Military-historical work is devoted to the history of manning the Russian army by military personnel on a voluntary basis from the 18th century to the present. Based on archival materials and documents, historical and special literature, it examines the experience of creating and developing the institution of voluntary military service in close connection with the main milestones of the formation of Russian statehood, the peculiarities of ethnocultural development, the geopolitical situation, the linguistic and confessional structure of society, as well as national traditions. Military-historical work is intended for use in the educational process of universities of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, in professional and job training of officers, military-historical studies of the problems of construction and training of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, measures for military-patriotic education of personnel and in the daily activities of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation.