Russian State Library

Russian State Library

The first and largest public library in Russia

Moscow is rightfully considered the city of libraries. The city is enveloped by a library network of different levels and subordination. It is here we find the largest library in the country - the Russian State Library (formerly the V.I. Lenin State Library of the USSR, nicknamed the “Leninka”).

Sergei Petrovich
Rumyantsev

  • 29 710

    items

    The Rumyantsev
    collection,
    the primary library
    collection

  • 44 800 000

    items

    Size of the
    RSL collection
    in 2013

Source: RSL, 2013

The RSL collection traces its roots to the Rumyantsev family collection. Over the years the family worked towards the creation and development of a publically accessible museum and library.

RSL today
  • x9

    The archive is equal
    to 9 football fields

  • 275 km

    The overall length
    of RSL bookshelves
    is about 275 kilometers

  • 79 years

    It would take a person 79 years
    without sleep to have a quick, one minute look at each item in storage

In the beginning of XIX century the building which was the predecessor to the St. Petersburg RSL belonged to Sergei Petrovich Rumyantsev. On January 3, 1828 he received a letter from Emperor Nicholas I containing the following:
“Count Sergei Petrovich! I was particularly pleased to learn that following the promptings of your zeal for the welfare of the public, you intend to transfer the Museum, belonging to you and famous for its precious collections, to the Government in order to make it accessible to all and thus contribute to the enlightenment of the public. To express my goodwill and appreciation for this gift, offered by you to science and the Fatherland, and wanting to preserve the memory of the founders of this beneficial institution, I have ordered it be named the Rumyantsev Museum.”

In 1861 the museum was transferred to Moscow. The museum was founded on July 1, 1862 when Emperor Alexander II approved the ‘Policy on the Moscow Public Museum and Rumyantsev Muzeum’. It was the first public museum in the country containing the first free public library in Moscow.

  • 5000 readers

    1870

    visited the reading
    hall in 1870

  • 107 058 readers

    1915

    visited the reading
    hall in 1915

The museum is located in the most beautiful architectural ensemble in Moscow, the original capital of the Russian State, in the Pashkov house. J. Richter, a German traveler of the XVII century, called this building a magical castle.

All literature published within the nation made its way to the library. Gifts and donations also became an important source in expanding the collection. Muscovites brought their valuable collections to the first public library in the capital. Within a year and a half of its creation the library collection already consisted of 100 thousand items.

Readers of the RSL
  • Lev N. Tolstoy

  • Fyodor M. Dostoevsky

  • Anton P. Chekhov

  • Vladimir G. Korolenko

  • Kliment A. Timiryazev

  • Dmitry I. Mendeleev

  • Konstantin E. Tsiolkovsky

Today, the library maintains permanent relations with international professional organizations. The Library Assembly of Eurasia (BAE), which makes it possible to exchange information with the other libraries in CIS countries to promote mutual informational and cultural exchange, was created and successfully operates on initiative of the RSL. Moscow’s "Leninka" is the headquarters of the Library Assembly of Eurasia.

International contacts of the RSL:
  • Library Assembly
    of Eurasia (BAE)

  • UNESCO

  • International
    Federation
    of Library
    Associations
    and Institutions
    (IFLA)

  • International
    Organization
    for Standardization
    (ISO)

  • Libraries
    around
    the world

All citizens of Russia or any other country, provided they are a student of a university or at least 18 years of age, can register with the Russian State Library.

  • 200 new readers

    About 200 new readers
    register with the RSL daily

  • 4000 people

    Almost 4,000 people
    visit the library every day