The First Public Library

Moscow State University Library 

It has long been said that books have destinies all their own. This would make libraries not only enormous repositories of printed materials, but of the destinies of books and of people – those who collect and read books. 

The original library at Moscow University was not just a part of the University, but an important part of the lives of all those whose fates became intertwined with this institution. It was founded in 1755, during the reign of Empress Elizabeth and 30 years after the death of Peter the Great.