Vitus Bering

12. The second expedition was carried out entirely at the initiative of Bering. He developed his plan, oversaw the supply, and staffed – more than 500 professionals were provided.
13. Bering was distinguished by his fanatical honesty. This feature was not to the liking of the officials in Siberia, who hoped to see great benefit in the delivery of such a large expedition. Bering therefore had to spend time refuting his criticisms and managing the delivery process to the prisons.
14. The second expedition was more courageous. His plan to explore Kamchatka, Japan, the shores of the Arctic Ocean, and the Pacific coast of North America was called the Great Northern Expedition. For this, only the preparation of materials took three years – each nail had to be transported all over Russia.
15. The city of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky was founded during the Second Bering Expedition. Prior to the expedition, there were no settlements in Petropavlovsk Bay.
16. The results of the second expedition can be considered a disaster. Russian sailors arrived in America, but were forced to return immediately due to supply shortages. The ships lost each other. The ship, captained by A. Chirikov, reached Kamchatka, although it had lost part of its crew. But St. Peter, to whom Bering had traveled, crashed in the Aleutian Islands. Bering and most of the crew died of starvation and disease. Only 46 people returned from the expedition.
17. The second expedition was thwarted by the decision to search the Compania Islands, which were supposedly made of pure silver. Because of this, the expedition ships marched along the 45th instead of the 65th parallel, which almost doubled their route to the American coast.
18. The weather also played a role in the failure of the Bering and Chirikovs – the whole voyage covered the sky with clouds and the sailors could not determine their coordinates.
19. Bering’s wife was Swedish. Six of the ten children born in the marriage died in infancy.20. After Bering’s grave was found and the sailor’s remains exhumed, it became clear that, contrary to popular belief, he had not died of psoriasis – his teeth had not been damaged.