Treaty of Saint Petersburg (1881)
Encyclopedia
The Treaty of Saint Petersburg (1881), also known as Treaty of Ili, was the treaty between the Russian Empire
and the Chinese Empire, signed in Saint Petersburg
, Russia
, on 12 (24) February 1881. It provided for the return to China of the eastern part of the Ili
Basin region, occupied by Russia in 1871 during the Muslim Rebellion.
had collapsed due to the Muslim Rebellion, Russia occupied the Ili Basin region. Chinese authority in Xinjiang was reestablished by 1877.
In 1879, the Treaty of Livadia was proposed by the Russian court, that would have allowed Russia to retain a strong presence in the region. Qing court refused to sign the Treaty, and in 1880, sent to Russia its Ambassador in Great Britain and Paris, Minister Zeng Jize
, renowned as beacon of Chinese diplomacy of the era, to negotiate for more favorable conditions.
The Russian side was represented by Nicholas de Giers
, head of Asiatic Affairs department of Foreign Ministry (who later in 1882 ascended to the Minister's seat), and Eugene Bützow, Russia's Ambassador in China.
Under Article 6 of the treaty, Chinese government would pay Russia 9,000,000 "metal rubles" to serve as a payment for the occupation costs, compensation for the claims of Russian subjects who lost their property during the rebellion, and for material assistance to the families of Russian subjects killed during the rebellion.
Article 7 set the new international border in the Ili Valley. The area west of the border was retained by Russia "for the settlement of the region's residents who will choose to become Russian subjects and will have to leave the lands that they have owned" east of the new border.
The treaty also provided (Article 8) for minor adjustments of the border between the two countries in the area east of Lake Zaysan
(where today East Kazakhstan Province borders on the northern part of Xinjiang
's Ili Kazakh Autonomous Prefecture
).
Article 10 of the treaty allowed Russia to expand its consular network in the northwestern parts of the Chinese Empire (Xinjiang
, Gansu
, and Outer Mongolia
). Besides the consulates in Ili City (Kulja), Tarbagatai (Chuguchak, Tacheng
), Kashgar
and Urga (Ulan Bator) provided for in earlier treaties (see Treaty of Kulja
, 1851), Russia would also open consulates in Suzhou (Jiuquan
), and Turpan. In Kobdo (Khovd), Uliasutai (Uliastai
), Hami (Kumul), Urumqi
, and Gucheng (Qitai
), Russia would be allowed to establish consulates later on, as demanded by the volume of trade.
Article 12 affirmed the right of duty-free trade for Russian traders in Mongolia and Xinjiang. The treaty also contained various provisions designed to facilitate activities of Russian merchants and to regulate bilateral trade. An appendix to the treaty specified the list of border crossings the two countries were to operate.
and the military, as notable commander Aleksei Brusilov
.
Several thousands Dungan (Hui
) and Taranchi
(Uyghur
) families made use of the treaty to move to Russian-controlled territory, i.e. to today's south-eastern Kazakhstan
and northern Kyrgyzstan
. While some of them soon returned to China, most stayed in Russian domains, and descendents of them have lived in Kazakhstan
and Northern Kyrgyzstan
ever since.
The border between the two empires set by Article 7 of the treaty remains the border between Kazakhstan
and China
until this day.
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
and the Chinese Empire, signed in Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, on 12 (24) February 1881. It provided for the return to China of the eastern part of the Ili
Ili River
thumb|right|300px|Map of the Lake Balkhash drainage basin showing the Ili River and its tributariesThe Ili River is a river in northwestern China and southeastern Kazakhstan .It is long, of which is in Kazakhstan...
Basin region, occupied by Russia in 1871 during the Muslim Rebellion.
Background
In 1871, as the Chinese imperial authority in XinjiangXinjiang
Xinjiang is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China. It is the largest Chinese administrative division and spans over 1.6 million km2...
had collapsed due to the Muslim Rebellion, Russia occupied the Ili Basin region. Chinese authority in Xinjiang was reestablished by 1877.
In 1879, the Treaty of Livadia was proposed by the Russian court, that would have allowed Russia to retain a strong presence in the region. Qing court refused to sign the Treaty, and in 1880, sent to Russia its Ambassador in Great Britain and Paris, Minister Zeng Jize
Zeng Jize
Marquis Zeng Jize , one of China's earliest ministers to London, Paris and Saint Petersburg, played an important role in the diplomacy that preceded and accompanied the Sino-French War .- Early career :Zeng Jize , a native of Hunan province, was the eldest son of Zeng Guofan...
, renowned as beacon of Chinese diplomacy of the era, to negotiate for more favorable conditions.
The Russian side was represented by Nicholas de Giers
Nicholas de Giers
Nicholas de Giers was a Russian Foreign Minister during the reign of Alexander III. He was one of the architects of the Franco-Russian Alliance, which was later transformed into the Triple Entente.- Biography :...
, head of Asiatic Affairs department of Foreign Ministry (who later in 1882 ascended to the Minister's seat), and Eugene Bützow, Russia's Ambassador in China.
Summary
According to the treaty (Article 1), Russia agreed to return most of the occupied area to China. The Chinese government agreed (Article 2) to hold the residents of the area, regardless of their ethnicity and religion, harmless for their actions during the rebellion. The residents of the area would be allowed (Article 3) to stay or to move to Russian Empire; they would be asked about their choice before the withdrawal of the Russian troops.Under Article 6 of the treaty, Chinese government would pay Russia 9,000,000 "metal rubles" to serve as a payment for the occupation costs, compensation for the claims of Russian subjects who lost their property during the rebellion, and for material assistance to the families of Russian subjects killed during the rebellion.
Article 7 set the new international border in the Ili Valley. The area west of the border was retained by Russia "for the settlement of the region's residents who will choose to become Russian subjects and will have to leave the lands that they have owned" east of the new border.
The treaty also provided (Article 8) for minor adjustments of the border between the two countries in the area east of Lake Zaysan
Lake Zaysan
Lake Zaysan is a freshwater lake, ca. 1,810 km² , in eastern Kazakhstan, in a hollow between the Altai and Tarbagatai Mountains. It is the largest lake in the East Kazakhstan Province....
(where today East Kazakhstan Province borders on the northern part of Xinjiang
Xinjiang
Xinjiang is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China. It is the largest Chinese administrative division and spans over 1.6 million km2...
's Ili Kazakh Autonomous Prefecture
Ili Kazakh Autonomous Prefecture
Ili Kazakh Autonomous Prefecture , in northernmost Xinjiang, is the only Kazakh autonomous prefecture of the People's Republic of China.-Geography and coordinates:The following figures excludes both Tacheng Prefecture and Altay Prefecture....
).
Article 10 of the treaty allowed Russia to expand its consular network in the northwestern parts of the Chinese Empire (Xinjiang
Xinjiang
Xinjiang is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China. It is the largest Chinese administrative division and spans over 1.6 million km2...
, Gansu
Gansu
' is a province located in the northwest of the People's Republic of China.It lies between the Tibetan and Huangtu plateaus, and borders Mongolia, Inner Mongolia, and Ningxia to the north, Xinjiang and Qinghai to the west, Sichuan to the south, and Shaanxi to the east...
, and Outer Mongolia
Mongolia
Mongolia is a landlocked country in East and Central Asia. It is bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south, east and west. Although Mongolia does not share a border with Kazakhstan, its western-most point is only from Kazakhstan's eastern tip. Ulan Bator, the capital and largest...
). Besides the consulates in Ili City (Kulja), Tarbagatai (Chuguchak, Tacheng
Tacheng
-References:* Khālidī, Qurbanʻali, Allen J. Frank, and Mirkasym Abdulakhatovich Usmanov. An Islamic Biographical Dictionary of the Eastern Kazakh Steppe, 1770-1912. Brill's Inner Asian library, v. 12. Leiden: Brill, 2004....
), Kashgar
Kashgar
Kashgar or Kashi is an oasis city with approximately 350,000 residents in the western part of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China. Kashgar is the administrative centre of Kashgar Prefecture which has an area of 162,000 km² and a population of approximately...
and Urga (Ulan Bator) provided for in earlier treaties (see Treaty of Kulja
Treaty of Kulja
The Treaty of Kulja was a treaty established in 1851 between Qing Dynasty and Russian Empire, opening Kulja and Chuguchak to Sino-Russian trade...
, 1851), Russia would also open consulates in Suzhou (Jiuquan
Jiuquan
- Suzhou town :The administrative center of the "prefecture-level city" of Jiuquan is the "District" of Suzhou , which occupies 3,386 square km in the eastern part of Jiuquan "prefecture-level city", and had a population of 340,000 as of 2002....
), and Turpan. In Kobdo (Khovd), Uliasutai (Uliastai
Uliastai
Uliastai is a city in Mongolia. It is located in the western part of the country, 1,115 kilometers from the capital Ulaanbaatar. Uliastai is the capital of Zavkhan Province and was the 10th most populous city in the country with a population of 24,276 , now this city has 16,240 population and is...
), Hami (Kumul), Urumqi
Ürümqi
Ürümqi , formerly Tihwa , is the capital of Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China, in the northwest of the country....
, and Gucheng (Qitai
Qitai County
The Qitai County , also known as Gucheng , is a county in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China and is under the administration of the Changji Hui Autonomous Prefecture. It contains an area of 16,641 km2...
), Russia would be allowed to establish consulates later on, as demanded by the volume of trade.
Article 12 affirmed the right of duty-free trade for Russian traders in Mongolia and Xinjiang. The treaty also contained various provisions designed to facilitate activities of Russian merchants and to regulate bilateral trade. An appendix to the treaty specified the list of border crossings the two countries were to operate.
Consequences
The Treaty of Saint Petersburg was perceived as a huge loss and step backward by many in Russia, as Minister of War Dmitry MilyutinDmitry Milyutin
Count Dmitry Alekseyevich Milyutin was Minister of War and the last Field Marshal of Imperial Russia...
and the military, as notable commander Aleksei Brusilov
Aleksei Brusilov
Aleksei Alekseevich Brusilov was a Russian general most noted for the development of new offensive tactics used in the 1916 offensive which would come to bear his name. The innovative and relatively successful tactics used were later copied by the Germans...
.
Several thousands Dungan (Hui
Hui people
The Hui people are an ethnic group in China, defined as Chinese speaking people descended from foreign Muslims. They are typically distinguished by their practice of Islam, however some also practice other religions, and many are direct descendants of Silk Road travelers.In modern People's...
) and Taranchi
Taranchi
The term Taranchi denotes the Muslim sedentary population living in oases around the Tarim Basin in today's Xinjiang, whose native language is Turkic Karluk, and whose ancestral heritages include Iranic and Tocharian populations of Tarim and the later Turco-Mongol immigrants of the Qarluq, Uyghur,...
(Uyghur
Uyghur people
The Uyghur are a Turkic ethnic group living in Eastern and Central Asia. Today, Uyghurs live primarily in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in the People's Republic of China...
) families made use of the treaty to move to Russian-controlled territory, i.e. to today's south-eastern Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan , officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country in Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Ranked as the ninth largest country in the world, it is also the world's largest landlocked country; its territory of is greater than Western Europe...
and northern Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan , officially the Kyrgyz Republic is one of the world's six independent Turkic states . Located in Central Asia, landlocked and mountainous, Kyrgyzstan is bordered by Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west, Tajikistan to the southwest and China to the east...
. While some of them soon returned to China, most stayed in Russian domains, and descendents of them have lived in Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan , officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country in Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Ranked as the ninth largest country in the world, it is also the world's largest landlocked country; its territory of is greater than Western Europe...
and Northern Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan , officially the Kyrgyz Republic is one of the world's six independent Turkic states . Located in Central Asia, landlocked and mountainous, Kyrgyzstan is bordered by Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west, Tajikistan to the southwest and China to the east...
ever since.
The border between the two empires set by Article 7 of the treaty remains the border between Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan , officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country in Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Ranked as the ninth largest country in the world, it is also the world's largest landlocked country; its territory of is greater than Western Europe...
and China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
until this day.
Sources
- Treaty text in Russian and French in: Sbornik deĭstvuiushchikh traktatov, konventsiĭ i soglasheniĭ, zakliuchenykh Rossiei s drugimi gosudarstvami, (Collected treaties and conventions between Russia and other states), Russian Foreign Ministry, 1902, pp. 264–281
- "Imperial Rivals: China, Russia, and Their Disputed Frontier", by Sarah C. M. Paine (1996) ISBN 1563247232