Do you know why the German blockade led to the collapse of the Russian economy in a matter of months, despite all its vast human and natural resources?

There can be only one answer - the human factor. Before the outbreak of the First World War, no one thought about how easily the enemy could organize a fuel crisis in the Russian Empire. As well as the fact that Russian railway workers will behave like the most implacable enemies of their own country.

We have never taken the human factor into account. For example, on November 25, 1778, the richest tax farmer Longinov, wanting to please Catherine II, organized a grand celebration in the St. Petersburg Summer Garden on her namesake day. Entertainment, tables with mountains of food, barrels of beer, wine and vodka were prepared for 40 thousand guests. So inevitably there were those who got drunk and froze to death. And the bandits took advantage of the fun that lasted until late at night, robbing and killing many St. Petersburg residents returning home. As a result, 370 people died, which caused the extreme displeasure of the empress.

The human factor is also to blame for the fact that for 200 years Russian cheeses have not caught up with Swiss cheeses in quality. After all, the main secret of Alpine cheese making is in the organization of the business. But this innovation took root with difficulty on Russian soil.

And for the failure of the Soviet car rental system, there is no one else to blame except the human factor. After all, the main man of the country did not understand that the problem of car shortages cannot be solved only with the help of loud phrases from high stands.

About these and other episodes of the ancient and recent past, where the human factor played a role, is the new issue of Kommersant-History.

Evgeny Zhirnov, head of the historical and archival service of the Kommersant Publishing House

Kommersant-History No. 10