“The Varangians and Rus'” by the famous Russian historian Stepan Aleksandrovich Gedeonov (1816–1878) is one of the main books that deals a crushing blow to the Norman theory of the emergence of Russian statehood. First published in 1876, it was immediately noted as a significant phenomenon in Russian historical science, as an example of objectivity and scientific integrity. The book has not lost its relevance and to this day is one of the main textbooks for those who study the origins of Rus'. Adapted for popular reading.