Abstract: The article discusses the main features of the conduct of hostilities in the autumn of 1812 in Russia, and the role of Smolensk in Napoleon's strategic plans for the subsequent period. On the basis of the epistolary heritage, primarily of French contemporaries (both soldiers and officers), the specific aspects of the retreat of the Great Army along the Old Smolensk Road are considered, another facet of the Moscow campaign of the Emperor of all the French is demonstrated. The author also draws attention to the activities of the occupation authorities in Smolensk itself, based on creating conditions for turning the city into a powerful operational base for the entire army. В  The main conclusions of the study are the following theses: 1. Numerous memoirs of contemporaries pay rather close attention to the problem of the retreat of the Great Army to the Smolensk region, giving quite detailed descriptions of both the life itself and the possible prospects for the further course of the campaign. 2. A number of indirect evidences demonstrate attempts to turn the city into an operational base that allows preparing troops for the next campaign in the East, which is indirectly confirmed by descriptions of attempts to create local self-government bodies in the city. 3. Smolensk in numerous French memoirs devoted to the campaign of 1812 was presented as a symbol of the drama that broke out in Russia. 4. In the Russian epistolary heritage of the epoch, the corresponding descriptions contain a sense of transformation of mass consciousness, in the conditions of a new practice for humanity called "total war". 5. In general, summing up the general results of the consideration of Smolensk in the autumn-winter campaign of 1812, it can be argued that its role as a moral barrier in Napoleon's desire to continue hostilities and the importance of the city as a strategic point has been insufficiently studied until now and requires a very deep analysis

Keywords: Smolensk, retreat, Napoleon, weather conditions, supply, demoralization, forage, epidemics, looting, food

Abstract: The subject of the study was the theoretical heritage of prominent Russian statesmen of the second half of the XIX century – Vasily Nikolaevich Leshkov (1810-1881) and Vladimir Matveevich Hessen (1868-1920). The initial position of the concepts of "public law" and "rule of law" developed by them is the thesis that in the conditions of the formation of the rule of law, it is necessary to fully develop the institution of civil society – the sphere of manifestation of initiatives of free citizens and voluntarily formed organizations. The causal relationship of the problem of interaction between the state, society and the individual is revealed; the ideas of V. N. Leshkov and V. M. Hessen about the subjects of "public law" and "subjective law" are characterized. The concepts of "public law" and "rule of law", reflected in the theoretical heritage of V. N. Leshkov and V. M. Hessen, which has not received proper understanding to date, are characterized. An assessment is given to the conclusions of V. N. Leshkov and V. M. Gessen that society is considered as the most important subject of management activity in the state. It is concluded that in the conditions of building a developed civil society in the Russian Federation, the concepts of "public law" and "rule of law" require a comprehensive analysis and clarification of their significance for the transformation of the state-legal reality of modern Russia.

Keywords: Leshkov, Hesse, civil society, public law, the rule of law, subjective rights, policeistics, society, state, right

Abstract: The Ministry of Finance of tsarist Russia, after its formation in 1802, played an important role in the life of the country, was one of the most influential in the government. The authors show that the needs of Russia's economic development have pushed the information aspect to one of the leading places in the activities of the government of tsarist Russia. Based on the study of historiographical materials of the Soviet and post–Soviet periods, as well as with the involvement of pre-revolutionary materials, the article examines the active role of the Ministry of Finance of tsarist Russia at the turn of the XIX - XX centuries, which contributed to the development of professional periodicals in the field of trade, industry and finance, which played a certain role in the formation of the domestic entrepreneurial class and reflected the development of capitalism in our country. The Ministry of Finance provided the domestic business community and the interested public with high-quality periodicals covering commercial and industrial activities in the country and abroad. One of such publications is the "Trade and Industrial Newspaper". The article examines the prerequisites for the emergence and stages of formation of one of the popular publications of pre–revolutionary Russia - a Trade and industrial newspaper, which not only fulfilled its main mission by providing information of a commercial and financial nature, but also gradually turned into an authoritative socio-political publication. This publication is the most important source for the study of various aspects of the financial, economic and socio-political life of the Russian Empire during this period.

Keywords: commercial and industrial world, historical sources, formation of the Russian bourgeoisie, the development of capitalism, Commercial and Industrial Newspaper, Ministry of Finance of Russia, press, newspapers, publishing, periodical printing

Abstract: The object of the study is the history of the formation of the federal highway construction system in the United States before the First World War. The subject of the study is the economic, social and political prerequisites for the emergence of the idea of federal financing of road construction. The article examines the socio-political struggle that unfolded in American society at the beginning of the XX century on the need for federal participation in the creation of a highway network. The most important link in the Government's road policy was the creation of a system of federal agencies dealing with road construction problems. The study of this issue allows us to trace the evolution of the approaches of the public and politicians in solving the problem of the separation of powers of the states and the federal government in the field of road construction. The scientific novelty of the study lies in the fact that the issue of federal funding is considered in the context of traditional discussions about the separation of powers of the states and the federal government, as well as the problems of strategic planning. The authors' attention is focused on the fact that previously the allocation of money for the construction of roads from federal funds was considered an unacceptable measure that violates the constitutional autonomy of the states. But strategic problems demanded a new look at this feature of the US state structure. The results of the study allow us to conclude that the Federal Road Assistance Act of 1916 meant recognition of the need for federal regulation of road construction and became an important precedent that opened up the possibility of creating a nationwide road network in the future.

Keywords: road construction program, traffic for roads, federal road legislation, Management of Public Roads, rural express, road construction, highways, public roads, road departments, World War I

Abstract: For the first time in Russian historiography, the article presents a detailed analysis of Rone Brizak's diary and Olga Alexandrovna Kulikova-Romanova's letters with Madame Brizak. The author examines the sources from the point of view of evidence of the life of French subjects in St. Petersburg. The above research is intended to reveal in detail the life line of the historical personality Ron Brizac and to show the view of a foreigner, as a representative of the French diaspora, on the turning events in the history of Russia of the late XIX-early XX centuries. The letters of the Princess are a separate subject of research, in this work they complement the general outline of the narrative. In April 2017, valuable documents were transferred to the Pushkin Museum-apartment. The archive contains 56 letters in French. Many of them are sent on postcards, artistically decorated by the Princess herself. In 2018, the letters were published in Kirov for the first time, but have not yet been commented on. The introduction of a new source into scientific circulation and the interpretation of the diary of Ron Brizac from the point of view of the anthropology of the Frenchman's life in St. Petersburg significantly complement the picture of the socio-political turning point in Russia of the late XIX-early XX centuries. The use of the micro—research methodology — the study of the history of one family in the broad context of the history of the Diaspora - seems to us very promising. The antagonism of the key conclusions -the absence of the phenomenon of "Russification" in the Brizak family and, at the same time, a deep attachment to St. Petersburg, to Russian culture and everyday life, speaks of the multidimensional nature and the need for a comprehensive study of the French presence in St. Petersburg at the turn of the century.

Keywords: Saint-Petersburg, France, Russia, diaspora, diary, Rone Brizac, history, anthropogenesis, Kulikova-Romanova, letters

Abstract: The subject of this study is the family ties of Prince Vladimir Svyatoslavich. The object is the personality of Prince Vladimir. The purpose of this article is to establish, based on a comparative analysis of sources, the degree of reliability of the facts they contain about promiscuity, the number of marriages and children of Vladimir. A materialistic approach to history is used as a methodological basis. Within its framework, the article applies: the comparative historical method, the method of critical analysis, the principles of historicism and objectivity. The source base is the data of the Russian chronicles ("The Tale of Bygone Years", the Laurentian Chronicle), the Chronicle of George Amartol, biblical texts, the writings of Titmar of Merseburg, Leo the Deacon, John Skilitsa, Ibn Haukal. The article discusses the controversial issue of Prince Vladimir's family ties. The author comes to the conclusion that Vladimir Svyatoslavich, contrary to the instructions of the chronicle on the prince's polygamy in the pagan era, was married only twice — the first time by a pagan marriage to the Polotsk Princess Rogneda and the second time by a Christian marriage to the Byzantine princess Anna. The number of the prince's children exceeded the figure indicated in the chronicle — about 8 sons and 9 daughters. The main "antihero" of ancient Russian history, Prince Svyatopolk, according to the author, was the legitimate son of Vladimir, not Yaropolk. At the same time, the author believes that Vladimir was distinguished by intemperance in relationships with women and kept many concubines.

Keywords: Vladimir, Russia, The Tale of Bygone Years, Titmar of Merseburg, Skilica, The Bible, Rogneda, Anna, Svyatopolk, polygamy