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Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky and Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich (the august poet K. R.) were linked by many years of friendship and creative cooperation. After the composer's death (October 25, 1893), K. R. became involved in the process of perpetuating his memory. The posthumous dialogue was manifested in various forms: Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich's participation in church and secular memorial ceremonies, private commemorations, and his close communication with M.I. Tchaikovsky and V.L. Davydov — the composer's brother and nephew. In addition, K. R. reexamined his creative and epistolary communication with the composer, whose memory he would pass on to his children. These and other aspects are considered in three sections of the proposed article: 1) "Under the Sign of the Liturgy Op. 41" (this spiritual and musical work runs through the whole life of the Grand Duke); 2) "The Grand Duke and M.I. Tchaikovsky" (a key figure in the "human" aspect); 3) "K. R. Reads 'The Life of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky'" (one of the most important findings was a copy of the book 'The Life of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky', which belonged to Grand Duke and bears his notes; they retrospectively reflect the process of in-depth family reading). The article is based on documentary materials from Russian and foreign collections (including the State Archive of the Russian Federation and the Library of Congress, USA), many of which are introduced into scientific use for the first time. The article uses methods of comparative source studies. The materials of the article can be used in a course of the history of Russian music, as well as in a modern commented edition of the epistolary heritage and diaries of P.I. Tchaikovsky, M.I. Tchaikovsky and Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich.

What has happened to inflation targeting after a quarter of the century? The popular regime of monetary policy has experienced considerable changes. Central banks of developed economies received the double mandate; there were elements of monetary targeting, there was departure from an interest rate as the main instrument of monetary policy; innovations in communication policy are devoted to the disclosure of the forecast of future interest rate and alternative inflation estimates. There are deviations of the actual inflation from an inflation target, de facto moving from inflation targeting to hybrid regimes, and manipulation of inflation target in developing economies.

All the first central banks were established in the form of private joint-stock companies. After World War II the majority of them were nationalized. However the small group of central banks continues to remain in private property. Though their financial activities do not differ from other central banks, private property has an essential influence on corporate governance.

The theory of optimum currency areas was created by three famous economists, R. Mandell, R. McKinnon and P. Kenen. They identified characteristics that potential participants of a currency area should possess in order to make it feasible to surrender the independent monetary policy and the adjustment of an exchange rate of a national currency. We consider the historical development of the optimum currency areas theory and review factors which led to renewal of the theory in the early 1990s. The article focuses on some important links between historic facts, development of the economic theory, and public policy.

The article studies the history of interaction between Orthodox Christians belonging to the Russian state and Muslims. The available data demonstrate that, as early as the 14th century, Muslims started living in a number of Russian cities. With the collapse of the Golden Horde and the confrontation between its successor states, the influx of migrants to the Russian lands was constantly growing. The conquest of the Kazan and Astrakhan khanates in the 16th century and then Siberia completely changed the ethnic and religious composition of the region. One state united Russians, Tatars, and various Finno-Ugric peoples: now under its aegis were both Orthodox Christians and Muslims. This influenced state ideology and policy. To study the aforementioned issue, historians have referred to a multitude of documentary and narrative sources. However, non-Russian scholars have focused on ambassadorial books which mention interaction between Christians and Muslims. The author maintains that these sources may prove very useful. First, referring to these books, the author reveals the specificities of the relations between the native Muslim population and the outside Russian administration in conquered Astrakhan. Secondly, the author traces the routes of voluntary and forced migrants and the elite of the Nogai Horde into Russia. The author describes the details of Christian-Muslim relations and argues that the Kazan war was not a "crusade". The resettlement of part of the Kazan nobility to Novgorod did not automatically mean their conversion to Christianity. After the conquest of Astrakhan, its government was a diarchy consisting of the military administration and the local elites. Siberian archival materials provide no information about policies of intentionally converting the conquered population to Christianity. The analysis of ambassadorial books proves that Tatar prisoners were christened irregularly. Hence, the author concludes that the Russian state under Ivan the Terrible was rather indifferent to its residents' religious views. The epoch in question can be characterised by the absence of a policy of converting the Muslim population to Christianity en masse. It was only the misbalance between religious freedom and state security that led to the repression and conversion of part of the Muslim population. ; Исследование посвящено истории взаимодействия православных христиан Русского государства и мусульман. Существующие данные позволяют говорить о том, что уже в XIV в. мусульмане начинают проживать непосредственно в ряде русских городов. С распадом Золотой Орды и углублением борьбы между ее государствами-наследниками поток эмигрантов в русские земли увеличивался. Завоевание в середине XVI в. Казанского и Астраханского ханств, а позднее Сибири в корне изменило этническую и религиозную ситуацию. В рамках одной страны были объединены русские, татары, представители различных финно-угорских народов и верующие двух мировых религий – христианства и ислама. Это должно было повлиять на государственную идеологию и практику. Для изучения обозначенной проблемы историки привлекали многочисленные документальные и нарративные источники. Однако за границей внимания оставались посольские книги, где сосредоточена информация по христианско-мусульманскому взаимодействию. По мнению автора, данный вид источников представляется весьма перспективным. На основании этих книг, во-первых, выявляются особенности взаимоотношений коренного мусульманского населения с пришлой русской администрацией на территории покоренной Астрахани, во-вторых, прослеживаются потоки добровольной и насильственной миграции населения и элиты Ногайской Орды в Россию. Автор раскрывает своеобразие христианско-исламских отношений, обращаясь к характеру Казанской войны, которая не имела «крестоносного» характера. Переселение части казанской знати в Новгородчину не повлекло за собой обязательной ее христианизации. В покоренной Астрахани, по сути, образовался режим двоевластия: наряду с воеводской администрацией, в управлении городом принимала участие местная знать. Сибирские материалы тоже не дают оснований говорить о целенаправленной политике христианизации покоренного населения. Анализ данных посольских книг позволяет сказать, что случаи крещения пленных татар оставались единичными. Все это позволило автору сделать выводы, что русская государственная практика периода правления Ивана Грозного была достаточно индифферентна к вероисповедованию своих подданных. Для изучаемого времени не характерна целенаправленная политика христианизации мусульманского населения. И только нарушение баланса религиозной свободы и государственной безопасности приводило к репрессиям и крещению части мусульманского населения.