XIV. Give English equivalents

знаменитый чесменский бой, под командованием, Средиземное море, захватили крепость, операции по высадке десанта, разбить основные силы врага, располагался возле острова, стал на якорь, открыть огонь с кратчайшего расстояния, ураганный огонь, рукопашный бой, преследуемый русскими, пришлось укрыться, нанести окончательный удар, войти в бухту, присоединиться к сражению, вызвать пожар, полное уничтожение, были взяты в плен, вызвал восстания, под прикрытием береговых батарей, свидетельствует о, высокий уровень искусства мореплавания, в память об этой победе, был возведён памятник

XV. Tell your classmates about the victory of the Russian fleet in the battle of Chesma

UNIT VII

The first voyage of Russian seamen round the world

(I. Krusenstern and Y. Lisyansky),

1802 – 1804

By the begining of the 19th century Russian possessions in the north-west of America comprised the extensive territories of Alaska. Russian settlements on the western coasts of the continent extended as far as San Francisco Bay.

Long and difficult was the route from the centre of Russia to her Far Eastern borders and especially to her possessions in Russian America. Provisions were sent there by river and then on horses across the boundless expanses of Siberia to Okhotsk and finally by sea. Such transportation was very expensive. Rye flour, about 40-50 copecks a pood (16 kg) in European Russia, when brought to Alaska would cost up to 8 roubles.

The difficulties of communication made the ruling of these distant territories a very troublesome affair. There were cases when government instructions, upon reaching Kamchatka or Alaska, would have already gone out of date.

There was an urgent need for regular sea routes between our ports in the Baltic Sea and those in the Pacific Ocean. Therefore, in 1802 the Naval Ministry accepted the offer made by Lt.-Captain Ivan Fyodorovich Krusenstern to organize the first Russian sea ex­pedition round the world.

Placed at the head of the round-the-world expedition, Krusenstern appointed his close friend Yuri Fyodorovich LIsyanski, a learned and experienced seaman, second in command.

Two ships were bought for the expedition, one having a displacement of 450 and the other 370 tons. The bigger of the two, commanded by Krusenstern himself, was called the Nadezhda, and the smaller one, commanded by Lisyanskl, was called the Neva.

On board the Nadezhda was the Russian envoy N. P. Rezanov, who was going to Japan to establish diplomatic relations with that country.

The expedition had a number of important tasks. The Far Eastern coast of Russia was to be explored, the old charts checked and corrected, oceanographical observations, such as measuring the depth and temperature of the water and so on, were to be made.

The Nadezhda and the Neva left Kronstadt in August 1803 and in ten days reached Copenhagen.

After a stay in England the two ships entered the Atlantic Ocean.

The crossing of the Equator was marked by the hoisting of the flag and a gun salute. All the members of the crew, in full dress, watched the sailors staging the appearance of “Neptune”, the mythological god of the sea.

“Neptune” ordered those who were crossing the Equator for the first time to be “christened” and all the seamen excepting the captains, were given a dip in the ocean. Since then celebration of the crossing of the Equator has become a tradition on all Rus­sian ships.

At the coast of Brazil the charts were checked and corrected.

At the end of December 1803, the Nadezhda and the Neva entered the harbour of the Island of St. Catherine, which is separated from the continent of South America by a narrow strait. Here the naturalists collected specimens of the rich tropical flora and fauna. The sailors caught parrots, monkeys and even an alligator. The ships stayed in the harbour for six weeks, as two damaged masts of the Neva had to be replaced.

This done, the expedition passed Cape Horn and entered the Pacific Ocean. The ocean was wrapped in dense fog, a strong wind blew, and it drizzled most of the time. Soon the ships lost sight of each other. The Neva as previously arranged, sailed towards Easter Island, while the Nadezhda, changing her course, sailed in the direction of Marquesas Islands.

By the middle of May the Nadezhda reached the island of Nuku-Hiva – a magnificent spot, all covered with forests of coconut palms and tall bread trees.

In three days the Neva reached the island too. Lisyanski informed Krusenstern that during his three days’ stay on Easter Island he had determined its coordinates and mapped it.

The expedition stayed on the Island of Nuku-Hiva for ten days. The Russian seamen established most friendly relations with the natives, who readily supplied them with food and water. Krusenstern and Lisyanski were the first to give a geographical description of the island. Lisyanski made up a dictionary of the islanders’ language. In this he was aided greatly by an English sailor, Roberts, and a French seaman, Carbi, who had been shipwrecked and had been living on the island for many years.

In the rich collections of plants made by the naturalists there were many specimens hitherto unknown to European scientists. Several members of the expedition made sketches of the island, one of them wrote down the natives’ songs.

Поиск по сайту: