Surprisingly, in our enlightened XXI century, there is still debate about what is the highest peak in Europe. Some scientists believe that this is Elbrus, while others - Mont Blanc. It would seem that here is complicated? With the help of modern technology, you can easily set the altitude of any peak. But there are no problems with the levels. The heights of both Elbrus and Mont Blanc were established a long time ago to the nearest centimeter. The problem is posed in the field of borders. That is, in the statement “the highest peak of Europe is …”, emphasis should be placed not on meters, but on which territories are considered to be included in this continent. And if everything is clear with Mont Blanc: the Alpine peak is, of course, Europe, then with Elbrus it is not so simple. Let's look at this problem.
The issue of quantities
The White Mountain, Mont Blanc, is located on the western side of the Alps, on the border of France and Italy. This array also had problems with territorial affiliation. But another plan. After the independence of the Duchy of Savoy was lost, the mountain and the valleys around it repeatedly passed from Italy to France and vice versa. Now, after redrawing the territory of Europe in the post-war period, it has been established that a cordon between these states lies along the main peaks of the Mont Blanc massif. Thus, the town of Saint-Gervais, lying on a slope, belongs to France, and the Courmayeur ski resort, located nearby, belongs to Italy. The height of Mont Blanc reaches 4810 meters. Next to this peak are other peaks of the array, only slightly inferior to the head. This is Mont Blanc de Courmayeur (more than 4700 meters), as well as the Grand Bos, Rocher de la Turmet and more than a dozen four thousandths. And the height of Elbrus is as much as 5642 meters. The undisputed record holder! The question is different. Is it the highest peak in Europe or an ordinary mountain in Asia?
The issue of boundaries
As you know, nature loves continuity and smoothness. The continents pass one into another. If it were not for the Bering Strait, which had formed not so long ago by geographical standards, then both Americas would have been merged with Eurasia. But man is a strange creature: give him clear boundaries. Therefore, the division of our continent into Europe and Asia is purely arbitrary. And in many ways, besides geography, politics is involved. From the time of Herodotus until the fifties of the twentieth century, everything was more or less clear. The border dividing Europe and Asia passed from the coast of the Kara Sea along the main peaks of the Urals, then along the river of the same name, then along the northern Caspian and, following the Main Caucasus Range, went to the Black Sea. Further, the cordon ran through the Bosphorus and the Dardanelles. There was no confusion in the Mediterranean Sea either: the coast of modern Turkey is Asia, all that is to the north of it is Europe, and from the south Africa outlines the water area. In the coordinate system, Elbrus is the highest peak in Europe, because it is located north of the main ridge of the Caucasus.
Indefatigable All-Union Geographical Society
With the borders between Europe and Asia, everything was clear until 1958. The turmoil began through the fault of the All-Union Geographical Society. Pundits took up the revision of long-established standards. They decided that it was not worth bisecting natural landscapes. They ranked the Caucasus mountain system as such, despite the obvious differences in the climatic characteristics of the northern and southern slopes. The same thing happened with the water areas and river valleys. With one stroke of the pen, the Urals ended up completely and completely in Europe, and the Caucasus - in Asia. Thus, Elbrus, the highest peak in Europe, whose height is 832 meters ahead of Mont Blanc, was not the first mountain on the new mainland, significantly losing to Everest.
Various systems
During the Soviet Union, residents of one sixth of the land lived in isolation from the rest of the world. And it was not about the Iron Curtain. Distorted was not only an idea of how one lives under decaying capitalism, but also of neutral concepts rather distant from politics. So, in all the geography textbooks of the Soviet Union it was written that the border between Europe and Asia lies along the eastern edge of the Ural Mountains, then (which is illogical) along the Emba River until it flows into the Caspian Sea, then along the northern coast to the source of the Kuma River. Further, the cordon passed through the Kumo-Manych depression to the Don, and then to its mouth and the Sea of Azov. As a result of this division, not only Elbrus, the highest peak in Europe, crossed to Asia, but also the entire Taman Peninsula.
What's the point?
But let's try to guess the course of logical reasoning … No, not Soviet geographers, but those whose mouthpiece they served. In the late 50s, not only America was the main rival of the Soviet Union, but also the state of Western Europe. The ideology of the Central Committee of the CPSU (which covered all spheres of society), opposed the socialist system to the decaying bourgeois system. The USSR was to stand apart, and it was believed that the fewer things it would connect with Europe, the better. The fact that Elbrus is the highest peak in Europe, and at the same time Russia, was very tormented by the Soviet leadership. Therefore, the borders between Europe and Asia were revised. This, and not at all concern for the integrity of natural landscapes, was the true reason for this decision.
The discord in the directories
Despite the fact that the decision of the All-Union Geographical Society was supported at the World Geophysical Congress in the next 1959, most countries ignored the Soviet innovation. And the discrepancies continue to this day. Let us turn, for example, to the highly reputable Wikipedia reference book. The English version claims that the border between Europe and Asia runs “… along the watershed of the Ural Mountains, along the river of the same name, the Caspian Sea and the Caucasus to the southeast …” This means that in most countries of the world they believe that the highest peak in Europe is Mount Elbrus. But the Russian version gives completely different data.
A small legacy of the past
Despite the fact that the Soviet Union has long sunk into oblivion, some of its decisions still live in the minds of people. So, what will the Russian-language Wikipedia tell the curious seeker of geographical truth? What is the highest peak in Europe? It turns out that this version of the world guide defines the borders between Europe and Asia in the spirit of concordance with the 1958 resolution and generally accepted concepts “on the eastern soles of the Urals, Mugojaram, Emba, the northern coast of the Caspian, along the Araks, Black and Sea of Marmaras …” What we see in modern interpretation? The entire Urals system, as was proposed in 1958, is considered Europe. But the whole Caucasus is also considered it! The new border runs along the Araks River, flowing at the southern bottom of this mountain system. And this means that according to the Russian-language Wikipedia, Elbrus is the highest peak in Europe. A photo of this two-humped snowy peak decorates the corresponding article.
