The book contains four dozen small documents, acquaintance with which allows you to understand the history of Russia. Each document is accompanied by questions, the answer to which does not require the involvement of external sources of information, but requires careful reading and accuracy in understanding what you read. Texts with questions are suitable for discussion in the classroom, and for self-reading at home. The selection is made for those who want to enjoy gymnastics for the mind on historical material. Designed for school and university teachers, students and all interested in history.