How a BRUTAL & BLOODY siege kick started Russia-China trade relations

The peace treaty that followed made Russia China's largest tea consumer.

In 1727, Russians erected a fortress at the crossroad of the Russian Empire and the Qing Empire. The fortress grew into a city that merged with a nearby trading settlement named Kyakhta. With time, Kyakhta turned into the center of trade between the two Empires and helped introduce Chinese tea to people living in the European part of Russia.