Little-known Facts about the Activities of Consul A. T. Belchenko in Yingkou

Abstract

The article is devoted to the activities of the Russian Imperial Consulate in Yingkou (Niuzhuang) in the period from 1899 to 1909. Promoting Russian interests in South Manchuria, Russia paid great attention to the acquisition of real estate in this open Chinese port on the banks of the Liaohe River. At the initial stage, one of the main issues of the foreign mission was to assist in the acquisition of land for the construction of the Russian concession, as well as in the construction of the Yingkou station of the Yingkou — Dashiqiao branch of the CER. During the period of the Provisional Russian Administration, the building of the Russian Imperial Consulate, a doctor’s house and a bacteriological station were built here, the construction of the Mayor’s House began, and at the same time land plots were acquired for various household needs. The successful expansion of Russia in this region was disrupted by the Russian-Japanese War (1904–1905) and its results. Starting from the end of July 1904 to the end of November 1905, only one Russian citizen lived in Yingkou. The Russian Imperial Consulate which was reopened in December 1905 actively dealt with the issues of returning consular real estates and private property of its citizens. The Japanese military authorities, who were in charge of Yingkou until November 23, 1906, interfered in every possible way with this process. After the return of the city to the Chinese authorities, the Russian buildings were occupied by Chinese officials. However, thanks to the professional and well-coordinated actions of Russian diplomats in China and Japan, in particular the employees of the consulate in Yingkou A. T. Belchenko, V. K. Nikitin, Ambassador to Japan Y. (G.) P. Bakhmetev, delegate to China D. D. Pokotilov, the Russian consular property in Yingkou was returned to its rightful owners. Of course, the main role in this complex matter was played by Consul A. T. Belchenko, who, after solving the tasks assigned to him in Yingkou, was transferred to the consulate in Fuzhou. The choice of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was determined by the high assessment of his diplomatic service.