1880s. The expeditionary activities of the society are increasingly specialized in certain fields - glaciology, limnology, geophysics, biogeography, etc.

IRGO made a great contribution to the study of the country's topography. To process the leveling and produce a hypsometric map, the IRGO hypsometric commission was created. In 1874, IRGO carried out, under the leadership of A. A. Tillo, the Aral-Caspian leveling: from Karatamak (on the northwestern shore of the Aral Sea) through Ustyurt to the Dead Kultuk Bay of the Caspian Sea, and in 1875 and 1877. Siberian leveling: from the village of Zverinogolovskaya in the Orenburg region to Lake Baikal. The materials of the hypsometric commission were used by A. A. Tillo to compile the “Hypsometric map of European Russia” on a scale of 60 versts per inch (1: 2,520,000), published by the Ministry of Railways in 1889. More than 50 thousand high-altitude maps were used for its compilation marks obtained as a result of leveling. The map revolutionized ideas about the structure of the relief of this territory. It presented in a new way the orography of the European part of the country, which has not changed in its main features to this day; the Central Russian and Volga uplands were depicted for the first time. In 1894, the Forestry Department under the leadership of A. A. Tillo with the participation of S. N. Nikitin and D. N. Anuchin organized an expedition to study the sources of the main rivers of European Russia, which provided extensive material on relief and hydrography (in particular, lakes).

The Military Topographical Service carried out, with the active participation of the Imperial Russian Geographical Society, a large number of pioneering reconnaissance surveys in the Far East, Siberia, Kazakhstan and Central Asia, during which maps were drawn up of many territories that had previously been “blank spots” on the map.

Mapping the territory in the 19th and early 20th centuries.

Topographic and geodetic works

In 1801-1804. “His Majesty’s Own Map Depot” released the first state multi-sheet (107 sheets) map at a scale of 1:840,000, covering almost all of European Russia and called the “Cental-sheet Map”. Its content was based mainly on materials from the General Survey.

In 1798-1804. The Russian General Staff, under the leadership of Major General F. F. Steinhel (Steingel), with the extensive use of Swedish-Finnish topographic officers, carried out a large-scale topographic survey of the so-called Old Finland, i.e., the areas annexed to Russia along the Nystadt (1721) and Abosky (1743) to the world. The survey materials, preserved in the form of a handwritten four-volume atlas, were widely used in the compilation of various maps at the beginning of the 19th century.

After 1809, the topographic services of Russia and Finland were united. At the same time, the Russian army received a ready-made educational institution for training professional topographers - a military school founded in 1779 in the village of Gappaniemi. On the basis of this school, on March 16, 1812, the Gappanyem Topographical Corps was established, which became the first special military topographic and geodetic educational institution in the Russian Empire.

In 1815, the ranks of the Russian army were replenished with topographical officers of the General Quartermaster of the Polish Army.

Since 1819, topographic surveys began in Russia on a scale of 1:21,000, based on triangulation and carried out mainly using scales. In 1844 they were replaced by surveys at a scale of 1:42,000.

On January 28, 1822, the Corps of Military Topographers was established at the General Headquarters of the Russian Army and the Military Topographic Depot. State topographic mapping became one of the main tasks of military topographers. The remarkable Russian surveyor and cartographer F. F. Schubert was appointed the first director of the Corps of Military Topographers.

In 1816-1852. In Russia, the largest triangulation work of that time was carried out, stretching 25°20′ along the meridian (together with the Scandinavian triangulation).

Under the leadership of F. F. Schubert and K. I. Tenner, intensive instrumental and semi-instrumental (route) surveys began, mainly in the western and northwestern provinces of European Russia. Based on materials from these surveys in the 20-30s. XIX century semitopographic (semi-topographic) maps of the provinces were compiled and engraved on a scale of 4-5 versts per inch.

The military topographic depot began in 1821 to compile a survey topographic map of European Russia on a scale of 10 versts per inch (1:420,000), which was extremely necessary not only for the military, but also for all civilian departments. The special ten-verst map of European Russia is known in the literature as the Schubert Map. Work on creating the map continued intermittently until 1839. It was published on 59 sheets and three flaps (or half-sheets).

A large amount of work was carried out by the Corps of Military Topographers in different parts of the country. In 1826-1829 Detailed maps on a scale of 1:210,000 were compiled for the Baku province, the Talysh Khanate, the Karabakh province, the plan of Tiflis, etc.

In 1828-1832. a survey of Moldavia and Wallachia was carried out, which became a model of work of its time, as it was based on a sufficient number of astronomical points. All maps were compiled into a 1:16,000 atlas. The total survey area reached 100 thousand square meters. verst.

Since the 30s. Geodetic and boundary work began to be carried out on. Geodetic points carried out in 1836-1838. triangulations became the basis for creating accurate topographic maps of Crimea. Geodetic networks developed in Smolensk, Moscow, Mogilev, Tver, Novgorod provinces and other areas.

In 1833, the head of the KVT, General F. F. Schubert, organized an unprecedented chronometric expedition in the Baltic Sea. As a result of the expedition, the longitudes of 18 points were determined, which, together with 22 points related to them trigonometrically, provided a reliable basis for surveying the coast and soundings of the Baltic Sea.

From 1857 to 1862 under the leadership and funds of the IRGO, work was carried out at the Military Topographical Depot to compile and publish on 12 sheets a general map of European Russia and the Caucasus region on a scale of 40 versts per inch (1: 1,680,000) with an explanatory note. On the advice of V. Ya. Struve, the map for the first time in Russia was created in the Gaussian projection, and Pulkovsky was taken as the prime meridian on it. In 1868, the map was published, and later it was reprinted several times.

In subsequent years, a five-verst map on 55 sheets, a twenty-verst map and an orographic forty-verst map of the Caucasus were published.

Among the best cartographic works of the IRGO is the “Map of the Aral Sea and the Khiva Khanate with their surroundings” compiled by Ya. V. Khanykov (1850). The map was published in French by the Paris Geographical Society and, on the proposal of A. Humboldt, was awarded the Prussian Order of the Red Eagle, 2nd degree.

The Caucasian military topographic department, under the leadership of General I. I. Stebnitsky, conducted reconnaissance in Central Asia along the eastern shore of the Caspian Sea.

In 1867, a Cartographic Establishment was opened at the Military Topographical Department of the General Staff. Together with the private cartographic establishment of A. A. Ilyin, opened in 1859, they were the direct predecessors of modern domestic cartographic factories.

A special place among the various products of the Caucasian WTO was occupied by relief maps. The large relief map was completed in 1868, and was exhibited at the Paris Exhibition in 1869. This map is made for horizontal distances on a scale of 1:420,000, and for vertical distances - 1:84,000.

The Caucasian military topographic department under the leadership of I. I. Stebnitsky compiled a 20-verst map of the Trans-Caspian region based on astronomical, geodetic and topographical work.

Work was also carried out on topographic and geodetic preparation of the territories of the Far East. Thus, in 1860, the position of eight points was determined near the western coast of the Sea of ​​Japan, and in 1863, 22 points were determined in Peter the Great Bay.

The expansion of the territory of the Russian Empire was reflected in many maps and atlases published at this time. Such in particular is the “General Map of the Russian Empire and the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Finland annexed to it” from the “Geographical Atlas of the Russian Empire, the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Finland” by V. P. Pyadyshev (St. Petersburg, 1834).

Since 1845, one of the main tasks of the Russian military topographical service has been the creation of a Military Topographical Map of Western Russia on a scale of 3 versts per inch. By 1863, 435 sheets of military topographical maps had been published, and by 1917 - 517 sheets. On this map, the relief was conveyed by strokes.

In 1848-1866. under the leadership of Lieutenant General A.I. Mende, surveys were carried out aimed at creating topographic boundary maps, atlases and descriptions for all provinces of European Russia. During this period, work was carried out on an area of ​​about 345,000 square meters. verst. Tver, Ryazan, Tambov and Vladimir provinces were mapped on a scale of one verst per inch (1:42,000), Yaroslavl - two versts per inch (1:84,000), Simbirsk and Nizhny Novgorod - three versts per inch (1:126,000) and Penza province - on a scale of eight versts per inch (1:336,000). Based on the results of the surveys, IRGO published multicolor topographic boundary atlases of the Tver and Ryazan provinces (1853-1860) on a scale of 2 versts per inch (1:84,000) and a map of the Tver province on a scale of 8 versts per inch (1:336,000).

The Mende filming had an undoubted influence on the further improvement of state mapping methods. In 1872, the Military Topographical Department of the General Staff began work on updating the three-verst map, which actually led to the creation of a new standard Russian topographic map on a scale of 2 versts in an inch (1:84,000), which was a most detailed source of information about the area, used in troops and the national economy until the 30s. XX century A two-verst military topographic map was published for the Kingdom of Poland, parts of the Crimea and the Caucasus, as well as the Baltic states and areas around Moscow and St. Petersburg. This was one of the first Russian topographic maps on which the relief was depicted as contour lines.

In 1869-1885. A detailed topographic survey of Finland was carried out, which was the beginning of the creation of a state topographic map on a scale of one mile per inch - the highest achievement of pre-revolutionary military topography in Russia. Single-versus maps covered the territory of Poland, the Baltic states, southern Finland, Crimea, the Caucasus and parts of southern Russia north of Novocherkassk.

By the 60s. XIX century The Special Map of European Russia by F. F. Schubert on a scale of 10 versts per inch is very outdated. In 1865, the editorial commission appointed captain of the General Staff I. A. Strelbitsky as the responsible executor of the project for drawing up a Special Map of European Russia and its editor, under whose leadership the final development of symbols and all instructional documents that determined the methods of compilation, preparation for publication and publication was carried out new cartographic work. In 1872, the compilation of all 152 sheets of the map was completed. The ten verstka was reprinted many times and partially supplemented; in 1903 it consisted of 167 sheets. This map was widely used not only for military purposes, but also for scientific, practical and cultural purposes.

By the end of the century, the work of the Corps of Military Topographers continued to create new maps for sparsely populated areas, including the Far East and Manchuria. During this time, several reconnaissance detachments covered more than 12 thousand miles, performing route and visual surveys. Based on their results, topographic maps were later compiled on a scale of 2, 3, 5 and 20 versts per inch.

In 1907, a special commission was created at the General Staff to develop a plan for future topographic and geodetic work in European and Asian Russia, chaired by the head of the KVT, General N. D. Artamonov. It was decided to develop the new 1st class triangulation according to a specific program proposed by General I. I. Pomerantsev. KVT began implementing the program in 1910. By 1914, the bulk of the work was completed.

By the beginning of the First World War, a large volume of large-scale topographic surveys had been completed in the entire territory of Poland, in the south of Russia (triangle Chisinau, Galati, Odessa), in the Petrograd and Vyborg provinces partially; on a verst scale in Livonia, Petrograd, Minsk provinces, and partly in Transcaucasia, on the northeastern coast of the Black Sea and in Crimea; on a two-verst scale - in the north-west of Russia, east of the survey sites on the half- and verst-scale.

The results of topographic surveys of previous and pre-war years made it possible to compile and publish a large volume of topographic and special military maps: half-verst map of the Western border area (1:21,000); verst map of the Western border space, Crimea and Transcaucasia (1:42,000); military topographic two-verst map (1:84,000), three-verst map (1:126,000) with relief expressed by strokes; semi-topographic 10-verst map of European Russia (1:420,000); military road 25-verst map of European Russia (1:1,050,000); 40-verst Strategic Map of Central Europe (1:1,680,000); maps of the Caucasus and neighboring foreign countries.

In addition to the listed maps, the Military Topographical Department of the Main Directorate of the General Staff (GUGSH) prepared maps of Turkestan, Central Asia and adjacent states, Western Siberia, the Far East, as well as maps of all of Asian Russia.

Over the 96 years of its existence (1822-1918), the corps of military topographers completed an enormous amount of astronomical, geodetic and cartographic work: identified geodetic points - 63,736; astronomical points (by latitude and longitude) - 3900; 46 thousand km of leveling passages were laid; Instrumental topographic surveys were carried out on a geodetic basis on various scales over an area of ​​7,425,319 km2, and semi-instrumental and visual surveys were carried out over an area of ​​506,247 km2. In 1917, the Russian Army supplied 6,739 types of maps of different scales.

In general, by 1917, a huge amount of field survey material had been obtained, a number of remarkable cartographic works had been created, but the coverage of the territory of Russia with topographic survey was uneven, and a significant part of the territory remained unexplored in topographic terms.

Exploration and mapping of seas and oceans

Russia's achievements in studying and mapping the World Ocean have been significant. One of the important incentives for these studies in the 19th century, as before, was the need to ensure the functioning of Russian overseas possessions in Alaska. To supply these colonies, round-the-world expeditions were regularly equipped, which, starting from the first voyage in 1803-1806. on the ships “Nadezhda” and “Neva” under the leadership of I.F. Kruzenshtern and Yu.V. Lisyansky, they made many remarkable geographical discoveries and significantly increased the cartographic knowledge of the World Ocean.

In addition to the hydrographic work carried out almost annually off the coast of Russian America by officers of the Russian Navy, participants in round-the-world expeditions, employees of the Russian-American Company, among whom were such brilliant hydrographers and scientists as F. P. Wrangel, A. K. Etolin and M D. Tebenkov, continuously expanded knowledge about the North Pacific Ocean and improved navigation maps of these areas. Particularly great was the contribution of M.D. Tebenkov, who compiled the most detailed “Atlas of the Northwestern coast of America from the Bering Strait to Cape Corrientes and the Aleutian Islands with the addition of some places on the Northeastern coast of Asia,” published by the St. Petersburg Maritime Academy in 1852.

In parallel with the study of the northern part of the Pacific Ocean, Russian hydrographers actively explored the coasts of the Arctic Ocean, thus contributing to the finalization of geographical ideas about the polar regions of Eurasia and laying the foundations for the subsequent development of the Northern Sea Route. Thus, most of the coasts and islands of the Barents and Kara Seas were described and mapped in the 20-30s. XIX century expeditions of F.P. Litke, P.K. Pakhtusov, K.M. Baer and A.K. Tsivolka, who laid the foundations for the physical-geographical study of these seas and the Novaya Zemlya archipelago. To solve the problem of developing transport links between European Pomerania and Western Siberia, expeditions were equipped for a hydrographic inventory of the coast from Kanin Nos to the mouth of the Ob River, the most effective of which were the Pechora expedition of I. N. Ivanov (1824) and the hydrographic inventory of I. N. Ivanov and I. A. Berezhnykh (1826-1828). The maps they compiled had a solid astronomical and geodetic basis. Research of sea coasts and islands in northern Siberia at the beginning of the 19th century. were largely stimulated by the discoveries by Russian industrialists of islands in the Novosibirsk archipelago, as well as the search for mysterious northern lands (“Sannikov Land”), islands north of the mouth of the Kolyma (“Andreev Land”), etc. In 1808-1810. During the expedition led by M. M. Gedenshtrom and P. Pshenitsyn, which explored the islands of New Siberia, Faddeevsky, Kotelny and the strait between the latter, a map of the Novosibirsk archipelago as a whole, as well as the mainland sea coasts between the mouths of the Yana and Kolyma rivers, was created for the first time. For the first time, a detailed geographical description of the islands has been completed. In the 20s the Yanskaya (1820-1824) expedition under the leadership of P.F. Anzhu and the Kolyma expedition (1821-1824) under the leadership of F.P. Wrangel were sent to the same areas. These expeditions carried out the work program of M. M. Gedenstrom’s expedition on an expanded scale. They were supposed to survey the coastline from the Lena River to the Bering Strait. The main merit of the expedition was the compilation of a more accurate map of the entire continental coast of the Arctic Ocean from the Olenyok River to Kolyuchinskaya Bay, as well as maps of the group of Novosibirsk, Lyakhovsky and Bear Islands. In the eastern part of the Wrangel map, according to local residents, an island was marked with the inscription “Mountains can be seen from Cape Yakan in the summer.” This island was also depicted on maps in the atlases of I. F. Krusenstern (1826) and G. A. Sarychev (1826). In 1867, it was discovered by the American navigator T. Long and, in commemoration of the merits of the remarkable Russian polar explorer, was named after Wrangel. The results of the expeditions of P. F. Anjou and F. P. Wrangel were summarized in 26 handwritten maps and plans, as well as in scientific reports and works.

The research carried out in the middle of the 19th century had not only scientific, but also enormous geopolitical significance for Russia. G.I. Nevelsky and his followers carried out intensive marine expeditionary research in the Sea of ​​Okhotsk and the Sea of ​​Japan. Although the island position of Sakhalin was known to Russian cartographers from the very beginning of the 18th century, which was reflected in their works, the problem of accessibility of the Amur mouth for sea vessels from the south and north was finally and positively resolved only by G. I. Nevelsky. This discovery decisively changed the attitude of the Russian authorities towards the Amur and Primorye regions, showing the enormous potential capabilities of these rich areas, provided, as the research of G.I. Nevelskoy proved, with end-to-end water communications leading to the Pacific Ocean. These studies themselves were carried out by travelers, sometimes at their own peril and risk, in confrontation with official government circles. The remarkable expeditions of G.I. Nevelsky paved the way for the return of the Amur region to Russia under the terms of the Aigun Treaty with China (signed on May 28, 1858) and the annexation of Primorye to the Empire (under the terms of the Beijing Treaty between Russia and China, concluded on November 2 (14), 1860 .). The results of geographical research on the Amur and Primorye, as well as changes in borders in the Far East in accordance with the treaties between Russia and China, were cartographically declared on maps of the Amur and Primorye compiled and published as soon as possible.

Russian hydrographers in the 19th century. continued active work in the European seas. After the annexation of Crimea (1783) and the creation of the Russian navy in the Black Sea, detailed hydrographic surveys of the Azov and Black Seas began. Already in 1799, a navigational atlas was compiled by I.N. Billings to the northern coast, in 1807 - I.M. Budishchev’s atlas to the western part of the Black Sea, and in 1817 - “General map of the Black and Azov Seas”. In 1825-1836 under the leadership of E.P. Manganari, based on triangulation, a topographic survey of the entire northern and western coast of the Black Sea was carried out, which made it possible to publish the “Atlas of the Black Sea” in 1841.

In the 19th century Intensified study of the Caspian Sea continued. In 1826, based on the materials of detailed hydrographic work of 1809-1817, carried out by the expedition of the Admiralty Boards under the leadership of A.E. Kolodkin, the “Complete Atlas of the Caspian Sea” was published, which fully met the requirements of shipping of that time.

In subsequent years, the atlas maps were refined by the expeditions of G. G. Basargin (1823-1825) on the west coast, N. N. Muravyov-Karsky (1819-1821), G. S. Karelin (1832, 1834, 1836) and others - on the eastern shore of the Caspian Sea. In 1847, I.I. Zherebtsov described the Kara-Bogaz-Gol Bay. In 1856, a new hydrographic expedition was sent to the Caspian Sea under the leadership of N.A. Ivashintsova, who carried out systematic surveying and description for 15 years, drawing up several plans and 26 maps that covered almost the entire coast of the Caspian Sea.

In the 19th century Intensive work continued to improve maps of the Baltic and White Seas. An outstanding achievement of Russian hydrography was the “Atlas of the Whole Baltic Sea...” compiled by G. A. Sarychev (1812). In 1834-1854. Based on the materials of the chronometric expedition of F. F. Schubert, maps were compiled and published for the entire Russian coast of the Baltic Sea.

Significant changes to the maps of the White Sea and the northern coast of the Kola Peninsula were made by the hydrographic works of F. P. Litke (1821-1824) and M. F. Reinecke (1826-1833). Based on the materials of the work of the Reinecke expedition, the “Atlas of the White Sea...” was published in 1833, the maps of which were used by sailors until the beginning of the 20th century, and the “Hydrographic Description of the Northern Coast of Russia”, which supplemented this atlas, can be considered as an example of a geographical description of the coasts. The Imperial Academy of Sciences awarded this work to M. F. Reinecke in 1851 with the full Demidov Prize.

Thematic mapping

Active development of basic (topographic and hydrographic) cartography in the 19th century. created the basis necessary for the development of special (thematic) mapping. Its intensive development dates back to the 19th and early 20th centuries.

In 1832, the Main Directorate of Communications published the Hydrographic Atlas of the Russian Empire. It included general maps at scales of 20 and 10 versts per inch, detailed maps at a scale of 2 versts per inch and plans at a scale of 100 fathoms per inch and larger. Hundreds of plans and maps were compiled, which contributed to increasing the cartographic knowledge of the territories along the routes of the corresponding roads.

Significant cartographic works in the 19th and early 20th centuries. carried out by the Ministry of State Property formed in 1837, in which in 1838 the Corps of Civil Topographers was established, which carried out mapping of poorly studied and unexplored lands.

An important achievement of Russian cartography was the “Marx Great World Desk Atlas” published in 1905 (2nd edition, 1909), which contained over 200 maps and an index of 130 thousand geographical names.

Mapping nature

Geological mapping

In the 19th century Intensive cartographic study of Russia's mineral resources and their exploitation continued, and special geognostic (geological) mapping was being developed. At the beginning of the 19th century. Many maps of mountain districts, plans of factories, salt and oil fields, gold mines, quarries, and mineral springs were created. The history of exploration and development of mineral resources in the Altai and Nerchinsk mountain districts is reflected in particular detail in the maps.

Numerous maps of mineral deposits, plans of land plots and forest holdings, factories, mines and mines were compiled. An example of a collection of valuable handwritten geological maps is the atlas “Map of Salt Mines”, compiled in the Mining Department. The collection's maps date mainly from the 20s and 30s. XIX century Many of the maps in this atlas are much broader in content than ordinary maps of salt mines, and are, in fact, early examples of geological (petrographic) maps. Thus, among the maps of G. Vansovich of 1825 there is a Petrographic map of the Bialystok region, Grodno and part of the Vilna province. The “Map of Pskov and part of the Novgorod province: with indications of rock-stone and salt springs discovered in 1824...” also has rich geological content.

An extremely rare example of an early hydrogeological map is the “Topographic Map of the Crimean Peninsula...” indicating the depth and quality of water in villages, compiled by A. N. Kozlovsky in 1842 on a cartographic basis of 1817. In addition, the map provides information about the areas of the territories having different water supplies, as well as a table of the number of villages by county that need watering.

In 1840-1843. English geologist R. I. Murchison, together with A. A. Keyserling and N. I. Koksharov, conducted research that for the first time gave a scientific picture of the geological structure of European Russia.

In the 50s XIX century The first geological maps begin to be published in Russia. One of the earliest is “Geognostic map of the St. Petersburg province” (S. S. Kutorga, 1852). The results of intensive geological research were expressed in the “Geological Map of European Russia” (A.P. Karpinsky, 1893).

The main task of the Geological Committee was to create a 10-verst (1:420,000) geological map of European Russia, in connection with which a systematic study of the relief and geological structure of the territory began, in which such prominent geologists as I.V. Mushketov, A. P. Pavlov and others. By 1917, only 20 sheets of this map were published out of the planned 170. Since the 1870s. Geological mapping of some areas of Asian Russia began.

In 1895, the “Atlas of Terrestrial Magnetism” was published, compiled by A. A. Tillo.

Forest mapping

One of the earliest handwritten maps of forests is “Map for viewing the state of forests and the timber industry in [European] Russia,” compiled in 1840-1841, as established, by M. A. Tsvetkov. The Ministry of State Property carried out major work on mapping state forests, the forest industry and forest-consuming industries, as well as improving forest accounting and forest cartography. Materials for it were collected through requests through local departments of state property, as well as other departments. Two maps were drawn up in their final form in 1842; the first of them is a map of forests, the other was one of the early examples of soil-climatic maps, which indicated climatic bands and dominant soils in European Russia. A soil-climate map has not yet been discovered.

Work to compile a map of the forests of European Russia revealed the unsatisfactory state of the organization and mapping of forest resources and prompted the Scientific Committee of the Ministry of State Property to create a special commission to improve forest mapping and forest accounting. As a result of the work of this commission, detailed instructions and symbols for drawing up forest plans and maps were created, approved by Tsar Nicholas I. The Ministry of State Property paid special attention to the organization of work on the study and mapping of state-owned lands in Siberia, which acquired a particularly wide scope after the abolition of serfdom in Russia in 1861, one of the consequences of which was the intensive development of the resettlement movement.

Soil mapping

In 1838, a systematic study of soils began in Russia. A large number of handwritten soil maps were compiled primarily from inquiries. A prominent economic geographer and climatologist, Academician K. S. Veselovsky, compiled and published the first consolidated “Soil Map of European Russia” in 1855, which shows eight soil types: chernozem, clay, sand, loam and sandy loam, silt, solonetzes, tundra , swamps. The works of K. S. Veselovsky on climatology and soils of Russia were the starting point for the works on soil cartography of the famous Russian geographer and soil scientist V. V. Dokuchaev, who proposed a truly scientific classification for soils based on the genetic principle, and introduced their comprehensive study taking into account factors soil formation. His book “Cartography of Russian Soils,” published by the Department of Agriculture and Rural Industry in 1879 as an explanatory text for the “Soil Map of European Russia,” laid the foundations of modern soil science and soil cartography. Since 1882, V.V. Dokuchaev and his followers (N.M. Sibirtsev, K.D. Glinka, S.S. Neustruev, L.I. Prasolov, etc.) conducted soil, and in fact complex physiographic studies in more than 20 provinces. One of the results of these works were soil maps of the provinces (on a 10-verst scale) and more detailed maps of individual counties. Under the leadership of V.V. Dokuchaev, N.M. Sibirtsev, G.I. Tanfilyev and A.R. Ferkhmin compiled and published the “Soil Map of European Russia” at a scale of 1:2,520,000 in 1901.

Socio-economic mapping

Farm mapping

The development of capitalism in industry and agriculture necessitated a more in-depth study of the national economy. For this purpose, in the middle of the 19th century. overview economic maps and atlases begin to be published. The first economic maps of individual provinces (St. Petersburg, Moscow, Yaroslavl, etc.) are being created. The first economic map published in Russia was “Map of the industry of European Russia showing factories, factories and industries, administrative places for the manufacturing part, the main fairs, water and land communications, ports, lighthouses, customs houses, the main piers, quarantines, etc., 1842” .

A significant cartographic work is the “Economic-statistical atlas of European Russia from 16 maps,” compiled and published in 1851 by the Ministry of State Property, which went through four editions - 1851, 1852, 1857 and 1869. This was the first economic atlas in our country dedicated to agriculture. It included the first thematic maps (soil, climate, agricultural). The atlas and its text part make an attempt to summarize the main features and directions of development of agriculture in Russia in the 50s. XIX century

Of undoubted interest is the handwritten “Statistical Atlas” compiled by the Ministry of Internal Affairs under the leadership of N.A. Milyutin in 1850. The Atlas consists of 35 maps and cartograms reflecting a wide variety of socio-economic parameters. It was apparently compiled in parallel with the “Economic Statistical Atlas” of 1851 and provides a lot of new information in comparison with it.

A major achievement of domestic cartography was the publication in 1872 of the “Map of the most important sectors of productivity of European Russia” compiled by the Central Statistical Committee (about 1:2,500,000). The publication of this work was facilitated by the improvement in the organization of statistics in Russia, associated with the formation in 1863 of the Central Statistical Committee, headed by the famous Russian geographer, vice-chairman of the Imperial Russian Geographical Society P. P. Semenov-Tyan-Shansky. Materials collected over the eight years of the existence of the Central Statistical Committee, as well as various sources from other departments, made it possible to create a map that comprehensively and reliably characterizes the economy of post-reform Russia. The map was an excellent reference tool and valuable material for scientific research. Distinguished by the completeness of its content, expressiveness and originality of mapping methods, it is a remarkable monument to the history of Russian cartography and a historical source that has not lost its significance to the present day.

The first capital atlas of industry was “Statistical Atlas of the Main Sectors of the Factory Industry of European Russia” by D. A. Timiryazev (1869-1873). At the same time, maps of the mining industry (Ural, Nerchinsk district, etc.), maps of the location of the sugar industry, agriculture, etc., transport and economic maps of cargo flows along railways and waterways were published.

One of the best works of Russian socio-economic cartography of the early 20th century. is the “Commercial and Industrial Map of European Russia” by V.P. Semenov-Tyan-Shan scale 1:1 680 000 (1911). This map presented a synthesis of the economic characteristics of many centers and regions.

It is worth mentioning one more outstanding cartographic work created by the Department of Agriculture of the Main Directorate of Agriculture and Land Management before the First World War. This is an atlas album “Agricultural Industry in Russia” (1914), representing a set of statistical maps of the country’s agriculture. This album is interesting as an experience of a kind of “cartographic propaganda” of the potential opportunities of agriculture in Russia to attract new capital investments from abroad.

Population mapping

P. I. Keppen organized the systematic collection of statistical data on the number, national composition and ethnographic characteristics of the population of Russia. The result of P. I. Keppen’s work was the “Ethnographic Map of European Russia” on a scale of 75 versts per inch (1:3,150,000), which went through three editions (1851, 1853 and 1855). In 1875, a new large ethnographic map of European Russia was published on a scale of 60 versts per inch (1:2,520,000), compiled by the famous Russian ethnographer, Lieutenant General A.F. Rittikh. At the Paris International Geographical Exhibition the map received a 1st class medal. Ethnographic maps of the Caucasus region on a scale of 1:1,080,000 (A.F. Rittich, 1875), Asian Russia (M.I. Venyukov), the Kingdom of Poland (1871), Transcaucasia (1895), etc. were published.

Among other thematic cartographic works, one should mention the first map of population density of European Russia, compiled by N. A. Milyutin (1851), “General map of the entire Russian Empire with an indication of the degree of population” by A. Rakint, scale 1:21,000,000 (1866), which included Alaska.

Comprehensive research and mapping

In 1850-1853. The police department released atlases of St. Petersburg (compiled by N.I. Tsylov) and Moscow (compiled by A. Khotev).

In 1897, G.I. Tanfilyev, a student of V.V. Dokuchaev, published a zoning of European Russia, which was first called physiographic. Tanfilyev’s scheme clearly reflected zonality, and also outlined some significant intrazonal differences in natural conditions.

In 1899, the world's first National Atlas of Finland, which was part of the Russian Empire, but had the status of an autonomous Grand Duchy of Finland, was published. In 1910, the second edition of this atlas appeared.

The highest achievement of pre-revolutionary thematic cartography was the major “Atlas of Asian Russia”, published in 1914 by the Resettlement Administration, accompanied by an extensive and richly illustrated text in three volumes. The atlas reflects the economic situation and conditions for agricultural development of the territory for the needs of the Resettlement Administration. It is interesting to note that this publication for the first time included a detailed overview of the history of cartography in Asian Russia, written by a young naval officer, later a famous historian of cartography, L. S. Bagrov. The contents of the maps and the accompanying text of the atlas reflect the results of the great work of various organizations and individual Russian scientists. For the first time, the Atlas provides an extensive set of economic maps for Asian Russia. Its central section consists of maps on which, with backgrounds of different colors, the general picture of land ownership and land use is shown, which displays the results of ten years of activity of the Resettlement Administration in settling the resettled people.

There is a special map dedicated to the distribution of the population of Asian Russia by religion. Three maps are dedicated to cities, which show their population, budget growth and debt. Cartograms for agriculture show the share of different crops in field cultivation and the relative number of the main types of livestock. Mineral deposits are marked on a separate map. Special maps of the atlas are dedicated to communication routes, postal institutions and telegraph lines, which, of course, were of extreme importance for sparsely populated Asian Russia.

So, at the beginning of the First World War, Russia came with cartography that provided the needs of defense, national economy, science and education of the country, at a level that fully corresponded to its role as a great Eurasian power of its time. At the beginning of the First World War, the Russian Empire possessed vast territories, displayed, in particular, on the general map of the state published by the cartographic establishment of A. A. Ilyin in 1915.

As a result of the Northern War of 1700-1721, the powerful Swedish army was defeated and the Russian lands captured by Sweden at the end of the 16th and beginning of the 17th centuries were returned. The city of St. Petersburg is built at the mouth of the Neva, where the capital of Russia is moved in 1712. The Moscow state became the Russian Empire in 1721, headed by the All-Russian Emperor.

Of course, Russia took a long time to create an empire, and not only the victory in the Northern War contributed to this.

Long haul

At the beginning of the 13th century, Rus' consisted of about 15 principalities. However, the natural course of centralization was interrupted by the Mongol invasion (1237-1240). The further unification of Russian lands took place in difficult foreign policy conditions and was dictated primarily by political prerequisites.

In the 14th century, most of the Russian lands were united around Vilna - the capital of the emerging Grand Duchy of Lithuania and Russia. During the XIII-XV centuries, the principalities of Goroden, Polotsk, Vitebsk, Turovo-Pinsk, Kiev, as well as most of the Chernigov region, Volyn, Podolia, Smolensk region and a number of other Russian lands came into the possession of the great Lithuanian princes from the Gediminovich family. Thus, the individual rule of the Rurikovichs and the clan unity of Rus' became a thing of the past. The annexation of lands took place both military and peacefully.

The end of the 15th - beginning of the 16th centuries became a kind of boundary, after which the lands annexed to Russia formed a single whole with it. The process of annexing the rest of the inheritance of Ancient Rus' lasted for another two centuries, and by this time its own ethnic processes had gained strength.

In 1654, Left Bank Ukraine joined Russia. The lands of Right Bank Ukraine (without Galicia) and Belarus became part of the Russian Empire as a result of the second partition of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in 1793.

“The Russian kingdom (both conceptually, ideologically, and institutionally) had two sources: the “kingdom” (Khanate) of the Golden Horde and the Byzantine Orthodox kingdom (empire).”

One of the first to formulate a new idea of ​​​​the royal power of the Moscow princes was Metropolitan Zosima. In the essay “Exposition of Paschal,” submitted to the Moscow Council in 1492, he emphasized that Moscow became the new Constantinople thanks to Rus'’s loyalty to God. God Himself appointed Ivan III - “the new Tsar Constantine to the new city of Constantine - Moscow and the entire Russian land and many other lands of the sovereign.” Thus, Ivan IV was the first Tsar crowned king. This happened on January 16, 1547.

Under Ivan IV, Russia managed to significantly expand its possessions. As a result of the campaign against Kazan and its capture in 1552, it gained the middle Volga region, and in 1556, with the capture of Astrakhan, the lower Volga region and access to the Caspian Sea, which opened up new trade opportunities with Persia, the Caucasus and Central Asia. At the same time, the ring of hostile Tatar khanates that constrained Rus' was broken, and the road to Siberia was opened.

V. Surikov "Conquest of Siberia by Ermak"

The era of Ivan the Terrible also marked the beginning of the conquest of Siberia. A small detachment of Cossacks Ermak Timofeevich, hired by the Ural industrialists Stroganovs to protect against the attacks of the Siberian Tatars, defeated the army of the Siberian Khan Kuchum and took his capital Kashlyk. Despite the fact that due to the attacks of the Tatars, few of the Cossacks managed to return alive, the collapsed Siberian Khanate was never restored. A few years later, the royal archers of the governor Voeikov suppressed the last resistance. The gradual development of Siberia by Russians began. Over the next decades, forts and trading settlements began to emerge: Tobolsk, Verkhoturye, Mangazeya, Yeniseisk and Bratsk.

Russian empire

P. Zharkov "Portrait of Peter I"

On August 30, 1721, the Peace of Nystadt was concluded between Russia and Sweden, according to which Russia received access to the Baltic Sea, annexed the territory of Ingria, part of Karelia, Estland and Livonia.

Russia became a great European power. Peter I accepted the titles “Great” and “Father of the Fatherland” from the Senate, he was proclaimed emperor, and Russia - an empire.

The formation of the Russian Empire was accompanied by a number of reforms.

Public Administration Reform

Creation of the Near Chancellery (or Council of Ministers) in 1699. It was transformed in 1711 into the Governing Senate. Creation of 12 boards with a specific scope of activity and powers.

The public administration system has become more advanced. The activities of most government bodies became regulated, and the boards had a clearly defined area of ​​activity. Supervisory authorities were created.

Regional (provincial) reform

At the first stage of the reform, Peter I divided Russia into 8 provinces: Moscow, Kyiv, Kazan, Ingria (later St. Petersburg), Arkhangelsk, Smolensk, Azov, Siberian. They were controlled by governors who were in charge of the troops located on the territory of the province, and also had full administrative and judicial power. At the second stage of the reform, the provinces were divided into 50 provinces governed by governors, and they were divided into districts led by zemstvo commissars. Governors were deprived of administrative power and resolved judicial and military issues.

There was a centralization of power. Local governments have almost completely lost influence.

Judicial reform

Peter 1 created new judicial bodies: the Senate, the Justice Collegium, the Hofgerichts, and the lower courts. Judicial functions were also performed by all colleagues except Foreign. The judges were separated from the administration. The court of kissers (an analogue of the jury trial) was abolished, and the principle of the inviolability of an unconvicted person was lost.

A large number of judicial bodies and persons carrying out judicial activities (the emperor himself, governors, governors, etc.) introduced confusion and confusion into legal proceedings, the introduction of the possibility of “knocking out” testimony under torture created the ground for abuse and bias. At the same time, the adversarial nature of the process and the need for the sentence to be based on specific articles of the law corresponding to the case under consideration were established.

Military reforms

The introduction of conscription, the creation of a navy, the establishment of a Military Collegium in charge of all military affairs. Introduction using the “Table of Ranks” of military ranks, uniform for all of Russia. Creation of military-industrial enterprises, as well as military educational institutions. Introduction of army discipline and military regulations.

With his reforms, Peter 1 created a formidable regular army, which by 1725 numbered up to 212 thousand people and a strong navy. Units were created in the army: regiments, brigades and divisions, and squadrons in the navy. Many military victories were won. These reforms (although assessed ambiguously by different historians) created a springboard for further successes of Russian weapons.

Church reform

The institution of the patriarchate was virtually eliminated. In 1701, the management of church and monastic lands was reformed. Peter 1 restored the Monastic Order, which controlled church revenues and the court of monastic peasants. In 1721, the Spiritual Regulations were adopted, which actually deprived the church of independence. To replace the patriarchate, the Holy Synod was created, the members of which were subordinate to Peter 1, by whom they were appointed. Church property was often taken away and spent on the needs of the emperor.

The church reforms of Peter 1 led to the almost complete subordination of the clergy to secular power. In addition to the elimination of the patriarchate, many bishops and ordinary clergy were persecuted. The Church could no longer pursue an independent spiritual policy and partially lost its authority in society.

Financial reforms

The introduction of many new (including indirect) taxes, monopolization of the sale of tar, alcohol, salt and other goods. Damage (reduction in weight) of a coin. The kopeck becomes the main coin. Transition to poll tax.

Increase in treasury revenues several times. But! It was achieved due to the impoverishment of the bulk of the population, and most of this income was stolen.

Culture and life

Peter I led the fight against external manifestations of an “outdated” way of life (the most famous is the ban on beards), but no less paid attention to introducing the nobility to education and secular Europeanized culture. Secular educational institutions began to appear, the first Russian newspaper was founded, and translations of many books into Russian appeared. Peter made success in service for the nobles dependent on education.

N. Nevrev "Peter I"

A number of measures were taken to develop education: on January 14, 1700, a school of mathematical and navigational sciences was opened in Moscow. In 1701-1721, artillery, engineering and medical schools were opened in Moscow, an engineering school and a naval academy in St. Petersburg, and mining schools at the Olonets and Ural factories. In 1705, the first gymnasium in Russia was opened. The goals of mass education were to be served by digital schools created by decree of 1714 in provincial cities, designed to “ teach children of all ranks literacy, numbers and geometry" It was planned to create two such schools in each province, where education was to be free. Garrison schools were opened for soldiers' children, and a network of theological schools was created for the training of priests in 1721. Peter's decrees introduced compulsory education for nobles and clergy, but a similar measure for the urban population met fierce resistance and was cancelled. Peter's attempt to create an all-estate primary school failed (the creation of a network of schools ceased after his death; most of the digital schools under his successors were repurposed as estate schools for training the clergy), but nevertheless, during his reign the foundations were laid for the spread of education in Russia.

Peter I created new printing houses.

In 1724, Peter approved the charter of the Academy of Sciences, which was opened after his death.

Of particular importance was the construction of stone Petersburg, in which foreign architects took part and which was carried out according to the plan developed by the Tsar. He created a new urban environment with previously unfamiliar forms of life and pastime (theater, masquerades). The interior decoration of houses, lifestyle, food composition, etc. have changed.

By a special decree of the tsar in 1718, assemblies were introduced, representing a new form of communication between people in Russia. At the assemblies, the nobles danced and communicated freely, unlike previous feasts and feasts.

S. Khlebovsky "Assemblies under Peter I"

Peter invited foreign artists to Russia and at the same time sent talented young people to study “art” abroad.

On December 30, 1701, Peter issued a decree that ordered full names to be written in petitions and other documents instead of derogatory half-names (Ivashka, Senka, etc.), not to fall on your knees before the Tsar, and in winter, in the cold, to wear a hat in front of the house in which king, don't take it off. He explained the need for these innovations in this way: “Less baseness, more zeal for service and loyalty to me and the state - this honor is characteristic of the king...”.

Peter tried to change the position of women in Russian society. By special decrees (1700, 1702 and 1724) he prohibited forced marriage. It was prescribed that there should be at least a six-week period between betrothal and wedding, “so that the bride and groom can recognize each other.” If during this time, the decree said, “the groom does not want to take the bride, or the bride does not want to marry the groom,” no matter how the parents insist on it, “there will be freedom.”

The transformations of the era of Peter I led to the strengthening of the Russian state, the creation of a modern European army, the development of industry and the spread of education among the upper classes of the population. An absolute monarchy was established, headed by the emperor, to whom the church was also subordinate (through the chief prosecutor of the Holy Synod).

To the question “In what year did Russia become an empire?” not everyone will be able to give an accurate answer. Someone forgot that the country was proudly called by it, someone may not know this at all. But it was precisely at that time that it was recognized as one of the most powerful powers in the world, and there was a significant economic and cultural rise of the state. Therefore, you need to know when this path, rich in historical events, began.

General information

The Russian Empire is a state that existed from 1721 until the February Revolution, when the existing political system collapsed and Russia became a republic. The country became an empire after the Northern War during the reign of Peter the Great. The capital changed - it was St. Petersburg, then Moscow, then St. Petersburg, renamed Leningrad after the revolution.

The borders of the Russian Empire extended from the Arctic Ocean on the northern borders to the Black Sea on the southern borders, from the Baltic Sea on the western borders to the Pacific Ocean on the eastern borders. Thanks to such a vast territory, Russia was considered the third largest power in the world by area. The head of the state was the emperor, who was an absolute monarch until 1905.

The Russian Empire was founded by Peter the Great, who completely changed the state structure during his reforms. Russia turned from a class-monarchal empire into an absolutist empire. Absolutism is introduced into the Military Regulations. Peter, taking the countries of Western Europe as a model, decided to proclaim it an imperial power.

To achieve an absolute monarchy, the Boyar Duma and the Patriarchate, which could influence the royal decisions, are abolished. After the introduction of the Table of Ranks, the main support of the monarch is the nobility, and the church becomes synodal, which is subordinate to the emperor. Russia has a permanent army and navy, which allows it to expand Russian borders to the west; access to the Baltic Sea has been won. Peter founded St. Petersburg, which later became the capital of the empire.

On October 22 (November 2), 1721, after the end of the Northern War, Russia was proclaimed an empire, and Peter the Great himself became emperor. In the eyes of European rulers, Russia thus showed everyone that it has great political influence and that it must be taken into account. Not all powers recognized the increased influence of Russia; the last to submit was Poland, which laid claim to part of the territories of Kievan Rus.

The period of "enlightened absolutism"

After the death of Peter the Great, the era of palace coups began - a time when there was no stability in the country, therefore, there was no significant rise in government. Everything changed when, during the next coup, Catherine the Second ascended the throne. During her reign, Russia makes another breakthrough both in foreign policy and in the internal structure of the state.

During the Russian-Turkish wars, Crimea was conquered, Russia took an active part in the division of Poland, and Novorossiya was being developed. During the colonization of Transcaucasia, Russian interests collided with Persian and Ottoman interests. In 1783, the Treaty of Georgievsk on patronage over Eastern Georgia was signed.

There were also popular unrest. Catherine the Great created a “Charter of Grant to the Nobility,” which exempted them from compulsory military service, but the peasants were still obliged to perform military service. The reaction of the peasantry and Cossacks, from whom the empress took away their liberties, was the “Pugachevshchina.”

Catherine's reign proceeds in the spirit of enlightened absolutism; she personally corresponds with famous French philosophers of that time. The Free Economic Society is founded, the development of science and art is encouraged. But at the same time, the Empress understands that the large territory of the Russian Empire requires strict control and an absolute monarchy.

During the reign of Emperor Nicholas II, events took place that turned upside down and completely changed Russian history. Despite the fact that the emperor favored industrial growth and demographic growth, the number of peasants and workers dissatisfied with working conditions is growing: the latter demand an 8-hour working day, and the peasantry wants the division of landowners' lands.

At that time, Russia was trying to expand its Far Eastern borders, this led to a clash of interests with Japan, which resulted in war and defeat, which was a consequence of the revolution. After this, Russia stopped expanding its influence in the Far East. The revolution was suppressed, the emperor made concessions - he created a Parliament that allowed political parties. But this did not help: discontent continued to grow, including with the Russification policy in Finland, the Poles were outraged by the loss of Poland's autonomy, and the Jews were outraged by the repressive policies that had increased since the 1880s.

The Russian Empire took part in the First World War, which led to enormous tension for all countries involved. Due to large military expenditures, a huge number of peasants are mobilized, which leads to an aggravation of the food problem. Growing difficulties cause dissatisfaction with politics and the existing state structure of all segments of the population, which results in the February Revolution of 1917, and in 1924 the USSR appears.

Why was the reign of these two emperors and empress discussed? In what year did Russia become an empire? That's right, in 1721, during the reign of Peter the Great, during the reign of the Russian Empire made a big leap in its development, and Nicholas II became the last Russian emperor, and it was necessary to write about the reasons that led to the collapse of the empire. The Russian state had great influence in world politics, the emperors sought to expand their borders, but did not take into account the interests of the common population, who were dissatisfied with the policy, which led to the creation of the republic.