“Seafaring is a black earth field for Russia...”: Christian Martynovich Waldemar (1825–1891) and the establishment of the Russian maritime education system in 1867

On the basis of H. M. Valdemar's publicistic works of the period of 1860–1870s the article reveals the ideas and proposals of this public figure on the reform of maritime education in Russia. Х. M. Waldemar was a supporter of the development of the merchant marine as the most important factor in improving the lives of the population of the country's coastal territories. He was convinced that in order to solve this problem, it was necessary to create in Russia, at the state expense, a network of accessible navigational educational institutions, where the inhabitants of the sea coasts could receive appropriate professional education. His proposals formed the basis of decisions taken at the highest level. Special attention in this paper is paid to how his ideas were put into practice when organizing the work of maritime institutions opened in the North of the country in Arkhangelsk province.