After the Crimean campaign lost by the Russian government, Turkish society looked at the representatives of Russia with almost undisguised contempt and unconsciously erupting hatred. The intrigues of foreign ambassadors only fueled hostility towards everything Russian, further entangling the tangle of contradictions. In this atmosphere of suspicion and endless conspiracies, the main character of the novel, the “lion of Russian diplomacy,” Count Nikolai Pavlovich Ignatiev, carried out his activities, setting as his immediate goal the restoration of Russia’s right to the Black Sea navy and ownership of the straits. The novel “The Keys to Istanbul” will be of interest not only for lovers of Russian history, military intelligence and diplomacy, but also for the widest circle of readers.