Photo credit: Harvey Barrison / commons.wikimedia.org (CC-BY-SA-2.0)
Russian diplomats honored the memory of the founders of Russian America in Sitka, Alaska. The Russians held a flower-laying ceremony on Castle Hill, where the Russian settlement and fortifications were previously located, built under the first ruler of Russian America, Alexander Baranov, according to the telegram channel of the Russian Embassy in the United States.
As part of the ceremony, red roses, decorated with a ribbon in the form of the Russian flag, were placed on the cannon from the Neva vessel of the Russian Imperial Navy. At the beginning of the 19th century, the ship helped to recapture the lands where the Russian fort was located.
In gratitude for the merits of Alexander Baranov in the development of Sitka, in 1989 a monument to the ruler of Russian America was opened in the city center. In the summer of 2020, the sculpture was moved to a local museum at the request of local activists who claimed that it allegedly offended the feelings of indigenous peoples.
Not all residents of Sitka agree with the transfer of the monument, some believe that the town should remember the positive legacy of the Russian. The Russian embassy called the demolition politicized and stressed that the role of Alexander Baranov in the development of the region is beyond doubt and proven by historical sources.
The memory of the first ruler of Russian settlements in North America is preserved by a number of Sitka schools bearing his name and other facilities, as well as private companies.
Russkiy Mir
