Adam Laxman's expedition and the beginning of Japanese-Russian relations in the XVIII century
The article is devoted to the consideration of the initial stage of Russian-Japanese relations in the 18th century. The first documented evidence of Peter the Great's interest in Japanese-Russian relations dates for 1701-1702. Until the end of the century, the main sources of information about Japan were Japanese seamen carried to the coast of Kamchatka. On the initiative of Academician Eric Laxman, Empress Catherine II in 1792 issued a decree on the embassy to Japan and the signing of a trade agreement between the countries. The expedition took place under the command of Lieutenant Adam Laxman in 1793-1794, but did not advance further than Hakodate. Nevertheless, its results should be assessed as successful: the Russian side received permission to move the negotiations to Nagasaki, the myth of the “Russian threat” that dominated the leadership of the Tokugawa shogunate was largely shaken.