Yakesa

Yakesa, known to the Russians as Albazin, stood on the upper Amur near the mouth of the Emur. A Daur stronghold preceded the Russian fortified settlement, whose presence brought conflict with the Qing over the river basin. Its position beside the Amur made it a strong point for movement along the northern frontier. In 1685 Qing forces approached by land and water, besieged the fort and accepted the surrender of its Russian defenders. They destroyed the works, but the Russians returned and rebuilt them. A second Qing siege began in 1686 and continued amid severe hardship. Negotiations followed, and the Treaty of Nerchinsk in 1689 required the abandonment of Albazin while establishing a boundary between the two states.