Abstract: in this article we are talking about the form of government in Imamate. As you know, this issue attracts the attention of scientists, especially in recent times. The author’s idea is to try to draw attention once again to the essence, type and form of government in the imamate. First of all, the status of the imam as head of state is analyzed, the evolution of the appointment procedure is considered. In the Russian science there were different points of view on the essence and content of the imamate as a state. With this in mind, an attempt was made to clarify the reasons for the difficulty in determining the form of government in Shamil’s Imamat.
Keywords: Russia, Dagestan, religion, Islam, Caucasian war, imamate, imam, status of the head of state, form of government, monarchy, republic, theocracy, naib, authorities and government