The volume makes an attempt, using a problem-chronological approach when presenting the material, in a new way, from the turn of the second and third millennia, to look at the events of the “long 19th century”, to show the main trends in the development of European countries and Russia. For the first time, the main milestones in the historical development of small European countries - the Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland, the Scandinavian countries, the formation of national states and the formation of civil society - are examined.