The diary of the French ambassador. Paleologist M.

Maurice Paleologist was the Ambassador of France in Russia truly in the “Minutes of the Fatal”. He took his post shortly before the outbreak of World War I and left him shortly after the February Revolution. Being a representative of the power, which is the main ally of Russia in the war, he was dedicated to all the subtleties of the political and military affairs of the Russian Empire, entering its higher spheres, including the imperial family. In the circle of his acquaintances and interlocutors - the great princes and military leaders, ministers and members of the State Duma, influential industrialists and financiers, Russian and foreign diplomats. Of course, the “shadow” figures that influence the policy of the empire, such as Grigory Rasputin, also aroused the interest of the ambassador. All the time of his stay, the Paleologist kept a diary, in which he meticulously celebrated both official meetings and negotiations and high -society racks, on which he received no less, or even more information. Subsequently, these diaries formed the basis of his memoirs about work in Russia, which became not only the most valuable, albeit somewhat biased, historical source, but also (given the ambassador's outstanding literary gift), a very exciting reading for several generations of history lovers.