Glorious Misadventures

Nikolai Rezanov and the Dream of a Russian America

Nonfiction, History, Americas, United States
Cover of the book Glorious Misadventures by Owen Matthews, Bloomsbury Publishing
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Owen Matthews ISBN: 9781620402412
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing Publication: November 12, 2013
Imprint: Bloomsbury USA Language: English
Author: Owen Matthews
ISBN: 9781620402412
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Publication: November 12, 2013
Imprint: Bloomsbury USA
Language: English

Two centuries ago, shortly after the U.S. was formed, a Russian expedition set its sights on the Pacific Northwest. It could have changed history.

At the dawn of the nineteenth century two empires met on the far side of North America. Spain was the tired and hidebound colonial master of much of the Americas. Russia was the upstart, hungry for America's Pacific Northwest coast, a prize left unclaimed after the golden age of exploration.

The dream of a Russian America became the goal of the Russian America Company, championed and led by Nikolai Rezanov, aristocratic adventurer and diplomat and courtier to Tsar Alexander I. At a time when John Jacob Astor was amassing his own fortune in the fur trade, Rezanov envisioned transforming fur-hunting stations on the Alaskan coast into the hub of a Pacific empire stretching from Siberia to California. The distances were vast-thousands of miles overland across the endless Russian steppes, thousands more by sea to Alaska and down to San Francisco bay. His men were unreliable-disorderly, dissolute, disease-ridden-and the dangers ever-present. Yet Rezanov persisted, and in 1806-just as Lewis and Clark were discovering the Columbia River to the north-he came close to realizing his dream. Had he done so, the history of the United States might have been very different.

Owen Matthews brilliantly chronicles a hitherto untold story of adventure and colonial ambition, brought to life by vivid first-hand accounts and his own travels across Russia, recalling a time when dreams of glory pushed men to the limits of human endurance.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Two centuries ago, shortly after the U.S. was formed, a Russian expedition set its sights on the Pacific Northwest. It could have changed history.

At the dawn of the nineteenth century two empires met on the far side of North America. Spain was the tired and hidebound colonial master of much of the Americas. Russia was the upstart, hungry for America's Pacific Northwest coast, a prize left unclaimed after the golden age of exploration.

The dream of a Russian America became the goal of the Russian America Company, championed and led by Nikolai Rezanov, aristocratic adventurer and diplomat and courtier to Tsar Alexander I. At a time when John Jacob Astor was amassing his own fortune in the fur trade, Rezanov envisioned transforming fur-hunting stations on the Alaskan coast into the hub of a Pacific empire stretching from Siberia to California. The distances were vast-thousands of miles overland across the endless Russian steppes, thousands more by sea to Alaska and down to San Francisco bay. His men were unreliable-disorderly, dissolute, disease-ridden-and the dangers ever-present. Yet Rezanov persisted, and in 1806-just as Lewis and Clark were discovering the Columbia River to the north-he came close to realizing his dream. Had he done so, the history of the United States might have been very different.

Owen Matthews brilliantly chronicles a hitherto untold story of adventure and colonial ambition, brought to life by vivid first-hand accounts and his own travels across Russia, recalling a time when dreams of glory pushed men to the limits of human endurance.

More books from Bloomsbury Publishing

Cover of the book Building Classroom Success by Owen Matthews
Cover of the book Mrs. Tim of the Regiment by Owen Matthews
Cover of the book Bioscience and the Good Life by Owen Matthews
Cover of the book The Last of the Spirits by Owen Matthews
Cover of the book Common by Owen Matthews
Cover of the book The Bravest Princess by Owen Matthews
Cover of the book The Involvement of EU Law in Private Law Relationships by Owen Matthews
Cover of the book Wilfrid Sellars, Idealism, and Realism by Owen Matthews
Cover of the book Transforming Type by Owen Matthews
Cover of the book Little Shaq: Star of the Week by Owen Matthews
Cover of the book The Lorimer Legacy by Owen Matthews
Cover of the book Okinawa 1945 by Owen Matthews
Cover of the book Man on Fire by Owen Matthews
Cover of the book Islam, Faith, and Fashion by Owen Matthews
Cover of the book Revisiting the Concept of Defence in the Jus ad Bellum by Owen Matthews
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy