During 300 years of autocratic rule, the Romanovs created the largest land empire in history, extending their grip over a vast territory stretching from the Baltic Sea to the Bering Strait. Irish-born soldiers and diplomats went there in search of professional opportunities; travel writers sought the ‘Oriental’ land of their imaginations; and, later, capitalist adventurers prospected for profit, keen to cash in on the empire’s rapid and large-scale industrialisation. The Irish were never a large community in imperial Russia, but they were involved in all areas of life, including some prominent Ulster folk.