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1715
==Russian Ecclesiastical Mission in China (1715-1956)==
*1715 - [[Archimandrite]] [[Ilarion (Lezhaisky)]], with staff, icons, sacred vessels, and service books arrives in Beijing as head of the first Russian Orthodox Mission; [[w:Kangxi Emperor|Emperor Kangxi]] had initiated the practice of receiving missions of Orthodox clergy and students of about ten-years each.
*1717 - Archimandrite Ilarion (Lezhaisky) reposed in Beijing.
*1727 - The first mission is recorded in the [[w:Treaty of Kyakhta|Russo-Chinese treaty]] of 1727, in ''Article V''<ref>The fifth article of the treaty provided for four priests and six students to live in Peking until they felt like returning to Russia, at which time they would be replaced by a new contingent. The mission was to be supported in various ways by both countries. In return, it answered a mutual need for continuous contact between the capitals of St. Petersburg and Peking. (Eric Widmer. [http://books.google.ca/books?id=3ZjnRS1g6zkC The Russian ecclesiastical mission in Peking during the eighteenth century]. Harvard Univ Asia Center, 1976. p.4).</ref> allowing for the legal establishment of a Russian religious institution in Beijing, as well as defining official trade ties and demarcating the border.
