The sale of Alaska by the Russian government was the most controversial deal of the 19th century. Until now, there are disputes about its legality, necessity, there are various rumors about the possibility of returning the lands of the so-called Russian America. But those who condemn the actions of Alexander II do not take into account the state of the Russian economy at that time, the position of the empire on the world stage.
No sooner had the country recovered from World War II than it entered into a new campaign - the Crimean one, the economic damage from which was later estimated at 800 million rubles in gold. Against this background, the distant and unprofitable northern colony could not receive additional funds for development. And she demanded more investment. Moreover, Alaska demanded not only money, but also immigrants. For 70,000 indigenous people, only 2,500 Russians lived there, who simply got lost among the locals. The fact that the colony was located very far from the central government led to the fact that complete anarchy reigned on its territory, which was under the control of the Russian-American Company. Local residents were heavily taxed, which was also collected by company representatives. The predatory actions of Russian colonistsled to a series of Indian uprisings. It was difficult to resist them, since neither human nor financial resources were enough for this. As a result, the sale of Alaska became the only right decision.
The young country of America has been conducting an active foreign policy since the beginning of the 19th century. Its first achievement was the purchase of Louisiana from France, which almost doubled the US territory. Not all states in America accepted and appreciated this acquisition, but time has shown the value of such a decision. In 1847, an offer for the sale of the North American colonies first appeared, however, a buyer was never found at that time. The US Congress was not ready to buy "ice and stones", and Russia's relations with the UK were, to put it mildly, strained.
Nevertheless, an agreement with America was still reached. A significant role in this was played by the assistance provided to the United States by the Russian fleet in resolving their conflict with England. The first meeting took place in December 1866. Alexander II himself attended the meeting. As a result, the transaction was approved and already on March 30 of the following year the contract was signed. According to the agreement, all Russian possessions on the North American continent were transferred to the United States for 11 million rubles.
All the talk that the sale of Alaska is a fiction, that it was leased out for 99 years, is a common fiction. The agreement is stored in the American archive and its text does not say a word about the lease. The money was transferred to the London branch of the Barings' bank, and afterRussia. Recently, talks have become more frequent that the Americans did not comply with the terms of the deal, and now it can be challenged. However, according to all laws, Russian and American, all the statute of limitations has already expired.
The sale of Alaska was beneficial to all participants in the transaction. Russia got rid of the unprofitable colony, which brought more problems than good. The empire was in dire need of the money that Alaska was able to bring. The sale made it possible to establish good diplomatic relations with the United States and helped replenish the budget deficit devastated by the Crimean campaign.
