The article is devoted to two anniversaries of St. Petersburg University — the 295 ^th anniversary of the foundation (the decree of Emperor Peter the Great) and the 200 ^th anniversary of the official renewal (the decree of Emperor Alexander I). The article focuses on the controversial path that a university corporation had taken from an “academic” university of the 18 ^th century to the mass university of the early twentieth century. The article shows the unity of the tradition of university education in St. Petersburg, reconstructs the logic of transformations of university education institutions in the capital of the Russian Empire in the 18 ^th — early 19 ^th centuries. The inextricable link between the corporate history of the metropolitan university and the history of the development of the “university ideal” and “university model” in modern Europe is demonstrated. The work traces the main milestones of the institutional history of St. Petersburg University in the context of the socio-political history of Russia, changes in the nature of the state and public order with regard to university education. The paper discusses the main regulations governing the organization of the university (in particular, the Regulations on the Establishment of the Academy of Sciences and Arts in 1724, Regulations and States of the Academy of Sciences and Arts in 1747, University Charters of 1804, 1835, 1863, 1884, and etc.). Particular attention is paid to the concept of “university autonomy”, its role in the life of the university. The role of the St. Petersburg (Petrograd) University in the social and political life of Russia before the revolution is considered.