A scientific review and analysis of the research of the «imperial problem» in Russian history revealed the actualization of the «Islamic factor» in the life of tsarist Russia on the basis of works devoted to the history of Islam in various regions of the Russian Empire, both Russian, domestic and foreign researchers. Especially the problems of the history of Islam in the pre-revolutionary Volga region and the Urals. This made it possible to single out one of the main among the «imperial issues»  as the «Muslim issue» in the imperial policy of the Russian Empire. During this research an attempt is made to determine the stages of the formation of the «Muslim issue», the formation of Islam as a political problem of Russian society. The development of the «Muslim isuue», its historical content, the stages of its regulation by the state, the Muslim policy of pre–revolutionary governments, in the future the discourse concerning Soviet power and the legacy of the tsarist empire - Muslims, these are the main directions of the content of this problem today.

In this article we tried to make attempts to discourse the history development problem and content of the «Muslim issue» in the Russian Empire, as one of the first in the study of «imperial issues». The issues like what was understood by the Muslim issue, what problem the government solved and what solution it found in the policy towards Muslims.