Russians

=The Russians: A Perspective on American History= by Cody Graves and Stephen Mell



**Introduction:**
The Russians are a Eurasian group. Pre-1492, they lived in northern Asia and northeastern Europe. Geographical features that would have limited this group’s ability to move include: the Ural Mountain Range. Pre-1492, this group probably interacted with its neighbors, Europe, the Middle East, and possibly China. Later, many Russians immigrated to America because of civil wars. Russia also fought with the Allies in both World Wars, and fought against the United States in the Cold War.

**Religion (Worldview):**
Russians are primarily Russian Orthodox (about 63%). 16% of people reported being non-believers, 12% reported believing in god but not practicing any religion, while 6% reported being Muslim.

**Population in the United States:**
In a 2007 report by the U.S. Census Bureau, there were 3,152,959 self reported Russian-Americans. Many Russian-Americans do not even speak Russian. Only 706,242 Russian-Americans primarily spoke Russian in their homes, according to the 2000 Census.

**1492: Columbus’ Arrival in the Americas**
The area had been ruled by a Viking class and their descendants -- the Kievan-Rus' -- from the 800s. It was the Kievan-Rus' who adopted Christianity from the eastern part of the Roman Empire. However, by the 1400s, Kievan-Rus' had started to fall apart and the region had divided into several feudal states. The most powerful of these feudal states was the state of Moscow, which would eventually reunite the region.

**1607: English Colonists Arrive at Jamestown**
The Time of Troubles occurred between 1606 and 1613. During this time there were many civil wars, allowing the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth to take the country over. In 1612 there was an uprising that eventually removed the invaders from Moscow.

**1687: English Colonies Expand**
In 1699, Peter the Great made a secret treaty with the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and Denmark. This resulted in the Great Northern War with Sweden, at the end of which Sweden made peace and gave Russia land on the Baltic Sea. The first Russian explorer to encounter the Americas was Vitus Bering, whose expedition reached Alaska (and the Aleuts) in 1741.

**1802: Tlingit Battle the Russians at Sitka.**
The Russians first came to Sitka in 1799. They made a settlement at Gajaa Heen, what is now known as Old Sitka, north of town near the end of the present roadway system. They also had a settlement at Yakutat, intending to have control of Southeast Alaska's fur trading. However, the Hudson Bay Company also wanted control and offered a trade to the Tlingit people of muskets and gunpowder in exchange for exculsive fur trading rights. In 1802, the Tlingit people attacked and destroyed the Russian's settlement at Gajaa Heen while their ships were away at Kodiak. Tlingits from Sitka, Angoon, Kake, Hoonah, Auke Bay, and Klukwan took part in the battle and left few survivors at the Russian settlement.

In 1812, Napoleon attempted to invade Russia. The attempt failed and left Napoleon weakened enough that he was defeated soon after.

**2009: Today**
In the 2002 Census, there were 145,166,731 people in Russia. In the United States, just over 3 million people claim to be Russian-American (according to a 2007 survey by the U.S. Census Bureau).

Works Cited:
Wikipedia: Russia Wikipedia: Russian Americans media type="custom" key="4509618"