Russian Empire

Recognition and the Imperial Mission

The Russian Empire recognized the United States in 1803, when Alexander I accepted Levett Harris as American consul at St. Petersburg. Formal diplomatic relations followed on July 14, 1809, when Andrei Dashkov presented his credentials to President James Madison as Russian chargé d'affaires. Discussions in London had begun in 1807, and Dashkov's credentials had been issued in 1808. His reception in Washington completed a process in which the two governments had negotiated the rank of their representatives. [1]

The empire’s relationship with the United States developed within a wider competition over the Pacific. Russian traders and explorers had reached Alaska, but St. Petersburg lacked the resources to support a large permanent settlement or military establishment there. Defeat in the Crimean War further weakened the case for retaining the territory. The offer to sell Alaska in 1859 reflected a hope that American expansion would also check British influence. [8]

The imperial mission conducted one of its most consequential negotiations through Minister Eduard de Stoeckl. On March 30, 1867, he and Secretary of State William H. Seward signed the treaty in Washington ceding Alaska to the United States for $7.2 million. Ratifications were exchanged on June 20. Stoeckl also received the American payment: the Treasury check issued on August 1, 1868 named the Russian minister as payee, completing the financial transaction specified by the treaty. [2]

The mission became an embassy in 1898. In his annual message that December, President William McKinley reported that the tsar had raised Russia's Washington representation to embassy rank. McKinley reciprocated by commissioning an American ambassador at St. Petersburg, and confirmed that the Russian ambassador had presented his credentials in Washington. [3]

Revolution and the Embassy's Remaining Business

The fall of the monarchy in 1917 changed the government represented by the embassy. Ambassador George Bakhmeteff transmitted Foreign Minister Pavel Milyukov's account of the revolution to Washington on March 18. Milyukov reported Nicholas II's abdication, Grand Duke Michael's refusal to assume power without popular authorization, and the formation of a provisional government pending a constituent assembly. He also declared that the new government would honor Russia's obligations to other powers. The United States recognized the provisional government and maintained relations. [4] [1]

Boris Bakhmeteff, a different diplomat appointed by the provisional government, remained recognized in Washington after the Bolsheviks seized power. The United States withheld recognition from the Bolshevik government, leaving him to handle Russian interests and the liquidation of commercial business with American firms. In April 1922 he told Secretary of State Charles Evans Hughes that this work was nearing completion and asked to retire on June 30. Hughes accepted that date and agreed that financial attaché Serge Ughet would remain as custodian of Russian government property, with his existing status unchanged. [5] [6]

The embassy's property and records survived longer than the government that had sent Bakhmeteff. By 1933 Ughet could no longer maintain the property, and the State Department took custody of it. During the negotiations over recognition of the Soviet Union that November, American officials moved the old embassy's records into storage with Foreign Commissar Maxim Litvinov's knowledge. [7]

Related Reading

• Russia and the United States