on March 30, 1867. L-R: Robert S. Chew,
William H. Seward,
William Hunter, Mr. Bodisco, Eduard de Stoeckl,
Charles Sumner and
Frederick W. Seward. From 1844 to 1854, he served as secretary of the
Russian Legation at Washington and, from 1849 to 1851, ''
chargé d'affaires'' of the
Russian embassy in Washington, and in 1854 held the post of minister, vacant after death of
Aleksandr Bodisko. Stoeckl established close friendly relations with many American officials and politicians, including the senator and the future
Secretary of State William H. Seward, with whom he would later negotiate the Alaska Purchase. Stoeckl advocated the sale of
Alaska (then known as
Russian America) to the United States, asserting that this would prevent the United Kingdom from seizing the territory in case of
war between the two countries and would allow Russia to concentrate its resources on Eastern
Siberia, particularly the
Amur River area. He also insisted that by doing so, Russia would avoid any future conflict with the United States, viewing further U.S. expansion in North America as inevitable. Stoeckl signed the Alaska Treaty in March 1867. For successfully carrying out the negotiation, Tsar
Alexander II rewarded him with US$25,000 and an annual pension of $6,000. Due to declining health, Stoeckl resigned in 1869 and was made a Knight of the
Order of the White Eagle on 20 April 1869. During the
Franco-Prussian War of 1870, they came to London and lived in the
Claridge Hotel on
Brook Street, London. ==Personal life==