USA
After 5 years of civil war, USA was a tiered nation. It demobilize his huge army to a level that was barely enough to bordering and fighting the Indians who were slowly pushed to reservations. Finishing the transcontinental railway was a huge bonus for commerce and colonization of the west.
The USA was turned inside, adopting an isolationist policy. The war with Spain was nearly happened, because of bellicose journalism made by Joseph Pulitzer and William Hearst who militated for USA involvement.
The negotiations to buy the Alaska from Russia dragged for many years to achieve nothing. Russia see that land useless and wanted to sell it but they do not agree upon the price. The American Civil War, dragging till 1866, hurt the USA economy and no negotiations were performed till 1868.
United States Secretary of State between 1861 and 1868, William Henry Seward, was a partisan of acquisition, that become known as the "Seward's folly" but he was forced to retire from the office before the negotiations were achieved. The new Secretary of State become Elihu Benjamin Washburne who was less enthusiastically. So, the final price proposed to Russians at the beginning of 1869 was 3.6 million dollars, about 1 cent per acre, a price who do not pleased the Tsar who requested at least 10 million. Also, selling Russian territory after the loses to the Ottoman Empire imposed by the European powers, was not appreciated among many Russian officials, even if that territory was quite worthless and consumed far more money than produced.
There is another aspect that is sometime ignored. In the negotiation commission was a former general of the Union army, George Pomutz, a Romanian native born in Transylvania near Brasov and emigrated in USA after the failed 1848 revolution. At the beginning of the Civil War, Pomutz enrolled in the Union Army as a first lieutenant in the 15th Iowa Infantry. He was wounded at the Battle of Shiloh. In May 1864 Pomutz was appointed Provost Marshal of the 17th Iowa Infantry. In August 1864, he returned to the 15th Iowa Infantry, which he commanded in the Battle of Atlanta. He was appointed a brevet brigadier general on March 13, 1865. In 1866 he took part of the brutal repression against the civilians in the South, a campaign that let big scars in his character. Pomutz start to drink a lot. In 1867 he was appointed consul of USA in Saint Petersburg were he become heavily involved in the negotiations. A small incident happened one night at one of the party he participated when he insulted one of the members of the Russian negotiation commission. He tell the Russian the fact that Russia is the enemy of the democracy and of the progress as it crush the ‘48s revolutions and that he was glad to see it humiliated by the Western Powers at Paris, by giving so much land to Moldavia.
Union General Brigadier George Pomutz
The incident, quite minor, had the consequence of the expulsion of Pomutz from Russia. Still, the Pomutz absence was filled was feel, as he knew well the Russians and their mentality. The negotiations were not progressed. We will never know if the Pomutz presence could have affect the negotiations or how important his presence was. Pomutz never returned in USA, preferring to go to Romania. After wall, the melancholy of his birth places hunt him and he visit it many times before dying. He found job in the Romanian army as consultant on training. Pomutz died poor in 1888 at the age of 70.
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Source:[FONT="] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Pomutz[/FONT][FONT="][/FONT]
After 5 years of civil war, USA was a tiered nation. It demobilize his huge army to a level that was barely enough to bordering and fighting the Indians who were slowly pushed to reservations. Finishing the transcontinental railway was a huge bonus for commerce and colonization of the west.
The USA was turned inside, adopting an isolationist policy. The war with Spain was nearly happened, because of bellicose journalism made by Joseph Pulitzer and William Hearst who militated for USA involvement.
The negotiations to buy the Alaska from Russia dragged for many years to achieve nothing. Russia see that land useless and wanted to sell it but they do not agree upon the price. The American Civil War, dragging till 1866, hurt the USA economy and no negotiations were performed till 1868.
United States Secretary of State between 1861 and 1868, William Henry Seward, was a partisan of acquisition, that become known as the "Seward's folly" but he was forced to retire from the office before the negotiations were achieved. The new Secretary of State become Elihu Benjamin Washburne who was less enthusiastically. So, the final price proposed to Russians at the beginning of 1869 was 3.6 million dollars, about 1 cent per acre, a price who do not pleased the Tsar who requested at least 10 million. Also, selling Russian territory after the loses to the Ottoman Empire imposed by the European powers, was not appreciated among many Russian officials, even if that territory was quite worthless and consumed far more money than produced.
There is another aspect that is sometime ignored. In the negotiation commission was a former general of the Union army, George Pomutz, a Romanian native born in Transylvania near Brasov and emigrated in USA after the failed 1848 revolution. At the beginning of the Civil War, Pomutz enrolled in the Union Army as a first lieutenant in the 15th Iowa Infantry. He was wounded at the Battle of Shiloh. In May 1864 Pomutz was appointed Provost Marshal of the 17th Iowa Infantry. In August 1864, he returned to the 15th Iowa Infantry, which he commanded in the Battle of Atlanta. He was appointed a brevet brigadier general on March 13, 1865. In 1866 he took part of the brutal repression against the civilians in the South, a campaign that let big scars in his character. Pomutz start to drink a lot. In 1867 he was appointed consul of USA in Saint Petersburg were he become heavily involved in the negotiations. A small incident happened one night at one of the party he participated when he insulted one of the members of the Russian negotiation commission. He tell the Russian the fact that Russia is the enemy of the democracy and of the progress as it crush the ‘48s revolutions and that he was glad to see it humiliated by the Western Powers at Paris, by giving so much land to Moldavia.
Union General Brigadier George Pomutz
The incident, quite minor, had the consequence of the expulsion of Pomutz from Russia. Still, the Pomutz absence was filled was feel, as he knew well the Russians and their mentality. The negotiations were not progressed. We will never know if the Pomutz presence could have affect the negotiations or how important his presence was. Pomutz never returned in USA, preferring to go to Romania. After wall, the melancholy of his birth places hunt him and he visit it many times before dying. He found job in the Romanian army as consultant on training. Pomutz died poor in 1888 at the age of 70.
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Source:[FONT="] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Pomutz[/FONT][FONT="][/FONT]