Annotation: The historical influence of France over Russia is a common knowledge. For all that penchant for the French ways and language, however, the attitude towards the Frenchmen and all the foreigners in general was more than cautious. Vera Milchina tells the story of tribulations suffered by the French citizens visiting Russia during Nicholas I's rule. The Russian Empire was an extremely isolationist state, and thus, the receipt of the Russian visa was a self-defeating and challenging process associated with a great bureaucratic run-around; the foreigners were subject to thorough interrogations and personal searches straight on their arrival to Russia. While staying in Russia, the foreigners suffered from travel restrictions, if not provided with special permits. The author builds her narration upon the documents of great rarity, including memoirs, private correspondence and diplomatic reports.