The question of the institution of princely power in Russia of the 9th - early 13th centuries is one of the key in Russian historiography. The focus of the proposed monograph is the problem of the power of the Old Russian princes, as it is presented in pre-revolutionary Russian historiography. Its consideration traditionally includes a fairly wide range of historiographic issues: the origin and evolution of princely power; its nature and character, that is, its position and importance in society and in the system of political bodies; the functions and scope of power of the Old Russian princes; her succession or replacement; inter-princely relations.