Vitus Bering Sights Alaska
Vitus Bering Sights Alaska refers to the historical voyages of Danish explorer Vitus Jonassen Bering, who was the first European to sight the Alaskan coastline. Commissioned by Russian Czar Peter the Great in 1725, Bering embarked on his expeditions to investigate whether Asia and America were connected or separated by water. His first journey in 1728 confirmed that the continents were divided by what is now the Bering Strait, although he did not see the Alaskan mainland due to fog. It was during his second voyage in 1741 that Bering sighted land, specifically Cape Saint Elias, and subsequently landed on Kayak Island. Tragically, Bering was shipwrecked on his return journey and died on an island now named after him. His crew, however, managed to return to Russia with news of abundant seal populations, which attracted many Russian adventurers and hunters to Alaska. The exploitation of Alaska's resources led to the establishment of trading posts and settlements, but by the mid-1800s, overhunting had severely diminished the seal herds. This decline, coupled with geopolitical interests, ultimately led to Russia selling Alaska to the United States in 1867 for $7 million, and Alaska became the 49th state in 1959.
Vitus Bering Sights Alaska
Vitus Bering Sights Alaska
Danish explorer Vitus Jonassen Bering was the first European to reach the coast of Alaska, sighting the region of what is now Cape Saint Elias on July 29, 1741.
In 1725, Russian Czar Peter the Great commissioned Bering to determine whether Asia was separated from America or whether it was one continuous land mass from the Russian domains in Siberia into the Arctic reaches of North America. Bering finally sailed in 1728, and on that first voyage, he discovered that the two continents were indeed divided by what is now called the Bering Strait. At one point only about 50 miles of water separate the two continents. Bering found some islands but, perhaps because of fog, did not see the Alaskan mainland. In 1741, however, he spotted land during his second voyage, and shortly after his July 29 sighting he landed on what is now known as Kayak Island. During his return voyage, Bering was shipwrecked and died on an island named after him in the Bering Sea. His men, however, built a new ship out of the wreckage of the old one and finally reached Russian soil with tales of a wealth of furs to be had from the herds of seals that they had seen.
For several decades thereafter, Russian adventurers and seal hunters from other nations plundered the seas and shores of Alaska. During these decades, Russians set up trading posts and settlements scattered along Alaska's coast. By the mid-1800s, the seal herds were decimated by wanton slaughter, and Russia was more interested in preventing the British Empire from dominating the Pacific Ocean than in pursuing the exploitation of Alaska. The United States, which was expanding into the Pacific region and had frequent conflicts with Great Britain, could only be an asset in Russia's desire to thwart British ambitions. Thus, the Russians decided to sell their North American colony to the land-hungry Americans. On March 30, 1867, Russia signed a treaty whereby the United States purchased Alaska for $7 million. Alaska became the 49th state within the United States on January 3, 1959.