Peter theAleut | |
|---|---|
 Icon of St. Peter the Aleut | |
| Martyr of San Francisco | |
| Born | Cungagnaq |
| Died | 1815 |
| Venerated in | Eastern Orthodox Church |
| Canonized | 1980 byRussian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia and theOrthodox Church in America Diocese of Alaska |
| Feast | September 24 December 12 |
| Attributes | portrayed as an Aleut youth, wearing a traditional gutparka, holding a martyr's cross[1] |
Peter the Aleut (Russian:Пётр Алеу́т,romanized: Pyotr Aleút), bornCungagnaq (Russian:Чукагнак,romanized: Chukagnak; died 1815), is venerated as a martyr andsaint by theEastern Orthodox Church. He was a native ofKodiak Island (Alutiiq or Sugpiaq), and received theChristian name of Peter when he was baptized into theOrthodox faith by the monks ofSt Herman'smissionaries operating in the north.[2] In 1815, he was captured bySpanish soldiers near San Pedro, tortured and killed either there or at a nearby location.
Semyon Yanovsky's letter, which was the first account of Peter's alleged martyrdom, written 50 years after his murder, describes Peter as being murdered and tortured by Spanish soldiers on the orders of theJesuits.[3][4] However, historians reject the involvement of the Jesuits because they were not present in the territory at the time.[5][6][7]
At the time identified for Peter's death,California was Spanish territory, and Spain was worried aboutRussian advances southwards fromAlaska.[8] According to the most fully developed version of the story, in 1815 a group of Russian employees of theRussian American Company and theirAleutseal andotterhunters, including Peter, was captured bySpanish soldiers, while hunting illicitly for seals near San Pedro, (which has variably been interpreted as eitherSan Pedro, Los Angeles[9] or asSan Pedro y San Pablo Asistencia (inPacifica, California). According to the original account, the soldiers took them to "the mission in Saint-Pedro" for interrogation.[10] One Russian source states that after being taken prisoner near modern Los Angeles, the captives were taken to Mission Dolores—that is, modernSan Francisco.[8][11]
The only contemporary account of Peter the Aleut is contained in a lengthy letter written on November 22, 1865, bySemyon Yanovsky to Damascene, abbot of theValaam Monastery inFinland, 50 years after his death.[12][13] Yanovsky (1789–1876), who is also one of the chief sources of information aboutSt. Herman of Alaska, was chief manager of the Russian colonies from 1818 to 1820. In the letter he was reporting on an incident that he had heard from a supposed eyewitness, and that had taken place fifty years earlier in 1815. The letter contains the description of Peter being tortured by "Jesuits" but this would have been virtually impossible, as theJesuit order had been expelled from all Spanish territories in 1767,[14] suppressed generally in 1773,[15] and had only been reconstituted in 1814 (one year before Peter's alleged death). In 1815 there were no Jesuits within several thousand miles of California, as the reconstitution of the Jesuits in New Spain (that is, Mexico) would not take place until 1816.[16] There were onlyFranciscans in California at the time, and it would be highly unlikely that anyone could confuse members of the two well-known and very dissimilar orders. Yanovsky adds, "At the time I reported all this to the Head Office inSt. Petersburg." And indeed, this earlier communication, his official dispatch to the company's main office—dated Feb. 15, 1820, five years after the event—also relates the story of St. Peter's martyrdom, albeit with different details.[17]
Other historical sources describe an incident between Russians and Spaniards, but do not mention Peter or the Jesuits explicitly.Hubert Howe Bancroft, in his multi-volumeHistory of California, only notes that one Russian source accused "the Spaniards of cruelty to the captives" in connection with an incident wherein aRussian fur-hunting expedition was taken into custody after declining to leave San Pedro.[18][19]
Peter the Aleut has been referred to as a "martyr of San Francisco".[8][20] Additionally, many modern descriptions of the martyrdom of Peter the Aleut often describe the event as occurring "in San Francisco",[21][22] and others describe the Native Alaskan traders as being brought "to San Francisco".[8] Other sources can be found describing the event as occurring near Los Angeles or in Southern California.[23] These varying descriptions of the location may be based on varying oral traditions, varying understandings of the relationship of the location of the martyrdom andFort Ross, and also on varying interpretations of references to "San Pedro" in the original historical documents.
The earliest historical sources about the death of Peter the Aleut describe the event as taking place in or near "the mission of San Pedro".[9][10][24] Some have taken this to refer toSan Pedro y San Pablo Asistencia, a "sub-mission" ofMission San Francisco de Asís (also known as Mission Dolores). San Pedro y San Pablo Asistencia was located on the site of the modern-daySánchez Adobe Park in modern-dayPacifica, California.
Others have interpreted the historical description to refer to the dock inSan Pedro, Los Angeles (now located in modern-dayLos Angeles), which was used at the time as a trading post by Spanish missionary friars fromMission San Gabriel Arcángel.[25] Such an interpretation of "San Pedro" fits well with other references to geographical locations in the historical documents, including an island named Santa Rosa (interpreted to refer toSanta Rosa Island) an island named "Climant" (interpreted to refer toSan Clemente Island) and an island named Ekaterina, (interpreted by some to refer toCatalina Island).[9][24] These documents also describe the captured Native Alaskan traders as transferred to Fort Ross, by way of sequential stops in Santa Barbara andMonterey. This interpretation of a Southern Californian location for the martyrdom is further supported by a letter contemporaneous to the alleged martyrdom event from Franciscan Fr.José Francisco de Paula Señan dated June 19, 1816 (but which runs counter to allegations offorced conversion and violence against the Native hunters fromRussian America), which describes the capture and transfer of "Russian Indians" to the Santa Barbara Presidio from Mission San Buenaventura (in modern-dayVentura, California).[24]
According to Yanovsky's 1865 letter, upon receiving the report of Peter's death,St. Herman on Kodiak Island was moved to cry out, "Holy new-martyr Peter, pray to God for us!"[8] Peter the Aleut was glorified as a saint by theRussian Orthodox Church Outside Russia andlocally glorified by theDiocese of Alaska of theOrthodox Church in America in 1980,[26] as the "Martyr of San Francisco".[citation needed] Hisfeast day is celebrated onSeptember 24[27] or December 12.[citation needed]
A number of churches have been dedicated to him in North America, including churches atLake Havasu City,Arizona,[28]Minot,North Dakota,[29]Calgary,[30] andAbita Springs,Louisiana.[31]