Unique publications from Admiral Ivan Kruzenstern's library enriched electronic collections of Presidential Library

255th anniversary of Russian Navy Commander Ivan Fyodorovich Kruzenstern (1770-1846), an outstanding navigator, a prominent figure in the Russian Navy, admiral, leader of the first Russian circumnavigation expedition of 1803-1806, and director of the Naval Cadet Corps, will be marked in 2025.

As part of the cooperation, the Presidential Library and the Central Naval Library are working to digitize Admiral Kruzenstern's personal library. Currently, more than a thousand publications from the collection of the navigator's family have been digitized.

Ivan Fyodoroich began collecting his library in 1794 during his volunteer service in the British Navy and his first voyages to America and the East Indies. Krusenstern often wrote on books where, when, and at what price they were bought, and he bought them not only in London, Copenhagen, and Philadelphia, but also in Bermuda and Malacca. It is by his marks on the flyleafs and by the inscriptions of donations that many publications without ex-libris are attributed.

On the flyleafs of most of the books that belonged to the admiral, there is an oval ex-libris with his own version of the family coat of arms: with St. Andrew's flags in the hands of shield holders and the motto Spe Fretus – Trust Hope. Sometimes Krusenstern would put an autograph or the initial K on the flyleaf and digital markings: in his library, the admiral maintained a certain book encryption system, which has not yet been fully understood due to the fragmented collection.

The admiral's library was kept at his estate in the village of Kiltsi, in the Estonian province. After his death, the descendants of the navigator donated it to the Estonian nobility. In 1915, as a tribute to Krusenstern's significant contributions to the Russian navy, part of his library was transferred to the Russian Maritime Ministry, consisting of 1,813 books in 3,629 volumes, mostly in French, English, Russian, and German.

These books occupied approximately one-third of the total collection and were marked with the admiral's ex-libris or handwritten notes.

Kruzenshtern's books, packed in 14 boxes with an inventory, arrived from the port of Reval in Petrograd during the First World War. Unfortunately, they could not be attended to at that time due to the difficult years of revolution and Civil War that followed. The new government had other priorities for the Central Naval Library, so the books remained undisturbed until 1938, when they were finally included in the library's general collection.

Of particular interest are the atlases of marine and geographical maps from Kruzenshtern's personal collection. Most of these maps are either entirely or partially dedicated to the Pacific Ocean, a region of special scientific interest for Kruzenshtern. In preparation for his round-the-world exploration, he purchased navigation publications, travel descriptions by his English and French counterparts, as well as nautical and geographical charts for both ships.

Ivan Fyodorovich treated books with great care and attention. They didn't look as if they had been read much, and there weren't many annotations in them. However, there were many more notes and marginalia made by the admiral on the pages of maps from different periods than on the books in his library. He took these maps with him on his voyages and made corrections to them, clarifying the coordinates of islands, reefs, and shoals. He recorded his geographical, hydrographical, astronomical, and meteorological observations, which helped him compile his Atlas of the Southern Sea, Kruzenstern's major hydrographic work, several copies of which were also kept in his library.

Part of the unique documents from the personal library of Admiral I. F. Kruzenshtern are already available in the Presidential Library's collection. The following publications are available on the portal:

– A historical daily note on the activities at Port Jackson and Norfolk Island, coupled with discoveries made in New South Wales and the Southern Ocean since the publication of Phillip's voyage, compiled from official papers, including the journals of Governors Phillip and King, and Lieutenant Ball, as well as voyages since the first voyage of the Sirius in 1787 until the return of the crew to England in 1792. Illustrated with 17 maps, plans, views, and other decorations drawn from life by captains Hunter and Bradley, lieutenant Davis, and governor King / [essay] by John Hunter, esquire, post-captain in His Majesty's navy. London: John Stickdale, 1793.

– Travels in the interior of Africa, undertaken in 1795, 1796, and 1797, and a report on a subsequent mission to that country in 1805.

– An elementary grammar of the Greek language, published in 1859 by Kuehner, Raphael.

– A 1818 publication that includes a description of the natives of the Tonga Islands, accompanied by maps and portraits.