Module IV: Russian America

Essential:  How is the experience of Russian America an example of 18th-19th century imperialism and colonialism?

To better understand this question I first found definitions of imperialism and colonialism.  According to the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, “colonialism is a practice of domination, which involves the subjugation of one people to another.”  Colonialism involves the transfer of population to a new territory, where the arrivals live as permanent settlers while maintaining political allegiance to their country of origin.  The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy states that “the term imperialism draws attention to the way that one country exercises power over another, whether through settlement, sovereignty, or indirect mechanisms of control.” So back to the original question, How is

the experience of Russian America an example imperialism and colonialism?

Russian trading settlement in Kodiak

http://www.pbs.org/harriman/1899/exploration.html 

Russian America was the name given to the Russian colony in Alaska from 1741 to 1867.  Vitus Bering and his crew “discovered” Alaska on their second expedition.  In the years following, Russians would voyage to Russian American over sixty times (Alaska History).  Russians flocked to Alaska to take part in fur trading with China.  Some Native groups tried to keep the Russians out, but the Russians had the advantage of firearms.  Soon enough Natives were forced to hunt and trap for the Russians.  Often the Russians took Native women and children as hostages while the hunters gathered pelts (Alaska History).  This act of dominance over the Natives is a perfect example of 18th-19th century imperialism.  

Baranov 

http://www.akhistorycourse.org/articles/article.php?artID=132 

The first Chief Manager of the colony was Aleksandr Andreevich Baranov.  One of his first acts as manager was to extend the colony into Southeast Alaska.  In 1802, Tlingits attacked a Russian post killing many people.  Their actions showed Baranov that he was not welcome there.  However, Baranov considered the Tlingit attack a temporary setback and soon returned to Southeast Alaska with a force of several hundred Aleut hunters. He learned the Natives had moved to a more easily defended location and had erected a formidable fortress. Baranov, with the aide of a Russian naval ship, the Neva, armed with a number of cannons, re-took the post (Alaska History).  Baranov’s experience is just one of many examples of 18th-19th century colonialism that took place in Alaska.  

The entire Russian American experience was a demonstration of imperialism and colonialism.  At times Russians devastated Native ways of life, but in other instances Russians shared ideas, tools, and food with Natives.  Even though Russian America only lasted for less than 130 years, life in Alaska would not be the same today if Russians hadn’t sent over people to begin colonization in 1741.  

Examine: Why were the Russians interested in Alaska? 

Russians originally became interested in Alaska because, like many countries of Europe, they launched expeditions of exploration in search of new lands.  They were interested in learning about the size of the continents, their position on the globe, and their relationship to each other.  More importantly, they were interested in the people that inhabited new lands, the resources of the new lands, and how they could benefit from them (Alaska History). 

Shelikhov’s Map 
http://www.historycooperative.org/journals/cp/vol-05/no-02/miller/index.shtml 

Tsar Peter the Great, the ruler of Russia between 1689 and 1725, sought to expand his geographic knowledge and expand Russian commerce by controlling trade routes.  In 1725, Tsar Peter selected Vitus Bering to explore the world outside of Russia.  As mentioned previously, Vitus Bering and his crew “discovered” Alaska on their second expedition.  This opened doors for Russia to colonize, hunt, trade, and form what was called Russian America (Alaska History). 

Picture of Alaska sold to US 
http://www.akhistorycourse.org/articles/article.php?artID=164

Russian explorers found Alaska to be rich in fur-bearing animals.  They forced Natives to hunt and trap the animals for their fur and began trading furs to Chinese merchants for tea, silk, and other goods.  As more and more fur was traded, interest in Alaska grew (Alaska History).  Russians stayed in Alaska for as long as they could use natural resources for economic profit.  Once their profits declined, Russians lost interest in Alaska and sold it to the United States in 1867 (Alaska History). 

Extend: What evidence of Russian America's legacy do you see in Alaska today?  

Russians brought customs, language, religion, new technologies, and social patterns to Alaska.  In schools Native boys between 12 and 16 years old were studying reading and writing in Russian, accounting, French, geography, mathematics, navigation, and religion.  Alaska’s first library and museum were built in Kodiak by the Russians (Alaska History). 

Russian Orthodox Church in Juneau, AK
http://packca.wordpress.com/2011/07/09/a-wing-and-a-prayer/

Today, the foremost legacy of the Russian America period is the Russian Orthodox Church.  It is still an aspect of Native culture in Southwest, Southcentral, and Southeast Alaska.  Places like Kodiak and Sitka still sport the onion-shaped domes of the Russian Orthodox Church (Yeager).  

here.  Also while I was researching, I stumbled upon another woman’s blog detailing her experience with the same church.   

Evaluate: Please write a brief paragraph reflecting on the content, style, and usefulness of this first module.

I found this module to be a bit long and repetitive.  However, it was great information that was all new for me.  In general when we talk about the culture in Wrangell, we rarely mention the Russian influences.  I find this a bit silly because our island was named for Ferdinand Von Wrangell, the manager of the Russian-American Company around 1830.  I am not entirely sure how I will directly use this information in my classes, but I am sure this new knowledge will allow me to make connections in the classroom.  Finally, I enjoyed the photographs in this module.  

Resources: 

Alaska History & Cultural Studies Curriculum. (2012). Alaska’s Heritage: American Contact with Russian America. Retrieved from http://www.akhistorycourse.org/articles/article.php?artID=164

Alaska History & Cultural Studies Curriculum. (2012). Alaska’s Heritage: Art, Culture, Education, Recreation, and Religion. Retrieved from http://www.akhistorycourse.org/articles/article.php?artID=162

Alaska History & Cultural Studies Curriculum. (2012). Alaska’a Heritage: Russians Come To Alaska. Retrieved from http://www.akhistorycourse.org/articles/article.php?artID=155

Alaska History & Cultural Studies Curriculum. (2012).  Russia’s Colony: Baranof in Alaska. Retrieved from http://www.akhistorycourse.org/articles/article.php?artID=132

Alaska History & Cultural Studies Curriculum. (2012). Russia’s Colony: The Beginning of Exploration. Retrieved from http://www.akhistorycourse.org/articles/article.php?artID=128 

Alaska History & Cultural Studies Curriculum. (2012). Russia’s Colony: More Russian Exploration in Alaska. Retrieved from http://www.akhistorycourse.org/articles/article.php?artID=130

Yeager, Lisa and Chandonnet, Ann. (1993). The Alaska Almanac. Anchorage, Seattle, Portland: Alaska Northwest Books. 

Colleague Blogs: 

Latitude 61: Crystal did a wonderful job summarizing the material we read about the Russian American Company.  She also used a map from The Library of Congress and stated in her evaluation that this could be a useful classroom resource.  

Alaskan Adventure: Whitney painted me a wonderful picture of the Russian legacy observed in Alaska today.  She did a great job describing the houses, clothing, and tools.  She also had corresponding links throughout her blog to the articles we read for this Module.  

Alaska - Learning the Culture and Natural History: Christy did a great job answering the questions she chose.  I specifically enjoyed her answer to “What were the various economic ventures of the Russian America Company?”  She detailed each of the economic ventures and it helped me better understand what items and traditions Russian’s brought to Alaska.