The book is dedicated to the history of Novgorod of the 11th-15th centuries, a period that is associated in historiography with the emergence and prosperity of the Novgorod Republic. Embodying an alternative to the Moscow autocratic tradition, free Novgorod has become a symbol of political freedoms and the democratic system for Russians. The book is an attempt to answer one of the most important questions of Russian history: what are the prerequisites for the emergence of a free city on the territory of the now autocratic state? One of the main conclusions of the book about the presence of opposition to the supreme power as the main prerequisite for political freedoms in Russia seems to be especially relevant in the conditions of modern Russia, where the suppression and destruction of opposition by the ruling party seems to be the only possible means of overcoming the existing chaos in the country. It conflicts with the ideology that authoritarian rule is the only possible one in Russia. This study reveals a much more complex political past of Russia. The author refuses to characterize the Novgorod political system as republican and characterizes Novgorod of the XI-XIII centuries. as a privileged grand ducal city.