Lisyansky, Yuri Fedorovich
Main events
Circumnavigation
Top career
Captain 1st rank
Order of St. George 4th class
Yuri Fedorovich Lisyansky(August 13, 1773, Nezhin - March 6, 1837, St. Petersburg) - the first Russian circumnavigator, captain of the 1st rank (1809), explorer of the Pacific Ocean. As commander of the sloop Neva, he completed the first Russian circumnavigation of the world (1803–06)
Biography
Childhood
Born on August 2, 1773 in Nizhyn. He was brought up in the naval cadet corps together with I.F. Krusenstern and at the age of 13 (March 20, 1786) was promoted to midshipman.
Service
In 1788, he took part in the war with Sweden, during which he was cruising off Helsingfors and fought in the Hochland naval battle on the ship "Podrazislav". Having become a midshipman in 1789, he was in almost all the main battles with the Swedes at sea until the end of the war in 1790. In 1793, Lisyansky became a lieutenant and in the same year, at the behest of Empress Catherine II, he was sent among the 16 naval officers to England to serve in the British Navy to continue their education.
After four years of improvement in seamanship, he took part in the battles of the British against Republican France. He was especially noted during the capture of the French ship Elizabeth, although he was shell-shocked and fought with pirates off the coast of North America.
He traveled around the USA, spent some time in the state of Philadelphia, where he had the opportunity to see the famous US President George Washington, after which he was in the West Indies, where he guarded English caravans off the coast of South Africa and India. On March 27, 1798, upon returning to Russia, he received the rank of lieutenant commander and was appointed commander of the frigate Avtroil. In 1803, based on his total merits for 18 naval campaigns, he was awarded the Order of St. George, 4th class.
Circumnavigation
Circumnavigation route indicating the routes of the Neva and Nadezhda
In 1803, Lisyansky traveled to London, on behalf of the Russian-American Company, to purchase two sloops, which he brought to Kronstadt. Both sloops were assigned to a round-the-world expedition under the leadership of his classmate and friend in the Naval Corps Kruzenshtern. In the summer of 1803, both ships “Neva” and “Nadezhda” were ready to sail. Their journey began with the Kronstadt raid, after which both sloops - Nadezhda under the command of Kruzenshtern and Neva under the command of Lisyansky - crossed the equator on November 26, 1803 for the first time in the history of the Russian fleet.
Then, having lost the Nadezhda due to fog, the Neva came to Kodiak Island in the summer of 1804, after which it sailed off the coast of North America for more than a year. The navigators assisted the head of the Russian North American colonies, Baranov, and local settlers in the return and restoration of the city of Novoarkhangelsk taken and devastated by the Tlingits, and carried out scientific observations and work on hydrography.
Returning, they discovered new, not yet mapped islands, which received the names of Lisyansky Island and Kruzenshtern Island. It is noteworthy that the island named after Lisyansky was named so at the request of the Neva crew. In the summer of 1805, Lisyansky set off on the Neva with a load of furs to China and already in November called at the port of Macau, where he met with Kruzenshtern and his Nadezhda. However, soon after the ships departed for the Cape of Good Hope, they again sailed separately, again due to heavy fog.
Following independently, Lisyansky was the first in the history of world navigation to navigate a ship without entering ports or stops from the coast of the Celestial Empire to British Portsmouth. In the summer of 1806, the Neva, under the command of Lisyansky, returned to Kronstadt before Kruzenshtern’s Nadezhda.
During the trip, Lisyansky re-checked the maps of the Gaspar and Sunda Straits, clarified the outlines of Kodiak and several other islands off the northwestern coast of Alaska.
Lisyansky and the crew of the Neva became the first Russian travelers around the world. Kruzenshtern brought Nadezhda to Kronstadt only two weeks later.
For his circumnavigation of the world, Lisyansky received the rank of captain of the 2nd rank, received a lifelong pension of 3,000 rubles and a lump sum of 10,000 rubles from the Russian-American Company.
Expedition route
Kronstadt (Russia) - Copenhagen (Denmark) - Falmouth (UK) - Santa Cruz de Tenerife (Canary Islands, Spain) - Florianopolis (Brazil, Portugal) - Easter Island - Nuku Hiva (Marquesas Islands, France) - Honolulu (Hawaiian Islands) - Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky (Russia) - Nagasaki (Japan) - Hakodate (Hokkaido Island, Japan) - Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk (Sakhalin Island, Russia) - Sitka (Alaska, Russia) - Kodiak (Alaska, Russia) - Guangzhou (China) - Macau (Portugal) - St. Helena Island (UK) - Corvo and Flores Islands (Azores, Portugal) - Portsmouth (UK) - Kronstadt (Russia).
After the trip around the world
In 1807, Lisyansky, commanding a detachment of 9 ships, went on a cruise to Gotland and Bornholm to observe English military ships; in 1808 he was appointed commander of the ship Emgeiten.
Retired
Lisyansky's grave
On January 8, 1809, with the rank of captain 1st rank, he retired. In 1812, Lisyansky published his “Travel Around the World in 1803, 1804, 1805 and 1806.” (with a detailed atlas), and in 1814 he published it in London in English. During his travels, Lisyansky collected a personal collection of objects, utensils, clothing, and weapons. It also contained shells, pieces of lava, corals, and rock fragments from the Pacific Islands, North America, and Brazil. All this became the property of the Russian Geographical Society.
He was buried in the “Necropolis of Art Masters” at the Tikhvin Cemetery of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra (St. Petersburg).
Family
One of Lisyansky’s sons, Platon Yurievich, followed in his father’s footsteps, became a naval officer and rose to the rank of admiral (1892)
Personal characteristics according to the memoirs of contemporaries
The fame of a circumnavigator around the world went to Kruzenshtern, who was the first to publish a description of the trip three years earlier than Lisyansky, who considered the tasks of his duty more important than the publication of a report for the Geographical Society.
Krusenstern himself saw in his friend and colleague, first of all, “an impartial, obedient person, zealous for the common good, extremely modest.”
The meticulousness with which the navigator made astronomical observations, determined longitudes and latitudes, and established the coordinates of harbors and islands where the Neva had moorings, brings his measurements from two centuries ago closer to modern data.
Perpetuation of memory
The following were named in honor of Yuri Fedorovich Lisyansky:
Stamp dedicated to Lisyansky
LISYANSKY, YURI FEDOROVYCH(1773–1837) - Russian navigator, captain 1st rank (1809), hydrologist researcher, famous traveler.
Born on August 2, 1773 in the family of an archpriest in Nezhin. While studying at the Naval Cadet Corps, he became friends with I.F. Kruzenshtern.
In 1786, at the age of 13, having graduated early from the corps second on the list, he entered the 32-gun frigate Podrazislav of the Baltic Fleet as a midshipman. On it he received his baptism of fire in the Battle of Holland during the Russian-Swedish War of 1788–1790, in which the 15-year-old midshipman participated in several battles.
In 1789 he was promoted to midshipman. In 1793 - promoted to lieutenant and sent among the 16 best officers to England. There he improved his seamanship for four years, participated in the British battles against Republican France (he distinguished himself during the capture of the French frigate Elizabeth, but was shell-shocked), and fought with pirates in the waters of North America. Traveled around the United States (personally saw the first US President George Washington), then was in the West Indies, accompanying English caravans off the coast of South Africa and India.
In 1797 he returned to Russia, on March 27 he was promoted to lieutenant commander. Along with his new rank, he was appointed commander of the frigate Avtroil. In November 1802, for participation in 16 naval campaigns and two larger battles, he was awarded the Order of George, 4th degree. At this time, the Russian-American Company (a trade association established in July 1799 for the purpose of developing the territory of Russian America, the Kuril Islands and other islands) expressed support for a special expedition to supply and protect Russian settlements in Alaska. This began the preparation of the 1st Russian round-the-world expedition. The Naval Ministry appointed Lieutenant-Commander Lisyansky as one of its leaders and sent him to England to purchase two sloops and part of the equipment.
By the summer of 1803, the sloops Neva and Nadezhda were ready for departure. The leadership of the entire expedition and command of the sloop Nadezhda was entrusted to Lieutenant-Commander Krusenstern. His classmate in the Naval Corps, Lisyansky, commanded the sloop Neva.
On July 26, the expedition left Kronstadt on a journey “not previously experienced by the Russians.” On November 14, 1803, ships crossed the equator for the first time in the history of the Russian fleet. After that, having lost the sloop Nadezhda in the fog, the Neva came to Kodiak Island on July 1, 1804 and remained off the coast of North America for more than a year. The sailors helped the inhabitants of Russian America defend their settlements from the attack of the Tlingit Indian tribes, participated in the construction of the Novo-Arkhangelsk (Sitka) fortress, and carried out scientific observations and hydrographic work. In August 1805, Lisyansky sailed on the Neva with a cargo of furs to China, and in November arrived at the port of Macau, where he again connected with Kruzenshtern and Nadezhda. But as soon as the ships left the port, they lost each other again in the fog. Following independently, Lisyansky, for the first time in the history of world navigation, navigated a ship without calling at ports or stops from the coast of China to Portsmouth in England. On July 22, 1806, his Neva was the first to return to Kronstadt.
Lisyansky and his crew became the first Russian circumnavigators. Only two weeks later the Nadezhda arrived here safely. But the fame of a circumnavigator around the world went to Kruzenshtern, who was the first to publish a description of the trip (three years earlier than Lisyansky, who considered the duties of his service more important than publishing a report for the Geographical Society). And Kruzenshtern himself saw in his friend and colleague, first of all, “an impartial, obedient person, zealous for the common good,” extremely modest. True, Lisyansky’s merits were nevertheless noted: he received the rank of captain of the 2nd rank, the Order of St. Vladimir of the 3rd degree, a cash bonus and a lifelong pension. For him, the main gift was the gratitude of the officers and sailors of the sloop, who endured the hardships of the voyage with him and gave him as a souvenir a golden sword with the inscription: “Gratitude of the crew of the ship Neva.”
The meticulousness with which the navigator made astronomical observations, determined longitudes and latitudes, and established the coordinates of harbors and islands where the Neva had moorings, brings his measurements from two centuries ago closer to modern data. The traveler rechecked the maps of the Gaspar and Sunda Straits, and clarified the outlines of Kodiak and other islands adjacent to the northwestern coast of Alaska. Along the way, he discovered a small island at 26° N. sh., northwest of the Hawaiian Islands, which, at the request of the Neva crew, was named after him.
During his travels, Lisyansky collected a personal collection of objects, utensils, clothing, and weapons. It also contained shells, pieces of lava, corals, and rock fragments from the Pacific Islands, North America, and Brazil. All this became the property of the Russian Geographical Society.
In 1807–1808, Lisyansky commanded the ships “Conception of St. Anna”, “Emgeiten” and a detachment of 9 ships. Participated in hostilities against the fleets of England and Sweden. In 1809 he retired with the rank of captain 1st rank. He began putting his travel notes in order, which he kept in the form of a diary and published them only in 1812, after which he personally translated his work into English and published it in London in 1814.
Three times in his life Lisyansky was the first: the first to travel around the world under the Russian flag, the first to continue the journey from Russian America to Kronstadt, the first to discover an uninhabited island in the central Pacific Ocean. Nowadays, a bay, a peninsula, a strait, a river and a cape on the coast of North America in the area of the Alexandra Archipelago, one of the islands of the Hawaiian archipelago, an underwater island in the Sea of Okhotsk and a peninsula on the northern coast of the Sea of Okhotsk are named after him.
Works: Lisyansky Yu.F. Travel around the world in 1803, 1804, 1805 and 1806 on the ship "Neva" under the command of Yu. Lisyansky. (1st ed. - 1812, 2nd - M., 1947).
Lev Pushkarev, Natalya Pushkareva
Yuri Lisyansky was born on August 2, 1773 in the city of Nizhyn (today the territory of the Chernigov region of Ukraine) in the family of an archpriest. His father was the archpriest of the Nizhyn Church of St. John the Evangelist. Very little is known about the childhood of the future navigator. We can absolutely say that already in his childhood he had a craving for the sea. In 1783, he was transferred to the Naval Cadet Corps in St. Petersburg for education, where he became friends with the future admiral Ivan Krusenstern. In the 13th year of his life, on March 20, 1786, Lisyansky was promoted to midshipman.
At the age of 13, having graduated early from the cadet corps second on the academic list, Yuri Lisyansky was sent as a midshipman to the 32-gun frigate Podrazhislav, which was part of Admiral Greig’s Baltic squadron. On board this ship he received his baptism of fire during the next war with Sweden of 1788-1790. Lisyansky took part in the Battle of Gogland, as well as the battles of Elland and Revel. In 1789 he was promoted to midshipman. Until 1793, Yuri Lisyansky served in the Baltic Fleet and became a lieutenant. In 1793, at the behest of Empress Catherine II, among the 16 best naval officers, he was sent to England to serve as an internship in the British Navy.
He spent several years abroad, which included a huge number of events. He not only continuously improved in seafaring practice, but also took part in campaigns and battles. So he took part in the battles of the Royal Navy against Republican France and even distinguished himself during the capture of the French frigate Elizabeth, but was shell-shocked. Lisyansky fought pirates in the waters near North America. He plied the seas and oceans almost throughout the globe. He traveled around the USA, and in Philadelphia he even met with the first US President George Washington. On an American ship he visited the West Indies, where he almost died in early 1795 from yellow fever, and accompanied English caravans off the coast of India and South Africa. Yuri Lisyansky also examined and then described the island of St. Helena, studied the colonial settlements of South Africa and other geographical objects.
On March 27, 1798, upon returning to Russia, Yuri Lisyansky received the rank of captain-lieutenant. He returned back enriched with a lot of knowledge and experience in the fields of meteorology, navigation, naval astronomy, and naval tactics. His titles in the field of natural sciences also expanded significantly. Returning back to Russia, he immediately received an appointment as captain of the frigate Avtroil in the Baltic Fleet. In November 1802, as a participant in 16 naval campaigns and two major naval battles, he was awarded the Order of St. George, 4th degree. Returning from abroad, Lisyansky brought with him not only vast accumulated experience in the field of naval battles and navigation, but also rich theoretical knowledge. In 1803, Clerk’s book “Movement of Fleets” was published in St. Petersburg, which substantiated the tactics and principles of naval combat. Yuri Lisyansky personally worked on the translation of this book into Russian.
One of the most important events in his life was the round-the-world sea voyage, which he embarked on in 1803. The prerequisite for organizing this trip was that the Russian-American Company (a trade association that was created in July 1799 in order to develop the territory of Russian America and the Kuril Islands) spoke in favor of conducting a special expedition to protect and supply Russian settlements located in Alaska. This is precisely where preparations for the first Russian round-the-world expedition begin. Initially, the expedition project was presented to the Minister of the Navy, Count Kushelev, but did not find support from him. The count did not believe that such a complex undertaking would be feasible for Russian sailors. He was echoed by Admiral Khanykov, who was involved in the assessment of the expedition project as an expert. The admiral strongly recommended hiring sailors from England to conduct the first circumnavigation under the Russian flag.
Ivan Krusenstern and Yuri Lisyansky
Fortunately, in 1801, Admiral N.S. Mordvinov became the Minister of the Russian Navy, who not only supported Krusenstern’s idea, but also advised him to purchase two ships for sailing, so that if necessary, they could help each other in dangerous situations. and a long swim. One of the leaders of the expedition was Lieutenant-Commander Lisyansky, who in the fall of 1802, together with the ship's master Razumov, went to England to buy two sloops for the expedition and part of the equipment. In England, he acquired the 16-gun sloop Leander with a displacement of 450 tons and the 14-gun sloop Thames with a displacement of 370 tons. After purchase, the first sloop was named “Nadezhda”, and the second - “Neva”.
By the summer of 1803, both ships were ready for a circumnavigation. Their journey began with the Kronstadt raid. On November 26 of the same year, both sloops - “Nadezhda” under the command of Kruzenshtern and “Neva” under the command of Lisyansky crossed the equator for the first time in the history of the Russian fleet. Currently, the name of Lisyansky is unfairly in the shadow of the world-famous traveler Admiral Kruzenshtern, as the initiator and leader of the expedition, and the second equally famous participant in this expedition, Chamberlain N.P. Rezanov, who won the heart of the Spanish beauty Conchita, and through the efforts of playwrights and poets gained immortality in the form of the dramatic story “Juno” and “Avos”, known throughout the world.
Meanwhile, Yuri Fedorovich Lisyansky, along with Kruzenshtern and Rezanov, was one of the leaders of the expedition that is famous today. At the same time, the sloop "Neva", which he captained, completed most of the journey on his own. This followed both from the plans of the expedition itself (the ships had their own separate tasks) and from the weather conditions. Very often, due to storms and fog, Russian ships lost sight of each other. In addition, having completed all the tasks assigned to the expedition, circumnavigating the Earth and making an unprecedented solo passage from the coast of China to Great Britain (without calling at ports), the sloop Neva returned back to Kronstadt before Nadezhda. Following independently, Lisyansky was the first in the world history of navigation to manage to navigate a ship without calls to ports or stops from the coast of China to Portsmouth in England.
It is worth noting that Lisyansky owed a lot to Lisyansky for the first successful Russian circumnavigation. It was on the shoulders of this officer that the worries of finding and acquiring ships and equipment for the expedition, training sailors and solving a large number of “technical” issues and problems fell.
It was Lisyansky and the crew of his ship who became the first domestic circumnavigators. “Nadezhda” arrived in Kronstadt only two weeks later. At the same time, all the glory of the circumnavigator went to Kruzenshtern, who was the first to publish a detailed description of the journey; this happened 3 years earlier than the publication of the memoirs of Lisyansky, who considered the tasks of his duty more important than the preparation of publications for the Geographical Society. But Krusenstern himself saw in his friend and colleague, first of all, an obedient, impartial, zealous person for the common good and very modest. At the same time, the merits of Yuri Fedorovich were appreciated by the state. He received the rank of captain of the 2nd rank, was awarded the Order of St. Vladimir, 3rd degree, and also received a cash bonus of 10 thousand rubles from the Russian-American Company and a lifelong pension of 3 thousand rubles. But the most important gift was a commemorative golden sword with the inscription “Gratitude of the crew of the ship “Neva”,” which was presented to him by the officers and sailors of the sloop, who endured the hardships of a trip around the world with him.
The meticulousness with which Lisyansky made astronomical observations during his trip around the world, determined latitude and longitude, established the coordinates of the islands and harbors where the Neva stopped, brought his measurements of 200 years ago closer to modern data. During the expedition, he double-checked the maps of the Gaspar and Sunda Straits, and clarified the outlines of Kodiak and other islands that were adjacent to the northwestern coast of Alaska. In addition, he discovered a small uninhabited island that is part of the Hawaiian archipelago; today this island bears the name of Lisyansky. Also during the expedition, Yuri Lisyansky collected a rich personal collection of various items, which included clothing, weapons, utensils of different nations, as well as corals, shells, pieces of lava, rock fragments from Brazil, North America, and the Pacific Islands. The collection he collected became the property of the Russian Geographical Society.
In 1807-1808, Yuri Lisyansky commanded the warships “Conception of St. Anne”, “Emgeiten”, as well as a detachment of 9 warships. He took part in hostilities against the fleets of Great Britain and Sweden. In 1809 he retired with the rank of captain 1st rank. After retiring, he set about putting in order his own travel notes, which he kept in the form of a diary. These notes were published only in 1812, after which he also translated his works into English and published them in 1814 in London.
The famous Russian navigator and traveler died on February 22 (March 6, new style) 1837 in St. Petersburg. Lisyansky was buried at the Tikhvin Cemetery (Necropolis of Art Masters) in the Alexander Nevsky Lavra. A monument was erected at the officer’s grave, which is a granite sarcophagus with a bronze anchor and a medallion depicting the token of a participant in the circumnavigation of the world on the Neva sloop. Subsequently, not only geographical objects were named after him, including an island in the Hawaiian archipelago, a mountain on Sakhalin and a peninsula on the coast of the Sea of Okhotsk, but also a Soviet diesel-electric icebreaker, released in 1965.
Based on materials from open sources
Lisyansky Yuri Fedorovich- famous Russian navigator. Born August 13, 1773. In his youth he served on the frigate Podrazislav. Participated in the Russian-Swedish war in 1788 - 1790. In 1790 he began serving in the Baltic Fleet. In 1793 - 1799 he underwent military training on the ships of the English fleet. He also took part in the hostilities of this fleet, namely in North America, South Africa, India, and the West Indies.
After this he returned to Russia and in 1800 he was appointed commander of a frigate. In 1803, he translated a book by Clerk entitled “Movement of Fleets.” This book described in detail the tact and principles of naval combat. The first Russian circumnavigation of the world, which he made together with Ivan Krusenstern in 1803-1806, brought him fame. The circumnavigation of the world was carried out on the ships "Neva" and "Nadezhda". Yu.F. Lisyansky was the commander of the ship "Neva", and I.F. Kruzenshtern was the commander of the ship "Nadezhda".
On August 1, 1803, the ships began their journey from Kronstadt, then crossed the Atlantic Ocean and rounded Cape Horn. After which they set out on an open voyage to the Pacific Ocean and reached the Hawaiian Islands. Then the ships separated and the Neva, under the command of Lisyansky, went to Alaska, where the team stayed for almost a year. On their way back, the ships met again in Canton, sailed to South Africa and parted ways again. The journey from Canton to Portsmouth was quite long, but for the first time in the history of navigation Lisyansky made this journey without a single port call on the way to his goal. So the ship "Neva" stayed on the open sea for 142 days without visiting land. In August 1806, the entire expedition returned to the starting point of the journey - Kronstadt.
The most interesting thing for you!
Throughout his circumnavigation, Lisyansky explored different continents, waters and routes of movement across the seas and oceans. Thanks to this voyage, Yuri Fedorovich Lisyansky corrected many inaccuracies and errors on maps and marine descriptions. After returning from a trip around the world, he served in the Baltic Fleet until 1809, and then resigned.
The places he discovered during his voyage are named in his honor - an island in the northwestern part of the Hawaiian Islands archipelago, a peninsula on the northern coast of the Sea of Okhotsk, as well as a mountain on the island of Sakhalin. Died March 6, 1837. Lisyansky Yuri Fedorovich was buried in the Nevsky Lavra.
Russian navigator. Born April 2 (13), 1773 in Nizhyn. Graduated from the Naval Cadet Corps (1786). Participant in the Russian-Swedish War (1788 - 1790). In 1790 - 1783 he served in the Baltic Fleet. In 1793 - 1799 he sailed on English ships to the shores of North America, to the West Indies, South Africa and India.
Examined and described Fr. St. Helena, studied colonial settlements in South Africa and other geographical features.
In 1802 he took part in the first Russian circumnavigation, led by I. F. Krusenstern. The expedition was carried out on two ships - (commander Kruzenshtern) and (commander Lisyansky). Leaving Kronstadt in 1803 and rounding South America, the ships entered the Pacific Ocean. Having visited the Marknes and Hawaiian islands, they separated: Kruzenshtern sailed towards Kamchatka, and Lisyansky - to the shores of North America.
lisynskiyHere he established contact with the Russian colony and examined Fr. Kodiak and the east coast of Alaska. Throughout the entire trip, Lisyansky conducted oceanographic research. Of particular value are his observations of sea currents, which allowed him, together with Kruzenshtern, to make corrections and additions to the maps of sea currents that existed at that time.
He made astronomical determinations of the geographical coordinates of the points he visited and indicated the most convenient harbors. In the Chinese port of Canton (now Guangzhou) he met with Krusenstern. In June 1806 the expedition returned to Kronstadt. Lisyansky's book in 1803-1806 (1947) contains a lot of interesting geographical and ethnographic data. In 1806-1809 he served in the Baltic Fleet.
An island discovered by him in the Hawaiian archipelago, a peninsula on the northern coast of the Sea of Okhotsk, and a mountain on Sakhalin are named after Lisyansky.