If we try to imagine Kazan’s fate with all its rises and falls, it’s impossible to ignore its politics. And it’s so, not only because politics is the best of all arts, as Aristotle believed. The thing is that historical process is closely bound up with politics. It is politics that looks back at history, analyses our past and step by step brings to life the results of this analysis. The quality of such researches and their realization depends on abilities of concrete people and governments.

Kazan was headed by sultans, khans, governors, chairmen of Executive Committee of the City, today it’s mayor… History of Kazan reminds of a chains of dates and characters – among them were real heroes and cowards, people of word and embezzlers, philosophers and business people. All the rulers are politicians, to a greater or lesser extent, though surely the course of events and the fate of Kazan depended not only on them.

So, during 115 years - lifetime of the Kazan Khanate, the rulers changes 14 times, though all in all there were 21 periods of reign. It happened so, because some khans occupied the throne for 2-3 times. At first sight it may seem to be nothing else but utter confusion. In reality – that was agonizing political process of Kazan’s search for its place in the world history…

What’s the most interesting – this process, though in a completely new form, is going on nowadays as well…