I am very fond of the reign of Emperor Nicholas I, although many will criticize me for this. This fondness, however, stems largely from the fact that the archives contain a large amount of statistical data from that period on a variety of subjects.

Every researcher wants to have statistics—especially such substantial ones. Although the future Emperor Nikolai Pavlovich, when he was merely the commander of the Finland Division, was idolized by his officers. The Grand Duke himself even served as a witness at the weddings of his officers—for example, that of the future Decembrist Andrei Yevgenyevich Rosen, who, thanks to his wife’s estate, was a landowner in the Kharkiv Governorate.

Returning to the statistics, I would like to note that the construction of buildings in the province—both government and private—was recorded annually. This is very encouraging, as it allows us to describe the development of any city in the province in terms of construction without merely making unsubstantiated claims.

The design documents for the construction of these buildings serve as a wonderful complement to the statistics. Taken together, they give researchers the opportunity to appreciate the full beauty of our beloved city—a beauty we are hopelessly losing day by day.