Erofei Pavlovich Khabarov is a Russian traveler and pioneer. Thanks to him, many previously unexplored territories were discovered and developed, on which agricultural lands were created. E. P. Khabarov discovered several salt deposits. The first detailed map of the Amur River and adjacent lands belongs to him.
Biography of Erofei Pavlovich Khabarov
Erofei Pavlovich Khabarov was born presumably in the Kotlassky district of the Arkhangelsk region in 1603. His birthplace is not known for certain. Historians name several villages where the great Russian traveler could have been born: the village of Svyatitsa, the village of Kurtsevo and the village of Dmitrievo. The most popular version is that Khabarov was born in the village of Dmitrievo, Votlozhemskaya volost. The flood of the Northern Dvina washed away the village, and the whole family moved to the village of "Svyatitsy". From the name of the village Khabarov later received the nickname "Svyatitsky".
Erofei's mother and father were peasants. He himself was engaged in agriculture for a long time. In those days, peasant children did not have the right and opportunity to receive education, therefore they worked only on the land. However, Erofei never stopped dreaming of travel and a better life beyond the Urals. In 1625, he left his family and economy and went along with other wealthy peasants, Cossacks and fishermen to seek adventure beyond the Stone Belt.
E. P. Khabarov's travels
In 1628, Erofei, together with his brother Nikifor, crossed Siberia and stopped at the Yenisei. Here he begins to develop a new economy, is engaged in fishing, forestry and tillage. The land gave a good harvest, and in order to pay off the family's debts, Erofei creates a trading farm. For several years Erofei Pavlovich served in Yeniseisk, and then decided to return to his native village. But his plans were not destined to come true.
In 1632, the brothers again set off on a journey across Siberia and developed territories in the area of the Lena River. Khabarov began to engage in fur trade, grow bread and trade it. A couple of years later, at the mouth of the Kerenga River, Erofei mastered a new territory, built a house and a mill. The Khabarov farm began to bring in a huge income. But his wealth did not like the governor Peter Golovin. At first, he simply increased the tax, and then completely took away the mill and the land and put Erofei in prison. Khabarov was released only in 1635.
Expedition to Dauria
Erofei Khabarov did not like to stay in one place for a long time, therefore, as soon as he heard about the natural resources of Dauria, he decided to go on a new expedition. By this time, Erofei has become a fairly large entrepreneur, and is trying to increase his own capital. Due to the fact that Golovin took away all the economy and money from Khabarov, he could independently assemble the expedition. Erofei turned to the new governor Dmitry Frantsenbekov, describing to him all the merits of the future campaign. The voivode allocated money for him and the participants in the trip.
From 1649 to 1653, Khabarov traveled with a small detachment along the Amur River. This expedition gave Khabarov the opportunity to prove himself as a great cartographer. He created a detailed map "Drawing of the Amur River", which became a visual aid for geographers. During the march along the Amur, the Russians smashed cities and villages, took away all things and food.
The Cossacks, who were part of the Khabarov detachment, wrote a petition to the sovereign, in which they told about the actions of Erofei Pavlovich. In 1653, Khabarov was summoned to the tsar to investigate his actions. However, after Erofei's report, he was acquitted. By the decree of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, Erofei Pavlovich Khabarov was elevated to the rank of boyar's son and sent to the Ust-Kutsk prison. The career of the traveler Khabarov ended here.
Nothing is known about the personal life and family of Erofei Pavlovich himself. There is not even precise data on the time and place of death of the traveler. According to the dictionary of Brockhausen and Euphron, Khabarov's grave has been located in the city of Bratsk, Irkutsk region since 1671.
Erofei Pavlovich Khabarov left a big mark on the history of Russia. His merits in the discovery and development of new lands of the Amur region will remain in the memory of the people for a long time.
