Electronic Museum of the Constitutional History of Russia will be added with the new materials

This is stated in the agreement, which the General Director of the Presidential Library Alexander Vershinin and the chairman of the board of the Russian Historical Society Sergei Shakhrai signed today, on November 22, 2017. Both parties set themselves the goals of saving the historical legal and historical cultural documentary heritage, the best achievements of the national and world humanitarian and socio-economic sciences, as well as the popularization of the Russian history. This document added to the agreement on cooperation between the organizations.

Electronic Museum of Constitutional History of Russia was created with the participation of the Russian Historical Society, the Academic Educational and Scientific Center of the Russian Academy of Science — Moscow State University and the Presidential Library. A ceremony of the official opening took place on March 28, 2014. One of the authors of the project was the developer of the current Constitution of Russia, Honored Lawyer of the Russian Federation, PhD in Jurisprudence, Professor Sergei Shakhrai.

The main task of this unique museum is to save the historical heritage of Russian constitutionalism for future generations. This project is a powerful basis for building an all-Russian unified legal and historical Internet resource where, apart from collecting artifacts and updating information on current events in related areas, is also possible to lead nationwide social surveys and studies that let assessing the nation’s outlook on current lawmaking and an overall effect of laws on the life of the country.

Currently, the virtual museum includes more than 5,000 digital copies of rare documents and unique materials on the constitutional history of Russia from the XVIII century to the present day. In addition, more recently, visitors to the museum have gotten a chance to visit the Constitution Hall in the Presidential Library by the means of a virtual 3D sightseeing tour. Owing to cutting edge technologies now it is possible to get familiar with the interior of one of the most beautiful halls of the historic building of the Holy Synod, and moreover — to study the permanent exposition located in this hall. There are the documents, photographs and newsreels that are dedicated to the “Basic State Laws” of the Russian Empire, the Constitution of the Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic of 1918, the Constitutions of the USSR of 1924, 1936 and 1977. The stages of the creation and adoption of the Constitution of the Russian Federation in 1993 are presented as well. Also in the hall there is a special exhibit — the only reproduction of the inaugural copy of the Constitution of the Russian Federation.

In addition, the presentation of a new book by the Honored Lawyer of the Russian Federation, PhD in Jurisprudence, Professor Sergei Shakhray and PhD in Jurisprudence, Professor Konstantin Krakowski entitled “The lawyers and a revolution: Pro et Contra” was held today. The popularization of the historical and cultural heritage is a key activity of the Presidential Library.

This unique edition is based on numerous archival documents. The authors offer an unusual angle for understanding the phenomenon of the Revolution of 1917 — through the prism of the fates and the views of prominent domestic lawyers who found themselves on different sides of the barricades, and then — the borders of revolutionary Russia.

The event aroused great interest among students and teachers of law faculties of leading universities in St. Petersburg. Stavropol, Tomsk, Pushkino, Kaliningrad and Arkhangelsk joined the event in the video-conferencing mode. However, the geography of the audience is much wider: some viewers watched the event online.

This is not the first time when the Presidential Library becomes a venue for events with the participation of PhD in Jurisprudence, Professor Sergei Shakhrai. In February this year, within the video lecture “Alive Constitution of Russia” he presented his book entitled “The Constitutional Law of the Russian Federation.”