French rossika of the 18th century

This article is devoted to one of the most mysterious and notorious sources on history of Peter I’s times. It is so called «Villebois’s memoirs». The author compares «autobiographic» story of the «memoir» with the real biography of the French at the Russian service Nikita Petrovich Villebois (1674–1760) and comes to the conclusion, that Villebois couldn’t write the memoir himself. The «autobiographic» part of «Villebois memoirs» is to be published in Russian for the first time. 

The article gives an overview of the reports, notes and memoires about Russia written by the French diplomats of the mid-eighteenth century – Marquis de La Chétardie, Count d’Allion, Chevalier d’Éon, Marquis de L’Hôpital, de la Messelière, Favier. «Secret anecdotes about the court of the Empress of All-Russia» by d’Éon are introduced for a scientific consideration. The author notes the peculiarities of each work and at the same time highlights the common features that characterize the views of French diplomats about Russia at the time of Empress Elizaveta Petrovna.