"History of one city": analysis of the work by chapters. Saltykov-Shchedrin “The History of a City” Desirable of all mayors Mayor Appearance Characteristics of the government Means and techniques The city of fools Saltykov Shchedrin summary

This story is a "genuine" chronicle of the city of Glupov, "Glupovsky Chronicler", embracing the period from 1731 to 1825, which was "successively composed" by four of Stupov's archivists. In the chapter "From the Publisher", the author especially insists on the authenticity of the Chronicler and invites the reader to "catch the physiognomy of the city and follow how its history reflected the various changes that simultaneously took place in the higher spheres."

The Chronicler opens with "An address to the reader from the last archivist-chronicler." The archivist sees the task of the chronicler in "being a depiction" of "touching correspondence" - the authorities, "daring in measure", and the people, "thankfully giving thanks". History, therefore, is the history of the reign of various city governors.

First, a prehistoric chapter “On the origin of the Foolovites” is given, which tells how the ancient people of the bunglers defeated the neighboring tribes of walrus-eaters, onion-eaters, kosobryukhy, etc. But, not knowing what to do so that there was order, the bunglers went to look for a prince . They turned to more than one prince, but even the most stupid princes did not want to “rule the stupid” and, having taught them with a rod, let them go with honor. Then the bunglers called in a thief-innovator who helped them find the prince. The prince agreed to "rule" them, but did not go to live with them, sending a thief-innovator instead. The prince himself called the bunglers "stupid", hence the name of the city.

The Foolovites were a submissive people, but the Novotor needed riots to pacify them. But soon he was stealing so much that the prince "sent a noose to the unfaithful slave." But the Novotor “and then dodged: ‹…› without waiting for the loop, he stabbed himself with a cucumber.”

The prince also sent other rulers - an Odoev, an Orlov, a Kalyazin - but they all turned out to be sheer thieves. Then the prince "... arrived in his own person to Foolov and yelled:" I'll screw it up! With these words began historical times.

In 1762, Dementy Varlamovich Brodasty arrived in Foolov. He immediately struck the Foolovites with his sullenness and reticence. His only words were "I won't stand it!" and "I'll ruin it!" The city was lost in conjecture, until one day the clerk, entering with a report, saw a strange sight: the body of the mayor, as usual, was sitting at the table, while his head was completely empty on the table. Foolov was shocked. But then they remembered about the watch and organ affairs of master Baibakov, who secretly visited the mayor, and, having called him, they found out everything. In the head of the mayor, in one corner, there was an organ that could play two pieces of music: “I will ruin!” and "I will not stand it!". But on the way, the head got damp and needed to be repaired. Baibakov himself could not cope and turned to St. Petersburg for help, from where they promised to send a new head, but for some reason the head was delayed.

Anarchy ensued, ending with the appearance of two identical mayors at once. “The impostors met and measured each other with their eyes. The crowd dispersed slowly and in silence. A messenger immediately arrived from the province and took away both impostors. And the Foolovites, left without a mayor, immediately fell into anarchy.

The anarchy continued throughout the next week, during which six mayors changed in the city. The townsfolk rushed from Iraida Lukinichna Paleologova to Clementine de Bourbon, and from her to Amalia Karlovna Stockfish. The claims of the first were based on the short-term activity of the mayor of her husband, the second - of her father, and the third - she herself was a mayor's pompadour. The claims of Nelka Lyadokhovskaya, and then Dunka the fat-footed and Matryonka the nostrils, were even less substantiated. In between hostilities, the Foolovites threw some citizens from the bell tower and drowned others. But they are also tired of anarchy. Finally, a new mayor arrived in the city - Semyon Konstantinovich Dvoekurov. His activity in Foolovo was beneficial. “He introduced mead and brewing and made the use of mustard and bay leaves obligatory,” and also wanted to establish an academy in Foolov.

Under the next ruler, Peter Petrovich Ferdyshchenko, the city flourished for six years. But in the seventh year, "Ferdyshchenko was embarrassed by the demon." The mayor was inflamed with love for the coachman's wife Alenka. But Alenka refused him. Then, with the help of a series of successive measures, Alenka's husband, Mitka, was branded and sent to Siberia, and Alenka came to her senses. A drought fell upon the Foolovs through the sins of the mayor, and famine followed it. People started dying. Then came the end of Foolov's patience. First they sent a walker to Ferdyshchenko, but the walker did not return. Then they sent a petition, but this did not help either. Then they finally got to Alenka, and they threw her off the bell tower. But Ferdyshchenko did not doze off either, but wrote reports to his superiors. No bread was sent to him, but a team of soldiers arrived.

Through the next hobby of Ferdyshchenko, archer Domashka, fires came to the city. Pushkarskaya Sloboda was on fire, followed by Bolotnaya Sloboda and Scoundrel Sloboda. Ferdyshchenko again shied away, returned Domashka to the “optism” and called the team.

The reign of Ferdyshchenko ended with a journey. The mayor went to the city pasture. In different places, the townspeople greeted him and dinner was waiting for him. On the third day of the journey, Ferdyshchenko died of overeating.

Ferdyshchenko's successor, Vasilisk Semyonovich Borodavkin, took up his post resolutely. Having studied the history of Glupov, he found only one role model - Dvoekurov. But his achievements were already forgotten, and the Foolovites even stopped sowing mustard. Wartkin ordered that this mistake be corrected, and added Provence oil as punishment. But the fools did not give in. Then Borodavkin went on a military campaign against Streletskaya Sloboda. Not everything in the nine-day campaign was successful. In the dark, they fought with their own. Many real soldiers were fired and replaced with tin soldiers. But Wartkin survived. Having reached the settlement and not finding anyone, he began to pull the houses into logs. And then the settlement, and behind it the whole city, surrendered. Subsequently, there were several more wars for enlightenment. In general, the reign led to the impoverishment of the city, which finally ended under the next ruler, Negodyaev. In this state, Foolov found the Circassian Mikeladze.

No events were held during this period. Mikeladze stepped aside from administrative measures and dealt only with the female sex, to which he was a great hunter. The city was resting. "The visible facts were few, but the consequences are innumerable."

The Circassian was replaced by Feofilakt Irinarkhovich Benevolensky, a friend and comrade of Speransky in the seminary. He had a passion for law. But since the mayor did not have the right to issue his own laws, Benevolensky issued laws secretly, in the house of the merchant Raspopova, and scattered them around the city at night. However, he was soon dismissed for relations with Napoleon.

The next was Lieutenant Colonel Pryshch. He did not deal with business at all, but the city flourished. The harvests were huge. The fools were worried. And the secret of Pimple was revealed by the leader of the nobility. A great lover of minced meat, the leader sensed that the head of the mayor smelled of truffles and, unable to stand it, attacked and ate the stuffed head.

After that, state councilor Ivanov arrived in the city, but "turned out to be so small that he could not contain anything spacious," and died. His successor, the immigrant Vicomte de Chario, constantly had fun and was sent abroad by order of his superiors. Upon examination, it turned out to be a girl.

Finally, State Councilor Erast Andreevich Sadtilov appeared in Foolov. By this time the Foolovites had forgotten the true God and clung to idols. Under him, the city was completely mired in debauchery and laziness. Hoping for their happiness, they stopped sowing, and famine came to the city. Sadtilov was busy with daily balls. But everything suddenly changed when she appeared to him. The wife of the pharmacist Pfeifer showed Sadtilov the path of goodness. The holy fools and the wretched, who experienced hard days during the worship of idols, became the main people in the city. The Foolovites repented, but the fields remained empty. The Glupovsky beau monde gathered at night to read Mr. Strakhov and "admiration", which the authorities soon found out about, and Sadtilov was removed.

The last Foolovsky mayor, Ugryum-Burcheev, was an idiot. He set a goal - to turn the Foolovs into "the city of Nepreklonsk, eternally worthy of the memory of the Grand Duke Svyatoslav Igorevich" with straight identical streets, "companies", identical houses for identical families, etc. Ugryum-Burcheev thought out the plan in detail and proceeded to execution. The city was destroyed to the ground, and it was possible to start building, but the river interfered. She did not fit into the plans of Ugryum-Burcheev. The indefatigable mayor led an offensive against her. All the garbage, all that was left of the city, was put into action, but the river washed away all the dams. And then Moody-Grumbling turned around and walked away from the river, leading the Foolovites with him. A completely flat lowland was chosen for the city, and construction began. But something has changed. However, the notebooks with the details of this story have been lost, and the publisher gives only the denouement: "... the earth shook, the sun faded‹...> It came." Without explaining what exactly, the author only reports that “the scoundrel instantly disappeared, as if dissolved in thin air. History has stopped flowing."

The story is closed by "acquittal documents", i.e., the writings of various city governors, such as: Borodavkin, Mikeladze and Benevolensky, written as a warning to other city governors.

Summary of the “History of a City” by Saltykov-Shchedrin

About the book

"The History of a City" is a novel that has become the pinnacle of Saltykov-Shchedrin's satirical talent. The work describes the history of the city of Glupov and its inhabitants, which is essentially a parody of the autocratic power in Russia. The first chapters of the novel were published in 1869 and immediately caused a storm of condemnation and criticism of the author. Many saw in the work disrespect for the Russian people, a mockery of their native history.

Let's try to understand how these accusations were justified by examining the summary. "The History of a City" (Saltykov-Shchedrin wrote the novel in just two years) is considered the crowning achievement of the writer's entire work, let's consider this work in more detail. And at the same time, you can find out why the novel remains topical to this day. Surprisingly, the vices relevant to the 19th century turned out to be so ineradicable that they have survived to this day.

Summary: "The history of one city" (Saltykov-Shchedrin). Chapter 1

This chapter contains an appeal by the chronicler-archivist to the reader, stylized as an old style of writing. Then the role of the narrator is alternately played by the author, publisher and commentator of the archive, where the records of the history of the Foolovites are kept. The main goal of the book is also indicated here - to portray all the mayors of Glupov who have ever been appointed by the Russian government.

Chapter 2

We continue to present a summary ("History of one city"). “About the origin of the Foolovites” - such a telling title is the second chapter. The narrative here is of an annalistic nature, the author talks about the life and life of the bunglers - this is how the inhabitants of Glupov used to be called. The prehistoric era described in the chapter seems fantastic and grotesquely absurd. And the peoples who lived here in those days appear completely narrow-minded and absurd.

In this part of the novel, the author clearly imitates the Tale of Igor's Campaign in the manner of presentation, which is also confirmed by the summary. “History of a City” (“On the Root of the Origin of the Foolovists” in particular), thus, appears to be a very absurdist and satirical work.

Chapter 3

This part is a brief listing of all twenty-two of the mayors of Glupov with a few comments, which contains the main merits of each official and indicates the reason for the departure of each from life. For example, Lamvrokakis was eaten in bed by bedbugs, and Ferapontov was torn to pieces in the forest by dogs.

Chapter 4

The main narrative of the novel begins, as evidenced by the summary (“The History of a City”). "Organchik" - this is the title of Chapter 4 and the nickname of one of the most remarkable city governors that the Foolovites saw.

Brodystoy (Organchik) had in his head instead of brains a mechanism capable of reproducing two words: “I will not tolerate” and “I will ruin”. The reign of this official could have been long and successful if one day his head had not disappeared. One morning, the clerk came in to report to Brudastom and saw only the body of the mayor, and the head was not observed on the spot. Unrest broke out in the city. It turned out that the watchmaker Baibakov tried to repair the organ that was in the head of the mayor, but could not and sent a letter to Vintelhalter with a request to send a new head. Fascinating, but with a share of absurdity, the events of this chapter unfold, which conveys its summary.

"The History of a City" (Organchik is one of the brightest and most revealing characters here) is not only a novel that exposes the state system, but also a parody of the rulers of Russia. Saltykov-Shchedrin draws a hero who is able to say only two lines, but his right to power is not disputed. On the contrary, as soon as the head is brought, it is put into place, and the unrest in the city stops.

Chapter 5

Let's continue with the summary. "The History of a City" (Saltykov-Shchedrin) is a work that colorfully exposes the whole absurdity of the life of monarchic Russia. And the 5th chapter was no exception, it describes the struggle for power after the city was left without a ruler appointed from above.

Having taken possession of the treasury, Iraida Paleologova takes the place of the mayor. She orders all those dissatisfied with her rule to be seized and forced to recognize her authority. But another contender for power appears in Foolov, who manages to overthrow Iraida - Clementine de Bourbon.

But the reign of Clementine did not last long, a third contender for power appeared - Amalia Stockfish. She got the townspeople drunk, and they grabbed and put Clementine in a cage.

Then Nelka Lyadokhovskaya seized power, and behind her was Dunka the fat-footed, and with her Matryona the nostril.

This confusion with the authorities lasted seven days, until the town governor appointed by the authorities, Semyon Konstantinovich Dvoekurov, arrived in Foolov.

Chapter 6

Now the story of Dvoekurov’s reign will be a summary (“History of a City”, Saltykov-Shchedrin) chapter by chapter. This active city governor issued a decree on the obligatory use of bay leaves and mustard by the Foolovites. The most significant thing that Dvoekourov did was a note that it was necessary to open an academy in Foolovo. The chronicle did not preserve any other data from his biography.

Chapter 7

The chapter describes six prosperous years in the life of the Foolovites: there were no fires, famine, diseases, or the fall of livestock. And all thanks to the reign of Petr Petrovich Ferdyshchenko.

But the satire knows no mercy for officials, which Saltykov-Shchedrin wields so skillfully. “The history of one city”, the summary of which we are considering, is not rich in happy times. And in the seventh year of the reign, everything changes. Ferdyshchenko fell in love with Alena Osipova, who refused him because she was married. Alena's husband, Mitka, having learned about this, rebelled against the authorities. Ferdyshchenko exiled him to Siberia for this. The whole city had to pay for Mitka's sins - famine set in. The Foolovites blamed Alena for this and threw her off the bell tower. After that, bread appeared in the city.

Chapter 8

The events included in the summary (“History of one city”) continue to develop. An excerpt (8th grade studies this point) from a book describing them is usually included in the school curriculum. The point here is that the mayor fell in love again, but now with Domashka the Archer.

Now the city is overtaken by another disaster - a fire, from which it was possible to escape only thanks to the rain. The Foolovites blame the mayor for what happened and demand that he answer for all his sins. Ferdyshchenko publicly repents, but immediately writes a denunciation of the people who dared to oppose the authorities. Upon learning of this, all the inhabitants of the city were numb with fear.

Chapter 9

Topicality, malicious mockery and a desire to correct the unfortunate situation in the country are manifested in the novel written by Saltykov-Shchedrin (“The History of a City”). The brief summary gives an extra opportunity to be convinced of this. Ferdyshchenko decides to profit from pastures. He is convinced that from his appearance the grasses will become greener, and the flowers - more magnificent. His journey through the meadows begins, accompanied by drunkenness and intimidation of the Foolovites, which ends with the mayor's mouth twisting from overeating.

A new mayor is sent to Foolov - Vasilisk Semenovich Borodavkin.

Chapter 10

A brief summary will be devoted to the description of the new mayor. “The history of one city”, an excerpt (grade 8) of which is studied at school, can attract young readers just by its satirical side.

The new mayor is distinguished by the fact that he is used to constantly shouting and thus getting his way. I slept with only one eye closed, while the other watched everything. And he was a writer - he wrote a project about the army and navy, adding a line to it every day.

Wartkin at first fought for enlightenment, then he realized that bewilderment can be better than poly-wittedness, and began to fight against it. In 1798 he died.

Chapter 11

We continue to detail the summary ("History of one city"). Saltykov-Shchedrin, breaking the story into chapters, made each part of the novel a separate milestone in the history of Foolov. So, tired of the war associated with enlightenment, the Foolovites demanded that the city be completely freed from it. Therefore, the reform of the new mayor Mikaladze (a ban on issuing any laws and an end to the fight against education) pleased them. The only weakness of the new representative of power was the love of women. He died from exhaustion.

Chapter 12

Saltykov-Shchedrin (“The History of a City”) begins this section of the story with a description of difficult times for the Foolovites. The summary (an excerpt from this chapter is often given in school textbooks) tells that due to the constant change of power, or even the complete absence of the mayor, the city was ruled by quarters, which led the Foolovs to hunger and ruin.

Then the Frenchman du Chario was appointed to the city, who liked to eat pies with filling and have fun, but he was not interested in state affairs.

The Foolovites began to build a tower, the end of which was supposed to reach heaven, to worship Volos and Perun. Their language became similar to a mixture of monkey and human. The Foolovites began to consider themselves the wisest in the world.

An interesting summary of the "History of a City" chapter by chapter. Thus, the change in the Foolovites described in this part is reminiscent of the biblical stories about the city of Babylon.

The new mayor, Sadtilov, favorably accepted the decline in the morals of the Foolovites, considering this a true enjoyment of life.

Chapter 13

The summary is coming to an end. The "History of a City" (Saltykov-Shchedrin) is divided into chapters so that the penultimate chapter becomes a description of the death of Foolov.

The ideas of the new city governor Ugryum-Burcheev about equality turn the city into a barracks, where any free-thinking is immediately punished. Such an arrangement of life leads to the disappearance of Foolov and the death of the Foolovites.

Chapter 14

How does Saltykov-Shchedrin end his story? The history of one city (a brief summary of the last chapter is presented below) has ended. In conclusion, the author presents a set of works by the mayors of the city of Glupov on how subordinates should be managed, what duties the supreme authority should perform, how to behave and look like a city governor.

Dementy Varlamovich Brodasty is the eighth mayor appointed to rule the ill-fated town of Foolov. In the "Inventory of the mayors" his brief but capacious description is given: "He was appointed in a hurry and had some special device in his head ... This did not prevent him, however, from putting in order the arrears launched by his predecessor."
These sarcastic words contain both the meaning of the activity of this “great man” and the attitude of the author in this activity.
Silent and gloomy, Brody knew only one word - "I won't beat you!" His reign began with the fact that he "crossed a lot of coachmen." And subsequently, Brodysty created the appearance of the most violent activity - for days he locked himself in his office, “scraping with a pen” for something. The consequences of this paperwork terrified the entire population of Glupov: “They seize and catch, whip and flog, describe and sell ...”
These six verbs contained the essence of Brodasty's activity, which, however, did not differ from the activity of other mayors. Violence, cruelty, stupidity, inertia, admiration for ranks and contempt for the people - these are the features of the government of all Foolov's mayors, and Brudasty in particular.
The image of this character is symbolic. Recall that he was nicknamed "Organchik" because instead of a head he had some kind of mechanical device. Brodysty's head had to be filled with artificial content, otherwise it was just a shell devoid of brains: empty mayor's head ... "
Thus, with the help of a capacious image, Shchedrin shows that the rulers are just puppets, led by evil instincts, stupidity, inertia, prejudices. But even without such leaders the Russian people cannot live. While Brodysty was lying headless, waiting for the next organ, anarchy and devastation set in in the city. However, soon the Foolovites - "as a reward" for all the suffering - received two rulers at once - with "iron heads". Such an ending to Brodasty's reign once again emphasizes the author's idea that all the rulers of Foolov are the same - equally insignificant, faceless, terrible.

Year: 1869 Genre: novel Main characters: foolovites

This is the story of a city that was ruled by mayors for a hundred years. Saltykov-Shchedrin published his novel in 1870. A very specific work, difficult to read. At the very beginning, the author says that he has long wanted to write the history of some city. But all the time "hands did not reach": he had little truthful material. He rummaged through the archives of the city of Glupov and found a bunch of notebooks about him. They contained biographies of city governors, which, according to Saltykov-Shchedrin, are genuine. Not everyone is discussed in the novel, but only those who at least somehow stood out.

The satirical novel presents the appearance of the city and various changes that simultaneously took place in the highest circles of power. This work, through exaggeration, humor and sarcasm, shows the history of Russian society in the second half of the 19th century.

Summary Saltykov-Shchedrin The history of one city by chapter

Over a century of history, 22 mayors have changed. And the archivists who compiled the chronicle wrote about all of them truthfully. The city traded in kvass, liver and boiled eggs. It is located on seven mountains.

On the origin of the Foolovites

The history of the emergence of the city is connected with the people who were called bunglers. Other tribes lived next to them. They constantly fought among themselves, then reconciled. Endless wars ravaged all the lands. The bunglers understood that it was necessary to change the situation, and they defeated all the tribes.

But there was still no order among them. They decided to look for a prince for themselves. The first one they approached turned down the bunglers. For endless quarrels, he called them stupid and advised them to look for a prince like himself. Offended bunglers spent three years looking for a stupid ruler.

One of the tribesmen said that he had a friend - a thief-innovator. He will find the right prince. This newcomer led the Foolovites behind him. The third prince gave his consent, but on the condition that he would not go to live with them, but would manage the city from his residence. Instead of himself as the chief, he left the innovator.

The bunglers agreed to such a government. And also to the fact that they will pay tribute to the prince-ruler, go to the call for war and be called Foolovites. Returning home, they founded the city of Foolov.

The townspeople were submissive, but the newcomer had to be shown that he knew how to restore order. And therefore periodically organized riots to pacify. But in the end, he stole so much that the prince decided to execute him. But he didn't. Novotor killed himself: he killed himself with a cucumber.

After that, the prince repeatedly sent his deputies-rulers to the city. But they all turned out to be thieves. When the prince got tired of this, he himself came to Foolov. Further in the novel follows a list of 22 mayors, when they ruled and what they remember.

organ

In August 1762, a new chief arrived in the city - Dementy Varlamovich Brodasty. The Foolovites rejoiced, expecting reforms and improvements from him. But Brody turned out to be silent and gloomy. The chief closed himself in his office, creating the appearance of work. When he went out, he uttered only one phrase: “I will not tolerate it!”

People did not understand him and were afraid, whispering that Brody was a werewolf. It became known that the watch and organ master Baibakov often visits the mayor. The Foolovites wondered why Brudasty needed this drunkard. But the chief did not react to the questions of the townspeople and was stubbornly silent.

Once Brodysty invited all the local intelligentsia to a reception. He came out to them with a smile, but could not say his cherished phrase and ran away. And he would have been the mayor for a long time, if not one case.

One morning an official came with a report to his office. He saw the sitting body of Brodysty and his empty head lying on the table. The officer quickly ran out in fear. The residents who learned about this incident understood that it was impossible for an empty-headed person to manage the city.

Master Baibakov told them that there was a small organ in the head of the mayor, which could only play two melodies “I will ruin” and “I will not tolerate”. While he was getting to Stupid Busty's head broke a little. Baibakov took it with him, repaired it and returned it. But all attempts were in vain, then the master advised to apply to St. Petersburg with a request to send a new head.

The Tale of the Six Mayors

Brody did just that, but the package has not yet been delivered. The mayor's assistant sent a telegram to the capital, waiting for an explanation, and so far locked Brodysty's body. Anarchy began in Foolov: people stopped working, murders began. But a holy place is never empty, and others, and women, decided to become mayors.

For seven days without bosses, six representatives of the fair sex alternately considered themselves the rulers of the city. The first was a childless widow. The father of the second adventurer was once a mayor. The third contender was German, the fourth was Polish. Dunka and Matryonka came to power at the same time. All the rulers ended their lives tragically.

The news about Dvokurov

On the seventh day, a new mayor, Semyon Konstantinovich Dvoekurov, arrived in Foolov. He ruled the city for 8 years. It was one of the best times in Glupov's history. But there were very few records about Dvoekurov in the annals. Most likely, subsequent mayors tried to remove information about a worthy person.

hungry city

For 6 years, under the mayor Petr Petrovich Ferdyshchenko, everything was fine in Glupovo. But in the seventh year of his reign, a demon took possession of him, and he began to restore order. He sent to Siberia, along with thieves and robbers, the innocent husband of a girl who for a long time did not want to become Ferdyshchenko's mistress.

Shortly thereafter, an unprecedented drought began in the city, causing famine. The inhabitants attributed this divine punishment to the sins of the mayor. And he wrote letters with a request to send bread or soldiers to maintain order. But there was no answer, and people continued to die of hunger. There were periodic riots in the city, there were fires. The people were dissatisfied with the immoral behavior of the mayor. Ferdyshchenko died of gluttony and drunkenness.

Wars for enlightenment

After 7 days, a new mayor arrived - Vasilisk Semenovich Borodavkin. With him began the golden age of Foolov. Wartkin was a very active figure. He slept with one eye open, which frightened even his wife. He carried out educational reforms by ruining and devastating his people. Wartkin died a natural death to the delight of all the Foolovites.

The era of dismissal from wars

At the beginning of the 19th century, the reign of Negodyaev ended. Nothing remarkable has happened in 4 years. After him was Mikaladze. His reign was peaceful. And he died of exhaustion.

Feofilakt Irinarkhovich Benevolensky - the next, 15th mayor. He liked to write laws, but as mayor he had no right to adopt them. Then he began to compose sermons that the priests read in churches. The next step was to write our own constitution. This was prevented by Benevolensky's stormy correspondence with the French Emperor Napoleon. They arrested him for treason.

Worship of Mammon and Repentance

The next mayor was Lieutenant Colonel Pimple. He had a stuffed head, thanks to which the Foolovites lived well. Pimple was eaten by a local cannibal. State Councilor Ivanov - 17th mayor. He was short and disappeared from the city very quickly.

He was replaced by the Viscount du Chario from France. He was a merry fellow: he ate a lot, arranged masquerades. Under him, the Foolovites began building the tower, but never finished it. When the mayor was dismissed, it turned out that du Chario was a woman.

Nothing is known about the 19th chief. State Councilor Erast Andreevich Sadtilov became the 20th mayor. Under him, parasitism flourished in Foolovo. The people turned to religion. A group of sectarians led by the mayor gathered in an abandoned house to read sermons, conduct mystical rites and cult dances.

Conclusion

After Sadtilov's dismissal, Moody-Grumbling appeared. Residents called the new mayor Satan. He slept on the bare ground, put a stone instead of a pillow, marched every day for 3 hours, giving commands to himself. Gloomy-Grumbling wanted to rebuild the city as he wished: in the middle of the square with the radii of the street going away from it. He opposed the spread of literacy.

The grandiose plans of the new chief included the destruction of the city and the construction of a new one. The new city was named Nepreklonsk. When the construction was over, something like an earthquake happened, and Grump-Grumbling vanished into thin air.

On this story of the mayors of one city stopped. The novel ends with exculpatory documents of various rulers. These are wishes for your followers.