Contradictions of the colonial policy of the Russian Empire that prevented the colonization of the Hawaiian Islands at the beginning of the XIX century

Abstract

The paper, based on the archival sources, deals with the period of Russian colonization of the Hawaiian Islands, reasons for its beginning and end. Furthermore, the paper considers the colonial policy of the Russian Empire in general, gives the factors that influenced colonization and formulates its main contradiction. The beginning of the paper describes the situation in the North Pacific region of the early XIX century, which, it would seem, favored the colonial development of the Russian Empire. The period of Russian colonization of the Hawaiian Islands, which was conducted under the leadership of Dr. Georg Schaeffer and ended in failure, is described. Then the reasons for the negative reaction of the Russian government to Schaeffer’s activity and the refusal of further claims to the Hawaiian Islands are considered, which, among other things, was influenced by the alleged main contradiction of the colonial policy of the Russian Empire – the creation of a Russian-American Company modeled on the colonial companies of other empires, but at the same time they treated their colonies as a kind of buffer zone at their borders, which may have led, ultimately, to the loss of these lands.