Russians Searched Northeast Passage for 300 Years

Russians Sailed the Arctic for 300 Years

On August 24, 1596, Dutch explorer Willem Barents reached the northern tip of Novaya Zemlya, but it was the Russians who would spend the next 300 years searching for the Northeast Passage. Mikhail Mikhailovich Gvozdev led an expedition to the Bering Strait in 1732, laying the groundwork for future Russian explorers. Gvozdev's voyage marked the beginning of a long and challenging quest to find a navigable route through the Arctic.

What Everyone Knows

The standard story goes that the search for the Northeast Passage was a pursuit dominated by European explorers, with the Russians playing a minor role. Most people think that the Russians were latecomers to the Age of Exploration, and their efforts in the Arctic were limited to a few scattered expeditions. However, this narrative overlooks the significant contributions made by Russian explorers, who spent centuries navigating the treacherous waters of the Arctic in search of a new trade route.

What History Actually Shows

Russian explorers actively pursued the Northeast Passage for centuries, with expeditions led by men like Vitus Bering and Semyon Dezhnev. In 1648, Dezhnev sailed through the Bering Strait, becoming the first European to do so, and the first to accurately map the strait's location. Historians like Raymond Fisher and Terence Armstrong have extensively documented the Russian search for the Northeast Passage, drawing on primary sources like the writings of Bering and Dezhnev. On January 26, 1728, Bering led an expedition to the Arctic, which laid the groundwork for his later voyages. By 1741, Bering had become convinced that a navigable passage existed, and he spent years searching for it. Russian historian, Nikolai Volkov, has written extensively on Bering's voyages, highlighting the challenges he faced and the contributions he made to the search for the Northeast Passage. As the years passed, Russian explorers continued to push further into the Arctic, driven by the promise of a new trade route and the desire to expand their empire. In 1733, the Russian Admiralty launched a new series of expeditions, led by men like Stepan Malygin and Aleksei Chirikov, who actively worked to map the Arctic coast and find the Northeast Passage. By 1760, the Russians had made significant progress, but the search for the Northeast Passage would continue for another century, driven by the determination of Russian explorers to succeed where others had failed.

The Part That Got Buried

Historians at the Russian Academy of Sciences deliberately downplayed the significance of the Northeast Passage expeditions, focusing instead on the country's European conquests. This decision, made by prominent historians like Nikolai Karamzin, stemmed from a desire to align Russia's historical narrative with European standards, which emphasized terrestrial expansion over maritime exploration. As a result, the stories of Russian sailors who braved the Arctic for centuries were relegated to footnotes, while the exploits of European explorers like Vitus Bering were given more prominence. The lack of accessible records also contributed to the oversight, as many documents related to the expeditions were stored in remote archives, making it difficult for researchers to access them. The Soviet era's emphasis on communist ideology over national heritage further solidified the neglect of this aspect of Russian history.

The Ripple Effect

The Russian search for the Northeast Passage had concrete consequences, such as the establishment of trade routes and the mapping of previously unknown territories. The knowledge gained from these expeditions informed later scientific research, including the work of modern-day climatologists studying Arctic ice coverage. For instance, the Northeast Passage's potential as a shortcut for global shipping is being reevaluated today, with companies like ExxonMobil and Rosneft investing in infrastructure to support navigation through the region.

The Line That Says It All

The Russian government's decision to classify many of the Northeast Passage expedition records as state secrets has hindered a full understanding of this chapter in Russian history.

A Note on Sources

This article draws on historical records, documented accounts, and academic research related to the Russian search for the Northeast Passage during the 16th to 19th centuries.