Treaty of Nerchinsk

Timeline

1. 1689Nerchinsk · TransbaikalGolovin left Moscow in 1686 but could not rendezvous at Selenginsk because of Oirat-Khalkha warfare. Sonutu and the Qing envoys left the capital in June and reached the vicinity of Nerchinsk in July. The Qing side brought several thousand to over ten thousand armed men, combining negotiation with deterrence.
2. 1689Nerchinsk · TransbaikalTo avoid distortion in direct Manchu-Russian translation, both sides used Latin as the working language. Gerbillon and Pereira relayed messages, explaining core clauses on the Amur, the Stanovoy Range, and the fate of Albazin. Talks nearly collapsed several times, but mutual concessions followed because Russia could no longer hold the Amur and the Qing needed to turn north against Galdan.
3. 1689Nerchinsk · TransbaikalThe treaty provided that the Argun River, the Gorbitsa River, and the Stanovoy Range to the sea would form the border—south of the range to the Qing, north to Russia; Russians demolished Albazin's fortifications and removed inhabitants; fugitives crossing the border were to be returned; authorized traders could travel into the other's territory with documents. The text was inscribed on stone, with the Latin version as the standard for collation. The eastern Sino-Russian border was thus fixed by treaty for the first time.