Why Russia?

Above is a map of the state of world colonization in 1740, when Russia first discovered Alaska. At the time, the Western European nations of Great Britain (United Kingdom), France, Portugal, Spain, and the Netherlands had led world exploration, as seen by their numerous colonies around the world. So why did Russia discover Alaska and not one of these Western European nations, who, up to that point, had led world exploration?

The Western European nations, such as Great Britain, France, and Spain, were all on the Atlantic Ocean. The North Pacific was literally the farthest area of the world from them.  As there was no passable route through the Arctic Ocean due to ice, to reach Alaska, they would have to first sail south around either South America or Africa and Asia. England and France's colonies were centered on North America's Atlantic coast and the Mississippi Valley. Neither had come close to reaching the Pacific. Spain's New World empire was focused around the Gulf of Mexico and the lands of the conquered Incan Empire in the Andes. The United States still did not exist.

Unlike the Western European nations, Russia's expansion was not west across the Atlantic Ocean. Russia had no colonies in the Americas, Africa, or East Indies. Instead, it expanded east across the expanse of Siberia, which was mostly a vast wilderness, very similar in climate and species to the boreal forests of Interior Alaska. What largely drove this expansion was furs. At the time, Russia was a poor country with little industry. Their most valuable trade resource was furs. 

The vanguard of expansion eastward was a class of men known as the promyshlenniki, meaning fur-hunter in Russian. These self-employed men continuely spread further east into the wilderness, looking for unexploited populations of fur-bearing animals such as sable, mink, and fox. 

In 1639, the first Russian expedition reached the Pacific Ocean, discovering the continent's end. The town of Okhotsk was founded there, and it later became the principal port of travel to Russian-America.

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