What a feat the Laptev brothers accomplished. Laptev Khariton Prokofievich and Dmitry Yakovlevich

At first glance, he was a failure in every way. He was disastrously unlucky. All the ships on which he served were somehow lost or dismantled during his lifetime.

He was constantly bypassed with ranks and awards. He was a witness and a direct participant in one of the most shameful episodes in the history of the Russian fleet. He knew what captivity and prison were. Nevertheless, the whole sea and a significant part of the coast of the Taimyr Peninsula bear his name. There was also a reconnaissance ship of the Soviet Navy. But that's exactly what it was. It seems that the magic of the “unsuccessful” name even affected ships - the Project 850 communications vessel, the SSV Khariton Laptev, was sunk in 1992.

But the Laptev Sea and the coast of Khariton Laptev have not gone away. As well as the memory of this man. Unfortunately, she has become a little short - his biography is not so much told, but rather denoted in an indistinct patter. Yes, and they are trying to put it into the unintelligible “Russian polar explorer”. Meanwhile, Khariton Prokofievich Laptev came from an old noble family. However, it can only be considered ancient by today's standards. In 1700, when little Khariton was born, the Laptevs owned their patrimony, the village of Pekarevo, Slautsky camp, Velikoluksky province, for hardly seven decades. That did not prevent them from building their family to the legendary Adyghe prince Rededa. The very one whose single combat with the Russian prince Mstislav the Brave is sung in "The Tale of Igor's Campaign": "And Mstislav Rededya slaughtered in front of the Kasogian regiments." One could really be proud of such an origin. By the way, another Russian surname glorified by the fleet, the Ushakovs, is also derived from the same Rededi. Moreover, the rather aged Khariton Prokofievich, being a teacher at the Naval Cadet Corps, instructed little Fedya Ushakov, the future great naval commander and even a saint, in navigational wisdom.

FROM UNDERGROWTH TO MICHMAN

But that was later. So far, Khariton himself walks in undergrowth. He learns reading, writing, the beginnings of arithmetic from a local priest, and from his father ... What could you learn there? My father owned a village of five households, where only 17 serf souls lived. So the landlord economy of the Laptevs was not much different from the peasants. Khariton had not only to practice his ability to lead, but also to participate in peasant work himself.

In other words, there are no prospects. But here, by the way, the decree of Peter I of 1715 on undergrowth arrived in time. In particular, "gentry undergrowths of Novogorodsk, Pskov, Velikiye Luki and other northern provinces, as if living with water communications" fell into the first set of the newly organized Naval Academy. They didn’t even think about competitions and exams - the personnel shortage of the young Russian fleet was too great. Khariton and his cousin Dmitry are enrolled without any problems.

Here, as in the case of the "old family", some amendments need to be made. Academy. Sounds solid and heavy. In fact, this institution, by today's standards, did not even reach the nautical school and resembled training according to the “takeoff and landing, and the rest is superfluous” system. The full course is only three years. The list of items is defiantly meager and extremely rational. No military history. No tactics or strategy. Arithmetic, geometry, trigonometry, astronomy. Navigation as such is "dead reckoning". Plus navigation, arrangement and sailing armament of ships, as well as the basics of their construction.

As a result, graduates were not even awarded an officer's rank - they had to gain the missing skills and abilities already in the service, along the way. Which is quite understandable - the Northern War was going on, the Swedish fleet was still too strong, and an undereducated person in the ranks is still better than an empty place.

So for two years Khariton served in the Baltic as a midshipman and received his first decent rank only in 1720. But in the "non-commissioned officers and sub-navigators" Peter himself made him. The honor is great. But this did not affect his career in any way. Before the midshipman, and this is the first, lowest officer rank, he still had six years left. They weren't completely empty. On the contrary, there are plenty of possibilities. For example, a naval mission to Italy lasting a whole year. For anyone else, this would be a great starting point. Khariton, on the other hand, was thinking more and more not about military affairs and not about promotion, but about the patency of the Norwegian skerries - it was they, for some mysterious reason, that sunk into his soul. And more about nautical charts - the midshipman turned out to have a clear ability to draw. What, however, no one paid attention to - either a war, or a campaign, there is no time for drawings, here you need to pull the strap.

FROM PRISONERS TO COURTIES

He remained a midshipman even at the age of 34, when fate gave him another opportunity to excel. The War of the Polish Succession promised to be a cakewalk. The French protege Stanislav Leshchinsky, who proclaimed himself king, had already been beaten more than once. All that matters is to besiege the Polish port of Gdansk, where the self-proclaimed king was located, from land and block it from the sea. To ensure the blockade in 1734, the Russian fleet went to sea. In particular, the frigate "Mitava".

Subsequently, during the debriefing, the name of the most junior officer of this ship, midshipman Khariton Laptev, was rarely mentioned. Nevertheless, he, like the rest of the 192 people of the team, according to the Naval Charter of Peter the Great, had to "subject to the death penalty by shooting." Moreover, judging formally, the punishment was deserved. The ill-fated frigate was the first warship in Russian history to surrender to the enemy without firing a shot and lower the flag.

According to maritime law, a warship can stop any ship for inspection if it suspects it of piracy. It was this point that the French squadron of five ships took advantage of when they discovered a lone frigate. He sailed under the Swedish flag. Seeing the patrol, the strange ship lowered the Swedish flag and raised the Russian one. After a short chase, the ship was surrounded. The French demanded a captain on board. Russian officer Pyotr Defremery calmly got into the boat and set sail. He was required to inform the purpose of cruising and show the captain's patent, threatening otherwise to recognize the captain as a pirate. Defremery presented a patent and announced that he was returning to his ship, but in response he heard that the French were detaining a Russian frigate, since they were currently serving Stanislav Leshchinsky, who was conducting hostilities with Russia. "Mitava" was surrounded by boats and longboats with boarding parties, which "the Russian armed servants were violently transported to their ships, robbed of letters and luggage, and the frigate was handed over under their escort." Among them was midshipman Laptev.

The act of the French can be interpreted both as a military trick and as meanness. The behavior of the Russian captain is like excessive trust in maritime law or extreme idiocy. In any case, the crew of the frigate was not to blame for anything. In the end, the sailors who returned from captivity "were dressed in rags, robbed to the extreme and looked very hungry." Nevertheless, Khariton spent two whole years in prison in his homeland - that is how long the proceedings lasted. The only plus was that the officers were allowed to use the library. During these years, Laptev did what he loved - he practiced compiling and drawing nautical charts.

He, like the rest of the team, was nevertheless acquitted. There was a war with Turkey, and it seemed wasteful to let regular naval officers go to waste. In addition, his cartographic studies were noticed and taken into account. The midshipman, restored in his rights, goes to the Don and the Sea of ​​\u200b\u200bAzov "to find a place that is most convenient for the ship's structure." And when he returns, he suddenly receives a high, even the highest appointment - now Khariton Laptev is the commander of the court yacht Dekrone.

FROM A WARM PLACE TO AN EXPEDITION TO THE END OF THE EARTH

It seemed that fate had finally changed anger to mercy. After all the misadventures, after captivity, prison and career failure, to receive a truly royal gift for the 37th anniversary. Empress Anna Ioannovna keeps the yacht only for prestige, because "it's supposed to be so." For all the years of her reign, she did not make not only a single voyage - not even a single seedy boat trip, at least to Kronstadt. But appropriations for the court ship were received, and considerable ones. A report on the means almost did not require. It's not just a sinecure - it's a gold mine! Especially for an elderly midshipman by those standards, who spent his childhood and adolescence in peasant canvas ports. In addition, Laptev, after leaving prison, got married. Yes, how - on a dowry that was twenty years younger than him. It's time to turn a run-down patrimonial village into a normal estate. And even buy a couple more villages and five hundred serf souls that way - the treasury will not become poorer.

Many people thought and acted this way, not seeing anything shameful in embezzlement. But Laptev used the court service differently. Being a member of the highest circles, he often saw and talked with the almost omnipotent Vice-Chancellor Osterman. Since he was engaged, among other things, in the fleet, he was in charge of the Kamchatka expedition, commanded by Bering. Osterman was obviously weary of her and had the imprudence to complain that the aforementioned Bering had already buried two detachment commanders.

Khariton Laptev's reaction was instantaneous. And according to others, also insane. “Because now there are vacancies in the Kamchatka expedition, I ask me from the lieutenant’s fleet to come and send me to the above-mentioned expedition.”

It is almost impossible to understand what Laptev was guided by when making such a decision. Voluntarily leave the court position and ask for certain death! Unthinkable. If you do not take into account the simplest reason. He finally found his purpose. The very real thing, for which you can and even need to give up everything, because otherwise it turns out that life has been lived in vain.

In March 1738, leaving his Natalya and his very young son in his family village, Khariton set off on his journey. Previously, he touched the Big History by accident, only by order of his superiors. Now he himself is a Big Story. Or another nameless mound in the permafrost - that's how lucky.

FROM ADVENTURER TO GENERAL

The dotted line on the map is the most obvious option. Spring of 1738 - Khariton arrived in Kazan by the last sledge. Next - Kama and Chusovaya. Tyumen. Tobolsk. Lena River, Ust-Kut village. Wintering. And finally, the destination is Yakutsk. Dubel-boat, also "Yakutsk". It took a year-long journey just to get to the start.

The crew, 47 people, reacted to the new commander with apprehension and suspicion. From the capital. Courtier. Strict or not? Selfish or sensible?

At first they were inclined to think that he was a tyrant. Bring the treasury. Opened the box. He gave out a salary that had not been paid for more than a year. However, drinking was banned under pain of severe punishment. For some reason, he took on board a team with sled dogs and food for them, which the former commanders never did - it was against all charters. But the human supply was reduced - at first its weight was 64 tons, after loading the dogs and their soldering - 59 tons.

The detachment, which included, in addition to the dubel-boat, a yalbot with firewood, a board with supplies and a kayak with flour, set off on June 8. Everything went well and according to plan. They left the mouth of the Lena on the seashore on July 19. Further - strictly to the north. New islands and lands. Laptev, unlike his predecessors, understood perfectly well that a discovery is only complete when it receives its own name. He followed the example of the Spanish navigators, who gave the newly discovered lands the names of saints. The saints at Khariton were always at hand. The map is adorned with the names of St. Paul, St. Ignatius, Transfiguration, St. Peter, St. Andrew, St. Thaddeus, St. Samuel ... But already on August 21, "Yakutsk" ran into solid ice. There was no more way to the north. Or was?

The team has already managed to understand that their new commander is not a court dandy. But all the muzhik's foresight, all Laptev's practical acumen was appreciated only now. Without dogs, there would be no chance of knowing how far these ices extend. And so the daily reconnaissance of the surveyor Chekin on a dog sled showed that there was still no way. And we must not play heroes, but turn to the winter hut, to the mouth of the Khatanga River and further upstream.

The place was found on August 28 - quite on time, since real frosts hit already on September 15. In this short time, they managed to build a good base - five residential buildings, as well as "cannon, sailing, food and other barns." Slate stoves were built. In other words, preparations for winter were carried out quickly and skillfully. Evidence of this is the ship's log, which notes that out of 47 people, only one died during the winter: "On October 20, the Yakut regiment of soldiers Gavril Baranov, who was obsessed with the French disease, died."

But scurvy, she mourns, this scourge of the Arctic latitudes, the Laptev expedition did not affect. On his own initiative, he introduced a curious product into the diet - water infused with peas and cereals. An infusion of steamed needles was also used. They did not disdain to learn from the locals - many Yakuts drank fresh deer blood.

The first winter went well. Theoretically, one could again and again try to storm the Arctic Ocean in search of a sea route. But the main task still remained mapping. And Khariton Prokofievich acted in full accordance with the old military wisdom: “A good commander fights not with a shout of “Hurray!”, but with a shovel and porridge.”

THE TRIUMPH OF A NEW STRATEGY

During the winter hut, he thought over his polar strategy. Subsequently, it will be repeated in general terms by many researchers, up to the conquerors of the North and South Poles.

First of all, he came to the conclusion that the sea route is shorter and at first glance easier, but the sea does not forgive mistakes. Therefore, the number of dog teams should be tripled and duplicated with reindeer teams. Provide for retreat options in advance and arrange wood and food warehouses at key positions. And of course, intelligence and information gathering. And this means close contact with the local population. Sailors were sent to Turukhansk and Yakutsk to replenish stocks of canvas, cloth, beads and tobacco - the most popular currencies among the local Yakuts and Dolgans.

However, ships were also preparing for a new assault on the ocean. But the second sea search was short and fruitless. The elements in 1740 were clearly against it - the ice on Khatanga came down only on July 12. And already on August 12, the dubel-boat "Yakutsk", without making a single discovery, turned out to be jammed in the ice. The drift has begun. It was short-lived and, in fact, was a desperate attempt to save the ship - the ice squeezed the hull and broke it in several places. What happens for non-compliance with the Naval Charter of Peter the Great, Laptev already knew. And therefore, "Yakutsk", as expected, fought for life "until the Christmas tree is possible." It came to self-sacrifice: “They covered the breakdowns with flour, but they didn’t get that help to stop the leak.” August 15 "Yakutsk" sank. On the shore were wet, frozen people who, nevertheless, were able to save a substantial share of the supplies from the wrecked ship. Now all I had to think about was survival.

Here again, and for the umpteenth time, the experience and resourcefulness of Laptev's mind helped. He ordered to hastily dig round pits, line the bottom with a fin in them, and build ceilings from the remnants of rigging and sails, which were still covered with turf on top. The result, according to him, was "earth yurts" with stoves-heaters. In principle, such dwellings could withstand the polar winter.

And they endured. However, the second round of confrontation between Laptev and the Arctic ended with a regrettable result. Three people died from cold and disease. Once the commander was forced to use force: “Soldat Godov and sailor Sutormin refused to work, saying that we would all freeze and not reach the winter hut, for which they were fined with cats.”

Assignments of the Admiralty College also have not been canceled. The shooting of the area, for the sake of which the whole expedition was started, was never done.

This is where Laptev's new, as yet untested, strategy came into full play. The detachment was divided into three groups - navigator Chelyuskin, surveyor Chekin and Laptev himself. The campaign of 1741 began in a truly innovative way. Instead of ships, there are dog and reindeer teams. Instead of the statutory European or, at worst, Russian clothes, there are local parka overalls. And a strict order - in addition to the mapping itself, to also deal with related matters. For example, the collection of ethnographic information, if possible, a description of the flora and fauna, as well as some minerals.

It was a triumph. During the spring of 1741, an unexplored seashore between the mouths of the Lower Taimyr and Yenisei rivers was put on the map. In the spring of 1742, Chelyuskin reached the northernmost point of Eurasia, and then joined his route with the survey of the previous year. It became clear that the expedition discovered the peninsula. Theoretically, the task could be considered completed. But Laptev, on his own initiative, undertook a search in the interior of the peninsula. In the same year, 1742, on February 8, it starts from Turukhansk. And on March 19, it turns out to be already in the area of ​​\u200b\u200bnow Norilsk: “We arrived at the mouth of the Norylskaya River, along which we drove up 10 versts to the Norylsk winter hut to spend the night.” According to the magazine, it turns out that the winter hut was located in the place where the Valek river flows into the Norilsk River. That is, approximately where the village of the same name is now located. Having laid a loop along Taimyr and brilliantly described the interior regions of the peninsula, especially the lakes, Laptev set off on his return journey. On July 20, in the city of Mangazeisk, Chelyuskin overtook him. “On August 7, they left Mangazeya on a plank, on September 6, 1742, they arrived in the city of Yeniseisk.” In the journal of the detachment of Khariton Laptev, this is put an end to.

FROM HEROES TO OBLIGATION

But not in life. He was in a hurry to report on the expedition. He did more than what was ordered. In addition to a map of hitherto unexplored lands, Laptev brought to the capital the most valuable thing - knowledge of how it is possible to live and work in unbearable conditions without losses or with small losses. He understood the algorithm for exploring the Arctic. He developed a coherent and accessible strategy that can be implemented.

He didn't take one into account. Power has changed. It is generally accepted that the reign of Anna Ioannovna was a total darkness of corruption and embezzlement, aggravated by Germans and personally by the "fiend Biron." Anna was replaced by "Petrov's daughter", the new Empress Elizabeth. The most optimistic hopes were associated with her. But in vain.

It suddenly turned out that the Great Northern Project, of which Laptev's expedition was a part, was possible only under the "darkness of Bironism." Yes, yes, Anna Ioannovna left the state budget on her own with a surplus of two million rubles - a gigantic amount. For two million at one time, Peter the Great was able to completely reformat the Russian army and create a fleet. It would be logical to assume that his own daughter will continue the work.

But Laptev and his report under the new order were received extremely dryly. Here is an excerpt from the meeting of the Admiralty Board: “October 4, 1743. They listened to Lieutenant Khariton Laptev's report ... and ordered this report, a sea chart and another smaller one ... with a description, to be accepted along with and add an extract to the general about the Kamchatka expedition. Send him, Laptev, to assign to the local ship's team ... "

All. That is absolutely. No thanks for the extra work, no awards. Why are there awards - everyone who returned from the expedition was considered "treasury swindlers", so Khariton had to separately submit a report on the funds spent. When it came to the fact that now it became clear how exactly it was possible to continue the study of the Arctic, the question was posed even tougher: "There is no money in the treasury for such projects." It is clear - the new empress was aimed at another "project" - no less ambitious. The construction of a new Winter Palace, the current Hermitage, was started. There was no place for exploration of new lands under the new government.

A place was hardly found for Khariton himself. The next rank, captain of the second rank, he received only seven years later, in 1750. Next was the usual strap of a soldier. He taught at the Marine Corps. During the Seven Years' War, he commanded a battleship, participated in the siege of the Prussian city of Kolberg. He received a captain of the first rank already during the accession to the throne of Catherine II - in 1762. Shortly before that, he became Ober-Ster-Kriegs-Commissar of the Baltic Fleet. That is, the head of all quartermaster affairs. Again, more than a bread position. And again, Laptev, instead of lining his pockets, serves to the conscience. And in the ancestral village of Pekarevo there are big problems. A neighbor, the landowner Avraam Abaryutin, seized part of the land, the lawsuit has been going on for many years, and there is nowhere for the judges to get money for bribes ...

Death came to Khariton Prokofievich on December 21, 1763. No longer to the captain - to the landowner. They buried him without military honors at the village chapel. The lists from his maps were used for another hundred and fifty years - they turned out to be so accurate. But the author was no longer interesting to anyone. The name of Khariton Laptev himself on geographical maps was finally fixed only in Soviet times.

Cover photo: Sergey Gorshkov
Text: Konstantin Kudryashov
Illustrations: Natalya Oltarzhevskaya

The genealogy of the Laptev family began with the famous Prince Rodega, who left the Kosu horde. The descendant of this prince, Gleb Romanovich Sorokoumov, had a son, Bartholomew, nicknamed Lapot, from whom the Laptevs descended.

The year 1700 - in the family of ... Laptev, the owner of the village of Pokarevo (it still lives and is almost healthy), a son was born - Khariton Laptev. A year later (in 1701), in the family of his brother Yakov Laptev, the owner of the village of Bolotovo (the village disappeared during the war years), a son, Dmitry Laptev, was also born. The boys were baptized in the parish church of Slough. Here it is worth paying special attention to one point: Khariton and Dmitry are considered cousins. But if you believe the genealogy of the Laptev family, compiled by the son of Khariton, Kapiton, (S. Petrov writes about it in his article on navigators), then it turns out that the fathers of the famous explorers were cousins, and Khariton and Dmitry themselves were second cousins.

The boys were born at a time when Tsar Peter was just putting the Russian fleet in order, and therefore the thought of the sea crept into the heads of young offspring living on the banks of the calm Lovat, fishing in the surrounding lakes. Yes, not just crept in, but carried away so much that their parents sent them to St. Petersburg. And there, their uncle Boris Ivanovich Laptev, who was in the service of the sovereign (as a ship master of galley shipyards), attached the boys to the newly created Naval Academy.

After graduating, the brothers went their separate ways: the youngest, D. Laptev, two years after graduating from the academy, became a midshipman, and soon a non-commissioned lieutenant and ship commander. Khariton to the rank of midshipman had to serve for six years as a sub-navigator. The brothers also participated in military battles, but research activities brought them fame, as they would say now. Since 1736, Dmitry has been in charge of one of the northern detachments of the Second Kamchatka Expedition, and his brother soon joined him.

The fate of the sailors was long. Khariton Laptev lived to the age of 63 and died on December 21, 1763 in St. Petersburg. According to one version, he was buried in his estate near Velikiye Luki, however, none of our contemporary saw his grave.

Dmitry Laptev retired in April 1762 and settled in his estate Bolotovo. Until recently, the date of death and the place of burial of D. Laptev were unknown. But around 2005, employees of our archive found the metric book of the Trinity Church of the churchyard of Slauy, Velikoluksky district for 1771, where in part three “On the Dying”, under No. 2, the priest wrote: “He died on January 20, 1771 in the village of Bolotov, nobleman Dmitry Yakovlev, son Laptev, 70 years".

What is left of the Laptevs in Velikoluksky land? Yes, practically nothing but the memory of world-famous fellow countrymen. Pokarevo is almost a holiday village. Small, but with a monument. There was absolutely nothing left of Bolotovo, except for beautiful hills and relief, suggesting that they once lived here. In 2001, a wooden memorial cross was erected on the site of the village.

The Pokarevo estate is the birthplace of Khariton Prokofievich Laptev.

Sources:
1. Pskov Encyclopedia // Chief Editor - A. I. Lobachev. Pskov: Pskov regional public institution - publishing house "Pskov Encyclopedia", 2007. - P. 435.
2. S. Petrov Velikolukskaya antiquity. Historical and local history mosaic / S. Petrov. - Velikiye Luki, 1999.

Khariton Prokofievich Laptev(1700 - December 21, 1763) - Russian polar explorer.

Khariton Prokofievich Laptev was born in 1700. In 1718 he entered the service as a midshipman and on May 24, 1726 was promoted to midshipman.

In 1734, he participated in the war against the supporters of Leshchinsky on the frigate "Mitava" under the command of Defremery, who was taken prisoner by the French by deceit. After returning from captivity, Kh.P. Laptev, along with all the officers of the ship, was sentenced to death for surrendering the ship without a fight, but then the crew was found not guilty. After the release of Kh.P. Laptev returned to the fleet.

In 1736 he was sent to the Don River to find a convenient place for building ships. In 1737 he commanded the court yacht Dekron, and was promoted to lieutenant. In December 1737 he was appointed head of the detachment of the Great Northern Expedition with instructions to explore and describe the coast of the Arctic west of the Lena to the mouth of the Yenisei. By this time, Dmitry Laptev, a member of the Great Northern Expedition, arrived from Yakutsk for instructions on further actions, and when leaving he took his cousin Khariton and Lieutenant Chikhanov with him. In March 1738 they left for Yakutsk.

On July 9, 1739, Khariton Laptev, with the task of describing the coast of the Arctic Ocean to the west of the Lena, left Yakutsk on the dubel-boat Yakutsk and reached the ocean on July 21. Constantly struggling with the ice, either sailing, or rowing, or pushing with poles among the ice, almost a month later he reached the mouth of the Olenyok River. Having described part of the mouth, he went to the Khatanga Bay, where he was detained by ice. Only on August 21 did he approach Cape St. Thaddeus at 76 ° 47 "N. latitude. Here he met solid ice and returned to the Khatanga Bay, where on August 29 he stood at the mouth of the Prodigal River at 72 ° 56 "North latitude. In March 1740, Khariton Laptev sent the surveyor Chekin to describe the coast from the Taimyr River west to Pyasina. Chekin managed to do only part of the work, and at the end of May he returned on foot.

Khatanga opened on June 15, but it became possible to move from wintering, behind the ice, only on July 12 and by August 13 they reached the outlet to the ocean.

At a latitude of 75 ° 30 \ "the ship was covered with ice, carried across the sea, every minute threatening to crush. Two days later, it was decided to leave the ship. Until August 30, they dragged supplies ashore on ice. From here they walked along the coast to the old winter hut. Thus, two years of efforts to go around The Taimyr Peninsula was not successful by sea.Laptev decided to describe its shores by land, on dogs, which he began in the spring of 1741.

To describe the coast of Taimyr, Laptev divided his detachment into three parties. On March 17, 1741, he sent Chelyuskin's party to the west to survey the Pyasina River and the banks from the mouth of the Pyasina to the Taimyr River. On April 15, 1741, Laptev sent surveyor Chekin to describe the eastern coast of Taimyr from the winter quarters to the Taimyr River, but due to snow blindness, Chekin described only 600 kilometers of the coast and was forced to return to the winter quarters. On April 24, 1741, Laptev himself went from the winter hut to Lake Taimyr, and then along the Lower Taimyr valley reached its mouth - the Taimyr Bay. Further, changing the original route, he moved northeast along the coast to the intended meeting with Chekin. Laptev was only able to reach 76°42'N. Leaving a sign for Chekin and suffering from snow blindness, Laptev returned to the Taimyr Bay.

Having barely recovered from his eye disease, Laptev went west, saw several islands (from the Nordenskiöld archipelago), according to his data, reaching 76 ° 38'N. (true latitude was 77 ° 10'N - the northern tip of Russky Island) turned south-south-west and on June 1 at Cape Leman (in Middendorf Bay) met with Chelyuskin. Further, in a joint campaign, they identified and mapped a number of bays, capes and coastal islands. This entire area was later called the Khariton Laptev coast.

On June 9, both returned to the mouth of the Pyasina, where they again separated: Laptev went up the river in a boat to Lake Pyasino, and from there on deer to the Yenisei, while Chelyuskin reached the mouth of the Yenisei on deer along the coast and there caught up with Laptev, and near the mouth of the Dudinka River they met Chekin. In August, everyone moved to the Yenisei and wintered in Turukhansk. It remained to describe the northernmost part of the Taimyr Peninsula, the so-called North-Eastern Cape, now Cape Chelyuskin. To do this, Chelyuskin was sent in December, who on May 7 reached this cape and then made an inventory from Cape St. Thaddeus to the Taimyr River, where Khariton Laptev went to meet him. After that, they returned to Turukhansk, and Laptev went to Petersburg with reports. In 1743 he returned to St. Petersburg, having successfully completed the task. The dispatches and reports of Laptev 1739-1743 contained valuable information about the progress of the work of the northern detachment of the Great Northern Expedition, about the hydrography of the coast of the Taimyr Peninsula. Subsequently, he continued to serve on the ships of the Baltic Fleet. From 1746 he commanded the ship Ingermanland in the Baltic Sea. In 1754 he was promoted to captain of the 3rd rank, and in 1757 - 2nd rank, and at the same time commanding the ship Uriel went to Danzig and Karlskron. In 1758 he was promoted to the 1st rank and, commanding a newly built 66-gun ship (still without a name), on the transition to Kronstadt, on September 19 he was wrecked near Skagen. In 1762, he was appointed ober-shter-krigs commissar.

Memory of Khariton Laptev

• The Laptev Sea is named after Khariton Laptev and his cousin Dmitry Laptev.
• In honor of Khariton Laptev, the southwestern coast of the Taimyr Peninsula was named the coast of Khariton Laptev.
• In honor of the Laptev brothers, a memorial sign was erected at the site of the former village of Bolotovo, Kupuysky volost, Velikoluksky district.

Dmitry Yakovlevich and Khariton Prokopevich Laptev (XVIII century)

The Russian Navy gave our country not only remarkable naval commanders and scientists, but also a whole galaxy of brave travelers and explorers. The latter include cousins, lieutenants of the fleet - Dmitry Yakovlevich and Khariton Prokopyevich Laptev, wonderful Russian polar explorers, members of the Great Northern Expedition.

Peter I laid the foundation for one of the most ambitious scientific expeditions of all time - the Great Northern Expedition. The first, so-called Kamchatka, expedition set itself the task of determining whether Asia and America are connected by an isthmus or separated by a strait. Commander was appointed head of the expedition Vitus Jonassen Bering, a Dane by origin, even in his youth adopted by Peter I to serve in the Russian fleet and served in it for 37 years.

This expedition, successfully carried out from 1725 to 1730, was a prologue to the second stage of work - the Great Northern Expedition, which worked from 1733 to 1743 and was led until 1741 by V. Bering.

The task of the expedition was to study and describe the Russian shores from Yugorsky Shar to Kamchatka and map them. Up to 600 people, divided into several detachments, took part in it.

Two of them, under the command of lieutenants Pronchishchev and Lasinius, had to leave Yakutsk along the Lena to the sea, explore and make an inventory of the coast - Pronchishchev from the Lena to the Yenisei and Lasinius - from the Lena to Kolyma and further to Kamchatka.

The detachments did not fulfill their task.

Peter Lacinius, Swede by nationality, was accepted into the Russian service in 1725. He swam a lot and was a knowledgeable navigator. Lasinius volunteered for the expedition. Bering appointed him head of the detachment, which was supposed to describe the coast from the mouth of the Lena to Kamchatka. The detachment had built in Yakutsk boat "Irkutsk"eighteen meters long, five and a half meters wide, with a draft of two meters.

Lasinius and his detachment left Yakutsk on June 29, 1735, at the same time as Pronchishchev's detachment. On August 2, both detachments arrived at Stolb Island, located at the beginning of the Lena delta.

On the second day, "Irkutsk", having passed the Bykovskaya channel, reached the seaside. Two days later, waiting for a fair wind, Lasinius took his ship out to sea.

Navigation was hampered by large accumulations of ice and unfavorable winds. Therefore, already on August 18, Lasinius introduced a boat at the mouth of the Kharaulakh River, deciding to spend the winter here.

From the fin lying on the shore, the team quickly built a house.

Counting on another two years of work, Lasinius decided to save food and halved the ration. Chronic malnutrition with ignorance of antiscorbutic drugs led to a massive illness with scurvy, which claimed the lives of thirty-eight people. One of the first to die was Lasinius himself.

Only 9 people survived this terrible winter. Commander Bering sent a special expedition to rescue 9 people under the command of navigator Shcherbinin, who delivered them to Yakutsk. Boat "Irkutsk" remained at the mouth of Kharaulakh. Bering appointed one of his closest assistants, Lieutenant Dmitry Yakovlevich Laptev.

Dmitry Yakovlevich Laptev was born in 1701 in the village of Bolotovo not far from Velikiye Luki. In 1715, together with his cousin Khariton Laptev, Dmitry entered the Naval Academy in St. Petersburg. After graduating from the Academy in 1718, he was promoted to midshipman and began serving in the Baltic Fleet on the ships of the Kronstadt squadron.

In 1721 Laptev received the rank of midshipman, in 1724 he was promoted to non-commissioned lieutenant for special services in marine sciences. Since 1725, the young officer served on the Favoritka ship, which sailed along the Gulf of Finland. From 1727, for two years, Dmitry Laptev served as commander of the frigate "Saint Jacob", and then commander of a packet boat that cruised between Kronstadt and Lubeck.

Laptev's first acquaintance with the northern seas took place in the summer of 1730, when he sailed in the Barents Sea on the frigate Rossiya under the command of Captain Barsh. In 1731 Dmitry Laptev was promoted to lieutenant.

A highly educated and well-versed officer, Dmitry Laptev, was noticed by the Admiralty College and included in the list of participants in the Great Northern Expedition. In July 1735, D. Ya. Laptev arrived in Yakutsk. He was instructed to lead a caravan of small river vessels with the property of the expedition along the Aldan, Maya and Yudoma as close as possible to Okhotsk, build warehouses, put cargo in them, and then bring the ships to Yakutsk. Laptev successfully completed this task, guiding the ships to the Yudoma Cross.

Initially, it was supposed to appoint Lieutenant Laptev to the Bering-Chirikov detachment or to the Shpanberg detachment. However, in 1736, when the tragic fate of the detachment of Lieutenant Lasinius became clear, a decision was made to appoint Dmitry Laptev as the new commander of the Lena-Yenisei detachment.

Having received an order to replace the deceased Lasinius, D. Ya. Laptev formed a detachment in Yakutsk and in the spring of 1736, having gone out to sea along the Lena, reached the mouth of the river in light boats. Kharaulakh, where the abandoned Irkutsk stood.

Having put the ship in order, D. Ya. Laptev returned on it to the delta of the river. Lena for loading food and equipment delivered there in advance by boat from Yakutsk. On August 22, 1736, D. Ya. Laptev finished loading and went to sea, heading east. Heavy ice blocked the way. Four days later, D. Ya. Laptev was forced to turn back. With difficulty he reached the Lena and, climbing up it, stood a little higher than Bulun for the winter.

The scurvy came again. But D. Ya. Laptev took into account the sad experience of his predecessor. He recommended to his team more air, more movement, more nutrition. As a result, the wintering went relatively well - everyone had scurvy, but only one person died.

In the summer of 1737, D. Ya. Laptev returned to Yakutsk to agree on a plan for further work with Bering. But Bering was no longer in Yakutsk. Here D. Ya. Laptev learned about the sad fate of Pronchishchev.

Biography

Born in 1702 in the estate of Bogimovo, Tarusa district, Kaluga province (12 kilometers from the city of Aleksin) in the noble family of the Pronchishchevs. He was the fifth child in the family. In April 1716, he entered the Navigation School in Moscow, located in the Sukharev Tower, as a student.

In 1718 he was transferred to St. Petersburg to the Naval Academy (he studied with Chelyuskin and Laptev) and became a midshipman. From 1718 to 1724 he went as a navigator's student in the Baltic Fleet on the "Diana" and "Falk" shnyavis, the "Berngardus" brigantine, on the ships "Yagudiel", "Uriil", "Prince Eugene", gukor "Kronshlot".

In 1722 he participated in the Persian campaign of Peter.

In 1727 he was promoted to navigator. He entered the commission for the certification of the ranks of the fleet. In 1730 he was presented to the rank of navigator of the 3rd rank. Vasily Pronchishchev served on the Postman packet boat, in 1731 on the Friedrichstadt ship, on the Esperanza frigate.

Lena-Yenisei detachment of the Great Northern Expedition

In 1733 Pronchishchev received the rank of lieutenant and took part in the Great Northern Expedition, leading the Lena-Yenisei detachment, which explored the coast of the Arctic Ocean from the mouth of the Lena to the mouth of the Yenisei.

June 30, 1735 Pronchishchev went from Yakutsk down the Lena to dubel-boat "Yakutsk".

The Yakutsk crew consisted of more than 40 people, including navigator Semyon Chelyuskin and surveyor Nikifor Chekin.

But the name of Vasily Pronchishchev stands out in this row, because he went on a voyage with his wife, who became the first woman in the world - a polar explorer. Most likely, they knew each other from childhood - their fathers once served in the same regiment, and family estates were located in the neighborhood. Vasily Pronchishchev was born in 1702 in the town of Mytny Stan, Tarussky district, Kaluga province, in the family of a small estate nobleman. Tatyana Fedorovna Kondyreva was born in 1710 not far from the town of Aleksin in the same, Kaluga, governorship and also in a family of poor nobles. ... Actually, the Admiralty Board allowed the officers to take their wives and children with them. And this step was fully justified in view of the obvious duration of the expedition. But the presence of women in the campaign was allowed only on the basis of long-term parking and inevitable wintering. In the same detachment, an extraordinary, incredible event took place: contrary to the well-known maritime tradition, Lieutenant Pronchishchev interferes with his young wife in the execution of a matter of state importance. A woman on a warship is an unprecedented case! Pronchishchev did it arbitrarily or with the unofficial consent of Bering, modern history does not know. But only for a long time in all subsequent historical and memoir references she was erroneously called Mary.

The voyage along the Lena went well, and on August 2, 1735, the expedition reached the island of Stolb, from which the Lena delta begins. Initially, Pronchishchev planned to go through the Krestyatskaya channel, which led to the west, but the search for a fairway in it was unsuccessful due to the decline in water, so he decided to lead the dubel-boat by the Bykovskaya channel to the southeast. On August 7, the ship anchored at the mouth of this channel, waiting for a favorable wind.

On August 14, 1735, Pronchishchev led the ship around the Lena Delta. After a fairly long time, Yakutsk rounded the Lena Delta and headed west along the coast. Pronchishchev was the first to map the Lena Delta. The delay in the Lena delta did not allow Pronchishchev to advance far into the first navigation. The short northern summer was ending, a rather strong leak opened on the ship, and Pronchishchev decided to arrange wintering in places where the fin was still found and the ship could be repaired. On August 25, the detachment stopped for the winter at the mouth of the Olenyok River (river) near the settlement of fur traders, having built two huts from a fin. The winter passed safely, but scurvy began in the detachment.

The spring of 1736 in Ust-Olenyok turned out to be late and the sea cleared of ice only by August. Despite the difficulties that arose, in the summer of 1736 Pronchishchev continued along the coast to the west. On August 5, 1736, the detachment reached the mouth of the Anabara River. Surveyor Baskakov, having risen upstream of the river, discovered ore outcrops.

On August 17, 1736, off the eastern coast of Taimyr, the expedition discovered the islands, which they named in honor of St. Peter. The island of Transfiguration was also discovered.

In the following days, moving further north along the edge of a continuous fast ice, holding off the coast of the Taimyr Peninsula, the detachment passed several bays. Pronchishchev mistakenly mistook the northernmost of the bays for the mouth of the Taimyr River (in fact, it is Teresa Klavenes Bay). The coast was completely deserted, without the slightest sign of habitation. At the 77th latitude, the road to the wooden ship was finally blocked by heavy ice, and frost began to draw in free water. These days Chelyuskin wrote:

“At the beginning of this 9 o’clock, there was calm, the sky was cloudy and gloomy, there was a great frost and a sludge appeared on the sea, from which we are in great danger that if it stays so quiet for one day, we are afraid to freeze here. We entered the deaf ice, which on both sides, and in front of us, are great stagnant smooth ice. Went rowing oars. However, merciful God, God grant us a capable wind, then this sludge was blown away.

Soon the travelers lost sight of the shore. Pronchishchev ordered to determine the position of the vessel on navigational instruments. "Yakutsk" turned out to be at 77 ° 29 "N. This is the northernmost point reached by the ships of the Great Northern Expedition. Only after 143 years, Baron Adolf Eric Nordenskiöld on the ship "Vega" will advance in these places just a few minutes north. Then the path was closed. In the north and west, continuous ice with rare polynyas stretched and it was impossible to pass them on a dubel-boat. "Yakutsk" turned back with the intention of wintering at the mouth of the Khatanga. Subsequently, it was found that the expedition entered the Vilkitsky Strait, moved somewhat to the north and reached a latitude of 77 degrees 50 minutes Only poor visibility prevented the expedition members from seeing the Severnaya Zemlya archipelago and the extreme northern point of Taimyr and all of Eurasia - Cape Chelyuskin.

Pronchishchev refused to land in the Khatanga Bay, not finding settlements there, and the ship headed for the former Olenyoksky winter quarters.

On August 29, Pronchishchev went on reconnaissance on a boat and broke his leg. Returning to the ship, he lost consciousness and soon died. The true cause of death - fat embolism syndrome due to a fracture - became known quite recently, after the traveler's grave was opened in 1999. It was previously believed that Pronchishchev died of scurvy.

The further way "Yakutsk" did under the command of the navigator Chelyuskin. A few days later, he managed to reach the Ust-Olenyok winter hut, where Pronchishchev was interred, and soon Tatyana Pronchishcheva also died.

On October 2, "Yakutsk" stood up for the winter quarters, and Chelyuskin went with a report to Yakutsk by sledge. He was appointed the new commander of the dubel-boat and the head of the Lena-Yenisei detachment Khariton Prokopyevich Laptev.

Seeing the difficult situation of the expedition, Dmitry Yakovlevich Laptev, as the closest assistant to the absent Bering, decided to go for instructions and help to St. Petersburg, to the Admiralty College.

D. Ya. Laptev overcame the long journey from Yakutsk to St. Petersburg on horseback. D. Ya. Laptev had enough time to think over the reasons for the failures of Lasinius, Pronchishchev and his own, and to outline a plan for future actions. D. Ya. Laptev arrived in St. Petersburg, firmly knowing what was needed for further work.

The Admiralty Board listened attentively to the reports of D. Ya. Laptev and, having discussed them, considered it necessary to continue the work. The Board released additional funds and equipment and, at the suggestion of D. Ya. Laptev, instead of the deceased Pronchishchev appointed commander of Yakutsk Khariton Prokopyevich Laptev.

Kh. P. Laptev, together with his brother, served on the ships of the Baltic, traveled to the Don, looking for places suitable for organizing a shipyard. Returning to the Baltic in 1737, Kh. P. Laptev was appointed captain of the yacht Dekron.

In March 1738, the Laptev brothers, having received the funds and equipment necessary to extend the work, left St. Petersburg for Yakutsk.

Upon arrival, they inspected and repaired their ships, equipped them, made careful plans for the expedition, designed to carry out the work both from the sea and from land.

On June 18, 1739, Dmitry Yakovlevich Laptev left Yakutsk on the Irkutsk with a team of 35 people; On July 5, having passed the Lena Delta, he was already at sea, heading east.

According to the adopted plan, D. Ya. Laptev sent a detachment under the command of the senior sailor Loshkin, following to the mouth of the Yana River by land, and the second detachment - to the mouth of the Indigirka River under the command of the surveyor Kindyakov. It was also supposed to organize the execution of work further - between Indigirka and Kolyma. On July 8, "Irkutsk" reached the mouth of the Yana River and gradually moved further and further east, until the ice situation near the mouth of the Indigirka River forced it to winter.

The team left the ship and spent the winter on the shore. Everyone continued to work. The wintering went well, and during this time the team did a great job of exploring the territory. With the onset of spring, D. Ya. Laptev sent some of the people by land to Kolyma to make an inventory of the coast, and he himself returned to the ship with the rest of the team. The ship was stuck in the ice. It was separated from clear water by an ice field about a kilometer long. D. Ya. Laptev embarked on a difficult but sure path. A channel was cut through the ice for a kilometer, through which the ship entered the clear water.

But the joy of the sailors was short-lived. A storm broke out, again surrounding the ship with ice and throwing it aground. To get the ship afloat, it was necessary to completely unload and disarm it, even the masts were removed. For two weeks the sailors fought for the life of the ship and their own. But, finally, "Irkutsk" was refloated and safely reached the mouth of the Kolyma; having completed the necessary work here, D. Ya. Laptev moved further east.

Impenetrable ice met at Cape Baranov. D. Ya. Laptev decided to return for the winter to Nizhnekolymsk on the Kolyma River. The winter has gone well again. People continued to work.

In the summer of 1741, D. Ya. Laptev made another attempt to pass by sea east of the Kolyma. Again, impenetrable ice met at Cape Baranov, forcing the expedition to return to Nizhnekolymsk.

Having carefully processed the compiled inventories of the coast from the Lena to the Kolyma, D. Ya. Laptev went to the Anadyr prison on dogs, made a detailed inventory of the river. Anadyr and in the fall of 1742 returned to St. Petersburg.

Khariton Prokopyevich Laptev left Yakutsk at the end of July 1738, somewhat later than his brother. The Yakutsk crew, sailing with Lieutenant Pronchishchev, was taken by him almost unchanged. Went on a new voyage and navigator Semyon Ivanovich Chelyuskin.

August 17 Kh. P. Laptev reached the bay, which he gave the name "Nordvik". Having explored the bay, Kh. P. Laptev moved further west, visited the Khatanga Bay and, leaving it, discovered the island of Transfiguration. Then he headed north, following along the eastern coast of the Taimyr Peninsula. At Cape Fadeya, ice blocked the way. Winter was coming. Kh. P. Laptev came back and camped for the winter at the mouth of the Bludnaya River, in the Khatanga Bay.

The team spent the winter safely in a house built from driftwood harvested from the shore. Despite the winter conditions, the work did not stop. At the same time, preparations were made for summer work from the sea and from the land.

Kh. P. Laptev left large stocks of food and equipment at the wintering site. With the onset of spring, overland inventory work began. The boatswain Medvedev was sent to the mouth of the Pyasina River, and the surveyor Chekin with detachments and food was sent to the mouth of the Taimyr River. These two detachments were unable to complete the work, but they clarified the situation and gave Kh. P. Laptev the information necessary for the successful completion of work in the future. Kh. P. Laptev himself in August 1740, immediately after the ice broke up, made another attempt to bypass the Taimyr Peninsula by sea from the north. The attempt failed. The ship was trapped in ice and sank. The crew and cargo were, by order of Kh. P. Laptev, transferred to the ice in advance.

The beach was 15 miles from the crash site. The team on foot, dragging loads, moved to the shore. But the nearest dwelling was the base of the expedition at the mouth of the Prodigal River. Kh. P. Laptev sent his detachment there. Four people could not endure the difficulties of the journey and died along the way. The rest made it to the base. Again a successful wintering in the old place. The spring of 1741 came. Kh. P. Laptev, having lost his ship, decided to continue research by land. He singled out three groups from his detachment. He sent one group under the command of navigator Semyon Chelyuskin to the mouth of the Pyasina River with the task of exploring the coast from the mouth of the Pyasina towards the mouth of Taimyr.

The second group, under the command of the surveyor Chekin, was to explore the coast from the mouth of the Taimyr River. The third group Kh. P. Laptev headed himself. He had in mind to explore the inner regions of the eastern part of the Taimyr Peninsula and go to the mouth of the Taimyr, where he was supposed to meet with the first two groups.

To ensure the normal work of the groups, Kh. P. Laptev sent ahead of each of them spare food and equipment. Kh. P. Laptev sent all the people who were not included in the expedition groups, and the excess cargo, on reindeer to Turukhansk.

Chekin soon returned to the base, having failed to complete the task due to the difficulty of the journey and illness. Chelyuskin, on the other hand, reached his destination and began work.

Kh. P. Laptev himself went deep into the Taimyr Peninsula, went to Lake Taimyr, went down the Taimyr River to the sea and went towards Chelyuskin.

Having finished their work, the travelers spent the winter in the city of Turukhansk on the Yenisei. In the spring of 1742, Semyon Chelyuskin returned to Taimyr to explore the remaining undescribed part of the peninsula and reached the extreme northern point of Asia - a rocky cape, later named after him. Cape Chelyuskin is located at 77°43" north latitude and 104°17" east longitude.

Having finished work, Khariton Prokopyevich Laptev returned from Turukhansk to St. Petersburg, where he continued to serve in the Navy, holding command positions. He died on January 1, 1764.

More than two centuries separate us from the time when, overcoming constant difficulties and hardships, exposing themselves to all sorts of dangers, the Laptev brothers studied the distant and harsh sea and its coast.

On weak wooden ships, with primitive devices and tools, they did their work. They delivered a variety of information about the nature of the region, its geography, coastline, sea depths, tides, population, magnetic declination, wildlife, vegetation, etc. The thoroughness, accuracy and conscientiousness with which they performed their work are amazing, as amazing is the strength of their will and love for the motherland, which allowed them to complete such a difficult task.

The sea whose shores they studied is named the Laptev Sea.

The Laptev Sea, the photo and description of which are presented in the article, belongs to the Arctic Ocean basin. The harsh nature of this sea, as well as the entire Arctic, has been of interest to researchers for several centuries. But only today scientists can give reliable answers to questions concerning the climate, flora and fauna of this mysterious region. Although some time ago such tasks seemed unsolvable.

Laptev Sea on the map

In 1735-1742, thanks to the efforts and long work of Russian researchers, the coastline of the sea was plotted on a geographical map. For example, cousins ​​Dmitry and Khariton, after whom the Laptev Sea is named, devoted many years of their lives to the study of the region. Being in the service of the Russian Navy, they were participants in a grandiose scientific study, which was organized by Peter I and was called the Great Northern Expedition.

Today, the boundaries of the sea are set exactly, but the beginning of this difficult and dangerous work was laid in those distant years by such selfless people as the Laptev brothers - Dmitry and Khariton, Semyon Dezhnev and many other of our compatriots.

From the west, the sea washes the eastern shores from the Arctic Cape to the mainland coast of the Khatanga Bay. In the north, maritime borders run from Cape Arkticheskij to the northern shores of Kotelny Island. In the eastern part of the sea waters are washed by the western shores of the islands of Kotelny, Maly and Bolshoi. Then the lines pass along and Dmitry Laptev.
From the south, the border of the sea runs along the northern shores of Eurasia from Cape Svyatoy Nos to the Khatanga Bay. It was these sea frontiers that the Laptev brothers explored. The length of the coastal border is 5254 kilometers. The distance from the southeastern shores to the northwestern ones is 1300 kilometers. This is the largest indicator characterizing the size of the sea.

History of the exploration of the region

Given the harsh natural conditions of the Laptev Sea, it is easy to assume that the process of exploring its water area by travelers was not easy and safe. In addition, it should be taken into account that the work began in the 18th century - at a time when the development of many sciences, including navigation, was in its infancy. The level of geographical knowledge was also not very high.

An invaluable contribution to the organization of work on the study of the northern coast of Eurasia along its entire length and the seas of the Arctic Ocean basin was made by brave travelers. Many researchers were officers of the Russian navy.

The brothers Khariton and Dmitry, after whom the Laptev Sea is named, began serving in the navy in 1718, where they were enlisted as midshipmen at a young age. By 1721, young people had already been promoted to midshipmen. Fate decreed that for some time the life paths of the brothers diverged. But Dmitry and Khariton were always faithful to the sea, the Russian fleet, giving the best years of their lives to the service.
In 1734, Dmitry Yakovlevich Laptev was introduced to the Great Northern Expedition as one of the best officers of the Russian fleet. His reputation was so high that he took the position of one of Vitus Bering's assistants, who was appointed head of this large-scale event.

Dmitry Laptev was ordered to take the place of the deceased captain of the Irkutsk ship. It was on it that an attempt was made to explore the waters of the seas washing the mainland from the mouth of the Lena heading east. The expedition turned out to be extremely unsuccessful, since almost the entire team died from cold, scurvy and other diseases.
In August 1736, the Irkutsk under the command of Dmitry Laptev, having left the Lena River Delta, again found himself in the open sea. But after a few days, the voyage had to be interrupted and the ship turned back, as powerful ice blocked the path of the sailors. The captain, taking into account the experience of the previous expedition, decided to save people's lives and spend the winter on land.

Tragic was the fate of those navigators who, on the ship "Yakutsk", had to move from the mouth of the Lena in a westerly direction (to explore the open spaces of the sea). Circumstances developed in such a way that Dmitry Laptev personally had to go to St. Petersburg to receive instructions regarding the further study of the region. He himself also had a plan and was ready to offer it to the leadership, hoping for understanding. The positive outcome of the expedition worried the Russian officer most of all.

Brothers Laptev

So, from 1738, the brothers again begin to serve one common cause. On the recommendation of his cousin Laptev Khariton Prokofievich was appointed captain of the ship "Yakutsk" instead of Pronchishchev, who died on the expedition.
In the summer of 1739, an expedition began, whose goal was not only to survey the northern expanses of the sea, but also to inventory the coastal territories. Therefore, it included detachments that followed by land.

Having a well-developed plan of action, a brave dedicated team on land and at sea, Dmitry Yakovlevich Laptev by 1741 on the ship "Irkutsk" was able to overcome the distance from the mouth of the Lena to the Kolyma. Having carefully processed the information received, he returned to St. Petersburg in the fall of 1742.

Khariton Prokofievich was supposed to explore the coast and the sea to the west of the mouth of the Lena. Huge difficulties and hardships had to be experienced by the detachments led by Laptev. The explorer and his companions did not stop even when they lost the ship, which was destroyed by ice. The expedition continued on foot. Its result was a description of the territories from the mouth of the Lena River to the Taimyr Peninsula.

The life of such people as the brothers Khariton Prokofievich and Dmitry Yakovlevich, after whom the Laptev Sea is named, can rightfully be called a feat. Everyone who touches the study of history understands this. Amazing perseverance and determination, boundless love for Russia helped these people overcome the seemingly insurmountable.

Geological structure of the seabed

The depth of the Laptev Sea is very contrasting. This circumstance was discovered more than 200 years ago, when the ships of the first expeditions repeatedly ran aground. It should be noted that the largest depth indicator is 2980 meters, the smallest is 15, and the average is 540 meters. This can be explained by the steep continental slope of the area where the sea is located. Given the depth indicator, it is divided into southern and northern parts. In this case, the reference point is the parallel, where the Vilkitsky Bay is located.

The nature of the bottom soil of the Laptev Sea is greatly influenced by the rivers flowing into it. They carry a large amount of sand, silt and other sedimentary rocks. Their accumulation is 25 centimeters per year. In addition, boulders, large and small pebbles are found in the shallow zone at the bottom of the sea.

The huge glaciers of Severnaya Zemlya contribute to the formation of icebergs. The water column of the Laptev Sea contains a large amount of ice. Its melting and waves are actively destroying the coastline. Sometimes, as a result of such processes, small islands go under water.

Climatic conditions

There are several factors that determine the harsh climate of the region.
Considering the Laptev Sea on the map, we can draw the following conclusions:

• it is located in the high latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere;
• the proximity of the Central Arctic Basin cannot but influence the climate of the region;
• the remoteness of the sea from the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans deprives it of the opportunity to receive the warming effect of the waters.

Most of the time, calm, slightly cloudy weather prevails over the sea. Only cyclones that pass south of the water area bring heavy snowfalls accompanied by strong winds.

In the southern part of the Laptev Sea, it is cold for nine months, and in its northern regions, negative temperatures are recorded for 11 months. The coldest month of winter is January. The average monthly air temperature is 26-28 degrees below zero. There are known cases of lowering the mercury column to -61 o C.
cool summers here are far from uncommon. Rather, on the contrary - a significant increase in temperature (for example, up to 24-32 degrees) is a rare and unusual phenomenon. August is considered the warmest summer month. At this time, thermometers record +7...+9 degrees in the south and +1 o C in the northern part of the sea. The main distinguishing characteristic of the climate of the Laptev Sea is a strong and prolonged cooling with a relatively calm wind regime.

salinity and water temperature. Currents and glaciers

The distribution of water salinity in the Laptev Sea is significantly affected by the fact that the largest rivers of the mainland carry a significant amount of fresh water here. In this regard, the salinity of the southern regions of the sea is much lower than the northern ones. For the same reason, the percentage of salt content increases in winter, and in the warm season, water desalination is observed. The rivers Lena, Khatanga, Yana, Olenyok in summer bring up to 90% of the annual flow of fresh water. At the same time, intense activity occurs, which also affects the salinity index. It should also be noted that this indicator is not the same in the surface and deep layers of the sea water column. Salinity is lower on the surface.

The depth of the Laptev Sea determines the water temperature. This indicator also depends on the location of the waters relative to the coastal part, the influence of currents, and the time of year. Most often it is equal to zero. In summer, in some coastal areas and in shallow water, the temperature is 4-6 degrees Celsius. In the bays, which, by the way, there are a lot, it approaches the mark of 10 o C, and in the open sea it does not exceed two degrees.

The system of currents in the Laptev Sea has not been studied well enough. However, it is known that rivers again play a big role in this, carrying huge volumes of water into the sea.
Among the permanent currents of the Laptev Sea, one can name the Novosibirsk and East Taimyr. It should be noted that the speed of water movement is low, the strength of the currents is weak and unstable.

At the end of September, the process of ice formation begins throughout the water area, which greatly complicates navigation. From October to May, the waters of the Laptev Sea are ice-bound. At the same time, fast ice forms on approximately 30% of its area, the rest is covered with drifting ice floes. In June and July, they melt. However, only by August a large area of ​​the sea surface is freed from ice shackles.

Animal and plant world

The flora and fauna of the Laptev Sea is typical of the Arctic. Phytoplankton is represented by algae. Marine ciliates, copepods and amphipods, rotifers are typical representatives of zooplankton.

In the depths of the sea, such fish species as Siberian whitefish, omul, nelma, and sturgeon are common. Walruses, beluga whales, seals are representatives of the order of mammals. In the icy deserts there is a formidable inhabitant of the Arctic - the polar bear.

Islands of the Laptev Sea

On the territory of the sea there are about two dozen large and small islands. It is noteworthy that scientists discovered the remains of mammoths on them. They are well preserved, so the finds are of great scientific value. The modern inhabitants of the islands are arctic foxes and polar bears.
Near the coast of the continent, small islands are usually located in groups. We are talking about such areas of land as the islands of Komsomolskaya Pravda, Thaddeus, Petra, Aerial photography, the Danube. There are also larger ones located singly. These include Bolshoi Begichev, Sandy, Muostah, Makar.

Rivers of the Laptev Sea

As mentioned earlier, the largest rivers flowing into the sea have a significant impact on many factors. Their location in the direction from east to west is as follows: Yana, Lena, Olenyok, Anabar, Khatanga. It was these reservoirs that were actively used by the researchers of the region - Khariton and Dmitry Laptev, after whom the Laptev Sea was named.

These rivers affect the level of salt content in sea water. Thanks to the work of the mentioned water arteries, the relief of the seabed, the outlines of its coastline, the composition of sedimentary rocks and suspensions were formed.

Prospects for the development of the region

Today, the Laptev Sea is included in the research program, which has been carried out jointly by scientists from Russia and Germany for the past twenty years. Modern scientists always remember that this event was started by Peter I. And such brave travelers as Vitus Bering, Dmitry Laptev and Khariton and many other polar explorers are forever inscribed in the history of Arctic exploration.

Now the program for the study of the Laptev Sea and the territories adjacent to it has received international status. About 15 Russian and 12 German scientific organizations of various profiles are included in the mentioned activity. The work is expected to be completed by 2015. And today, scientists have made many sensational discoveries.

The results obtained during the study of the territories under consideration are unique. Thanks to the materials obtained during sea and land expeditions, scientists can learn a lot of interesting things about the past climatic epochs of the Arctic, understand the conditions for the formation of the climate that exists in the region today.

The Laptev Sea is considered to be a huge storage of ice and fresh water.
The expedition, carried out by the efforts of the two states using the most modern technology, instruments and scientific methods, will expand people's understanding of the Arctic, use the obtained scientific data for practical purposes.