In 1689 envoys from Russia and China met in meadows by the River Amur to make peace. These empires had clashed at this distant frontier for decades but were still profoundly alien to one another. The emissaries of imperial Russia were clad in furs and silks and accompanied by 2,000 men. Those from Peking arrived with an entourage of 10,000 and a fleet of junks loaded with cannon. Their aim was to end Russia’s expansion, headed by anarchic frontiersmen whom they thought of as hirsute cannibal demons.
They shared no language, so the negotiations, which opened after a ceremonial frisking for weapons, were conducted in Latin by two Jesuits and a Pole. The upshot was that Moscow was pushed back and its advances held in check for another 150 years before Russians began sailing down the river once again with a convoy of military craft and a mission to establish settlements.
