This painting exhibits the theme of expansion in Imperial Russia. Obviously over the course of centuries, the Russian Empire grew quite a lot and this war in particular cemented Russian status in the Black sea. This “expansion” is clearly seen through Catherine’s forced annexation of Crimea, but it’s worth mentioning that this was considered a lost territory and Russia was trying to take it back. While this battle didn’t necessarily take place in Crimea, it was a part of an important effort in Russian territorial expansion. The treaty also allowed for free navigation of Russian ships in the Black Sea as well as the Turkish Straits which would allow for greater Russian influence.

Sources: Yücel, Kurtuluş. "The Legal Regime of the Turkish Straits: Regulation of the Montreux Convention and its Importance on the International Relations after the Conflict of Ukraine." Last modified , 2019. https://publikationen.ub.uni-frankfurt.de/opus4/frontdoor/deliver/index/docId/50470/file/Dissertation_Yuecel_Kurtulus.pdf.

Von Mechel, Christian. Military Maps. https://militarymaps.rct.uk/russo-turkish-wars/battle-of-adjud-1788-das-treffen-bei-adschud-in-der-moldau-d-14.

An interesting thing to point out about the map would be the use of mythology as an allegory towards Russia’s territorial gains at the time. In the top left corner of the map, a depiction of Hercules can be seen releasing another man from the underworld. That man would happen to be Theseus and he is supposed to represent the territories that Russia just gained. These territories, like Theseus, are being liberated from the underworld, Sweden. Above the scene of Hercules and Theseus, the Russian Empire’s coat of arms can be seen with it’s double headed Eagle shining in a sense.

This war, while it lasted quite a while and wasn’t easy, did cement Russia as a power next to Europe. This specific area did happen to play into the wants of Peter, ports and access to waterways. With Peter’s policies of continuous military buildup, which includes requiring serfs to serve a number of years and an emphasis on naval power, this shows that there is an obvious goal of power and expansion. This theme continues to become an emphasis throughout the course of the empire.

Sources: The Editors of Encyclopedia Britannica. The Second Northern War. https://www.britannica.com/event/Second-Northern-War.

War Maps and Pans of the Russian Empire in the 18th Century. https://expositions.nlr.ru/eng/ex_map/Russia/north_war.php.

This image displays Russian troops constructing a road between Yalta and Alupka. During this time period, 1837, Russian troops were commanded to help with public works projects. 

This image was created by the Frenchman Denis Auguste Marie Raffet. Denis started to draw his own images, or “lithographs” of Napoleonic battles and subjects. Denis Raffet studied under the painter Antoine-Jean Gros. Denis Raffet formed a relationship with Antole Demidov and would end up going to south Russia as well as Crimea. Demidov was a Patron of Raffet. On this Journey they would go through a number of other areas such as Hungary, Moldavia and Bessarabia. The images were an interpretation of the Prince's voyage of these areas and the collection of Images would be dedicated to Tsar Nicolas 1. 

The theme of expansion is very apparent from this image. Based on the context of the photo, Russia is trying to hold onto the territories it was expanding. In peacetime these soldiers were tasked with public works. In this specific case, building roads. Due to the expansive and difficult nature of Russia, it was very difficult to get from region to region. Working on the infrastructure of a territory that was won, plays into the narrative that Russia is expanding its military reach, through ease of transport, and potentially reaching into the local culture as well. There are many reasons to work on infrastructure, but a very large reason behind it would be economic incentive. Due to the grand size of the army and no conflict going on at this certain moment in time, it would only make sense to help with public works. 

https://www.stephenongpin.com/artist/237052/denis-marie-auguste-raffet 

https://imperiia.omeka.fas.harvard.edu/document/2427?collection=40 

The islands were first explored in 1741 by Dane Vitus Bering and Aleksey Chrikov. After finding a large number of animals bearing fur, this created a diaspora of Siberian hunters to enter the area. As time went on, traders from different parts of Russia would settle there permanently. The first settlements took place in the 1740s. These islands could be seen as a stepping stone to get onto continental North America. Due to the Russian expansion into this region, the native peoples were decimated and almost forced into extinction. The native peoples of this region were the Unangan, who were scattered across these islands. In 1867, Russia sold the territory of Alaska along with some of these islands to the United states in the Alaska Purchase.

This relates to expansion, but not in the way that other images have portrayed. All the other images showed expansion through military presence. Such as a battle or maps showing new territory gained through military exploits. This one is a bit different due to the fact that the military wasn’t really involved in the expansion of these frontiers of the Russian empire. This expansion was started due to the discovery of animals that had fur which would be profitable for the fur trade. 

https://www.britannica.com/place/Aleutian-Islands 

What makes this region particularly interesting was how it came under Russian jurisdiction. The island was first settled by the Japanese in the south areas of the island, but by 1853 Russians started to settle the northern parts of the island. The island was technically under Japanese authority, but the Russians and Japanese were able to come to an agreement that split the island in half. The northern half would be under Russian control. This was the case until 1875 when Russia would gain control of the whole island in exchange for the Kuril islands. The jurisdiction of the island would be under Russian imperial control until the Russo-Japanese war, which resulted in the Japanese regaining the southern region of the island.  

How does this relate to the theme of expansion? The Russians were still pushing into new territory in the mid and late 1800s. An interesting aspect of this image in particular is seeing how some of the new territory is being used. 

Sources:

https://www.britannica.com/place/Sakhalin-Island 

The reasoning behind the Russo-Japanese war was due to Russian territorial expansion. Russia invaded Manchuria in 1900 as a result of defending their newly constructed railway in the region. At this time China was undergoing the Boxer Rebellion, and Russia sent forces to protect the railway. Originally the interest was just to protect the railway, Russia ended up controlling the entire Manchuria region. After refusing to pull Russian forces out of the region, the Japanese declared war on Russia. The siege of Port Arthur began in 1904 and would be surrendered in the month of January the following year. The conflict would continue into March 1905. The conflict would end with the Treaty of Portsmouth and would end Russian expansion into eastern Asia.

This shows a different lens of the expansion theme. The Boxer rebellion rushed Russia’s plans of eastern Asian expansion. The Russian expansion into Manchuria ended up as counter productive in the eastern expansion efforts. Not only did Russia lose Manchuria and half of the Sakhalin island, but they also lost their legitimacy as a strong power in international politics. 

Sources:

https://www.loc.gov/resource/ppmsca.07976/ 

https://www.britannica.com/summary/Russo-Japanese-War 

https://dbpedia.org/page/Russian_invasion_of_Manchuria