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{{Short description|1689 border treaty between Russia and Qing China}}
{{EngvarA|date=November 2021}}
{{Infobox treaty {{Infobox treaty
| name = Treaty of Nerchinsk | name = Treaty of Nerchinsk
| long_name = | long_name =
| image = File:Treaty of Nerchinsk (1689).jpg | image = Латинскии Текст Нерчинского Договорa (авпр, Փ. 163, Оп. 1, Д. 22, Ал. 6 Об.) - 1.jpg
| image_size = | image_size =
| alt = | alt =
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| type = Border treaty | type = Border treaty
| context = | context =
| date_signed = {{Start date|1689|08|27}} | date_signed = {{Start date|1689|08|27|df=y}}
| location_signed = ] | location_signed = ]
| date_expiration = {{End date|1858|05|28}} | date_expiration = {{End date|1858|05|28|df=y}}
| negotiators = {{plainlist| | negotiators = {{plainlist|
*{{Flagicon|Russian Empire}} ] *{{Flagicon|Tsardom of Russia}} ]
*{{Flagicon|Qing Dynasty}} ]}} *{{Flagicon|Qing Dynasty}} ]}}
| signatories = {{plainlist| | signatories = {{plainlist|
*{{Flagicon|Russian Empire}} ] *{{Flagicon|Tsardom of Russia}} ]
*{{Flagicon|Qing Dynasty}} ]}} *{{Flagicon|Qing Dynasty}} ]}}
| parties = {{plainlist| | parties = {{plainlist|
*{{Flagicon|Russian Empire}} ] *{{Flagicon|Tsardom of Russia}} ]
*{{Flagicon|Qing Dynasty}} ]}} *{{Flagicon|Qing Dynasty}} ]}}
| languages = {{plainlist| | languages = {{plainlist|
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| wikisource1 = la:Pactum Nertschiae | wikisource1 = la:Pactum Nertschiae
| wikisource2 = ru:Нерчинский договор (1689) | wikisource2 = ru:Нерчинский договор (1689)
| wikisource3 = oldwikisource:ᠨᡳᠪᠴᡠ {{zwj}}‍ᡳ ᠪᠣᠵᡳ ᠪᡳᡨᡥᡝ
| wikisource4 = zh:尼布楚條約 | wikisource4 = zh:尼布楚條約
}} }}
]. Nerchinsk is part way up the Shilka. The Stanovoy Range extends along the northern edge of the Amur basin.]] ]. Nerchinsk is partway up the Shilka. The Stanovoy Range extends along the northern edge of the Amur basin.]]
] ]
The '''Treaty of Nerchinsk''' of 1689 was the first treaty between Russia and ] under the ]. The Russians gave up the area north of the ] as far as the ] and kept the area between the ] and ]. This border along the Argun River and Stanovoy Range lasted until the ] in 1858 and 1860. It opened markets for Russian goods in China, and gave Russians access to Chinese supplies and luxuries. The '''Treaty of Nerchinsk''' of 1689 was the first treaty between the ] and the ] of China after the defeat of Russia by Qing China at the ] in 1686. The Russians gave up the area north of the ] as far as the ] and kept the area between the ] and ]. This border along the Argun River and Stanovoy Range lasted until the ] via the ] in 1858 and the ] in 1860. It opened markets for Russian goods in China, and gave Russians access to Chinese supplies and luxuries.


The agreement was signed in ] on August 27, 1689.<ref name="Krausse1899">{{cite book|last=Krausse|first=Alexis Sidney|title=Russia in Asia: a record and a study, 1558-1899|url=https://archive.org/details/russiainasiaare00kraugoog|access-date=26 August 2011|year=1899|publisher=G. Richards|pages=–31}}</ref> The signatories were ] on behalf of the ] and ] on behalf of the Russian tsars ] and ]. The agreement was signed in ] on 27 August 1689.<ref name="Krausse1899">{{cite book|last=Krausse|first=Alexis Sidney|title=Russia in Asia: a record and a study, 1558–1899|url=https://archive.org/details/russiainasiaare00kraugoog|access-date=26 August 2011|year=1899|publisher=G. Richards|pages=–331}}</ref> The signatories were ] on behalf of the ] and ] on behalf of the Russian tsars ] and ].


The authoritative version was in Latin, with translations into Russian and Manchu, but these versions differed considerably. There was no official Chinese text for another two centuries,<ref>On the difference between version of the treaty, see V. S. Frank, "The Territorial Terms of the Sino-Russian Treaty of Nerchinsk, 1689", ''The Pacific Historical Review'' 16, No. 3 (August 1947), 265–170.</ref> but the border markers were inscribed in Chinese along with Manchu, Russian and Latin.<ref>Journal of the Royal Central Asian Society, 281.</ref> The authoritative version was in Latin,<ref>V. S. Frank, "", '']'' 16, No. 3 (August 1947), 265–270. Cited: p. 269: " it appears that according to the Latin text of the treaty (the only valid text!)"</ref> with translations into Russian and Manchu, but these versions differed considerably. There was no official Chinese text for another two centuries,<ref>On the difference between version of the treaty, see V. S. Frank, "", '']'' 16, No. 3 (August 1947), 265–270.</ref> but the border markers were inscribed in Chinese along with Manchu, Russian and Latin.<ref>Journal of the Royal Central Asian Society, 281.</ref>


Later, in 1727, the ] fixed what is now the border of Mongolia west of the Argun and opened up the caravan trade. In 1858 (]) Russia annexed the land north of the Amur and in 1860 (]) took the coast down to ]. The current border runs along the Argun, Amur and ] rivers. Later, in 1727, the ] reconfirmed and expanded upon the treaty.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Treaty of Nerchinsk {{!}} Sino-Russian, Border Agreement, 1689 {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/event/Treaty-of-Nerchinsk |access-date=2024-12-12 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en}}</ref> The treaty further set what is now the border of Mongolia west of the Argun and opened up the caravan trade. In 1858 (]) Russia annexed the land north of the Amur and in 1860 (]) took the coast down to ]. The current border runs along the Argun, Amur and ] rivers.


==Names== ==Names==
Treaty of Nerchinsk is written in other languages as follows: Treaty of Nerchinsk is written in other languages as follows:
*{{lang-la|Tractatus pacis de Nipkoa}} *{{langx|la|Pactum Nertschiae}}
*{{lang-ru|Нерчинский договор}} (]: ''Nerčinskij dogovor'') *{{langx|ru|Нерчинский договор}} (]: ''Nerčinskij dogovor'')
*]: {{MongolUnicode|ᠨᡳᠪᠴᡠ {{zwj}}‍ᡳ<br>ᠪᠣᠵᡳ<br>ᠪᡳᡨᡥᡝ}}, (] transliteration: ''nibcoo-i bade bithe'') *]: {{MongolUnicode|ᠨᡳᠪᠴᡠ {{zwj}}‍ᡳ<br>ᠪᠣᠵᡳ<br>ᠪᡳᡨᡥᡝ}}, (] transliteration: ''nibcu-i boji bithe'')
*{{zh|s=尼布楚条约|zh|t=尼布楚條約|p=Níbùchǔ Tiáoyuē}} *{{zh|s=尼布楚条约|zh|t=尼布楚條約|p=Níbùchǔ Tiáoyuē}}


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] ]
] with provinces in yellow, military governorates and protectorates in green, tributary states in orange.]] ] with provinces in yellow, military governorates and protectorates in green, tributary states in orange.]]
From about 1640, Russians entered the Amur basin from the north, into land claimed by the Manchus who at this time were just beginning their conquest of China. The Manchus had, by the 1680s, completed the conquest of China and eliminated the last Ming successor states in the south.<ref>Elman, Benjamin A (2007), "Ming-Qing border defense, the inward turn of Chinese Cartography, and Qing expansion in Central Asia in the Eighteenth Century", in Diana Lary (ed.) ''Chinese State at the Borders''. Univ. Wash. Press, pp. 29–56.</ref> With the Manchu ] dynasty now firmly in control of the South, it was in a position to deal with what they saw as Russian encroachment in Manchuria, the dynasty's ancient homeland.<ref>Ellman (2007: 47)</ref> By 1685 most of the Russians had been driven out of the area. See ] for details. From about 1640, Russians entered the Amur basin from the north, into land claimed by the Qing dynasty which at this time were just beginning their conquest of the ]. The Qing had, by the 1680s, completed the conquest of ] and eliminated the last Ming successor states in the south.<ref>Elman, Benjamin A (2007), "Ming-Qing border defense, the inward turn of Chinese Cartography, and Qing expansion in Central Asia in the Eighteenth Century", in Diana Lary (ed.) ''Chinese State at the Borders''. Univ. Wash. Press, pp. 29–56.</ref> With the Qing dynasty now firmly in control of China, it was in a position to deal with what they saw as Russian encroachment in ], the ancient homeland of the ruling ] clan.<ref>Ellman (2007: 47)</ref> By 1685 most of the Russians had been driven out of the area.


After their first victory at ] in 1685, the Qing government sent two letters to the Tsar (in Latin) suggesting peace and demanding that Russian freebooters leave the Amur. The Russian government, knowing that the Amur could not be defended and being more concerned with events in the west, sent ] east as ]. Golovin left Moscow in January 1686 with 500 ] and reached ] near Lake Baikal in October 1687, from whence he sent couriers ahead. It was agreed the meeting would be in Selenginsk in 1688. At this point the ] (western Mongols) under ] attacked the ] in the area between Selenginsk and Peking and negotiations had to be delayed. To avoid the fighting Golovin moved east to ] where it was agreed that talks would take place. The Manchus with 3,000 to 15,000 soldiers under ] left Peking on June 1689 and arrived in July. Talks went on from August 22 to September 6. After their first victory at ] in 1685, the Qing government sent two letters to the Tsar (in Latin) suggesting peace and demanding that Russian freebooters leave the Amur. The Russian government, knowing that the Amur could not be defended and being more concerned with events in the west, sent ] east as ]. Golovin left Moscow in January 1686 with 500 ] and reached ] near Lake Baikal in October 1687, whence he sent couriers ahead. It was agreed the meeting would be in Selenginsk in 1688. At this point the ] (western Mongols) under ] attacked the ] in the area between Selenginsk and Peking and negotiations had to be delayed. To avoid the fighting Golovin moved east to ] where it was agreed that talks would take place. Qing troops with a size of 3,000 to 15,000 soldiers under the command of ] left Peking on June 1689 and arrived in July. Talks went on from August 22 to September 6.


The language used was ], the translators being, for the Russians, a Pole named Andrei Bielobocki and for the Chinese the Jesuits ] and ]. To avoid problems of precedence, tents were erected side by side so that neither side would be seen as visiting the other. Russian acceptance of the treaty required a relaxation of what had been, in ] (the former dynasty) times, an iron rule of Chinese diplomacy, requiring the non-Chinese party to accept language which characterized the foreigner as an inferior or tributary.<ref>Fairbank, John K (1986), ''The Great Chinese Revolution: 1800-1985''. Harper & Row, pp. 36-37.</ref><ref>Keay, John (2009), ''China: a History''. Basic Books, pp. 439-440</ref> The conspicuous absence of such linguistic gamesmanship from the Treaty of Nerchinsk,<ref>Elman 2007:50-51)</ref> together with the equally conspicuous absence of Chinese language or personnel, suggests that the Kangxi emperor was using the Manchu language as a deliberate end-run around his more conservative ] bureaucracy. The ]'s rule of Mongol tribes living around Lake Baikal was claimed by the Qing, who incited the defection of the Nerchinsk ] and ] Mongols away from the Russians.<ref name="Perdue2009">{{cite book|author=Peter C Perdue|title=China Marches West: The Qing Conquest of Central Eurasia|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=J4L-_cjmSqoC&q=lake%20baikal%20russians&pg=PA167|date=30 June 2009|publisher=Harvard University Press|isbn=978-0-674-04202-5|pages=167–169}}</ref> The language used was ], the translators being, for the Russians, a Pole named Andrei Bielobocki and for the Chinese the Jesuits ] and ]. To avoid problems of precedence, tents were erected side by side so that neither side would be seen as visiting the other. Russian acceptance of the treaty required a relaxation of what had been, in Ming times, an iron rule of Chinese diplomacy, requiring the non-Chinese party to accept language which characterized the foreigner as an inferior or tributary.<ref>Fairbank, John K (1986), ''The Great Chinese Revolution: 1800–1985''. Harper & Row, pp. 36–37.</ref><ref>Keay, John (2009), ''China: a History''. Basic Books, pp. 439–440</ref> The conspicuous absence of such language from the Treaty, together with the absence of Chinese language or personnel, suggests that the ] was using the Manchu language to circumvent his conservative ] bureaucracy.<ref>Elman (2007:50–51)</ref> The ]'s rule of Mongol tribes living around Lake Baikal was claimed by the Qing, who incited the defection of the Nerchinsk ] and ] Mongols away from the Russians.<ref name="Perdue2009">{{cite book|author=Peter C Perdue|title=China Marches West: The Qing Conquest of Central Eurasia|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=J4L-_cjmSqoC&q=lake%20baikal%20russians&pg=PA167|year=2009|publisher=Harvard University Press|isbn=978-0-674-04202-5|pages=167–169}}</ref>


The Manchus wished to remove the Russians from the Amur. They were interested in the Amur since it was the northern border of the original Manchu heartland. They could ignore the area west of the Argun since it was then controlled by the Oirats. The ] (i.e. the reigning Qing (Manchu) dynasty emperor of China) also wished to settle with Russia in order to free his hands to deal with the Dzungar Mongols of Central Asia, to his northwest.<ref>Elman 2007: 50)</ref><ref>Perdue, Peter C (1996), "Military mobilization in Seventeenth and Eighteenth-Century China, Russia, and Mongolia". ''Modern Asian Studies'' 30: 757-793, 763-764.</ref> The Manchus also wanted a delineated frontier to keep nomads and outlaws from fleeing across the border.<ref>Gang Zhao (2006), "Reinventing China: Imperial Qing ideology and the rise of modern Chinese national identity in the early Twentieth Century". ''Modern China'' 32: 3-30, 14.</ref> The Qing dynasty wished to remove the Russians from the Amur. They were interested in the Amur since it was the northern border of the original Manchu heartland. They could ignore the area west of the Argun since it was then controlled by the Oirats. The Kangxi Emperor also wished to settle with Russia in order to free his hands to deal with the ] Mongols of Central Asia, to his northwest.<ref>Elman (2007: 50)</ref><ref>Perdue, Peter C (1996), "Military mobilization in Seventeenth and Eighteenth-Century China, Russia, and Mongolia". ''Modern Asian Studies'' 30: 757–793, 763–764.</ref> The Qing dynasty also wanted a delineated frontier to keep nomads and outlaws from fleeing across the border.<ref>Gang Zhao (2006), "Reinventing China: Imperial Qing ideology and the rise of modern Chinese national identity in the early Twentieth Century". ''Modern China'' 32: 3–30, 14.</ref>


The Russians, for their part, knew that the Amur was indefensible and were more interested in establishing profitable trade, which the Kangxi Emperor had threatened to block unless the border dispute were resolved.<ref>Elman 2007: 47)</ref> Golovin accepted the loss of the Amur in exchange for possession of Trans-Baikalia and access to Chinese markets for Russian traders. The Russians were also concerned with the military strength of the Manchus, who had demonstrated their capability, in 1685 and 1686, by twice overrunning the Russian outpost at Albazin.<ref>Black, Jeremy (1999), ''War in the Early Modern World: 1450-1815''. UCL Press., p. 98.</ref> The Russians, for their part, knew that the Amur was indefensible and were more interested in establishing profitable trade, which the Kangxi Emperor had threatened to block unless the border dispute were resolved.<ref>Elman (2007: 47)</ref> Golovin accepted the loss of the Amur in exchange for possession of Trans-Baikalia and access to Chinese markets for Russian traders. The Russians were also concerned with the military strength of the Qing dynasty, who had demonstrated their capability, in 1685 and 1686, by twice overrunning the Russian outpost at Albazin.<ref>Black, Jeremy (1999), ''War in the Early Modern World: 1450–1815''. UCL Press., p. 98.</ref>


At this time, Russia could not send large forces to the Far East, starting a war with the Ottoman Empire. At the same time, the Dzungars captured Mongolia, threatening China, so Russia and China were inclined to sign a peace treaty as soon as possible..<ref name="Beckwith2009">{{cite book|author=Christopher I. Beckwith|title=Empires of the Silk Road: A History of Central Eurasia from the Bronze Age to the Present|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-Ue8BxLEMt4C&q=Tusiyetu+khan&pg=PA235|date=16 March 2009|publisher=Princeton University Press|isbn=978-1-4008-2994-1|pages=235–}}</ref> At this time, Russia could not send large forces to the Far East, as they were launching a war with the Ottoman Empire. At the same time, the Dzungars captured Mongolia, threatening the Qing dynasty, so Russia and Qing dynasty were inclined to sign a peace treaty as soon as possible.<ref name="Beckwith2009">{{cite book|author=Christopher I. Beckwith|title=Empires of the Silk Road: A History of Central Eurasia from the Bronze Age to the Present|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-Ue8BxLEMt4C&q=Tusiyetu+khan&pg=PA235|year=2009|publisher=Princeton University Press|isbn=978-1-4008-2994-1|pages=235–}}</ref>


==The border== ==The border==
{{Unreferenced section|date=August 2019}}
The agreed boundary was the ] north to its confluence with the ], up the Shilka to the "Gorbitsa River", up the Gorbitsa to its headwaters, then along the east-west watershed through the ] and down the ] to the Sea of Okhotsk at its southwest corner. The agreed boundary was the ] north to its confluence with the ], up the Shilka to the "Gorbitsa River", up the Gorbitsa to its headwaters, then along the east-west watershed through the ] and down the ] to the Sea of Okhotsk at its southwest corner.


The border west of the Argun was not defined (at the time, this area was controlled by the Oirats). Neither side had very exact knowledge of the course of the Uda River. The Gorbitsa is hard to find on modern maps. The border west of the Argun was not defined (at the time, this area was controlled by the Oirats).<ref>Hsu, Immanuel C.Y. (1990), '']'', Oxford University Press, p. 117</ref> Neither side had very exact knowledge of the course of the Uda River. The Gorbitsa is hard to find on modern maps.


==Treaty details== ==Treaty details==
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The treaty had six paragraphs: 1 and 2: definition of the border, 3. Albazin to be abandoned and destroyed. 4. Refugees who arrived before the treaty to stay, those arriving after the treaty to be sent back. 5. Trade to be allowed with proper documents. 6. Boundary stones to be erected, and general exhortations to avoid conflict. The treaty had six paragraphs: 1 and 2: definition of the border, 3. Albazin to be abandoned and destroyed. 4. Refugees who arrived before the treaty to stay, those arriving after the treaty to be sent back. 5. Trade to be allowed with proper documents. 6. Boundary stones to be erected, and general exhortations to avoid conflict.

==Economic aspects== ==Economic aspects==
The treaty was "a triumph of intercultural negotiation" that gave Russians access to Chinese markets for expensive furs; Russians purchased porcelain, silk, gold, silver, and tea as well as with provisions for the northern garrisons.<ref>Peter C. Perdue, "Nature and Power: China and the Wider World." ''Social Science History'' 37.3 (2013): 373-391.</ref> The cross-border trade created a multiethnic character to Nerchinsk and ] in Siberia. They became locales for the interaction of Russian, Central Asian, and Chinese cultures. The trade extended European economic expansion deep into Asia. Profitable trade fell off in the 1720s because the policies of Peter I limited private initiative and ended Siberia's role as a major economic link between the West and East.<ref>Eva-Maria Stolberg, "Interracial Outposts in Siberia: Nerchinsk, Kiakhta, and the Russo-Chinese Trade in the Seventeenth/Eighteenth Centuries." ''Journal of Early Modern History'' 4#3-4 (2000): 322-336.</ref> The treaty was "a triumph of intercultural negotiation" that gave Russians access to Chinese markets for expensive furs; Russians purchased porcelain, silk, gold, silver, and tea as well as with provisions for the northern garrisons.<ref>Peter C. Perdue, "Nature and Power: China and the Wider World." ''Social Science History'' 37.3 (2013): 373–391.</ref> The cross-border trade created a multiethnic character to Nerchinsk and ] in Siberia. They became locales for the interaction of Russian, Central Asian, and Chinese cultures. The trade extended European economic expansion deep into Asia. Profitable trade fell off in the 1720s because the policies of Peter I limited private initiative and ended Siberia's role as a major economic link between the West and East.<ref>Eva-Maria Stolberg, "Interracial Outposts in Siberia: Nerchinsk, Kiakhta, and the Russo-Chinese Trade in the Seventeenth/Eighteenth Centuries." ''Journal of Early Modern History'' 4#3–4 (2000): 322–336.</ref>


== Later developments== == Later developments==
Russian interest in the Amur River was revived in the 1750s. In 1757 ] was sent to map the area. He mapped the ], which was partly in Chinese territory, but was turned back when he reached its confluence with the ]. In 1757 Vasili Fedorovich Bradishchev was sent to Peking to investigate the possibility of using the Amur. He was received cordially and given a definite no. After that the matter was dropped.<ref>Foust, ''Muscovite and Mandarin'' p. 245-250</ref> Russian interest in the Amur River was revived in the 1750s. In 1757 ] was sent to map the area. He mapped the ], which was partly in Chinese territory, but was turned back when he reached its confluence with the ]. In 1757 Vasili Fedorovich Bradishchev was sent to Peking to investigate the possibility of using the Amur. He was received cordially and given a definite no. After that the matter was dropped.<ref>Foust, ''Muscovite and Mandarin'' pp. 245–250</ref>


In 1799, when ] visited Canton he saw an English ship that had brought furs from Russian America in five months as opposed to the two years or more for the Okhotsk–Yakutsk–Kyakhta route. He saw that this could replace the overland trade. He submitted a memoir to the Naval Ministry which led to his command of the first Russian circumnavigation. He was able to sell American furs at Canton after some official resistance. Only when he returned to Kronstadt did he learn that his presence in Canton had provoked an edict making clear that Russian trade with the Middle Kingdom would be confined to Kyakhta.<ref>Foust, page 319-32</ref> In 1799, when ] visited Canton he saw an English ship that had brought furs from Russian America in five months as opposed to the two years or more for the Okhotsk–Yakutsk–Kyakhta route. He saw that this could replace the overland trade. He submitted a memoir to the Naval Ministry which led to his command of the first Russian circumnavigation. He was able to sell American furs at Canton after some official resistance. Only when he returned to Kronstadt did he learn that his presence in Canton had provoked an edict making clear that Russian trade with the Middle Kingdom would be confined to Kyakhta.<ref>Foust, pp. 319–332</ref>


For the rest see ] and ]. For the rest see ] and ].


==See also== ==See also==
* ] * ]
* ] * ]
* ]


==Notes== ==Notes==
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==References== ==References==
* Bao, Muping. "trade centres (maimaicheng) in Mongolia, and their function in Sino–Russian trade networks." ''International Journal of Asian Studies'' 3.2 (2006): 211-237. * Bao, Muping. "trade centres (maimaicheng) in Mongolia, and their function in Sino–Russian trade networks." ''International Journal of Asian Studies'' 3.2 (2006): 211–237.
* Chen, Vincent. ''Sino Russian Relations in the Seventeenth Century.'' (Martinus Nijhoff, 1966). * Chen, Vincent. ''Sino Russian Relations in the Seventeenth Century.'' (Martinus Nijhoff, 1966).
* Frank, V.S. "The Territorial Terms of the Sino-Russian Treaty of Nerchinsk, 1689". ''Pacific Historical Review'' 16#3 (Aug., 1947), pp. 265-270 * Frank, V.S. "The Territorial Terms of the Sino-Russian Treaty of Nerchinsk, 1689". ''Pacific Historical Review'' 16#3 (Aug., 1947), pp.&nbsp;265–270
* Gardener, William. "China and Russia: The Beginnings of Contact" ''History Today'', 27 (January 1977): 22-30. * Gardener, William. "China and Russia: The Beginnings of Contact" ''History Today'', 27 (January 1977): 22–30.
* Maier, Lothar. "Gerhard Friedrich Müller's memoranda on Russian relations with China and the reconquest of the Amur." ''Slavonic and East European Review'' (1981): 219-240. * Maier, Lothar. "Gerhard Friedrich Müller's memoranda on Russian relations with China and the reconquest of the Amur." ''Slavonic and East European Review'' (1981): 219–240.
* Mancall, Mark. ''Russia and China: Their Diplomatic Relations to 1728.'' Harvard University Press, 1971. * Mancall, Mark. ''Russia and China: Their Diplomatic Relations to 1728.'' Harvard University Press, 1971.
*{{citation|first=G. Patrick|last= March|title=Eastern Destiny: Russia in Asia and the North Pacific|year=1996|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ujht5Y_yQooC | isbn=0-275-95566-4}} *{{citation|first=G. Patrick|last= March|title=Eastern Destiny: Russia in Asia and the North Pacific|year=1996|publisher= Bloomsbury Academic|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ujht5Y_yQooC | isbn=0-275-95566-4}}
*]. ''China Marches West: The Qing Conquest of Central Eurasia.'' Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2005. *]. ''China Marches West: The Qing Conquest of Central Eurasia.'' Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2005.
* Perdue, Peter C. "Boundaries and trade in the early modern world: Negotiations at Nerchinsk and Beijing." ''Eighteenth-Century Studies'' (2010): 341-356. * Perdue, Peter C. "Boundaries and trade in the early modern world: Negotiations at Nerchinsk and Beijing." ''Eighteenth-Century Studies'' (2010): 341–356.
* Perdue, Peter C. "Nature and Power: China and the Wider World." ''Social Science History'' 37.3 (2013): 373-391. * Perdue, Peter C. "Nature and Power: China and the Wider World." ''Social Science History'' 37.3 (2013): 373–391.
* Perdue, Peter C. "Military Mobilization in Seventeenth and Eighteenth-Century China, Russia, and Mongolia." ''Modern Asian Studies'' 30.4 (1996): 757-793. * Perdue, Peter C. "Military Mobilization in Seventeenth and Eighteenth-Century China, Russia, and Mongolia." ''Modern Asian Studies'' 30.4 (1996): 757–793.
* Stolberg, Eva-Maria. "Interracial Outposts in Siberia: Nerchinsk, Kiakhta, and the Russo-Chinese Trade in the Seventeenth/Eighteenth Centuries." ''Journal of Early Modern History'' 4#3-4 (2000): 322-336. * Stolberg, Eva-Maria. "Interracial Outposts in Siberia: Nerchinsk, Kiakhta, and the Russo-Chinese Trade in the Seventeenth/Eighteenth Centuries." ''Journal of Early Modern History'' 4#3–4 (2000): 322–336.
* {{citation * {{citation
| title = Reinventing China Imperial Qing Ideology and the Rise of Modern Chinese National Identity in the Early Twentieth Century | title = Reinventing China Imperial Qing Ideology and the Rise of Modern Chinese National Identity in the Early Twentieth Century
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] ]
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Latest revision as of 12:22, 12 December 2024

1689 border treaty between Russia and Qing China

Treaty of Nerchinsk
A copy of the Treaty of Nerchinsk in Latin
TypeBorder treaty
Signed27 August 1689 (1689-08-27)
LocationNerchinsk
Expiration28 May 1858 (1858-05-28)
Negotiators
Signatories
Parties
Languages
Full text at [REDACTED] Wikisource
The Amur basin. Nerchinsk is partway up the Shilka. The Stanovoy Range extends along the northern edge of the Amur basin.
Changes in the Russo-Chinese border in the 17th–19th centuries

The Treaty of Nerchinsk of 1689 was the first treaty between the Tsardom of Russia and the Qing dynasty of China after the defeat of Russia by Qing China at the Siege of Albazin in 1686. The Russians gave up the area north of the Amur River as far as the Stanovoy Range and kept the area between the Argun River and Lake Baikal. This border along the Argun River and Stanovoy Range lasted until the Amur Annexation via the Treaty of Aigun in 1858 and the Convention of Peking in 1860. It opened markets for Russian goods in China, and gave Russians access to Chinese supplies and luxuries.

The agreement was signed in Nerchinsk on 27 August 1689. The signatories were Songgotu on behalf of the Kangxi Emperor and Fyodor Golovin on behalf of the Russian tsars Peter I and Ivan V.

The authoritative version was in Latin, with translations into Russian and Manchu, but these versions differed considerably. There was no official Chinese text for another two centuries, but the border markers were inscribed in Chinese along with Manchu, Russian and Latin.

Later, in 1727, the Treaty of Kiakhta reconfirmed and expanded upon the treaty. The treaty further set what is now the border of Mongolia west of the Argun and opened up the caravan trade. In 1858 (Treaty of Aigun) Russia annexed the land north of the Amur and in 1860 (Treaty of Beijing) took the coast down to Vladivostok. The current border runs along the Argun, Amur and Ussuri rivers.

Names

Treaty of Nerchinsk is written in other languages as follows:

History

The northern border of "Chinese Tartary", as shown on this map from 1734, was more or less the Sino-Russian border line settled at Nerchinsk. Nerchinsk itself is shown on the map (on the Russian side of the border) as well.
The Qing Empire with provinces in yellow, military governorates and protectorates in green, tributary states in orange.

From about 1640, Russians entered the Amur basin from the north, into land claimed by the Qing dynasty which at this time were just beginning their conquest of the Ming dynasty. The Qing had, by the 1680s, completed the conquest of China proper and eliminated the last Ming successor states in the south. With the Qing dynasty now firmly in control of China, it was in a position to deal with what they saw as Russian encroachment in Manchuria, the ancient homeland of the ruling Aisin Gioro clan. By 1685 most of the Russians had been driven out of the area.

After their first victory at Albazin in 1685, the Qing government sent two letters to the Tsar (in Latin) suggesting peace and demanding that Russian freebooters leave the Amur. The Russian government, knowing that the Amur could not be defended and being more concerned with events in the west, sent Fyodor Golovin east as plenipotentiary. Golovin left Moscow in January 1686 with 500 streltsy and reached Selenginsk near Lake Baikal in October 1687, whence he sent couriers ahead. It was agreed the meeting would be in Selenginsk in 1688. At this point the Oirats (western Mongols) under Galdan attacked the eastern Mongols in the area between Selenginsk and Peking and negotiations had to be delayed. To avoid the fighting Golovin moved east to Nerchinsk where it was agreed that talks would take place. Qing troops with a size of 3,000 to 15,000 soldiers under the command of Songgotu left Peking on June 1689 and arrived in July. Talks went on from August 22 to September 6.

The language used was Latin, the translators being, for the Russians, a Pole named Andrei Bielobocki and for the Chinese the Jesuits Jean-Francois Gerbillon and Thomas Pereira. To avoid problems of precedence, tents were erected side by side so that neither side would be seen as visiting the other. Russian acceptance of the treaty required a relaxation of what had been, in Ming times, an iron rule of Chinese diplomacy, requiring the non-Chinese party to accept language which characterized the foreigner as an inferior or tributary. The conspicuous absence of such language from the Treaty, together with the absence of Chinese language or personnel, suggests that the Kangxi Emperor was using the Manchu language to circumvent his conservative Han bureaucracy. The Yuan dynasty's rule of Mongol tribes living around Lake Baikal was claimed by the Qing, who incited the defection of the Nerchinsk Onggut and Buryat Mongols away from the Russians.

The Qing dynasty wished to remove the Russians from the Amur. They were interested in the Amur since it was the northern border of the original Manchu heartland. They could ignore the area west of the Argun since it was then controlled by the Oirats. The Kangxi Emperor also wished to settle with Russia in order to free his hands to deal with the Dzungar Mongols of Central Asia, to his northwest. The Qing dynasty also wanted a delineated frontier to keep nomads and outlaws from fleeing across the border.

The Russians, for their part, knew that the Amur was indefensible and were more interested in establishing profitable trade, which the Kangxi Emperor had threatened to block unless the border dispute were resolved. Golovin accepted the loss of the Amur in exchange for possession of Trans-Baikalia and access to Chinese markets for Russian traders. The Russians were also concerned with the military strength of the Qing dynasty, who had demonstrated their capability, in 1685 and 1686, by twice overrunning the Russian outpost at Albazin.

At this time, Russia could not send large forces to the Far East, as they were launching a war with the Ottoman Empire. At the same time, the Dzungars captured Mongolia, threatening the Qing dynasty, so Russia and Qing dynasty were inclined to sign a peace treaty as soon as possible.

The border

The agreed boundary was the Argun River north to its confluence with the Shilka River, up the Shilka to the "Gorbitsa River", up the Gorbitsa to its headwaters, then along the east-west watershed through the Stanovoy Mountains and down the Uda River (Khabarovsk Krai) to the Sea of Okhotsk at its southwest corner.

The border west of the Argun was not defined (at the time, this area was controlled by the Oirats). Neither side had very exact knowledge of the course of the Uda River. The Gorbitsa is hard to find on modern maps.

Treaty details

The treaty had six paragraphs: 1 and 2: definition of the border, 3. Albazin to be abandoned and destroyed. 4. Refugees who arrived before the treaty to stay, those arriving after the treaty to be sent back. 5. Trade to be allowed with proper documents. 6. Boundary stones to be erected, and general exhortations to avoid conflict.

Economic aspects

The treaty was "a triumph of intercultural negotiation" that gave Russians access to Chinese markets for expensive furs; Russians purchased porcelain, silk, gold, silver, and tea as well as with provisions for the northern garrisons. The cross-border trade created a multiethnic character to Nerchinsk and Kyakhta in Siberia. They became locales for the interaction of Russian, Central Asian, and Chinese cultures. The trade extended European economic expansion deep into Asia. Profitable trade fell off in the 1720s because the policies of Peter I limited private initiative and ended Siberia's role as a major economic link between the West and East.

Later developments

Russian interest in the Amur River was revived in the 1750s. In 1757 Fedor Ivanovich Soimonov was sent to map the area. He mapped the Shilka, which was partly in Chinese territory, but was turned back when he reached its confluence with the Argun. In 1757 Vasili Fedorovich Bradishchev was sent to Peking to investigate the possibility of using the Amur. He was received cordially and given a definite no. After that the matter was dropped.

In 1799, when Adam Johann von Krusenstern visited Canton he saw an English ship that had brought furs from Russian America in five months as opposed to the two years or more for the Okhotsk–Yakutsk–Kyakhta route. He saw that this could replace the overland trade. He submitted a memoir to the Naval Ministry which led to his command of the first Russian circumnavigation. He was able to sell American furs at Canton after some official resistance. Only when he returned to Kronstadt did he learn that his presence in Canton had provoked an edict making clear that Russian trade with the Middle Kingdom would be confined to Kyakhta.

For the rest see Treaty of Kyakhta and Amur Annexation.

See also

Notes

  1. Krausse, Alexis Sidney (1899). Russia in Asia: a record and a study, 1558–1899. G. Richards. pp. 330–331. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
  2. V. S. Frank, "The Territorial Terms of the Sino-Russian Treaty of Nerchinsk, 1689", The Pacific Historical Review 16, No. 3 (August 1947), 265–270. Cited: p. 269: " it appears that according to the Latin text of the treaty (the only valid text!)"
  3. On the difference between version of the treaty, see V. S. Frank, "The Territorial Terms of the Sino-Russian Treaty of Nerchinsk, 1689", The Pacific Historical Review 16, No. 3 (August 1947), 265–270.
  4. Journal of the Royal Central Asian Society, 281.
  5. "Treaty of Nerchinsk | Sino-Russian, Border Agreement, 1689 | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved 2024-12-12.
  6. Elman, Benjamin A (2007), "Ming-Qing border defense, the inward turn of Chinese Cartography, and Qing expansion in Central Asia in the Eighteenth Century", in Diana Lary (ed.) Chinese State at the Borders. Univ. Wash. Press, pp. 29–56.
  7. Ellman (2007: 47)
  8. Fairbank, John K (1986), The Great Chinese Revolution: 1800–1985. Harper & Row, pp. 36–37.
  9. Keay, John (2009), China: a History. Basic Books, pp. 439–440
  10. Elman (2007:50–51)
  11. Peter C Perdue (2009). China Marches West: The Qing Conquest of Central Eurasia. Harvard University Press. pp. 167–169. ISBN 978-0-674-04202-5.
  12. Elman (2007: 50)
  13. Perdue, Peter C (1996), "Military mobilization in Seventeenth and Eighteenth-Century China, Russia, and Mongolia". Modern Asian Studies 30: 757–793, 763–764.
  14. Gang Zhao (2006), "Reinventing China: Imperial Qing ideology and the rise of modern Chinese national identity in the early Twentieth Century". Modern China 32: 3–30, 14.
  15. Elman (2007: 47)
  16. Black, Jeremy (1999), War in the Early Modern World: 1450–1815. UCL Press., p. 98.
  17. Christopher I. Beckwith (2009). Empires of the Silk Road: A History of Central Eurasia from the Bronze Age to the Present. Princeton University Press. pp. 235–. ISBN 978-1-4008-2994-1.
  18. Hsu, Immanuel C.Y. (1990), The Rise of Modern China, Oxford University Press, p. 117
  19. Peter C. Perdue, "Nature and Power: China and the Wider World." Social Science History 37.3 (2013): 373–391.
  20. Eva-Maria Stolberg, "Interracial Outposts in Siberia: Nerchinsk, Kiakhta, and the Russo-Chinese Trade in the Seventeenth/Eighteenth Centuries." Journal of Early Modern History 4#3–4 (2000): 322–336.
  21. Foust, Muscovite and Mandarin pp. 245–250
  22. Foust, pp. 319–332

References

  • Bao, Muping. "trade centres (maimaicheng) in Mongolia, and their function in Sino–Russian trade networks." International Journal of Asian Studies 3.2 (2006): 211–237.
  • Chen, Vincent. Sino Russian Relations in the Seventeenth Century. (Martinus Nijhoff, 1966).
  • Frank, V.S. "The Territorial Terms of the Sino-Russian Treaty of Nerchinsk, 1689". Pacific Historical Review 16#3 (Aug., 1947), pp. 265–270 online
  • Gardener, William. "China and Russia: The Beginnings of Contact" History Today, 27 (January 1977): 22–30.
  • Maier, Lothar. "Gerhard Friedrich Müller's memoranda on Russian relations with China and the reconquest of the Amur." Slavonic and East European Review (1981): 219–240. online
  • Mancall, Mark. Russia and China: Their Diplomatic Relations to 1728. Harvard University Press, 1971.
  • March, G. Patrick (1996), Eastern Destiny: Russia in Asia and the North Pacific, Bloomsbury Academic, ISBN 0-275-95566-4
  • Perdue, Peter C. China Marches West: The Qing Conquest of Central Eurasia. Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2005.
  • Perdue, Peter C. "Boundaries and trade in the early modern world: Negotiations at Nerchinsk and Beijing." Eighteenth-Century Studies (2010): 341–356. online
  • Perdue, Peter C. "Nature and Power: China and the Wider World." Social Science History 37.3 (2013): 373–391.
  • Perdue, Peter C. "Military Mobilization in Seventeenth and Eighteenth-Century China, Russia, and Mongolia." Modern Asian Studies 30.4 (1996): 757–793. online
  • Stolberg, Eva-Maria. "Interracial Outposts in Siberia: Nerchinsk, Kiakhta, and the Russo-Chinese Trade in the Seventeenth/Eighteenth Centuries." Journal of Early Modern History 4#3–4 (2000): 322–336.
  • Zhao, Gang (January 2006), "Reinventing China Imperial Qing Ideology and the Rise of Modern Chinese National Identity in the Early Twentieth Century", Modern China, 32 (1): 3–30, doi:10.1177/0097700405282349, JSTOR 20062627, S2CID 144587815

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