Peter I in Saratov

300 years ago Peter Alexeevich, the last Tsar of all Russia and the first All Russian Emperor, visited Saratov. Many Saratovites are proud of the fact that the Great Russian ruler has stepped on our land. It happened in 1722 when he began his Persian campaign to the Caucasian region for enlarging the territory of the Russian state. His trip started in Moscow and continued along the Oka and the Volga to Astrakhan.
Peter Alexeevich arrived in Saratov in the early morning of June 13. Here, in Saratov the Emperor was scheduled to meet the Kalmyk Khan Ayuka. Ayuka was the lord of all the Caspian regions. Under his rule, the Kalmyk Khanate reached the peak of its economic, military and political power.
After descending from the galley to the Saratov bank Peter went to the local warlord Beklemishev and then to the Trinity Church for a mass. Then Peter I returned to the galley.
At one o’clock the Khan’s son and grandson arrived and so did Ayuka himself at three o’clock. Peter the Great met the Khan, led him on board and introduced to the Empress Catherine. Later Khansha with her daughter joined them. The Empress presented Khansha a clock decorated with diamonds and other expensive gifts. Their meeting lasted for about two hours.
Then the Russian Emperor with his wife visited the Khan’s place. Peter the Great liked a drink quite unusual for Russians: tea with camel milk. Peter I presented the Khan with a saber. Ayuka ordered the Kalmyks to stand in a circle and shoot arrows upward, when they fell to the ground, they formed a circle symbolizing unity. Pointing to the saber and arrows, Ayuka said: "This saber and these arrows will always be ready to defeat the enemies of Russia." Immediately after the meeting the ship set off.